Audio is often the part of OBS that people set up last, and it shows. A video with a quiet microphone, a buzzing background, or game sound that drowns out the speaker is hard to watch, even if the picture is sharp. The good news is that OBS audio is not complicated once you understand the basic flow: sound comes in from a device, passes through the Audio Mixer, optionally through filters, and then goes to the recording or the stream. Each step has one job, and a problem at one step has a different fix from a problem at another.
This guide walks through that flow in order. You will learn how to choose the right devices, set the sample rate and channels, balance desktop and microphone levels, use filters without overdoing them, monitor your sound, and record separate audio tracks so you can fix the balance later. All advice here is a starting point to test with your own microphone, room, and computer. Results depend on your hardware and environment, and the most useful test is always the same: record a short clip, listen to it with headphones, and adjust one thing at a time. If you are new to OBS, start with our guide to using OBS.
How OBS audio routing works
OBS has two main kinds of audio. Global audio comes from the devices you choose in Settings, then Audio: usually Desktop Audio for game and application sound, and Mic/Auxiliary Audio for your microphone. Source audio comes from individual sources in a scene, such as a media source, a browser source, or a video capture device with its own microphone. Both kinds end up in the Audio Mixer, where each one has its own volume slider, mute button, and filters.
Understanding that split helps you find problems. If no sound is recorded at all, the problem is often a global device choice. If only one source is silent, the problem is usually that source. If you hear yourself twice, the same sound may be arriving through two routes, for example through desktop audio and through monitoring at the same time. When you add a new source, check the mixer to see whether it appears and whether its meter moves. A meter that does not move means OBS is not receiving sound from that source, no matter how high you set the slider.
Sample rate, channels and devices
Start in Settings, then Audio. Set the sample rate to 48 kilohertz and the channels to Stereo as a common starting point, because that matches most video workflows and avoids unnecessary conversion. Higher sample rates do not automatically make a voice recording sound better, and they can cause problems if a device or an editor expects a different rate. Keep the setting consistent across OBS and your editing software if you can.
Next, choose the correct devices. Desktop Audio should be the device that plays your game and application sound, usually your speakers or headphones. Mic/Auxiliary Audio should be your actual microphone, not a built-in array you are not using, and not a webcam microphone unless that is the one you intend to use. If you plug in a USB microphone or headset after opening OBS, it may not appear until you restart OBS or reselect the device. Test each choice by playing sound and speaking, and watch the meters in the mixer.
Setting levels and gain staging
Levels are about getting the loudness right at the start, before any filters or editing. Speak at your normal volume, at your normal distance from the microphone, and watch the microphone meter in OBS. On louder words it should move well into the yellow area, without staying in the red. If it barely moves, the microphone is too quiet, too far away, or its gain is too low. If it stays in the red, the sound will distort, and that distortion cannot be fixed cleanly afterwards.
Balance desktop audio against your voice next. Play a game or a video at its normal volume, and set the desktop slider so the game is clearly audible but still below your voice when you speak. A common starting point is to keep the microphone a little louder than the desktop, and to lower music or effects in the game itself if they compete with speech. Do not fix a quiet microphone by turning it up in editing: that also turns up background noise. Get the level right in OBS first, then leave it alone for the whole session.
A quick level check
- Speak normally for ten seconds and watch the microphone meter.
- Play game or application sound and watch the desktop meter.
- Record thirty seconds with both, then listen with headphones.
- Adjust only the slider that is wrong, and test again.
Audio filters that actually help
Filters change the sound before it is recorded, so they should be added one at a time and tested after each addition. Noise suppression reduces steady background noise such as a fan or air conditioning, but it can make a voice sound thin or robotic if set too strongly. A noise gate closes the microphone when you are not speaking, which removes keyboard clicks and room noise between sentences, but a gate set too high can cut off the start of quiet words.
A compressor evens out loud and quiet moments, so whispers are easier to hear and shouts are less startling. A limiter is a safety net: it stops sudden peaks from distorting by capping the loudest moments. An equaliser can reduce boominess or add clarity, but it is easy to overdo. Start with no filters, add noise suppression only if your room is noisy, add a limiter if you sometimes shout, and add a compressor only after you have listened to a test recording and found the volume uneven. For gaming, see our OBS settings for gaming guide for balancing game and voice audio.
Monitoring and separate audio tracks
Monitoring lets you hear what OBS hears, through your headphones, while you record. It is useful for catching problems early, but it can also cause echo if the monitored sound is picked up by your microphone or fed back into the recording. To use it safely, set monitoring to Monitor Only or Monitor and Output in the Advanced Audio Properties for the source you want to hear, wear closed headphones, and keep the microphone away from the speakers. If you hear an echo, turn monitoring off for that source first.
