Quality and Audio Settings
All recording settings live under Recording.* in %APPDATA%\Tex\settings.json and in the Recording section of the Settings window.
Complete Settings Reference
| Setting | Values | Default | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
Recording.QualityPreset | Low / Medium / High / Ultra / Custom | High | Bitrate preset. Custom enables CustomBitrateKbps. |
Recording.CustomBitrateKbps | Integer kbps | 8000 | Bitrate used when preset is Custom. |
Recording.FrameRate | 24 / 30 / 60 | 30 | Frames per second. |
Recording.Encoder | H264 / H265 | H264 | Video codec. |
Recording.UseHardwareEncoding | true / false | true | Use GPU encoder (NVENC / QuickSync / AMF); falls back to software if unavailable. |
Recording.CaptureCursor | true / false | true | Include the mouse cursor in the video. |
Recording.CaptureSystemAudio | true / false | false | Record system loopback audio (speakers / app sound). |
Recording.CaptureMicrophone | true / false | false | Record the default microphone input. |
Recording.MaxDurationMinutes | Integer minutes | 0 | Hard cap on any recording. 0 = unlimited. See 05.3. |
Recording.MonitorDeviceName | String (e.g. \\.\DISPLAY1) | "" | Specific monitor to record. Empty = all monitors combined. |
Recording.SaveFolder | Path | "" | Output folder. Empty = %USERPROFILE%\Videos\Tex\. |
Recording.FileNamePattern | Template with {timestamp} | tex_rec_{timestamp} | Output file-name template (extension .mp4 added automatically). |
Quality Presets at a Glance
Rough bitrate targets per preset at 1080p / 30 fps:
| Preset | Approx bitrate | Use for |
|---|---|---|
Low | ~2 Mbps | Long screencasts, small files, upload-bound |
Medium | ~5 Mbps | General tutorials, meeting recordings |
High | ~8 Mbps | Detailed UI recordings, code walk-throughs |
Ultra | ~15 Mbps | Motion-heavy content, games, highest fidelity |
Custom | CustomBitrateKbps | You know exactly what bitrate you want |
H.264 vs H.265
| H.264 | H.265 / HEVC | |
|---|---|---|
| Compatibility | Plays everywhere | Needs newer hardware / OS |
| File size at equal quality | Baseline | ~30-50% smaller |
| Encode CPU / GPU load | Lower | Higher |
| Streaming platform support | Universal | Mixed |
Pick H.264 if the recording will be shared widely or embedded in older tools. Pick H.265 if you have modern hardware, keep videos on disk, or are bandwidth-constrained.
Audio
System audio and microphone are captured to separate audio tracks in the same MP4. Either can be on individually — you do not need system audio to record the microphone, or vice versa.
Warning — Recording the microphone captures whatever Windows treats as the default input device. If you use a headset for meetings, Tex will record from it too. Double-check with Sound Settings → Input before recording private audio.
Cursor and Monitor Selection
Recording.CaptureCursor controls whether the mouse pointer is baked into the video frames. Turning it off is useful for clean UI captures where the cursor would be a distraction.
Recording.MonitorDeviceName takes a Windows device path. Leave it empty to record all monitors as one wide canvas. Set it to a specific display (for example \\.\DISPLAY1) to record only that monitor — useful for multi-monitor setups where one screen runs your recording notes.
Tip — H.264 at High quality, 30 fps, hardware encoding is the right default for 90% of use cases. Change one variable at a time when tuning.