How to show sources?

[matonanjin]

Shouldn't all sources show? I have one source of my video camera. And one of display capture. But they only show if I'm in the scene that uses it. If I start a new scene shouldn't all my possible sources show to potentially use in that scene? I'm so new, and ignorant about OBS, I'm not even sure how to ask the question. See attached screen grabs. I have one scene that uses my video capture camera, cleverly named "scene". I have one scene named "ronsScene", that uses display capture. But I clicked on the "+" to add a new scene, which I titled "MeMeME" and no sources show as available.

I am most likely doing something wrong. Any idea what that is?

Thanks in advance

 

[AaronD]

The list of sources is only what's in that scene. There's no "master list" to choose from, but if you add another of the same type, you can then choose an existing one rather than creating again.

As you might guess, it soon becomes important to name them well...

 

[Suslik V]

Scenes pane is on the left. Only single scene goes to output. Of course, you can select/change scene while live/recording (in OBS it is named "when output is active").
Sources pane is on the right. The sources pane shows contents of the each selected scene.
Preview window shows/renders/playbacks selected scene only (actually all sources that are inside of this selected scene).
So, any Scene is like empty container that capable of storing something, for example Audio source, Image source, Text source etc.

But there are few global sources (usually audio) that can be configured in: OBS Settings > Audio > Global Audio Devices. These global audio sources never shown in any scenes but can be visible in the Audio Mixer pane (right to the Sources pane). You can disable these global sources and add them manually only to the scenes where you need them.

The Sources pane has its own button (the "+" button) to select which type of source (Audio, Image, Text etc) you want to add to the current scene. Depending on the selected type of the source ("Media" for example, see the one post above) OBS will look through all already added sources in all scenes and prompt to you to select either to create new or use already existing source (existing somewhere in other scenes) but only of the same type.

The logic is next: select container (from the Scenes) > select type of the source (from the Sources) > select add new or use already added (by the source Name). That is why right/informative naming is important.

OBS Guides:

Guides (OBS Studio)

Guides for OBS Studio

obsproject.com

 

[koala]

Don't create a new scene for every source. If you want to create a composition of some sources, use just one scene and add every source to this scene. I suggest you delete every scene you made so far except one, then add your sources to that scene. Then do resizing/positioning of the sources within that scene.

If you intend to create various compositions, not just one, and intend to switch between these compositions, create additional scenes for the different compositions and add desired sources that already exist in other scenes to the new scenes with the "add existing" option. This way you have the same source in multiple scenes.

You can also use copy+paste to copy sources from one scene to the other. If you want to use the same source in an additional scene, use the "Paste (Reference)" option. This will have the source in both scenes. If you intend to duplicate a source and edit some property (for example filter) that should be present in one source but not in the duplicate, use the "Paste (Duplicate)" option. Webcam sources only work in multiple scenes if you use the "Paste (Reference)" option. With the duplicate option, one of them is black.

 

[matonanjin]

@AaronD , @Suslik V & @koala thank you for your helpful responses. I've got a lot to learn about using OBS. You guys have gotten me started in the right direction with your answers, suggestions and links....already.

Thank you again.

 

[bcoyle]

One of the things that I use is groups. You can put things in a group and then duplicate the groups. The example shows a logo and a station id in 8 different scenes, using the same group in each SCENE.

 

[AaronD]

One of the things that I use is groups. You can put things in a group and then duplicate the groups. The example shows a logo and a station id in 8 different scenes, using the same group in each SCENE.

View attachment 109612

View attachment 109611

I did that for a year or two, but recently switched to using the Downstream Keyer plugin instead:

Downstream Keyer

This plugin adds a Downstream Keyer dock to OBS studio.

obsproject.com

That takes a normal scene (from the same list of scenes), and overlays it on top of what would otherwise be OBS's final output. So you can switch scenes under it like usual, and the DSK'ed scene stays on top regardless.

Just make sure that the DSK'ed scene doesn't have opaque content across the entire canvas! Someone didn't understand that, and put a nastygram in that plugin's discussion thread about not being able to switch scenes anymore. Of course if you have something opaque everywhere, then you can't see behind it!
Transparency does work though, evidenced by my church's stream having a full-screen NDI feed DSK'ed over the camera switching. Transparency in that NDI feed still allows the cameras to come through, and makes a really nice lower-third.

