Use Stream to 3D with Bigscreen VR

Updated 24 September 2026

Stream to 3D can convert ordinary 2D video on a Windows PC while Bigscreen provides the VR viewing environment. Bigscreen is not a required proprietary player: it is one compatible route for viewing the standard stereoscopic desktop output produced by Stream to 3D.

Two proven routes. Use Play and show the converted Windows desktop through Bigscreen, or create a compatible MP4 with Convert and open it in Bigscreen's video player.

For all currently documented player and display routes, see Players and 3D Displays.

How the Bigscreen route works

2D video or Live Source → Stream to 3D Play → converted Windows desktop → Bigscreen → VR headset

Stream to 3D performs the conversion. The Windows media player opened by Play displays the packed stereo image. Bigscreen presents that desktop in a virtual room and interprets the two views using its 3D display mode.

Bigscreen Beta is available on both Meta Quest and Steam, but the desktop route differs. On a standalone Quest headset, Bigscreen's current Remote Desktop route requires its Windows companion, the same Bigscreen account on both devices and a suitable local-network connection. On a SteamVR PCVR setup, Bigscreen runs through the Windows PC and presents the PC desktop through the established PCVR route; Bigscreen Remote Desktop is not required for this SteamVR route. In both cases, Stream to 3D continues to run on Windows; it does not move the conversion workload into the headset.

Quick start

SteamVR/PCVR: install Bigscreen Beta from Steam on the Windows PC, connect the headset through its normal SteamVR route, then launch Bigscreen through SteamVR.

Standalone Meta Quest: install Bigscreen on the headset and follow Bigscreen's Remote Desktop instructions to install and connect its Windows companion.

Open Stream to 3D on the Windows PC and choose Play.
Select a short, familiar 2D video for the first test.
In the Configuration Wizard, choose the intended headset and either Compare and recommend or the conversion method you intentionally want to test.
Select a half SBS or half TB/OU output supported by the current Bigscreen desktop view. Half SBS is a useful first test.
Start Play and make the converted Windows media-player view full-screen.
In Bigscreen, show the Windows desktop and select the 3D mode that matches Stream to 3D's output.
Return Bigscreen to 2D mode before navigating ordinary desktop windows.

Bigscreen's desktop 3D modes use Half SBS and Half OU/TB for this workflow, not Full SBS. If the left and right views remain beside or above one another, Bigscreen is still displaying the desktop in 2D or the selected split does not match. If the picture is stretched, recheck half SBS versus half TB/OU and return the screen aspect ratio to its normal setting.

On the standalone Quest route, Bigscreen's Remote Desktop controls include an option to share the desktop with other people in the room. Bigscreen on SteamVR has its own PCVR room and desktop controls. The Play route can therefore support social viewing when the host's desktop, room and audio are configured correctly. Everyone involved remains responsible for the rights and platform terms that apply to the material being shown.

Desktop sharing is different from synchronized local-file playback. The verified Stream to 3D route on this page shares the converted Windows desktop; viewers do not each need a separately converted file.

Temporal or Depth Guided

Release 6 provides the established Temporal method and the newer AI-assisted Depth Guided method. Bigscreen does not decide which conversion method Stream to 3D uses. For real-time Play, use the Wizard to compare suitable choices against the selected source, output and PC. Temporal remains the better route whenever it is the sustainable recommendation; Depth Guided is not mandatory.

Optional NVIDIA acceleration can make Depth Guided practical on more compatible PCs, but Bigscreen desktop encoding and network delivery add their own work. Judge the complete viewed result, not one component in isolation.

Live PC screen and capture sources

A PC screen, camera or supported capture device can replace the video file when Live Sources is available. Use Play, not Stream, when Bigscreen is showing the converted Windows desktop. For PC-screen capture, keep the source display and converted output on separate Windows displays to avoid capturing the converted image again.

See Live Sources and the two-display screen-capture walkthrough; the same source/output separation principle applies even though that walkthrough uses Virtual Desktop.

Converted-file playback

Stream to 3D can also create a reusable SBS/TB file through Convert. Compatible MP4 output has been played in Bigscreen from headset storage; Bigscreen's standalone video player does not use Stream to 3D's default MKV route.

Create one short MP4 sample first, copy it to headset storage, then confirm video, audio and the selected stereo layout in Bigscreen before converting a longer programme. This is separate from the desktop Play route: Bigscreen opens the finished converted file itself rather than showing a Windows media player.

Troubleshooting

No desktop in Quest: confirm that the PC and headset meet Bigscreen's current Remote Desktop requirements, use the same account and can see one another on the local network.
Double image: select the matching half SBS or half TB/OU mode in Bigscreen.
Playback stutters: run the Stream to 3D Wizard again for the exact source and settings, then also check Bigscreen desktop-streaming performance.
Protected video is black: some services block desktop capture. Stream to 3D cannot bypass source or operating-system content protection.
Friends cannot see the desktop: check Bigscreen's current room and desktop-sharing control.

Inspect Release 6 examples, use the User FAQ and troubleshooting guide, or compare editions and purchase options.