Separate audio tracks are one of the most useful features for recording. In Settings, then Output, then Recording, you can enable several tracks and choose which audio sources go to each one. For example, put desktop audio on track one, your microphone on track two, and voice chat on track three. When you edit, you can then adjust each one separately, or remove a noisy chat moment without touching your voice. Note that not every player shows all tracks, and some editors need you to choose which track to import, so check your editor's audio track handling before a long session.
Fixing echo, sync and background noise
Echo usually has a simple cause: the same sound is reaching OBS twice. Common causes are monitoring a source while also recording it, using speakers instead of headphones so the microphone picks up game sound, or having both desktop audio and a capture device record the same audio. Fix it by turning off monitoring for the duplicated source, wearing headphones, and checking the mixer for two meters moving to the same sound. Remove the duplicate route rather than adding a filter.
Background noise is best reduced at the source: move the microphone closer to your mouth, move it away from a fan or keyboard, and close a window if traffic noise is audible. Noise suppression can help with steady noise, but it cannot remove a loud, sudden sound cleanly. If audio and video drift apart, check whether a source has a sync offset set in Advanced Audio Properties, and restart OBS before a long session if the drift appeared after a long run. Record a short clap test at the start if you need to check sync in editing.
Audio profiles for recording and streaming
Recording and streaming share most audio settings, but they differ in one important way: a recording can use separate tracks, while a live stream usually mixes everything into one track for viewers. That makes separate tracks especially valuable for recording, because you can fix the balance afterwards. For streaming, the live mix has to be right at the time, so test it with a short unlisted stream or a local recording first.
For a tutorial or talking-head recording, keep it simple: one microphone track, one desktop track, a sample rate of 48 kilohertz, and a limiter as a safety net. For gameplay, add a third track for voice chat if you use it, and keep game audio below your voice. For a podcast or interview, give each microphone its own track if you can, so you can adjust each speaker separately. In every case, record a short test, listen with headphones, and only then start the real session. For video settings to match, see our best OBS recording settings guide and the best OBS streaming settings guide.
Common mistakes
The most common mistake is leaving the wrong microphone selected, so OBS records a laptop microphone from across the room instead of the USB microphone in front of you. Another is setting the microphone level too low and then raising it in editing, which brings up background noise with it. People also add every filter at once, turn monitoring on for every source, or record everything to a single track and then find they cannot fix the balance later.
- Using speakers instead of headphones, so the microphone picks up game sound.
- Setting noise suppression too high, so the voice sounds thin or robotic.
- Forgetting to check that the desktop audio meter moves before recording.
- Leaving a sync offset on a source after the problem that caused it is gone.
- Recording a long session without a thirty-second test listen first.
Troubleshooting
If there is no sound in the recording, check the Audio Mixer meters while you play audio and speak, confirm the correct devices are selected in Settings, then Audio, and make sure the right tracks are enabled in Output, then Recording. If the microphone is too quiet, move it closer, raise its gain in OBS or in your system settings, and check that no other program has lowered its volume. If you hear echo, turn off monitoring, wear headphones, and look for a duplicated audio route.
If audio and video are out of sync, check the sync offset in Advanced Audio Properties, restart OBS, and test with a short clap recording. If audio crackles, remove a filter, close other programs, and check that the sample rate is 48 kilohertz throughout. If a source is silent, check its own volume in the mixer and whether it is muted. For persistent no-audio problems, see how to fix no audio in OBS.
Frequently asked questions
What sample rate should I use in OBS?
48 kilohertz with stereo channels is a common starting point for most recording and streaming. It matches most video workflows and avoids unnecessary conversion. Keep the same rate in your editor if you can.
Why is my microphone so quiet in OBS?
The microphone may be too far away, its gain may be low, or the wrong device may be selected. Move it closer, raise the gain in OBS or in your system settings, and check that the correct microphone is chosen in Settings, then Audio.
How do I stop echo in OBS?
Wear headphones, turn off monitoring for the duplicated source, and check the mixer for two meters moving to the same sound. Echo usually means the same audio is reaching OBS through two routes, so remove one of them.
Should I use separate audio tracks in OBS?
Yes, for recording, if your editor supports them. Separate tracks let you adjust game, microphone, and chat audio independently afterwards, which is much easier than fixing a single mixed track.
Do I need audio filters in OBS?
Not always. Start with no filters and add one only when a test recording shows a problem, such as steady background noise or sudden loud peaks. A limiter and light noise suppression cover most cases.
Conclusion
Good OBS audio comes from getting the basics right: the correct devices, a 48 kilohertz sample rate, levels that reach the yellow without staying in the red, and a balance that keeps your voice above game sound. Add filters one at a time, use monitoring carefully, and record separate tracks when you want control in editing. Above all, test with a short recording and listen with headphones before a long session. That one habit will catch most audio problems while they are still easy to fix.