Encoder BATTLE - X264 Slow vs Modified NVENC

I wish more streamers actually took the time to test stuff like this. There's so many that are blocking their streams and for what? A nob that makes the viewer think it's high quality because it says 1080?

X264 slow is better then nvenc P7...but from my tests you need 16 cores cpu for one streaming pc

Nvenc still sucks when there is mesh, vegetation and random details in a scene the whole image gets very blocky. X264 is still beter

I use x264 check my streams on twitch : vankedisiTV. It's slow with my secret sauce lol

You should pick a game with heavy vegetation like witcher 3 because in those scenarios we can understand the encoder's quality..

if i have a 10700k and a 3080 gpu, which enconder would be best for me ?

I like eposvox, I even follow his channel, but respectfully he doesn't know anything about x264. He has a lot of knowledge when in comes to mics and sound, but for visual quality I wouldn't take his advice. I have a heavily modified "SLOW PRESET" that actually uses less CPU than SLOW and will put any preset to shame even at 6000kbps 1080p.

meh you can have even more preset if you do something more with streamfx

Legend. I'm running 3700x with a 3070, Single computer for play and stream. Like many others it seems, I have had a bunch of trouble streaming APEX Legends, my upload is 20mb so it all comes down to hardware/software in my eyes. I stream with SLOB's so I feel I am already on the backfoot as it seems to use more of the processer.

NVENC or X264? I am getting the vibe I am going to need to run it 720p no matter what.

Considering prices of gpus right now, would I be better off building a 12900k system with no gpu as a dedicated streaming pc and just stream 720p x264 slow?

nvenc 864p is crisp!

I'm technically cheating, but NVENC looks better, while x264 is more true to the original.

Hey Carto - super interesting stuff! I was wondering which you think would be most performant for a single-PC stream setup. For context, I have an 8700k w/ a 3080 and found that NVENC seems to take the least overhead in very CPU-demanding games.

As an aside - I absolutely LOVE how you edited the breakdowns between the different options/settings. Super clean!

IMHO the NVENC footage, regardless of resolution, looks better. I tried watching full-screen (typical for YT viewing) and in the standard size player (which is the best I can do to replicate watching on Twitch). I'm watching at 1440p and, interestingly enough, 720p looked better than the other two resolutions.

But a couple of questions arise from all of this.

First, how can the average streamer (not-partnered) stream at 8000? I've tried and Twitch just won't have it. I know my upload is fine as I'm able to stream to YT at 10000 (though I don't, but in testing it held solid for two hours at a steady 10Mbps. My full upload potential is 20Mbps). But if I go above 6500 on Twitch, there are non-stop dropped frames on the network side (not encoder or render, both sit at 0). That leads me to believe that Twitch is just rejecting the higher bitrate at which I'm uploading, resulting in dropped frames.

Second, how does this factor into recording while streaming? What impact does recording at the native resolution have? I currently stream at 864/60 at a 6500 constant bitrate, while recording at full resolution (1440) with VBR between 25000-35000 using NVENC.

Finally, I am looking at an upgrade rather soon. While I'd like to keep it as budget friendly as possible, I am willing to spend what is necessary. In your opinion, is a 10850k going to suffice without compromise? Or should I go ahead and shell out the cash for the 12900k? I will be sticking with my 2080 GPU regardless (because I'm not paying current GPU prices and I lack the connections to get one at or near MSRP).