VIBRESIA

Live video compared

WATCHOUT vs Resolume: a media server or a VJ application?

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

If you are running a specified show on many synchronised displays from a network of Windows machines, pick WATCHOUT, which is licensed per media server at €3,200 a node. If you are performing video from one laptop that you carry to the venue, pick Resolume, whose Avenue is €299 and runs on macOS and Windows. They come up together because both put prepared media in front of an audience, but they start from opposite ends: one is a system you specify and install, the other is an application you play.

WATCHOUTResolume
What it isWindows multi-display production and playback software for building shows and playing them in sync across multiple displays.VJ and media-server software (Avenue, Arena) and a visual programming tool (Wire), for macOS and Windows.
PriceFree version; paid from €3,200€299, one-time
Runs onWindowsMac, Windows
RequirementsWindows 10 or later, 64-bit, with a Vulkan 1.3 GPU for the Producer and OpenGL 4.4 or DirectX 11 on a media servermacOS 13.4 Ventura or later, or Windows 10 or later, with 8GB of RAM and an AMD, Iris Pro or Apple silicon graphics card
Free versionNo time-limited trial; a licence is needed before it can drive output devicesFree to use indefinitely, but video output has a Resolume watermark and audio has a robot voice until a serial number is entered.
Known forComposes and plays back video, still images, animations, graphics, live streams and sound across many displays from one set of timelinesAn industry-standard pair: Avenue for VJing, Arena adding media-server features
Best forShow producers, projection mappers and AV integrators who need one set of timelines driving many synchronised projectors, LED walls and screens from a network of Windows machines, with live control from lighting desks, show controllers and MIDI gear.Working VJs and venues running video on screens and projectors.

Control and connections

WATCHOUTResolume
MIDIYes: WATCHOUT ships a standalone MIDI Bridge service that forwards Control Change, Note and Pitch Wheel messages from a MIDI device or virtual port to the Director as variable updates, and it also handles MIDI Show Control.Yes: Avenue and Arena take MIDI in and send MIDI out, including pad colour feedback, from multiple enabled devices, and Wire adds MIDI In and MIDI Out nodes for generating and reading MIDI data.
OSCYes: WATCHOUT 7 receives OSC natively over UDP port 8000 and TCP port 8001, mapping incoming messages to show variables and controlling timeline playback.Yes: Avenue and Arena accept OSC input and can send OSC output to other applications over the network, and Wire adds OSC In and OSC Out nodes for reading and writing OSC inside a patch.
SyphonNo: WATCHOUT is Windows-only software and offers no Syphon support, since Syphon is a macOS technology.Yes: Avenue and Arena provide Syphon input and output on macOS, and Wire can read and write Syphon textures through its Texture In and Texture Out nodes.
SpoutYes: WATCHOUT can act as a Spout receiver, taking a Spout texture published by an application on the same node and the same GPU as a live capture source.Yes: Avenue and Arena provide Spout input and output on Windows, and Wire can read and write Spout textures through its Texture In and Texture Out nodes.
NDIYes: WATCHOUT supports NDI in both directions, publishing rendered display output as an NDI stream and receiving NDI streams as capture sources.Yes: NDI input is always enabled in Avenue and Arena, and NDI output can be broadcast from the composition, with Arena additionally treating NDI outputs as separate screens in the Advanced Output.
DMXYes: WATCHOUT maps incoming Art-Net DMX values to show variables and sends DMX over Art-Net from timeline fixture cues, but it does not accept physical DMX input directly.Yes: DMX output over Art-Net is available in Arena only, and Arena also accepts Art-Net DMX input from a lighting desk, so Avenue has no DMX support.
Video in and outYes: WATCHOUT plays video, stills and live sources on multiple displays, with output routings for GPU, SDI, ST 2110, NDI and virtual displays.Yes: Video input works from webcams and capture cards, with native low-latency support for Blackmagic, AJA and Datapath devices, and video output goes to the displays connected to the computer.

