Open Broadcaster Software: setup. OBS Configuration Guide

Many people who are just beginning to stream on "Twice" or other resources, and at the same time look for which program is optimal for them, are often chosen based on the following criteria: simplicity, efficiency and, of course, cost. Under all these criteria, the Open Broadcaster Software utility fits perfectly. Setting up this program is not as easy as it might seem at first glance, but in fact all of its benefits, which such detailed configuration provides, completely compensate for its complexity.

OBS and XSplit

It should be noted immediately that if you compare this utility with XSplit, then in fact it is not so easy to master. After all, if the latter practically does everything for us, then when you use OBS, you will most likely have to either sort out all sorts of nuances for a long time or go online to find advice on Open Broadcaster Software. The configuration of this utility is sometimes complicated by the fact that their site periodically falls, which means that users are completely lost access to it. In this regard, often this situation occurs that it is impossible to go to the forum of the site itself.

What are the advantages of OBS?

First of all, considering the advantages of this utility, it is worth noting how easy the interface is Open Broadcaster Software. Setting up this program is difficult only because of its detail, while mastering the main points is extremely simple and straightforward. Of course, with some incredible beauty this interface does not differ, but in such things convenience is much more important.

Also, we can not help saying how much of the resource is being requested by Open Broadcaster Software. Tuning with detailed summarization of various parameters allows to achieve the maximum availability of streams and the minimum consumption of resources of the program itself. If you correctly install all the features, then in this case even the most demanding games will be launched and go without any problems, however for beginners such a detailed tuning is, of course, a problem. Indeed, how to configure Open Broadcaster Software, each will not understand it by itself, because there is a huge number of items, and the utility itself can often impose a far from the best configuration for the user's computer.

What do I need to know?

Downloading the utility from the official site, you should carefully select the version that is suitable for your operating system. Streaming programs are offered in two variations - x32 and x64, and a shortcut in this case can be created by default. If you mix up the bit, then in the process of streaming the program you will have enough "lag" or even do not work at all. To make it easier for you, it's best to remove the shortcut that is irrelevant to you first, so that in the future you do not accidentally start OBS, which can "lag".

But such problems are not only the result of people launching incorrect shortcuts, some still do not know how to set up Open Broadcaster Software. After all, in fact, when working with this utility it is very important to pay attention to all the little things.

OBS or free XSplit?

Many believe that because of the complexity of not using OBS, and you can just use, for example, a free version of the program for streaming XSplit. But in fact, not everyone understands that the free version of this utility is radically different from the paid one, it is extremely heavily curtailed, while Open Broadcaster Software (OBS) is perfectly used and does not close us access to any characteristics.

In principle, the utility has appeared relatively recently, and the developers of XSplit either have not realized to this day that they have a very, very serious competitor (which is unlikely), or they simply continue to be paid by those people who are used to this utility, because literally For several years in this area the total monopoly of this program reigned, because there were no alternatives to it.

Streams are expensive

But in any case, no matter which program you download, you should immediately decide how committed you will be to streaming, because you somehow will need to invest here some funds for the development of both the computer and the Internet . If just for fun, then untitled Open Broadcaster Software is fine, but if you want to ensure maximum performance and stability, you can try the premium version of XSplit.

However, the majority of users using OBS and having experience with paid XSplit, say that almost no difference is observed.

Download the program

Naturally, before using Open Broadcaster Software, we will need to download this program from the official site. While it will be downloaded and installed on your computer, you can go to the main page, select an approximate configuration of your computer, and then click on the Recommend Settings button. Initially, you can use just such a set of characteristics that you can already change for yourself during the tests.

General settings of the program

After the Open Broadcaster Software program is installed, you will need to go to the General settings tab. For convenience, it is recommended that you create a profile first so that you can switch between several sets of settings at any time.

It is worth noting that you are initially provided with Open Broadcaster Software in Russian, but you can change the language if necessary, if it is more convenient for you. Installing an icon in the tray or minimizing the program is not necessary if you have an additional monitor. It is best to provide control over the streaming procedure, and not to irritate viewers with continuous switching between windows. The display of the cursor should be disabled without fail, if you are going to show a certain film or video, but in the case with the predominant majority of games it can be completely left, and sometimes even necessary - for greater informativeness.

Coding

Here the most controversial characteristic is CBR, which supports a constant bitrate. This parameter causes users to download the broadcast at a certain speed during the entire stream, which is from 2000 to 5000 Kbps, which is not optimal in some cases, but in fact, recently this parameter setting is a mandatory requirement for Twitch. Open Broadcaster Software gives you the opportunity not only to meet this requirement, but also to do it completely automatically.

The only thing that lacks this constant bitrate is the inaccessibility of your stream for those people who use unstable connection (for example, 3G-modem) or have limited traffic.

Quality is set at 6-8. It is not worth the joy of setting the value immediately to 10, because visually you almost do not see any difference, but at the same time, users who view it can have all kinds of lags. The maximum bitrate is recommended to be set approximately at the level of 2500-3500. First, streaming services do not accept higher values, starting to "lose" packets, and secondly, using a bitrate of more than 3500 is required only if the image is provided in Full-HD format. It should also be noted that the value of the bitrate must be equal to the size of the buffer, so do not even set a label near the "Other Buffer Size" item.

In "Audio" select the codec "AAS", as well as "Bitrate 128".

Casting

There are two available modes here: local recording and live broadcast. Local recording provides an excellent opportunity to fully assess the quality of the future stream before using Open Broadcaster Software in a live broadcast so that in the future you do not disturb viewers. In this case, it is recommended to use this function before starting the stream, and in particular this applies to situations where you are going to hang all kinds of pictures and other extraneous elements on top of the image. Now you will need to specify the path where your test video will be stored, and set the hotkey, after clicking which the broadcast will be launched in the OBS window. Among other things, this option can be used as a worthy alternative to all sorts of programs like Fraps.

After you are done with the selection of the optimal settings, you should put back the live broadcast. In the latest versions of the utility a fairly large number of various services are provided, through which it will be possible to broadcast, but Twitch and Cybergame were, of course, the optimal ones. The first one is the most widely used portal of this type, and the second one is more aimed at the Russian audience. It is worth noting that both services are currently unobtrusive in terms of monetization, and are also entirely dedicated to the gaming theme.

Which server to choose?

For "Twitch" you should choose London, Amsterdam or Frankfurt. Quite often there are such situations when one of the servers is overloaded, constantly "lagging", and for this reason simply does not receive from us all the packages. In this case, you will need to select another server. If we consider Cybergame, then there are no special options - it's a paid or free server.

To get your own Play Path / Stream Key, you will need to complete the registration procedure on one of the channels, then create your own channel. The services themselves are extremely understandable and accessible. In the profile you will be given an individual key for the channel, which you will need to enter in this field.

Video

In this section you will need to choose your own video card, as well as the resolution that you think is optimal. In this case, you can simply select a monitor so that the program uses the resolution you have chosen. Scaling is recommended to be set at 1280x720, as HD is more than optimal for video broadcasting or various games. For Full HD, you will need to more fine-tune the program, because you will need to find the best balance between the used bitrate, as well as the capabilities of the computer and the receiving ability of your chosen service.

The filter is best left to bilinear, since the other options do not give anything visually, in addition to the extra load. To set the frame rate per second, you should remember what parameters the OBS evaluator offered you on the official site. In most cases, it's enough to set the number of frames per second at 30. It's worth noting that the FPS installed is most noticeable for how much the program will give to your computer, and if you notice any slowdowns of the PC in Time stream, first you should reduce this parameter, but below 25 FPS it's definitely not worth installing.