Software comparison

Hippotizer vs QLab

Hippotizer is a media server, while QLab is a show-control application — they overlap in places but are often used together rather than as substitutes.

	Hippotizer	QLab
Developer	Green Hippo	Figure 53
Country	United Kingdom	United States
Category	Media servers	Show control
Platforms	Windows	macOS
Licence	Hardware media servers	Free to program; paid licences to run advanced features
Skill level	Pro	Beginner → Pro
First release	—	—
Best for	Concert touring and live events driven from lighting desks.	Theatre sound and video playback with simple mapping.
Key features	Media-server hardware range Lighting-console control Mapping & blending Touring reliability	Cue-based show control Video surfaces with corner-pin & mesh warp Audio playback & mixing MIDI / OSC / Network cues

Verdict

Only Hippotizer runs on Windows.

Only QLab runs on macOS.

Choose Hippotizer for concert touring and live events driven from lighting desks.

Choose QLab for theatre sound and video playback with simple mapping.

Facts are curated and checked against vendor websites; licences and prices change — always confirm on the official sites before buying.

Hippotizer alternatives · QLab alternatives · All software