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 WATCHOUT if

you are specifying a show for a room with many displays, the content is prepared in advance, and you want the playback to run from media servers while somebody else cues it from a lighting desk or a show controller. A WATCHOUT 7 licence is €3,200 and covers one media server, and each licensed node drives up to 8x DCI 4K of output.

Pick Resolume if

you are performing video from a laptop, you want to work on a Mac as well as Windows, or the show is a couple of screens rather than a hall of them. Avenue is €299 and the free version runs indefinitely, with a watermark on the video output until you enter a serial number.

Why people compare them

They end up in the same rack, driving screens in a club or a theatre, and both put prepared media in front of an audience, so the people building a show weigh one against the other. What separates them is where the show is decided.

WATCHOUT is Windows multi-display production and playback software for building shows and playing them in sync across multiple displays. Resolume is VJ and media-server software (Avenue, Arena) and a visual programming tool (Wire), for macOS and Windows. One is written by a show producer and run by whoever is on the technical desk. The other is opened by the performer, who chooses what appears and when.

The licence shapes much of the rest of the difference. A WATCHOUT 7 licence covers one media server, and a show that spans a hall needs one for each machine in it. Resolume's prices are for Avenue, Arena and Wire, the applications themselves, and the free Producer of WATCHOUT is a separate thing from a licence: you can install it without a licence key, and it still cannot drive an output device.

Where WATCHOUT wins

It is built for many displays at once. Composes and plays back video, still images, animations, graphics, live streams and sound across many displays from one set of timelines WATCHOUT plays video, stills and live sources on multiple displays, with output routings for GPU, SDI, ST 2110, NDI and virtual displays.

It scales by adding machines. Scales to any number of display devices, with each licensed media server covering up to 8x DCI 4K of output and further servers added for larger pixel counts

The scale has a number you can check before you buy. Each licensed media server drives up to 70,778,880 pixels across its physical outputs, equal to 8x DCI 4K, and a display that would push a node over that budget is rejected.

It plays the formats an installed show asks for. Plays uncompressed 4K video and images at up to 120Hz with up to 16-bit colour, REC.2020 and HDR across GPU, SDI, ST 2110 and NDI outputs NDI output is fixed at 8 bits per component and carries no HDR colour space, so HDR delivery has to use a GPU, SDI or ST 2110 output.

It takes live control from the room. Accepts live control from Art-Net and DMX, OSC, MIDI, MIDI Show Control, LTC, PosiStageNet and an HTTP REST API WATCHOUT 7 receives OSC natively over UDP port 8000 and TCP port 8001, mapping incoming messages to show variables and controlling timeline playback. WATCHOUT ships a standalone MIDI Bridge service that forwards Control Change, Note and Pitch Wheel messages from a MIDI device or virtual port to the Director as variable updates, and it also handles MIDI Show Control.

Lighting is standard rather than an upgrade. WATCHOUT maps incoming Art-Net DMX values to show variables and sends DMX over Art-Net from timeline fixture cues, but it does not accept physical DMX input directly.

It can take a signal in as well as sending one out. Takes live capture from capture cards, USB capture, network streams, VNC and NDI, and from local Spout textures published by other applications WATCHOUT can act as a Spout receiver, taking a Spout texture published by an application on the same node and the same GPU as a live capture source. WATCHOUT supports NDI in both directions, publishing rendered display output as an NDI stream and receiving NDI streams as capture sources.

Where Resolume wins

It runs on a Mac as well as Windows. Avenue and Arena provide Syphon input and output on macOS, and Wire can read and write Syphon textures through its Texture In and Texture Out nodes. Avenue and Arena provide Spout input and output on Windows, and Wire can read and write Spout textures through its Texture In and Texture Out nodes. WATCHOUT is Windows-only software and offers no Syphon support, since Syphon is a macOS technology.

It costs a fraction of a specified install. Avenue is €299, Arena is €799 and Wire is €399, each a one-time purchase with 12 months of updates included, and Licences keep working after the 12 months of included updates

It is built to be played rather than specified. Resolume is for working VJs and venues running video on screens and projectors, and Arena adds media-server features to Avenue for bigger rooms. Wire is a separate tool for building your own effects and generators visually.

