NDI Sources Not Appearing
If NDI sources on your network aren’t showing up in pMix.studio’s source picker, work through these steps.
Check the basics
- Same network — The iPad and NDI source must be on the same local network and subnet (e.g., both on 192.168.1.x)
- NDI source is running — Verify the NDI source is active and outputting. Test with another NDI receiver (like NDI Studio Monitor on a computer) to confirm
- Refresh the list — Pull down on the source picker to refresh NDI discovery
Network requirements
NDI uses mDNS (Bonjour) for automatic discovery. Some network configurations block this:
Wi-Fi isolation / client isolation
Many routers have a “client isolation” or “AP isolation” feature that prevents devices on the same Wi-Fi network from communicating with each other. This completely blocks NDI discovery.
Fix: Disable client isolation in your router settings, or use a wired connection for NDI sources.
Guest networks
Guest networks almost always isolate devices. Don’t use a guest network for production.
Fix: Use the main network or a dedicated production network.
VLANs and subnets
If your network uses VLANs or multiple subnets, devices on different VLANs can’t discover each other via mDNS.
Fix: Ensure all production devices are on the same VLAN and subnet.
Managed switches
Some enterprise/managed switches filter multicast traffic by default.
Fix: Enable mDNS/multicast forwarding on your switch, or configure IGMP snooping to allow Bonjour traffic.
VPN
A VPN on either device can route traffic outside the local network, breaking local discovery.
Fix: Disable VPN on all production devices during your session.
Firewall
If the NDI source is a computer, check that its firewall allows NDI traffic:
- macOS: System Settings → Network → Firewall — ensure the NDI application is allowed
- Windows: Windows Defender Firewall — ensure the NDI application has inbound/outbound rules
NDI|HX vs full NDI
There are two variants of NDI:
| Variant | Bandwidth | Discovery | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full NDI | ~100–150 Mbps per 1080p60 source | mDNS | |
| **NDI | HX** | ~10–20 Mbps (H.264/H.265 compressed) | mDNS |
| Both are discovered the same way. If you can see the source but it won’t connect, the issue is likely bandwidth — full NDI requires very high throughput. Consider using NDI | HX if on Wi-Fi. |
The source is there but PTZ does nothing
If you set the camera’s control type to VISCA over IP and the camera doesn’t answer, pMix keeps driving it over NDI PTZ — which a VISCA-only head may ignore entirely, so the camera simply doesn’t move.
The Camera tab header shows NO VISCA next to that camera while it’s happening. Open Edit Properties on the source to check the address and port and use Test Connection.
The picture looks soft
Check the source’s bandwidth setting in its properties. Force HIGH is the default; a source set to Automatic can drop to NDI’s low-bandwidth proxy stream, which looks soft the moment you cut to it. See NDI Sources.
Still not working
- Verify both devices can reach each other: from a computer on the same network, try pinging both the iPad’s IP and the NDI source’s IP
- Try a wired Ethernet connection (USB-C Ethernet adapter on iPad) to rule out Wi-Fi issues
- Restart both the NDI source and pMix.studio
- Try a different network — a simple router with no enterprise features can help isolate the issue