OBS Studio gives you precise control over every audio source in your stream or recording, but the tools are spread across several menus, and the defaults rarely produce broadcast-quality sound. Whether you’re battling background noise, fighting unbalanced levels between your mic and game audio, or trying to hear yourself in headphones without feedback, this guide covers every core audio control in OBS, from the mixer and filters to monitoring and live hotkeys.
How to Control Audio in OBS: Mixer, Filters, and Monitoring Explained
Understanding the OBS Audio Mixer
The Audio Mixer lives at the bottom of the OBS Studio interface, directly below the preview window. Each channel strip represents a single audio source: typically Desktop Audio, Mic/Auxiliary, and any additional sources you have configured. Every strip includes a peak meter, a volume fader, a mute button, and a gear icon for accessing filters and properties.
Peak Meters and the dBFS Scale
The peak meter measures audio level in dBFS (decibels relative to full scale), where 0 dBFS is the absolute maximum before clipping occurs. The color zones give you a quick visual reference:
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Green zone (below approximately -20 dBFS): The signal is present but quiet.
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Yellow zone (-20 to -6 dBFS): Healthy signal range; this is where voice content should live.
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Red zone (above -6 dBFS, especially near 0): Clipping territory. Sustained red means distortion in your output that cannot be corrected after the fact.
Recommended Level Targets
|
Source |
Target Peak Level |
Common Mistake |
|---|---|---|
|
Microphone / Voice |
-12 to -6 dBFS |
Maxing the slider and clipping |
|
Game / Desktop Audio |
Around -20 dBFS |
Leaving it at the OS default (too loud) |
|
Background Music |
-30 to -25 dBFS |
Overpowering speech |
|
Alert / Notification Audio |
-20 to -15 dBFS |
Jarring volume spikes |
Keeping your voice in the yellow zone and all other sources below it ensures speech stays intelligible throughout your content.
Note: OBS meters display short-term peak levels. Transients can briefly spike above what the meter catches between updates, so leave a few dB of headroom below the red zone.
Adding and Configuring Audio Sources in OBS
OBS handles audio sources in two ways: global audio devices configured in Settings (available across all scenes), and scene-specific sources added through the Sources panel.
Adding a Microphone (Global Method)
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Open Settings > Audio.
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Under Global Audio Devices, find the Mic/Auxiliary Audio dropdown.
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Select your microphone from the list. If it does not appear, verify the device is recognized in Windows Sound Settings or macOS System Preferences first.
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Click OK to save.
The microphone channel will appear in the Audio Mixer on every scene.
Adding Desktop Audio
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In Settings > Audio, find the Desktop Audio dropdown.
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Select your primary output device (the headphones or speakers your system is sending audio to).
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Click OK.
To capture multiple desktop sources separately, add an Audio Output Capture source through the Sources panel + button. This is useful when you want game audio on one channel and browser audio on another.
Adding a Scene-Specific Microphone Source
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Click the + button in the Sources panel.
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Select Audio Input Capture.
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Name the source and choose your device in the Properties window.
This method is useful when different scenes require different microphone routing.
Configuration Notes
Mono vs. Stereo: Most microphones should be set to Mono inside OBS. Desktop audio and music sources should stay Stereo. You can verify this in a source’s audio properties.
Sample Rate: OBS defaults to 48 kHz under Settings > Audio. Match your audio device’s sample rate in your OS settings to prevent resampling artifacts. If you are using a wireless microphone like the Hollyland LARK MAX 2, its native 48 kHz / 32-bit Float output pairs cleanly with OBS’s default session rate, reducing the need for heavy gain correction at the input stage.
Adjusting Volume Levels and Balancing Multiple Sources
With sources configured, the Audio Mixer becomes your live mixing board. Drag the fader on any channel to increase or reduce its output volume. Right-clicking the volume readout on a channel strip lets you switch the display between percentage and dBFS; working in dBFS is more precise when matching the target ranges above.
Practical Balancing Workflow
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Set your microphone level first so your normal speaking voice peaks consistently between -12 and -6 dBFS.
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Reduce game audio until it peaks around -20 dBFS. It should be present and immersive, but not competing with your voice.
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Pull any secondary audio (Discord, browser, music) to -30 dBFS or below unless it is the primary content focus.
What the Mixer Volume Controls
By default, the volume you set in the Audio Mixer applies to both your stream output and your local recording at the same time. If you need separate levels for the two outputs, that requires assigning sources to independent audio tracks, which is covered in the Advanced Audio Settings section.
