How to Stream Videos with MPC-HC

This guide will walk you through the process of streaming videos directly from YouTube and various online platforms using Media Player Classic Home Cinema (MPC-HC) in conjunction with yt-dlp.

 

MPC-HC Video Streaming



With this setup, you can not only stream videos but also download them for offline viewing.


What is yt-dlp?

While MPC-HC doesn't need much presentation, this youtube-dl fork is less known.

So, "yt-dlp is a youtube-dl fork, based on the now inactive youtube-dlc. The main focus of this project is adding new features and patches while also keeping up to date with the original project."

Mainly, yt-dlp is a command-line (CLI) program that lets you easily download videos and audio from more than a thousand websites!


Now that everything is clear, follow the steps below to get started.

Install MPC-HC:

Download and install MPC-HC. Follow the installation process or just unzip the portable version of MPC-HC.


Download yt-dlp and ffmpeg:

Download yt-dlp.exe from CODECS.COM or from its official repository. 
If you want the very latest version of yt-dlp, you can use the nightly build. Download it from the official repository and replace yt-dlp.exe in the MPC-HC folder.

Download ffmpeg.exe from FFmpeg page, daily updated by CODECS.com

Place both yt-dlp.exe and ffmpeg.exe in the MPC-HC installation folder.

You may also need to install Microsoft Visual C++ 2010 SP1 Redistributable:

Download and install the Microsoft Visual C++ 2010 SP1 Redistributable Package (x86).


Configure yt-dlp in MPC-HC:

Go to View > Options > Advanced in MPC-HC.

Set the location of yt-dlp.exe by specifying its path. If it's in the MPC-HC folder, you may not need to change this.


Stream Videos:

Go to File > Open File/URL in MPC-HC.

Enter the YouTube or other video website URL you want to stream. MPC-HC will use yt-dlp to stream the video directly.


How to Download Videos:

If you want to download the video, go to File > Save a copy... This will use yt-dlp to download the video to your specified location.

Usualy, the file is saved as .webm (or .mp4) that you can play whenever you want with MPC-HC, of course, or other player that has support for it.


Tip for Best Quality:

To ensure the best download quality, it's recommended to also place ffmpeg.exe in the MPC-HC folder.

 

Advanced Options


Additional Configuration:

Explore YDL configuration options in View > Options > Advanced to customize yt-dlp settings.

Notes:

- Instead of yt-dlp.exe, you can use youtube-dl.exe, but yt-dlp is recommended for its active development.
- Make sure to keep yt-dlp and ffmpeg up to date for the latest features and improvements.

 

By following these steps, you should be able to stream and download videos from YouTube and other supported websites directly using MPC-HC and yt-dlp.

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