VIBRESIA

Mapping tools compared

MadMapper vs Millumin: a live mapping tool or a timeline of cues?

By Syd Lawrence, a visual artist and developer who makes Vibresia. Facts last checked 2 November 2026; updated 2 November 2026.

Pick MadMapper if you are mapping video onto real surfaces and driving fixtures, because it runs on macOS and Windows and its demo is free for as long as you want it. Pick Millumin if you are programming a show in advance and triggering it from controllers, because in Millumin a show is written as columns of cues that launch in order. MadMapper is the one you work in live, with parameters driven from MIDI or OSC controllers. Millumin is the one you build in advance, and it is macOS only. The permanent licences cost the same: €399 for MadMapper against €399 for Millumin.

MadMapperMillumin
What it isVideo and LED mapping software for macOS and Windows, with mesh warping, DMX and Art-Net lighting control, and a live GLSL shader editor.Software for creating and playing audiovisual shows on stage, with media playback, projection mapping and lighting control.
PriceFree version; paid from €39€399, one-time
Runs onMac, WindowsMac
RequirementsmacOS 11 or higher, or Windows 10 or higher on 64-bit, with a GPU compatible with OpenGL 3.3macOS 11 Big Sur or later, optimised for Intel and Apple silicon machines
Free versionA free demo, but watermarked, and its DMX devices cut out every 30 secondsThe trial lasts 30 days with no limitation, after which white lines are watermarked onto the outputs, while saving a project and using every feature stay possible.
Known forBezier masking and mesh warping let you fit content to real surfacesProjection mapping toolkit with perspective transform, mesh warping and masks, applied from layers up to outputs
Best forArtists, scenographers and technicians who need to project mapped video onto real surfaces and drive LED or DMX fixtures during a live show, and who trigger parameters from MIDI or OSC controllers.Operators, technicians and production teams running live shows in theatres, dance performances, videomapping events and interactive installations, who need to programme a show in advance and trigger it from controllers.

Control and connections

MadMapperMillumin
MIDIYes: MadMapper takes MIDI in and out, and any MIDI or OSC controller can drive parameters live.Yes: Millumin receives MIDI and can send MIDI out, and it also handles MIDI Show Control.
OSCYes: MadMapper takes OSC in and out, and supports OSC Query for browsing its address space on the network.Yes: Millumin listens for OSC messages and can send OSC to other applications, with OSCQuery support.
SyphonYes: MadMapper sends and receives Syphon textures, which its FAQ names as the macOS path for sharing a projector's video output.Yes: Millumin can send its output as a Syphon stream and can receive Syphon streams from other software into its library.
SpoutYes: MadMapper sends and receives Spout textures, which its FAQ names as the Windows path for sharing a projector's video output.No: Spout is not documented anywhere in Millumin's own help centre, and Millumin has no Windows build, so the Windows-only Spout protocol is not available.
NDIYes: MadMapper sends and receives NDI, for passing video between machines.Yes: Millumin receives NDI sources into its library and can send NDI output, with the option to embed audio in the stream.
DMXYes: MadMapper handles DMX over Art-Net, sACN and USB interfaces, with a fixture editor and its own output framerate control.Yes: Millumin sends and receives DMX over Art-Net, sACN and USB DMX, and uses it to drive fixtures and LED pixel mapping.
Video in and outYes: MadMapper sends video to projectors and displays, one output per GPU-capable projector, up to 8k per projector.Yes: Millumin outputs video to external displays, Blackmagic and AJA cards, Syphon, NDI and RTMP streams, and captures from cameras, capture cards, screens and network sources.

Every row comes from the app's own documentation, on the date shown in the sources below. "Not that we could find" means we could not find it documented, not that the app cannot do it.

Pick MadMapper if

you are mapping video onto real surfaces, running LED strips or DMX fixtures, or writing your own GLSL shaders, and you want the same rig to work on a Mac or a Windows machine. It is listed for Mac, Windows and its demo is free indefinitely with a watermark over the output.

Pick Millumin if

you are running a show that has to be programmed in advance, you need a timeline of cues to hand to a technician, or you are sending video to several displays at once. It is Mac only, and the lifetime licence for one seat is €399.

Why people compare them

These are the two tools people reach for when the picture has to land on something other than a flat screen: a building, a stage, a truss of fixtures. Both warp video onto a real surface, both put lighting control next to the video, and both are paid, so people building one rig compare them before they commit.

They are not the same kind of tool. MadMapper is video and LED mapping software for macOS and Windows, with mesh warping, DMX and Art-Net lighting control and a live GLSL shader editor. Millumin is software for creating and playing audiovisual shows on stage, with media playback, projection mapping and lighting control, and it runs on macOS only.

The difference shows up in how a night is organised. In Millumin a show is written as columns of cues that launch in order, and the file can be handed to whoever is on the desk. In MadMapper you build surfaces and cues and drive parameters from controllers while the room plays. If the show is a programmed sequence, the timeline is the reason to pick Millumin. If it is a performance, the live controls are the reason to pick MadMapper.

Where MadMapper wins

It runs on a Mac and on Windows. MadMapper is listed for Mac, Windows, and it needs macOS 11 or higher, or Windows 10 or higher on 64-bit, with a GPU compatible with OpenGL 3.3. Millumin is macOS only, and its maker says a Windows version is a very large project that is not a priority, so a Windows show has to use MilluNode, the separate player that carries video and nothing else.