Right-clicking a channel strip also gives you access to Mute (instantly silences all outputs), Hide (removes the strip from view without removing the source), and Advanced Audio Properties (where monitoring and track routing are configured).
Using OBS Audio Filters to Clean Up Your Sound
Filters in OBS apply signal processing to a single audio source before it reaches the mixer output. Click the gear icon on a channel strip and select Filters, or right-click the source in the Sources panel and choose Filters. Each filter you add is listed in processing order from top to bottom.
Using OBS Audio Filters to Clean Up Your Sound
Noise Gate
A noise gate monitors the signal level and cuts audio to silence whenever it drops below a set threshold. When you stop talking, the gate closes, blocking keyboard clicks, fan hum, and ambient room noise from bleeding through during pauses.
Key settings:
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Close Threshold: The level below which the gate shuts off. Start around -40 to -45 dBFS. If the gate cuts off the end of your words, raise this value slightly.
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Open Threshold: The level the signal must exceed to open the gate. Set it 5 to 10 dB above the Close Threshold (for example, -35 to -30 dBFS). Too high and quiet speech will not trigger it; too low and it will not block anything useful.
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Attack / Release Times: Default values of 25ms attack and 150 to 200ms release are a solid starting point.
A noise gate is most effective against inconsistent background noise: things that appear and disappear rather than running constantly.
Noise Suppression
Noise suppression takes a different approach. Instead of silencing the entire signal, it analyzes the audio and attenuates constant low-level background frequencies (fans, HVAC, electrical hum) while leaving speech mostly intact.
OBS includes two options:
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RNNoise: A neural network-based suppressor that produces natural-sounding results with fewer artifacts. Choose this on any reasonably modern CPU.
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Speex: A lighter DSP-based option with less precise suppression. Useful on older hardware.
Start with a suppression level of -30 to -40 dB. Higher values remove more noise but can introduce a robotic, processed quality to the voice.
Do not stack two noise suppression filters. The artifacts compound and degrade your voice quality faster than the additional suppression helps. Use one filter and pair it with a noise gate for consistent results.
Gain Filter
If your microphone signal is consistently too quiet even with the mixer fader at 100%, a Gain filter lets you boost the input level inside OBS. Add the filter and increase the value in 3 to 5 dB increments while watching your peak meter.
Gain amplifies everything in the signal, including floor noise. Boosting more than 10 to 15 dB without a hardware preamp usually raises background noise to a distracting level. Address low gain at the hardware or audio interface level when possible and use the OBS Gain filter only as a secondary correction.
Compressor
A compressor reduces the dynamic range of your voice, automatically pulling down loud peaks and raising quieter moments. The result is a more consistent level for viewers rather than abrupt jumps between loud and quiet passages.
Key parameters to understand:
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Threshold: The level above which compression activates. A range of -18 to -12 dBFS works well for most voices.
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Ratio: The amount of gain reduction applied above the threshold. A 3:1 or 4:1 ratio is transparent for speech; higher ratios begin to sound heavily processed.
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Attack / Release: Keep attack between 1 and 10ms and release between 50 and 200ms for natural vocal dynamics.
Over-compression using a very high ratio or extremely low threshold creates a pumping, unnatural quality that is often harder to listen to than original dynamic variation.
Recommended Filter Chain Order
The order of filters in the Filters dialog determines the processing sequence. Running filters in the wrong order causes them to work against each other and produce worse results than any single filter alone.
The correct order for a microphone source is:
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Gain (if needed) - boost the raw signal to a workable level before other filters evaluate it
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Noise Gate - remove silence and intermittent noise before suppression processes the signal
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Noise Suppression - attenuate constant background frequencies from the active speech signal
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Compressor - even out dynamics on the now-cleaned signal
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EQ (if used) - shape the final tonal balance
Running the compressor before the gate, for example, causes it to react to noise in the silent gaps, producing unwanted level pumping. Running noise suppression before the gate forces it to process silence unnecessarily. This order ensures each filter operates on the cleanest possible input from the previous stage.
Setting Up Audio Monitoring in OBS
Audio monitoring lets you hear your sources through headphones during a stream or recording without sending that monitored audio to your viewers. Setup requires two steps.
Step 1: Set Your Monitoring Device
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Open Settings > Audio.
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Scroll to the Advanced subsection.
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Set the Monitoring Device dropdown to your headphones or a dedicated output device.
This device must be separate from your microphone input. Using the same device for both monitoring and microphone input will create a feedback loop.
Step 2: Enable Monitoring on a Source
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Right-click any channel strip in the Audio Mixer.
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Select Advanced Audio Properties.
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Find the Audio Monitoring column for the source you want to monitor.
