OBS Video Audio Out of Sync: How to Fix It (Step-by-Step)

Audio sync issues in OBS are one of the most common problems streamers and content creators run into, and one of the most frustrating. You finish a recording, play it back, and find your voice drifting ahead of or falling behind the video. But here’s a thing! Finding the cause is usually easier than most people expect. Each problem has a specific solution in most cases. This guide starts with the issues people face most often. Follow the steps one by one to identify and fix the sync problem.

Why OBS Audio and Video Fall Out of Sync

OBS records audio and video through separate processing systems. If one process runs slower than the other, audio and video lose synchronization. The final recording then plays both signals at different times. These problems usually fall into three main categories.

Identifying which category matches your situation makes fixing it much faster. The sections below are ordered by how commonly each cause appears in practice.

How to Tell Whether Audio Is Early or Late?

Before adjusting any settings, you need to know which direction the sync is off. Applying the wrong correction will make the problem worse, not better.

1. Record a test clip: Open OBS, start a new recording, and clap your hands sharply in front of the camera. A single clean hand clap works better than snapping fingers. Record at least 10 seconds.

2. Play the clip back: Watch the exact frame where your hands come together and listen for when the clap sound plays.

3. Identify the gap direction: If you hear the clap before your hands visually meet, audio is early (running ahead of video). If the sound comes after the visual, audio is late (trailing behind video).

• Audio is early: You need to delay the audio to let the video catch up. Apply a positive sync offset value or an audio delay filter to push the audio forward in time.

• Audio is late: You need to delay the video or advance the audio. A negative sync offset or a video delay filter on the video source handles this.

Before making any changes, estimate the timing difference first. An approximate value is usually accurate enough to begin. Even a guess like 200 ms or 500 ms saves time during sync adjustments.

Fix 1: Set the Audio Sync Offset in OBS

This is the fastest fix and the right starting point for most users.

The Audio Sync Offset setting lets you shift an individual audio source forward or backward in time relative to the video signal. The unit is milliseconds.

1. In OBS, find the Audio Mixer panel at the bottom of the main window.

2. Click the gear icon at the bottom of the source panel to open Advanced Audio Properties.

3. Locate the Sync Offset column for your audio source. The default value is 0.

4. Enter a value based on your clap test result:

• Audio is early: Enter a positive number (for example, +200) to delay that audio source.

• Audio is late: Enter a negative number (for example, -200) to shift the audio backward relative to video.

5. Close the properties window and record a short test clip.

6. Review the clip and adjust in increments of 50–100ms until the clap lines up with the image.

Note: The Sync Offset applies to that specific audio source in both recordings and live streams simultaneously. If you have multiple audio sources, each one has its own independent offset field in Advanced Audio Properties.

Fix 2: Match Sample Rates Between Windows and OBS

A sample rate mismatch between your Windows audio device and OBS is one of the most common hidden causes of sync drift. If Windows is set to 44.1 kHz but OBS outputs at 48 kHz (or the reverse), OBS must resample the audio continuously in real time. The rounding error from that resampling accumulates, producing a drift that is barely noticeable in the first few minutes but becomes obvious by the 20 or 30-minute mark.

The fix requires matching the setting on both sides.

Windows Side:

1. Right-click the speaker icon in the Windows taskbar and open Sound Settings, or go to Control Panel > Sound.

2. Navigate to the Recording tab and double-click your microphone or audio interface.

3. Click the Advanced tab.

4. In the Default Format dropdown, select 2 channel, 48000 Hz (DVD Quality).

5. Click Apply, then OK.

OBS Side:

1. In OBS, go to Settings > Audio.

2. Find the Sample Rate dropdown.

3. Set it to 48 kHz.

4. Click Apply, then OK.

5. Restart OBS to ensure the change is fully applied, then record a new clap test clip.

Pro Tip: 48 kHz is the standard sample rate for video production and is the right choice for most OBS users. If your audio interface or microphone has its own sample rate selector in its companion software, set that to 48 kHz as well to keep all three in agreement.

Fix 3: Reduce Rendering and Encoder Lag

Heavy CPU or GPU usage can slow video processing during recording. Audio usually continues without the same delay. This makes the sound play before the video. The timing difference often grows during scenes with heavy graphics or effects.

Step 1: Diagnose the problem first.

Open OBS and go to View > Stats to open the Stats dock. Watch two values while you run a test recording:

• Frame missed due to rendering lag: This should stay near 0%. Even a consistent 1–2% means frames are being held back.

• Dropped Frames : Any non-zero value confirms the encoder cannot keep up with the output demand.

If either value is elevated, encoder or rendering lag is contributing to your sync issue.

Step 2: Apply targeted fixes.

• Lower your output resolution: Go to Settings > Video and reduce the Output (Scaled) Resolution. Dropping from 1080p to 900p or 720p significantly reduces GPU processing load.