The demo never expires. The demo is free and can be used indefinitely but cannot be authorised: it watermarks input, output and preview, disables loading and saving a project and SVG, PNG and PDF export, crops the Space Scanner to one quarter of its resolution, blacks out DMX devices every 30 seconds, and blocks installing or publishing library materials.

You can write your own look. MadMapper has a built-in GLSL shader editor with live coding and a shared online material library.

The music can drive it. Audio analysis binds bass, mid and treble to any parameter, with beat detection and Ableton Live Link.

It can be calibrated in 3D. Space Scanner uses structured light with a Canon DSLR to capture the projector's view for 3D calibration.

It shares video with Windows software. MadMapper sends and receives Spout textures, which its FAQ names as the Windows path for sharing a projector's video output. On a Mac the same job is done over Syphon.

Where Millumin wins

It is a show sequencer. Millumin has a sequencer and timeline in the dashboard, so a show is written as columns of cues that launch in order. MadMapper's lighting tools work differently: DMX, Art-Net and sACN light control sits alongside the video tools, with a cueing system for the show.

It drives the lights from the same place as the pictures. Millumin sends and receives DMX over Art-Net, sACN and USB DMX, and uses it to drive fixtures and LED pixel mapping.

It takes more kinds of input. It takes live inputs including MIDI, OSC, DMX, timecode, Kinect, LeapMotion, Arduino and gamepads, with data sent back out to other software and hardware.

It sends video out in more ways. Millumin outputs video to external displays, Blackmagic and AJA cards, Syphon, NDI and RTMP streams, and captures from cameras, capture cards, screens and network sources.

Its mapping is applied at every level. It has a projection mapping toolkit with perspective transform, mesh warping and masks, applied from layers up to outputs. It also handles multiple displays up to 16K, with 8 or 10-bit depth, and video routing between canvases and outputs.

The trial is a real trial. The trial lasts 30 days with no limitation, after which white lines are watermarked onto the outputs, while saving a project and using every feature stay possible.

Where both fall short

Both need the show made before the show. Whichever you pick, the visuals are only as good as the material you prepared and the cues you built. Neither turns a folder of files into a performance by itself.

Both take something away for free. In the demo, DMX lighting devices blackout once every 30 seconds. In Millumin, after 30 days the free trial puts a watermark of white lines on the outputs, although every feature and project saving stay available.

Each has an edge worth knowing. In MadMapper, the software is only available in English. MadMapper will not fade between two effects, so the FX Name parameter switches rather than fading. In Millumin, the MilluNode player that runs on Windows and macOS is limited to video, with no interactions, data-tracks, lights or capture cards. The Kinect 2 addon works natively only on Intel machines, so Apple silicon users must run Millumin through Rosetta or use the skeleton tracker effect.

Neither is a music visualiser. Both are general tools for video and lighting, and both expect you to bring the content and decide how it reacts. If what you want is visuals that react to what the Mac is playing, with nothing to prepare, that is a different job than either of these does.

What it costs

MadMapper's perpetual licence is a one-time purchase of €399. It covers the current 6.xx version and it includes one extra seat for a spare computer. A temporary licence is €39 a month. The MadMapper software page calls those from prices: they exclude tax and rise with the number of seats, and an educational discount of 30% applies.

Millumin's lifetime licence for one seat is a one-time purchase of €399, and an upgrade to V5 or an extra seat is €85. Rental licences are also sold: 29 euros for 7 days, 69 euros for 30 days and 199 euros for a year, and any version of Millumin can be used with them. The Millumin site shows its figures in euros, per computer and before tax.

So the permanent licences land in the same place, €399 for MadMapper and €399 for Millumin, and what differs is what each one covers. MadMapper's perpetual licence covers the current 6.xx version and carries an upgrade fee when you move to a new major version. Millumin's lifetime licence covers V5 and the versions before it, with one computer activated at a time. Both are priced in euros, so the rate on the day you buy is yours to check.

Questions people ask

Which is better for projection mapping?

Both do it. MadMapper has bezier masking and mesh warping to fit content to real surfaces, and its Space Scanner uses structured light with a Canon DSLR to capture the projector's view for 3D calibration. Millumin's toolkit has perspective transform, mesh warping and masks, applied from layers up to outputs. What differs is what sits around the mapping: MadMapper gives you a GLSL shader editor with live coding and a material library, Millumin gives you a sequencer and timeline where the show is written as columns of cues.

Do MadMapper and Millumin cost the same?

The permanent licences are the same figure: €399 for MadMapper's perpetual licence and €399 for Millumin's lifetime licence on one computer. MadMapper also sells a temporary licence at €39 a month, and Millumin sells rentals at 29 euros for 7 days, 69 euros for 30 days and 199 euros for a year. Both shops call their figures from prices that exclude tax and rise with the number of seats.

Does Millumin run on Windows?

No. Millumin runs on macOS only, with no Windows or Linux version planned, so Windows users depend on the separate MilluNode player. MadMapper is listed for Mac, Windows, so it is the one of the two that works on a Windows machine.

Can I try either one for free?

Yes. The demo is free and can be used indefinitely but cannot be authorised: it watermarks input, output and preview, disables loading and saving a project and SVG, PNG and PDF export, crops the Space Scanner to one quarter of its resolution, blacks out DMX devices every 30 seconds, and blocks installing or publishing library materials. The trial lasts 30 days with no limitation, after which white lines are watermarked onto the outputs, while saving a project and using every feature stay possible.

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Sources

Every fact about another app on this page comes from the source listed for it, on the date shown. We make Vibresia, so we've tried to say where each of the others is the better choice. If something here is out of date, tell us and we'll fix it.