To keep a finished guided body scan video looping on YouTube Live, use FFmpeg’s -stream_loop -1 input option before the file’s -i, pace file playback with -re, and send the encoded output to the stream URL and key provided in YouTube Studio. The command below is a starting point for a combined video-and-audio file—not a universal preset—so choose settings for your source and YouTube’s current encoder guidance, test the full path, and monitor stream health.
Loop a combined meditation file with FFmpeg
For a single file containing both the meditation video and its audio, the core option order is:
ffmpeg -re -stream_loop -1 -i "body-scan.mp4" [encoding options] -f flv "RTMPS_DESTINATION"-stream_loop is an input option. Place it before the -i for the file it should repeat; -1 requests infinite looping. -re reads the file at its native rate, which is useful when sending file content as a live feed. These options are not interchangeable with FFplay’s separate playback loop option.
Here is an illustrative H.264/AAC command for a source with both video and audio. It assumes 30 fps output and an RTMP-compatible FLV destination:
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ffmpeg -re -stream_loop -1 -i "body-scan.mp4"
-c:v libx264 -preset veryfast -tune stillimage
-r 30 -g 60 -keyint_min 60 -sc_threshold 0
-b:v 4500k -maxrate 4500k -bufsize 9000k
-c:a aac -b:a 128k -ar 44100
-f flv "rtmps://YOUR_YOUTUBE_INGEST_URL/YOUR_STREAM_KEY"This is an example shape, not a tested or universal command. The video bitrate shown is not a YouTube recommendation for every resolution or frame rate. Select a bitrate from YouTube’s current table that matches your intended format and codec, and ensure your upload connection has headroom. The -g 60 setting makes a 60-frame GOP—two seconds at 30 fps. Adjust the GOP/keyframe cadence if you change the output frame rate.
Check the source before encoding
Use ffprobe to confirm the file’s streams, resolution, frame rate, and audio format before choosing an output configuration:
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ffprobe -hide_banner "body-scan.mp4"The example assumes a combined file with video and audio. If the file has no audio, separate narration or music, or a variable frame rate, adapt the input mapping and encoding rather than assuming this command will produce the desired result. If video and audio are separate finite inputs, apply looping to each input that must continue; looping the video alone does not loop a separate audio input. Verify the behavior with your installed FFmpeg build and the chosen YouTube ingest protocol.
Set up YouTube Live and choose encoder settings
- In YouTube Studio, open the Live Control Room and create or select the stream. Copy the server URL and stream key that YouTube supplies.
- Keep the stream key private. Treat it like a password: do not publish it in a script, screenshot, public repository, or shared log. Substitute the actual destination privately for the placeholders in your command.
- Use the ingest method and compatible output format shown for your stream. YouTube recommends RTMPS as the secure version of RTMP. Its standard RTMP/RTMPS guidance lists H.264, H.265, and AV1 video, up to 60 fps, constant bitrate (CBR), a recommended two-second keyframe interval with a four-second maximum, and AAC or MP3 audio.
- Match bitrate to resolution, frame rate, and codec using YouTube’s live encoder settings and bitrate table. For example, YouTube’s current guidance recommends 5 Mbps for H.264 at 1080p30 and 3 Mbps for H.264 at 480p30; those values apply to those specific combinations, not every stream.
- For stereo audio, YouTube recommends 44.1 kHz and 128 kbps. The sample command uses AAC at those settings.
YouTube advises testing before going live, including audio and video movement similar to the planned stream, and monitoring the stream-health panel during the broadcast. Run a speed test and check the encoder logs as part of that preflight. YouTube’s guidance says: “Make sure to test before you start your live stream. Tests should include audio and movement in the video similar to what you’ll be doing in the stream.” See Choose live encoder settings, bitrates, and resolutions.
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RTMP/RTMPS versus HLS
The command above uses an RTMP-compatible FLV output. Do not reuse its destination or container assumptions for HLS. YouTube’s HLS workflow uses HTTPS POST/PUT, a rolling playlist, and TS segments between one and four seconds; YouTube also notes that HLS has higher latency than RTMP. Follow the endpoint and segment requirements for HLS if that is the ingest method you select.
Check audio and video continuity
A combined file is the simplest source because its audio and video repeat together as one input. With separate files, each finite stream that needs to continue must be looped independently and mapped to the appropriate output. Confirm that narration, ambient sound, and visuals remain aligned at the loop boundary; a loop can reveal an abrupt pause, cut, or mismatch even when the encoder is functioning correctly.
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If the source is audio-only, an image or other visual track must be supplied for a video-based live output. If it is a still-image or slideshow meditation, configure the visual input and audio separately rather than blindly applying the combined-file example. Inspect the resulting output during a test before starting the intended broadcast.
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YouTube says encoder streams shorter than 12 hours are automatically archived. That does not guarantee that an indefinitely looping broadcast will be preserved as one uninterrupted archive. Decide whether a finite event, intentional restart, or separately published on-demand version better fits the viewer experience, and check YouTube’s current behavior for your stream.
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Looping a recording does not establish permission to use it or guarantee monetization. You need appropriate rights for the guided voice recording, music, ambient sounds, and visuals. YouTube’s monetization policy, clarified on July 15, 2025, treats repetitive or mass-produced material under its “inauthentic content” policy. It says: “What’s important is that the substance of each video should be materially varied and deliver creative, educational, or other value.” A continuously repeated meditation may be reviewed in light of the channel and content; do not assume that repetition is monetization-eligible. See YouTube channel monetization policies.
Troubleshoot common loop and live-feed problems
- The file plays once and stops: Check that
-stream_loop -1appears before the relevant-i. It applies to that input only. - Video continues but audio ends: If audio is a separate input, loop that input too. A video input’s loop does not automatically repeat a separate audio source.
- FFmpeg runs too fast or the live feed is not paced as expected: For file-based live output, put
-rebefore the file input. Do not use low-rate pacing indiscriminately with a real-time capture input. - YouTube does not accept the feed: Verify the server URL, stream key, selected ingest method, and output protocol/container. Recheck the key privately if it may have been exposed.
- Stream health reports errors or the feed drops: Compare bitrate, codec, frame rate, keyframe interval, and audio settings with YouTube’s guidance. Check connection headroom and FFmpeg logs. FFmpeg’s RTMP documentation describes real-time processing during temporary failure and a retry option, but that is a recovery technique—not a guarantee that the encoder, network, source, and YouTube event will reconnect successfully.
- The loop boundary sounds or looks abrupt: Inspect the source’s start and end points and test repeated transitions. Encoding settings cannot remove a cut or silence that is already in the source.
For FFmpeg’s option definitions and command-line conventions, see the FFmpeg documentation. For its RTMP streaming and reconnection example, see the FFmpeg documentation (all). YouTube’s encoder setup steps and stream-key guidance are in Create a YouTube live stream with an encoder.
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