The nullsrc source returns unprocessed video frames. It is mainly useful to be employed in analysis / debugging tools, or as the source for filters which ignore the input data.

The rgbtestsrc source generates an RGB test pattern useful for detecting RGB vs BGR issues. You should see a red, green and blue stripe from top to bottom.

The testsrc source generates a test video pattern, showing a color pattern, a scrolling gradient and a timestamp. This is mainly intended for testing purposes.

These sources accept an optional sequence of key=value pairs, separated by ":". The description of the accepted options follows.

size, s

Specify the size of the sourced video, it may be a string of the form widthxheight, or the name of a size abbreviation. The default value is "320x240".

rate, r

Specify the frame rate of the sourced video, as the number of frames generated per second. It has to be a string in the format frame_rate_num/frame_rate_den, an integer number, a float number or a valid video frame rate abbreviation. The default value is "25".

sar

Set the sample aspect ratio of the sourced video.

duration

Set the video duration of the sourced video. The accepted syntax is:

[-]HH[:MM[:SS[.m...]]]
[-]S+[.m...]

See also the function av_parse_time().

If not specified, or the expressed duration is negative, the video is supposed to be generated forever.

For example the following:

testsrc=duration=5.3:size=qcif:rate=10

will generate a video with a duration of 5.3 seconds, with size 176x144 and a frame rate of 10 frames per second.

If the input content is to be ignored, nullsrc can be used. The following command generates noise in the luminance plane by employing the mp=geq filter:

nullsrc=s=256x256, mp=geq=random(1)*255:128:128