PhantomRec — "Record now. Encode later. Zero lag."

Built by MaxRBLX1 v1.9.5

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Project History

PhantomRec was originally released as RetroRec (v1.0 through v1.7). The name was changed in v1.8. All recordings and settings from previous versions are fully compatible.

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What is PhantomRec?

PhantomRec is a free, portable, and invisible screen recorder for Windows. It captures your desktop at a smooth 60 FPS with system audio, then converts the recording into a compact, high-quality file — all without slowing down your computer.

No GPU? No problem. Old laptop? It works. PhantomRec is designed to run on any Windows PC from Vista to Windows 11, from a dual-core budget machine to a high-end workstation.

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A Note on Windows Versions

PhantomRec doesn't care what hardware you have. It cares what OS you run — because your OS determines what capture APIs are available.

Windows Version	Capture Method	Typical Recording FPS
Windows 10 / 11	GFX (GPU zero‑copy)	60 FPS
Windows 8 / 8.1	DDAGrab (GPU)	60 FPS
Windows 7 / Vista	GDI (CPU software)	Up to 60 FPS (hardware dependent)

All capture methods write a lossless master file at the native frame rate. The final video is automatically converted to a constant 60 fps x264 file, regardless of the source frame rate.

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Why Choose PhantomRec?

PhantomRec uses a two-stage ghost pipeline — the same architecture that made Fraps legendary, rebuilt for modern lossless codecs.

Stage 1 — Live Capture (Ut Video lossless, 1 thread, ~5% CPU):
The screen is captured and encoded with Ut Video, a mathematically lossless codec that processes each frame independently. CPU usage stays flat at ~5% regardless of on-screen action. Duplicate frames are skipped automatically. No GPU encoding means no stop‑button freeze.

Stage 2 — Post‑Convert (x264 ultrafast, all cores, after you stop):
When you press stop, PhantomRec converts the lossless master to a crisp, compact x264 file at 60 fps using all CPU cores — when your system is idle. You get NVENC‑quality file sizes without needing a GPU.

The Result:

• Your GPU stays 100% dedicated to your game or desktop
• Recording uses ~5% CPU on any hardware
• Heavy compression happens when you're done recording
• Instant stop — no encoder queue drain freeze
• Smooth output on any CPU from 2008 onward
• No GPU required. No NVENC. No AMF. CPU only.

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System Requirements

Component	Minimum
OS	Windows Vista / 7 / 8 / 8.1 / 10 / 11
CPU	Any dual-core x86_64 (SSE2)
RAM	4 GB
GPU	Any. Integrated. None. All work.
Storage	Any HDD or SSD with free space

*No dedicated GPU or GPU hardware encoding required.

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Quick Start

1. Download the latest release and extract all files.
2. Make sure maxsengine.exe is in the same folder as PhantomRec.exe.
3. Double-click PhantomRec.exe — a small always‑on‑top window appears.
4. Press F10 to start recording. Press F10 again to stop.
5. Wait a few seconds for post‑processing — your video opens automatically.

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What's New in v1.9.5

🎯 All‑New Stage 1 — Ut Video Lossless

• Replaced MPEG‑4 Part 2 with Ut Video — a modern, single‑thread lossless codec that eliminates CPU spikes during heavy motion.
• Constant ~5% CPU, no matter what’s on screen (explosions, racing, desktop idle).
• Writes a mathematically perfect master file that uses ~30% less disk space than the old lossless pipeline.

🔧 Hard‑drive‑Friendly Pipeline

• Added -max_muxing_queue_size 9096 to absorb disk pauses — recordings stay smooth even on slow mechanical hard drives.
• Video input queue tuned to 2048 (recommended maximum for live capture), with audio queue at 512.
• All tested on a real 200 GB HDD with zero lag spikes.

🔇 Perfect Audio/Video Sync

• Audio and video now start at the exact same moment (using a sync event), removing any permanent offset.
• Works for both initial recording and after a pause/resume.

🖥️ FFmpeg Console Fix

• FFmpeg now runs with its own minimized console (CREATE_NEW_CONSOLE) — this guarantees proper CTRL_BREAK handling and eliminates the “accordion effect” timeline distortion that caused stuttering in earlier versions.

🧹 Clean, Understandable Codebase

• Removed dead variables and functions (legacy MPEG‑4 quality settings, unused thread count parameters).
• The source is now easy to read and contribute to.

🎨 UI Improvements (from previous patches)

• Custom backgrounds, fonts, animated GIFs, font colour/size — all hot‑reloaded from Settings.ini.
• No more UI text ghosting or stacking.
• Thread‑safe UI updates (core callbacks are marshalled to the main thread).

🛠️ Stage 2 — Ultrafast CFR Conversion

• Post‑processing now uses -preset ultrafast -r 60 -fps_mode cfr for fast, consistent 60 fps output.
• No manual thread count — FFmpeg auto‑detects optimal threading.

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Settings How to control

All settings are in Settings.ini (in the same folder as PhantomRec.exe). Edit it while the program is running — changes take effect within 2 seconds.

[Settings]
Hotkey=F10
PauseHotkey=P
ConvertAfterRecording=yes
CaptureMethod=auto

• Hotkey – F1‑F12 for function keys, or a single letter for Ctrl+ (e.g. R = Ctrl+R).

• PauseHotkey – same format.

• ConvertAfterRecording – yes (recommended) or no (keeps the huge temporary file).

• CaptureMethod – auto (default, auto‑detects best method), gfx, ddagrab, gdi.

Configuration

All settings are in Settings.ini (in the same folder as PhantomRec.exe).
Edit it while the program is running — changes take effect within 2 seconds.

[Settings]
Hotkey=F10
PauseHotkey=P
ConvertAfterRecording=yes
CaptureMethod=auto

[Appearance]
Background=C:\path\to\image.png
Font=C:\path\to\font.ttf
FontSize=14
FontColor=16777215

Note: The ConvertPreset option from older versions is ignored in v1.9.5 — Stage 2 always uses ultrafast for the quickest possible conversion.

Building from Source

Requirements

• MinGW‑w64 (UCRT64)
• Windows SDK

Compile

# Step 1: Compile the pure C core
gcc -std=c11 -O2 -c src/phantomrec_core.c -o phantomrec_core.o

# Step 2: Link with C++ UI
g++ -std=c++17 -O2 -D_WIN32_WINNT=0x0A00 \
    phantomrec_core.o src/PhantomRec.cpp \
    -o PhantomRec.exe \
    -lcomctl32 -lshell32 -luser32 -lgdi32 -lkernel32 \
    -ladvapi32 -lole32 -luuid -lksuser -lavrt -lgdiplus -lcomdlg32 \
    -lpowrprof

⚠️ -D_WIN32_WINNT=0x0A00 is strictly required. Without it, the binary targets XP compatibility and the recording pipeline fails with 0 FPS.

Project Tree

PhantomRec/
├── src/
│ ├── PhantomRec.cpp # C++ UI (Win32 + GDI+)
│ ├── phantomrec_core.c # Pure C11 capture engine
│ └── phantomrec_core.h # Shared header (extern "C" bridge)
├── .gitignore
├── LICENSE
└── README.md

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What PhantomRec Does Not Do (Yet)

• Streaming — PhantomRec is a recorder, not a streaming tool.
• Webcam overlay — Not supported.
• Per‑window capture — PhantomRec captures the entire monitor.

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License & Credits

PhantomRec is free software. Use it, modify it, share it.

Built by MaxRBLX1.

Max'sEngine™ powered by FFmpeg (ffmpeg.org).

Audio capture based on Microsoft WASAPI sample code.