3CX
3CX sets the end of 2026 to switch off its own transcription service.
Comparison · Meetings
SRS vs Ant Media Server
A side-by-side editorial comparison of SRS and Ant Media Server — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
Shared themes:webrtc
SRS vs Ant Media Server: at a glance
What is SRS?
SRS now runs three release lines at once and publishes A/B CPU benchmarks with each build.
SRS, the open-source media streaming server, cut v6.0-r3, v7.0-a4 and v8.0-d3 within two minutes on 31 October. Each release now carries an A/B CPU benchmark across 16 delivery scenarios: 6.0-r3 trims 4-6% CPU on RTMP, HTTP-FLV and HTTP-TS, while both 7.0-a4 and 8.0-d3 show RTSP delivery using about 30% more CPU than the prior build. Release commits are co-authored with Claude.
What is Ant Media Server?
Ant Media Server 3.2 adds WHEP playback, Prometheus metrics and plugin installs from the dashboard.
Ant Media Server is a self-hosted streaming server spanning WebRTC, RTMP, SRT, HLS and LL-HLS. 3.2.0 on November 13, two months after 3.1.0, adds WHEP signalling, a Prometheus metrics endpoint with a matching Grafana dashboard, app and plugin installation from the dashboard, SRT passphrases and a new stream-source ingest manager. Its 43 bug fixes are mostly about SRT, RTSP and LL-HLS stability, plus restoring plugin files after an upgrade.
SRS vs Ant Media Server: editorial side-by-side
SRS
5.0MEETINGS
SRS now runs three release lines at once and publishes A/B CPU benchmarks with each build.
◆ Current state
SRS, the open-source media streaming server, cut v6.0-r3, v7.0-a4 and v8.0-d3 within two minutes on 31 October. Each release now carries an A/B CPU benchmark across 16 delivery scenarios: 6.0-r3 trims 4-6% CPU on RTMP, HTTP-FLV and HTTP-TS, while both 7.0-a4 and 8.0-d3 show RTSP delivery using about 30% more CPU than the prior build. Release commits are co-authored with Claude.
◆ Where it's heading
Release engineering is becoming the product's visible discipline: stable, alpha and dev lines ship together with measured performance deltas rather than feature notes. The 7.0 line has moved from dev snapshots into alphas, and 8.0 now takes the dev-snapshot slot.
◆ Prediction
The shared RTSP regression in 7.0-a4 and 8.0-d3 is the obvious thing for the next alpha and dev builds to address, given the benchmarks now flag it on every release.
Ant Media Server
2.5MEETINGS
Ant Media Server 3.2 adds WHEP playback, Prometheus metrics and plugin installs from the dashboard.
◆ Current state
Ant Media Server is a self-hosted streaming server spanning WebRTC, RTMP, SRT, HLS and LL-HLS. 3.2.0 on November 13, two months after 3.1.0, adds WHEP signalling, a Prometheus metrics endpoint with a matching Grafana dashboard, app and plugin installation from the dashboard, SRT passphrases and a new stream-source ingest manager. Its 43 bug fixes are mostly about SRT, RTSP and LL-HLS stability, plus restoring plugin files after an upgrade.
◆ Where it's heading
The 2026 releases moved from adding protocols and codecs (SRT restreaming, AV1, RTSP output) toward running the server as operated infrastructure: monitoring, plugin management from the panel and upgrade-safe plugins. WHEP joins standard WebRTC signalling, and the MoQ library update shows the team tracking the next streaming transport, though only as a library and CDN test so far.
◆ Prediction
Expect 3.2.x patches for the SRT and plugin fixes that ship in volume with each minor; whether MoQ becomes a usable output is not clear from these notes.
Alternatives to SRS and Ant Media Server
Other Meetings products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either SRS or Ant Media Server.
Eventcombo
Eventcombo adds webinar demo checklists to its 2027 buyer guides.
Fourwaves
Fourwaves doubles Free plan submissions to 50 and reworks reviewer assignment.
JW Player
JW Player's Android SDK 4.28 adds live Chromecast and new background audio controls.
Nextcloud Talk
Nextcloud Talk v23.0.14 fixes Firefox video and keeps v25 waiting at RC3.
Kurento
Kurento's JavaScript client gets a 7.3.1 point release with no notes.
See all SRS alternatives → · See all Ant Media Server alternatives →
Recent activity from SRS and Ant Media Server
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 1d agoAnt Media Server3.2.0: WHEP, Prometheus metrics and dashboard plugin installs
- 14d agoSRSSRS 8.0 dev3: RTMP CPU down 7.6%, RTSP up 29%
- 14d agoSRSSRS 7.0 alpha4: RTSP delivery uses 31% more CPU
- 14d agoSRSSRS 6.0-r3 cuts RTMP and HTTP-FLV CPU by 4-6%
- 19d agoSRSSRS 7.0 alpha3 snapshot
- 20d agoSRSSRS 8.0 dev2 snapshot
- 23d agoSRSSRS 8.0 dev1 snapshot
- 2mo agoAnt Media ServerNew management panel, RTSP output and multi-audio SRT ingest
- 6mo agoAnt Media Server3.0.3 maintenance build with no listed changes
- 6mo agoAnt Media Server3.0.2 code quality and stability build
- 6mo agoAnt Media Server3.0.1 adds AV1 and removes deprecated APIs
- 9mo agoAnt Media ServerRestream to SRT, local license server, on-demand playlists
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between SRS and Ant Media Server?
Both compete on the same themes — webrtc — within Meetings. SRS is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 5.0 vs 2.5), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.
Is SRS better than Ant Media Server?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. SRS is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 5.0 vs 2.5), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Meetings products to evaluate alongside.
What are the best alternatives to SRS?
Top SRS alternatives in Meetings are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "SRS alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/srs for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to Ant Media Server?
Top Ant Media Server alternatives in Meetings are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Ant Media Server alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/ant-media-server for the full list with editorial commentary on each.