OBS has a super neat feature that works great if you’re narrating over an existing audio track. It’s called Sidechain/Ducking, and it will automatically lower the audio of one source if an audio level is detected on another source. For example, when you’re playing a game, the audio would be lowered when you speak, and … Read more
So I’ve made affiliate on Twitch last month (YEY!!!), and one of the perks is that I can upload my own custom emote. Which is super exciting! It takes a while for those little icons to get approved, but once they’re online they add a very personal touch to a stream. My first iteration wasn’t … Read more
Most voice recording sounds better with a little bit of compression applied. It’ll make the quieter bits louder, and make the louder bits quieter. In addition, there’s usually a little bit of noise that is picked up even with the best of microphones. It’s just a fact of audio life.
Thankfully OBS has two great filters that can be used in combination to great effect, first compressing your voice, and then adding a bit of noise reduction afterwards. I’ll show you how to do it, and the values that work well for me in this article.
I’ve been struggling to route and monitor some of my audio sources in OBS. Thankfully I’ve found two essential tools that make this possible, and I thought I’d jot down some notes in case I forget.
I’ll also touch on how to monitor audio properly without causing an endless loop by recording what you’re monitoring.
In principle, we use the latter to route a source into the VB-Cable (a virtual destination), then we pick up the VB-Cable output as a separate input in OBS. We can then adjust its levels independently from other sources or apply filters if necessary. This all sounds more complex than it really is, so let me illustrate this with an example.
Installation Notes
VB-Cable installs like a regular app on Windows, and does not need to be started. It’s like a permanent audio device driver on your system. There are three versions in total: the free VB-Cable, as well as two donation ware items called VB-Cable A/B and C/D. We don’t need those, but if you ever require more than one routable audio destination, give them a try. Either one will get you two more destinations.
I took this screen grab so illustrate which download button to click for the regular VB-Cable:
I’ve heard good things about Twitch Reruns, but had no idea how to get the going. I found the upload option, but I thought it would be ridiculous to download my own stream, then re-upload it for a Premiere. Turns out Reruns are a new panel you have to add to the re-designed Broadcast Dashboard.
Let me show you where to find it and how it works step by step (with screenshots, because I’ll probably forget a week from now).
I wanted a top quality capture solution for my PS3 and PS4 consoles, something that would last a few years and that I could use for high-quality HDMI capture of other devices too. I’ve had a cheap USB solution before and as you can imagine, the quality just wasn’t great. I finally bit the bullet and purchased an ELGATO HD60 Pro. This is a PCI-e card with a dedicated video encoder, HDMI in and out, and from what the sales brochure tells you, it’s the proverbial Dog’s Bollocks. I’ve had it for several months now and can give you some impressions.
I’ve been having some trouble with my internet connection lately. Up until two weeks ago I had an upload speed of about 20-25 Mbps, but since then it tanked down to an unstable and unpredictable 1-4 Mbps. I have my best technicians working on it (i.e. my internet provider). Needless to say, this put a damper on streaming at a constant bitrate of 5 Mbps like I usually do. I couldn’t even get OBS to deliver a stable 1Mbps connection.
My wife however was quite happily streaming FORTNITE directly from her PS4, and aside from a bit of blockiness every once in a while, the connection was stable for hours. I on the other hand couldn’t make anything work with OBS, no matter how hard I tried.
So what gives? There has to be some kind of magic in the way the Playstation consoles deal with streaming, on top of everything else. How come it works when OBS does not? I took a look at the data rate while I was test streaming, and found some interesting results.
I’ve noticed that mildly annoying Streamlabs Donation link at the top of my YouTube descriptions. While I appreciate what they’re trying to do, I don’t use their service for live donations. Sometimes the page doesn’t work and it’s WAAAAY to complicated for casual users to figure out. So I’d rather this link wouldn’t be added … Read more
