Live streaming just got easier thanks to Gramrphone. The app that allows you to stream to over 10 different platforms – including Mixcloud – without any additional hardware or software. In this article, the Gramrphone team will guide you through the various ways you can stream through the app. Suiting whichever medium you use and optimizing it for the highest quality possible.
The pandemic-driven shift towards live streaming was an important step in democratizing distribution and access of live music for creators and audiences everywhere. This trend was embraced on Mixcloud. Now we’re making it even easier to live stream. Thanks to our exciting integration with high quality live streaming app, Gramrphone.
Gramrphone lets you live stream your performances, radio-shows and listening parties, straight from your CDJs, DJ Software or DAW to Mixcloud, without needing to use any additional tools. Creators can include visuals, a camera-feed and, most importantly, deliver high quality audio, totally free of charge. This offers more creative freedom when you live stream, as you determine how that will take place.
In this article, we’ll show you a quick guide to get started on Gramrphone.
How to Start
Grammrphone includes all the technical components you need to live stream, including audio capture, monitoring and RTMP streaming.
The app is compatible with Mac computers operating on 10.14 and above. A Windows version is coming later in 2023 and you can sign up for early access. For a visual demonstration, you can watch this tutorial.
Live streaming with your CDJs
Most DJs playing live at an event or a venue will likely want to live stream straight from their CDJs. You can do this by taking the Left and Right signal out of your Booth Output using ¼ inch jack leads. Plug the other ends of the leads into the front of an Audio Interface (i.e Focusrite, Audiobox etc), and turn up the signal input.
In Gramrphone select stream from ‘DJ Software Software’ as your Audio Input, and your Interface as your Microphone Input. The icon will turn green as soon as you play music on your CDJs. For ‘Monitor Output’ you can select your speakers, headphones or your interface again if that’s how your monitor device is connected. Now that your audio is all good to go, just select Mixcloud as your ‘Stream Output’, paste in your stream key and start your stream!
Live streaming from your DJ software
If you’re streaming from home or the studio and would like to live stream straight from your DJ software, you can do that without any configuration or setup, thanks to Gramrphone’s automated audio capture device. Simply open Serato, Traktor, Rekordbox, Virtual DJ or any other DJ software you are using and start playing music.
In Gramrphone, select ‘Stream from DJ Software’ as your audio input. The icon will turn green as soon as the audio is picked up. The default microphone input will change to ‘via your DJ Software’ but you can change this to your built-in microphone or any other external microphone you may have plugged in if you want to add vocals.
Select how you want to monitor the output and then select Mixcloud as your ‘Stream Output’ to start the stream.
Live streaming from your DAW
If you’re in work-in-progress or producer mode you can live stream your sessions straight from your DAW to Mixcloud.
For Logic, go to ‘Preferences>Audio>Devices’ and select Gramrphone as your ‘Output Device.’ Now, audio coming from Logic will be picked up and ready to live stream to Mixcloud. In Gramrphone, select ‘Stream From DAW’ as your audio input in Gramrphone and you’re ready to start streaming.
If you want to input audio using an interface, mixer or soundcard you can do so by selecting it as your input device. Then go to Logic, select ‘Preferences>Audio>General’ and make sure ‘software monitoring’ is turned on and ‘input monitoring only for the focused track’ is turned off. Back in your Logic project, select the orange ‘I’ for input monitoring on your mic track.
For Ableton, go to ‘Preferences>Audio’ and select Gramrphone as your output device and your interface, mixer or soundcard as your input device if you are using one. Play some audio, then go to Gramrphone and select ‘Stream From DAW’ as your audio input.
Live streaming from your desktop
Finally, if you simply want to live stream some tracks straight from your desktop you can do that using the ‘Stream From Desktop’ option.
Open any audio application on your desktop or internet browser and play some music. Go to Gramrphone and select ‘Stream From Desktop’ as your audio input. When the audio is picked up the icon will turn green. Plug in and select your microphone if you would like to use one. Then select how you want to monitor the audio during your livestream. Lastly, select Mixcloud as your stream output, paste in your Mixcloud stream key and hit ‘Start Stream!’
If you have any specific questions about using Gramrphone on Mixcloud you can contact the team directly here.