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Transcoding

tvarr can transcode streams in real-time using FFmpeg.

When to Transcode​

Transcoding is useful when:

  • Your device doesn't support the source codec (e.g., HEVC on older devices)
  • You want to reduce bandwidth for mobile viewers
  • You need a different container format (HLS, DASH)
  • The source quality is too high for your connection

How It Works​

Source Stream → FFmpeg → Transcoded Stream → Player
     │                         │
  HEVC/AAC              H264/AAC @ 720p

tvarr uses FFmpeg for transcoding, with support for:

  • Hardware acceleration - VAAPI, NVENC, QSV, AMF
  • Distributed workers - Scale across multiple machines
  • On-demand transcoding - Only transcode when someone's watching

Setup Options​

Built-in Transcoding​

The standalone image (ghcr.io/jmylchreest/tvarr:release) includes FFmpeg and can transcode locally.

Distributed Transcoding​

For larger setups, run separate transcoding workers:

  1. Main tvarr as coordinator
  2. One or more ffmpegd workers
  3. Workers connect via gRPC and share the load