VLC Media Player can not only play the videos on your computer, but it also can work as a great screen recorder to capture video and audio on your device. How to record screen with VLC? This post will guide you through recording with VLC on Windows and Mac. Keep reading to know the steps.
VLC Media Player isn't just a video player, and it also lets you record your screen with simple built-in tools. You can capture desktop actions, tutorials, or online videos without extra software. People choose VLC because it's free, open-source, and works on both Windows and Mac. It's lightweight and easy to use. But VLC has limits. It doesn't record system audio by default, and the setup can be tricky. Users often face no sound, black screens, or recording issues.
This guide will show you how to record your screen on Windows and Mac, how to capture system audio, and how to fix common problems.
Yes. VLC can record your screen, but it's not a full-featured screen recorder. It offers a simple way to capture your desktop, which is useful for quick tasks or basic tutorials. However, VLC lacks advanced options like system audio recording, editing tools, or high-quality output settings. It works best for basic screen capture when you don't want to install other software.
In the next sections, we'll show you how to record your screen on Windows and Mac, step by step.
The steps to record with VLC Player on Windows computers are straightforward. All you need to do is adjust the settings correctly. This multimedia player offers you many useful features to record a video. For example, you can customize the frame rate of your recordings, and it would be better to set the frame rate as 10-15 fps, as long as you don't need to capture fast-moving objects on the screen. In addition, VLC Player allows you to select a suitable video format before recording so that you don't have to spend time converting the recordings.
Next, this part will talk about how VLC records the screen on your computer.
Method of Recording with VLC on Windows PC:
1Step 1. First of all, you need to launch the VLC Media Player. There are some options in the top toolbar. Click on"Media" and select "Convert/Save..." from its dropdown menu.
2Step 2. Then, a new window will pop up. Navigate to the "Capture Device" tab, set the capture mode as "Desktop", and choose a suitable frame rate. Then, click on "Convert/Save" > "Convert" to move to a new window.
3Step 3. You need to continue to complete the settings for the VLC screen capture. Select the output video format in the "Profile" section, and you can select MP4 from the drop-down menu. Then, click on the "Browse" button after "Destination file" to decide the save path.
4Step 4. Finally, hit the "Start" button to record the desktop with VLC Player.
✅✅There are things you need to pay attention to:
As mentioned above, VLC Media Player is a cross-platform multimedia player. That means this software is also compatible with macOS, and you can screen capture with VLC on your Mac, like doing that on a Windows PC. While the VLC Player works similarly on those two systems, some differences exist between the user interfaces.
If you feel confused about how to record screen with VLC on a Mac, the following tutorial may be helpful.
Method of VLC Recording Screen on Mac:
1Step 1. Launch VLC Player on your Mac. Navigate to the "File" option at the top of the screen and select "Open Capture Device..." to set the video source.
2Step 2. When a new window pops up, click on the "Capture" tab and select "Screen" as the video source.
3Step 3. Hit the "Settings" button on the same window and customize the frame rate. Like on Windows PC, 10-15 fps is suitable for your recordings unless something moves too fast on the screen.
4Step 4. Click "Open" and minimize the VLC recording window. Then, hit the "Playback" button on the top toolbar and click on "Record" to capture your screen.
By default, VLC cannot directly record system audio while capturing your screen. To capture both screen video and system sound, you need to use additional virtual audio devices, but the setup differs between Windows and Mac.
Here's how to use VLC to record audio on Windows and Mac:
Step 1. Open VLC and click "Media" > "Open Capture Device…".
Step 2. In the "Capture Device" tab, set Capture mode to "Desktop" for screen recording.
Step 3. Below that, find the "Audio device name" dropdown menu.
Step 4. Select the virtual audio device you installed (VB-Audio Virtual Cable on Windows, BlackHole/Soundflower on Mac) as the audio input source.
After completing these settings, start recording in VLC. It’s recommended to test the audio capture first, since virtual audio routing may need adjustments.
Cause: VLC does not capture system audio by default.
Fix: Make sure you have set up and selected a virtual audio device (like VB-Audio Virtual Cable on Windows or BlackHole on Mac) in VLC’s audio capture device settings. Also, verify that your system sound is routed correctly to the virtual device.
Cause: VLC may fail to capture the desktop properly due to graphics driver issues or hardware acceleration conflicts.
To solve the problem:
Cause: High CPU usage or insufficient frame rate settings.
Fixes to solve the problem:
Set your frame rate between 15 and 30 fps. Lower frame rates reduce file size and CPU usage but may result in less smooth video. Higher frame rates offer smoother playback but require more system resources and produce larger files.
Choose MP4 format with the H.264 codec for optimal compatibility and efficient compression without sacrificing quality.
Performance Optimization Tips:
Spread out this guide with others in need!
This post offers two methods of VLC recording screens on different systems, and both are effective. However, as a media player, VLC cannot totally replace some specialized screen recorders. For instance, it's tough to capture only part of the screen with this software, and the size of the output files is usually too huge, so you have to find a file compressing tool to reduce it. Moreover, VLC doesn't support recording screen and audio simultaneously, and this problem bothers many people. You can only record the screen and audio separately and sync them after recording.
Luckily, there are plenty of powerful screen recorders on Windows and Mac that can solve every problem you may have in using VLC Media Player. EaseUS RecExperts is one of the notable and reliable screen recorders you can choose. This software allows you to select the recording region to capture the screen or take screenshots effortlessly. It also supports recording the screen with audio and webcam. Thus you will be able to make many kinds of videos by yourself.
One of the most important features that distinguish EaseUS RecExperts from other recorders is the easy-to-use built-in video editing tools. There is a trimmer for you when it's necessary to remove some parts from the captured video and audio files.
Key Features:
This all-in-one screen recorder is also compatible with Mac. Don't miss this program if you want to capture something on your computer. Click on the button to download it for free.
Steps to Use the Alternative of VLC Screen Recorder:
Step 1. Launch EaseUS RecExperts. You'll see six recording modes available. Choose Full Screen to capture everything on your display, Custom to record a selected area, Window to record a specific app window, Game for optimized gameplay recording, Audio to capture system or microphone sound only, and Webcam to record your webcam feed.
Step 2. Select your input sources. You can freely enable or disable the Webcam, Speaker, or Microphone depending on your needs. If you only want to record a silent screen, simply turn all of them off.
Step 3. Click the red REC button to start recording. A floating control bar will appear on your screen. To pause the recording, click the Pause button (white); to stop it, click the Stop button (red).
Step 4. After recording, you'll be taken to the preview window, where you can watch, trim, or edit your recording with ease.
More than merely a multimedia player, it's also possible to record screen with VLC. However, the disadvantages of recording screens with this software are bothering many people. To get high-quality videos by capturing the screen on Windows and Mac, you need a great screen recorder like EaseUS RecExperts.
This software allows users to record anything on a computer screen, and its intuitive interface is suitable for everyone, especially for novices. Download and install it to make your own videos now.
No. VLC does not support capturing screen and audio at the same time. So, if you want to record screen and audio simultaneously, you need to find some VLC alternatives, such as EaseUS RecExperts, OBS Studio, Fraps, etc.
Yes, VLC can capture video from your webcam. You can select your webcam as the capture device in VLC's Open Capture Device settings and start recording directly. However, VLC's webcam recording features are basic compared to dedicated webcam software.
Yes, VLC allows you to record network streams such as live broadcasts or online videos. By opening a network stream URL in VLC, you can play and record the stream simultaneously using the Convert/Save function.
Below are some common reasons:
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