NDI Test Signal Generator · Free

Bars, test card and tone as an NDI source.

Put a line-up signal on the network in any format from SD to 2160p60: 100% or SMPTE bars, bars with ID text, or a moving test card with timecode. Up to 16 audio channels, each a tone or silence. NDI included.

Download free User manual

Mac · Linux · Free

NDI Test Signal Generator on air with 1080p50 SMPTE bars, its preview and two audio meters at −20 dBFS

Features

Formats

SD to 2160p60.

525i and 625i, 720p, 1080i/p up to 120 fps, 2160p up to 60 fps, or your own size and rate. UYVY, UYVA, BGRA, RGBA, NV12 and more.

Patterns

Bars, ID text, moving card.

100% bars, 75% SMPTE bars, bars with your source name and ID text, or a moving test card with running timecode to spot frozen frames.

Audio

1–16 channels of tone.

Each channel a tone at the frequency and level you choose, or silence. Presets for stereo 1 kHz and ident tones per channel.

Price

NDI Test Signal Generator

Free

No trial, no license key, no account and no payment. Download it and use it. A small thank-you to the NDI community from Lumengrid.

Download free

Install

Install NDI Test Signal Generator.

Mac: Apple Silicon (arm64) zip — unpack and run; NDI included. Linux for Ubuntu 24.04 or newer (64-bit). One .tar.gz archive that runs from its folder: no installer, no root needed. NDI included — you do not need a separate NDI install.

Receivers find the source with mDNS. Keep them on the same network and allow mDNS and NDI in the firewall. High formats need wired gigabit.

Mac

Apple Silicon (arm64) only. A zip that runs from its folder: no installer.

Download for Mac (5.5 MB)

File: NDIgenerator-1.0.0-mac-arm64.zip · version 1.0.0 · NDI included · free

SHA-256: 41fd960de53f79fa9da669b9843eb62a13263f04c01e3cb88dbeb88c466c5ec6 (.sha256)

Developer ID signed and notarized. Unzip and run ndigenerator from the folder. First launch may briefly check notarization with Apple — that is normal for a notarized zip (no staple on this CLI build).

  1. Unzip the Mac download. Open the folder it creates (NDIgenerator-1.0.0-mac-arm64) and run ndigenerator. The folder holds ndigenerator and libndi.dylib.
  2. Open ndigenerator from that folder (double-click, or run it in Terminal).
  3. Press Start Streaming, or run ./ndigenerator --help in Terminal for the command-line options.

NDI runtime is bundled (libndi.dylib) — nothing to install from ndi.video, and Homebrew is not required.

cd ~/Downloads
unzip NDIgenerator-1.0.0-mac-arm64.zip
./NDIgenerator-1.0.0-mac-arm64/ndigenerator

Mac is free — there is nothing to purchase for Mac.

Ubuntu 24.04 or newer

64-bit (x86_64). The window needs a desktop with OpenGL (X11 or Wayland); the command-line mode needs no desktop.

Download for Linux (4.4 MB)

File: NDIgenerator-1.0.0-linux-x64.tar.gz · version 1.0.0 · NDI included · free

SHA-256: da5d512a25ea9a85538670cacf698a6a0a2dd951ad7db2c1c1fc01ec8f9cbe76 (.sha256)

In Terminal:

cd ~/Downloads
sha256sum NDIgenerator-1.0.0-linux-x64.tar.gz
tar -xzf NDIgenerator-1.0.0-linux-x64.tar.gz
./NDIgenerator-1.0.0-linux-x64/ndigenerator

The checksum printed by sha256sum should match the one above. Headless example: ./NDIgenerator-1.0.0-linux-x64/ndigenerator --format 1080i50 --pattern bars-text --text "CAM 1" --channels 8 --ident. To uninstall, delete the folder.

User manual

Install, formats, patterns, audio channels and tones, command-line options, and troubleshooting.

Download PDF (160 KB)

NDI Test Signal Generator window: source, video and audio settings, monitor and audio meters
The moving test card received in the free NDI Monitor, with 8 audio channels
The moving test card received in the free NDI Monitor.

If it won’t run

Is there a Windows or Mac version?
Mac (Apple Silicon) is on this page. Windows is not on lumengrid.shop.
Receivers do not see the source
Check that the window shows ON AIR. Receivers must be on the same network (and the same NDI group, if you set one). If ufw is on, allow mDNS (UDP 5353) and NDI (port 5960 and up).
The picture stutters
The moving test card is drawn every frame; use bars or a smaller format on slower computers. 1080p and 2160p need wired gigabit.
The window does not open
It needs a desktop with OpenGL. On a server or over SSH, run it with options (headless), e.g. --format 1080p50 --pattern bars75 --tone-all.