• Switch to a hardware encoder: Go to Settings > Output > Output Mode: Advanced > Streaming > Video Encoder. If you are using x264 (software encoding), switch to NVENC for NVIDIA GPUs or AMF for AMD GPUs. Hardware encoders offload the encoding work from your CPU and typically reduce pipeline delays.

• Reduce video bitrate: In Settings > Output > Output Mode: Simple > Video Bitrate, lower the video bitrate. For most streaming content at 1080p60, 4,500–6,000 Kbps is sufficient. Reducing bitrate lowers encoder workload noticeably.

• Simplify your active scene: Browser sources, animated overlays, and multiple simultaneous video capture sources all increase GPU demand. Disable any sources you are not actively using during the recording or stream.

After each change, reopen the Stats dock and confirm that rendering lag and encoder drops have decreased before testing sync again.

Fix 4: Disable Exclusive Mode for Audio Devices

Windows Exclusive Mode allows a single application to take direct control over an audio device and bypass the Windows audio mixer. When OBS and another application both attempt to access the same device, this can create buffer conflicts that shift audio timing unpredictably.

1. Open Windows Sound Settings by right-clicking the speaker icon in the taskbar or going to Control Panel > Sound.

2. Click the Recording tab and double-click the affected microphone or audio interface.

3. Select the Advanced tab.

4. Uncheck Allow applications to take exclusive control of this device.

5. Click Apply and OK, then restart OBS.

This fix is most relevant when sync issues appear only with a specific microphone or interface, or when the problem started after you installed new audio software such as virtual audio drivers or DAW plugins.

Fix 5 — Address Latency from External Audio Hardware

Bluetooth devices add a noticeable delay before playing audio. That delay usually falls between 100 and 300 ms. This makes sync problems much harder to hear while recording. Checking audio timing becomes less accurate with Bluetooth headphones or speakers. Use wired monitoring devices instead during recording sessions.

Wireless microphones can also introduce input delay depending on the transmission technology used. RF-based wireless systems with low stated latency reduce how much manual compensation OBS needs to apply. The Hollyland LARK MAX 2, for example, operates at ultra-low 20ms transmission latency with 48 kHz / 32-bit Float audio output, so OBS receives the signal very close to real-time, minimizing the offset correction required on the hardware side.

Hardware-side recommendations:

• Avoid Bluetooth headsets or speakers for monitoring while recording or streaming

• Choose low-latency RF wireless microphones over Bluetooth-based alternatives

• Check the manufacturer’s stated transmission latency before relying on offset correction to compensate

• Use a dedicated USB audio interface rather than your system’s built-in sound card for lower, more consistent input latency

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1: Why does OBS audio sync drift worse over longer recordings?

You may notice audio and video slowly fall out of sync. Different sample rate settings are a common reason for this. Separate hardware clocks can also create timing differences over time. These timing issues often become noticeable after 20 to 30 minutes.

Q2: Does the Audio Sync Offset setting affect live streams as well as recordings?

Yes, Audio Sync Offset changes both live streams and saved recordings. Any value you enter changes the final audio timing. Open the Audio Mixer and click the gear icon. You can also click the three dots beside the audio source. Select Advanced Audio Properties from the menu. Find your audio device in the list. Enter a positive or negative value under Sync Offset. This changes when the audio plays by milliseconds. But the offset does not change live Audio Monitoring in your headphones. Check your stream or recording afterward to confirm everything stays synchronized.

Q3: My audio is only out of sync in the exported file, not in the OBS preview. Why?

When the preview looks correct, but the exported file does not, the problem usually happens during recording or encoding. Encoder lag, rendering problems, or audio drift are common causes. The preview follows a different low-latency playback process than the saved output. Start by making sure every sample rate matches in OBS Settings. Next, open the Stats dock and check for rendering lag or dropped frames. If the problem continues, adjust your microphone timing in Advanced Audio Properties using Sync Offset.

Q4: I have multiple audio sources. Do I need to set the sync offset for each one separately?

Yes. Advanced Audio Properties sets the offset per source, not globally. Play back a test recording and identify which specific source is desynced. Adjust the Sync Offset only for that source. Applying a blanket offset to all sources at once, when only one is misaligned, will create new sync problems for the sources that were already correct.

Q5: Can switching OBS scenes or sources cause a sync reset?

In most setups, changing scenes does not affect audio sync. Some devices can behave differently after a scene switch. Virtual audio cables and certain capture cards may reset their audio buffers. This can change the audio timing after switching scenes. If the problem only appears during scene changes, adjust Sync Offset in Advanced Audio Properties. You can also add a Video Delay filter to keep audio and video aligned across scene switches.

Conclusion

Start with the clap test to confirm whether audio is early or late. Then apply the Sync Offset fix (Fix 1) and verify that your sample rates match on both the Windows and OBS sides (Fix 2). These two steps resolve the majority of audio sync problems in OBS. If the issue continues, work through Fixes 3 to 5 in sequence.