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Choose one of three states:
Monitor Off: The source is not sent to your monitoring device. This is the default. Your viewers hear it normally; you do not.
Monitor Only (mute output): Audio goes to your monitoring device only and does not appear in your stream or recording. Use this to preview a source before it goes live.
Monitor and Output: Audio goes to both your monitoring device and your stream or recording output simultaneously. This is the setting to use when you want to hear your own microphone in your headphones during a live stream.
Warning: Enabling “Monitor and Output” on a microphone while your monitoring device and microphone input are the same device will immediately create a feedback loop. Always confirm your monitoring device is set to headphones-only output before enabling microphone monitoring.
Muting, Hotkeys, and Live Audio Control
Live streams introduce audio situations that can’t be handled by adjusting the mixer manually in time - a sudden cough, a door opening, or an unexpected background noise spike. Hotkeys give you instant control over individual source mutes without refocusing away from OBS.
Setting Up Mute Hotkeys
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Open Settings > Hotkeys.
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Scroll to find the hotkey entries for each audio source, listed by the source name.
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Assign a key combination to Mute (toggle on/off), Push to Mute (mute while the key is held), or Push to Talk (unmute while held).
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Click OK to save.
Push-to-mute is often more practical than push-to-talk for solo streamers who speak continuously. Your microphone stays live by default, and you hold the key only during moments you need silence.
Scene-Based Audio Control
Sources can be set to active or inactive per scene using the visibility (eye) icon in the Sources panel. Deactivating a source in a scene prevents it from producing output while that scene is active. This allows you to, for example, automatically silence a music source when switching to a “Be Right Back” scene without touching the mixer manually.
Advanced Audio Settings Worth Knowing
These settings do not apply to every stream, but awareness of them prevents specific technical problems from going unresolved.
Sync Offset Wireless audio gear, certain USB microphones, and NDI sources can introduce audio drift relative to video. OBS compensates per source via the Sync Offset field in Advanced Audio Properties. Positive values delay the audio; negative values advance it. Adjust in 10 to 20ms increments while reviewing playback.
Audio Tracks OBS supports up to 6 independent audio tracks in recordings, each carrying a different source mix. Open Advanced Audio Properties for any source, check which numbered tracks it should output to, and then configure your recording in Settings > Output to include specific track numbers. This is valuable for editors who want to process microphone and game audio separately in post-production.
Global Audio Bitrate Found in Settings > Output > Audio, this controls the quality of the encoded audio in your stream or recording. For streaming, 160 kbps is a reliable standard for stereo audio. For local recordings where file size is not a constraint, 320 kbps is appropriate.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is my microphone audio so quiet in OBS even at 100% volume?
The issue is likely at the device level, not inside OBS. Check your microphone’s input gain in Windows Sound Settings or macOS System Preferences, or on your audio interface directly. If hardware adjustment is not an option, add a Gain filter inside OBS. Boost in small increments and monitor for added noise as you increase the value.
How do I stop my game audio from going to my stream?
Open Advanced Audio Properties for your Desktop Audio source and uncheck the audio track that your stream output uses. In Settings > Output, assign your stream to only include tracks that do not carry game audio. This routes game audio to your recording while excluding it from the live stream.
Can I control each audio source independently for recordings versus streams?
Yes. OBS supports up to 6 audio tracks. Assign each source to specific tracks via Advanced Audio Properties, then configure your stream output and recording output in Settings to use different track combinations. This gives you a fully independent mix for each output simultaneously.
Why does my audio monitoring cause an echo?
Your monitoring device and microphone input are the same device, causing a feedback loop. Go to Settings > Audio and change the Monitoring Device to a separate output, such as dedicated headphones. Once the monitoring device is isolated from your microphone input, the echo will stop.
What is the difference between Noise Gate and Noise Suppression in OBS?
Noise Gate silences the entire signal when it drops below a volume threshold, blocking intermittent sounds during pauses in speech. Noise Suppression attenuates constant low-level background noise such as fan hum or room tone while allowing speech to pass through. The two filters address different noise types and are most effective when used together in the correct filter chain order.
Take Your OBS Audio Further
The core workflow is straightforward: configure your sources, set levels to target ranges in the Audio Mixer, apply filters in the correct chain order, set up monitoring to a dedicated headphone output, and assign hotkeys for live mute control. That foundation covers the majority of audio problems streamers encounter.
To go deeper, explore Best OBS Audio Settings for Streaming, How to Fix Audio Sync Issues in OBS, and Top Microphones for OBS Streamers for next steps in building a professional audio setup.
