alternative for Syphon Virtual Webcam???

dbini

Hello everyone - what's the 2026 solution for getting an Izzy stream to show up as a camera? I'm using Mac and Syphon Virtual Webcam no longer works.

jandraka

@dbini

You can setup the stage as an NDI output and use "NDI Virtual Input" from NDI Tools. I hope this helps.

Best

Javi

dbini

@jandraka
Nice idea, but I can't get it to work on my Intel Mac.
Any other suggestions, anyone?

Woland

@dbini

OBS has a virtual webcam that should work

dbini

@woland

Thanks L... I can Syphon out of Isadora into OBS and out of OBS using the OBS Virtual Webcam. I guess it works, but I'm not convinced its the most efficient use of resources....

Woland

@dbini said:

I can Syphon out of Isadora into OBS and out of OBS using the OBS Virtual Webcam.

We're pretty consumed by preparing for the new audio-centric release that's coming down the pipeline, but I believe an updated version of a Syphon Virtual Webcam-esque application is already partially done. We just need to finish this release and then we'll see when we can get that out the door. As always, the squeaky wheel gets the grease, so if there's significant interest in us releasing an updated version, we'll take that into consideration. (I know that personally, I'd like to have it complete so I can use it for my own work.)

@dbini said:

I guess it works, but I'm not convinced its the most efficient use of resources....

I know you, so I know you know all of this, but I'll state it just for the benefit of anyone else who sees this thread:

Yes, bouncing a video signal between multiple pieces of software feels kind of janky and is definitely not ideal, but if you're just sending Syphon video streams between different applications, the overhead is next to nothing; you will not see a noticeable performance hit with any modern computer doing this.
If you were doing multiple streams of NDI between different software, that'd be pretty resource-intensive.
The more links in your workflow, the more potential points of failure (so fewer applications and fewer pieces of hardware is generally better whenever you can get away with it).
As a general rule, every additional piece of hardware or software you add to a video chain potentially introduces delay (which is most noticeable and important for live video feeds).