You can try it for as long as you like. Free to use indefinitely, but video output has a Resolume watermark and audio has a robot voice until a serial number is entered. That is enough to learn the software, and not enough to play a paid show.

Where both fall short

Neither one makes the show for you. Both take media you prepared and cues you built, and neither generates visuals from the music it is playing. Both are general tools for video, and both expect you to bring the content.

Both take something away in the free version. The free Producer cannot drive output devices: showing a show on projectors or other displays needs licence keys, and connecting a media server needs a licence for both the production computer and the server. Free to use indefinitely, but video output has a Resolume watermark and audio has a robot voice until a serial number is entered.

Both have a ceiling on one machine. Each licensed media server drives up to 70,778,880 pixels across its physical outputs, equal to 8x DCI 4K, and a display that would push a node over that budget is rejected. The number of outputs is capped by the graphics card, so a single machine is limited to five outputs plus one control monitor.

Both leave a gap for a lighting desk that speaks USB DMX. WATCHOUT maps incoming Art-Net DMX values to show variables and sends DMX over Art-Net from timeline fixture cues, but it does not accept physical DMX input directly. From Arena 6 onwards Resolume no longer supports Enttec DMX USB devices, so only Art-Net based DMX hardware works.

Both want the show designed before the night. WATCHOUT wants a production computer, an Asset Manager and licensed media servers. Resolume wants decks and cues built before anyone walks in. Neither is something you switch on five minutes before the doors open.

What it costs

The WATCHOUT Producer is free to download and install without a licence key, and a WATCHOUT 7 licence is €3,200, one-time, one licence per media server, with additional media servers not included. Dataton publishes a single recommended retail price rather than a tier list, bought through a local Dataton partner or a price request form. The same page lists €1,950 per licence for an electronic upgrade from version 6, and educational licences are discounted, restricted to teaching institutions and require annual renewal.

Resolume Avenue is €299, one-time, Arena is €799, one-time and Wire is €399, one-time, and the licences keep working after the 12 months of included updates. There is a condition on them: A registered licence on an offline machine must phone home every 30 days, and Resolume restores the watermark if it cannot reach the Internet for 30 days. Both sides are priced in euros, so the rate on the day you buy is yours to check.

Questions people ask

Which is cheaper, WATCHOUT or Resolume?

Resolume. Avenue is €299 and Arena is €799, each a one-time purchase with 12 months of updates included, and licences keep working after the 12 months of included updates A WATCHOUT 7 licence is €3,200 and covers one media server, with additional media servers not included. The free WATCHOUT Producer costs nothing but cannot drive an output device.

Does WATCHOUT run on a Mac?

No. WATCHOUT is Windows-only software and offers no Syphon support, since Syphon is a macOS technology. It needs Windows 10 or later, 64-bit, with a Vulkan 1.3 GPU for the Producer and OpenGL 4.4 or DirectX 11 on a media server. Resolume runs on Mac, Windows and needs macOS 13.4 Ventura or later, or Windows 10 or later, with 8GB of RAM and an AMD, Iris Pro or Apple silicon graphics card.

Which one handles DMX and lighting desks better?

WATCHOUT, and without needing the more expensive edition. It accepts live control from Art-Net and DMX, OSC, MIDI, MIDI Show Control, LTC, PosiStageNet and an HTTP REST API. In Resolume, DMX output over Art-Net is available in Arena only, and Arena also accepts Art-Net DMX input from a lighting desk, so Avenue has no DMX support.

Can I try either one for free?

Yes, both, in different ways. There is no time-limited trial: WATCHOUT downloads and runs without a licence key so you can get a feel for the software, but producing a show with output devices such as projectors needs licence keys, and connecting a media server and starting one or more displays needs a licence as well. Free to use indefinitely, but video output has a Resolume watermark and audio has a robot voice until a serial number is entered.

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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.