How to Preview your 360/ 180 Degree Content in Real-Time in Unreal Engine

How to check your 360/ 180 Degree output in real-time either on computer, in a headset or in a previz of your venue before final rendering
Written by Off World Live
Updated 6 days ago
N.B Please either "Clear" your Render Target or tick "Pause Rendering" in the Details panel of the OWL 360 Camera when you are finished with your preview to preserve GPU performance.

You can use the OWL 360 Camera/ Capture Component Render Target to preview your output in real-time before you start your Render:

  1. Select your 360 Camera in Outliner.
  2. In its Details panel select the resolution you would like to preview at. We recommend a lower resolution (720p or 1080p) as it's normally possible to see all details but it's not as performance heavy as 4K: 
  3. Then add a Render Target (Texture Target) by selecting the drop down and creating a new one if required:
  4. Ensure that Post-Process Pipeline 'Tonemapping' is selected. 360 Bloom is not currently available in the MRQ integration:
  5. Select the output format you want to test with. You can either select the format you will render with or we recommend selecting Equirectangular if you want to check for seams:
  6. When you open the Render Target you will see your output being rendered in real-time. This will also work as you play your Sequence: 

Previz in Headset or in Mock-Up Venue via Spout or NDI

  1. You can live-stream the Render Target to a headset or a previz software in real-time to preview your content in real-time, making edits before committing to your final render.
  2. If you are doing a DomeMaster projection, then you can use the DomeViewer software both in Oculus or Windows to preview your real-time content.
  3. If you are outputting VR content then you want to view your 180/ 360 stereo output in your headset. You can use the VR.NDIUntethered app in Oculus to receive a live feed direct to the headset where you can previz the content. 
  4. In both cases, to send your stream from Unreal:
    1. Go to Place Actors and add an OWL NDI Sender Manager to your level:
    2. In the Details Panel for the NDI Sender Manager, assign the same Render Target to the Source Render Target parameter as you had for your 360 Camera. Give the Sender a Name and make it active.

    3. Alternatively, you can follow the same steps with the OWL Spout Sender Manager which can also be found in the Off World Live Place Actors panel.
    4. Spout can only send on the same machine, but NDI can send over the network, so pick these as you prefer.
  5. Once you have your Spout or NDI output set up, you can go to DomeViewer and select them as Media Sources in the top left. You will now see your live-rendered output in your Dome!
  6. If you are outputting VR content then you want to view your 180/ 360 stereo output in your headset. You can use the VR.NDIUntethered app in Oculus to receive a live feed direct to the headset where you can previz the content in stereoscopic format:
    1. You will need both your headset and computer connected to the same network, ideally via cable but fast WIFI is also fine.
    2. It is not recommended to go above 4K resolution for real time playback.
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