Anyway, this method allows you to have visibly one copy of the overlay (good for system maintenance), and still have it appear everywhere.

You can also set up a blacklist in the DSK plugin, of scenes that should not be overlaid. When you switch to one of those, the overlay goes away with a transition that you gave it, and when you switch away from that list, the overlay comes back with a transition. The timing isn't quite what I'd like though, so I hit two hotkeys at the same time: one to switch the scene, and the other to show or hide the DSK. But I still keep that list to make sure that the result is still right, even if it's a bit rough to get there.

 

[bcoyle]

I did that for a year or two, but recently switched to using the Downstream Keyer plugin instead:

Downstream Keyer

This plugin adds a Downstream Keyer dock to OBS studio.

obsproject.com

That takes a normal scene (from the same list of scenes), and overlays it on top of what would otherwise be OBS's final output. So you can switch scenes under it like usual, and the DSK'ed scene stays on top regardless.

Just make sure that the DSK'ed scene doesn't have opaque content across the entire canvas! Someone didn't understand that, and put a nastygram in that plugin's discussion thread about not being able to switch scenes anymore. Of course if you have something opaque everywhere, then you can't see behind it!
Transparency does work though, evidenced by my church's stream having a full-screen NDI feed DSK'ed over the camera switching. Transparency in that NDI feed still allows the cameras to come through, and makes a really nice lower-third.

Anyway, this method allows you to have visibly one copy of the overlay (good for system maintenance), and still have it appear everywhere.

You can also set up a blacklist in the DSK plugin, of scenes that should not be overlaid. When you switch to one of those, the overlay goes away with a transition that you gave it, and when you switch away from that list, the overlay comes back with a transition. The timing isn't quite what I'd like though, so I hit two hotkeys at the same time: one to switch the scene, and the other to show or hide the DSK. But I still keep that list to make sure that the result is still right, even if it's a bit rough to get there.

I keep a black source in the group stack. Things like logos are higher up in the stack and therefore always visible. I use the black source to fade in and out of scenes and control what sources appear under and over the black source. I therefore have a complete composite stack that I control from my app. I have a main source with an overlay group over it and a underlay group under it. So the app does compositing on the fly under automatic control. This is CAST-TOR if you haven't seen it before. I do enjoy working with OBS. I actually think I have talked to you before.

 

[AaronD]

I keep a black source in the group stack. Things like logos are higher up in the stack and therefore always visible. I use the black source to fade in and out of scenes and control what sources appear under and over the black source. I therefore have a complete composite stack that I control from my app. I have a main source with an overlay group over it and a underlay group under it. So the app does compositing on the fly under automatic control. This is CAST-TOR if you haven't seen it before. I do enjoy working with OBS. I actually think I have talked to you before.

Do you have a demo somewhere? Setup from scratch + workflow? All I've seen so far is just text descriptions.

And this thread is getting way off-topic now. It was originally to get a beginner started, and it flew off into a lot of advanced stuff. I think the next post after that demo link should be from @matonanjin, to get us back on track.

 

[matonanjin]

...
And this thread is getting way off-topic now. It was originally to get a beginner started, and it flew off into a lot of advanced stuff. I think the next post after that demo link should be from @matonanjin, to get us back on track.

Thank you, @AaronD . You guys were scaring me I don't have a clue what you were talking about.

But we don't need, really, to "get us back on track." I think this thread has served its purpose, being, explaining the sources. I don't need any more info. (I do have a new Dumb Question of the Day for which I'm starting a new thread.)

Other than! @bcoyle your "Douglas County Public Access TV" is surely not Douglas County Nebraska, is it?!?! I'm sure there are a lot of Douglas counties in the US.

Thanks again all of you.

 

[Lawrence_SoCal]

For those that like to read a professionally compiled and edited book with pictures, some of these might be helpful (they were for me)...
beware the publishing date and that the current OBS Studio release may be newer .. but the basic concepts should be largely the same

https://streamgeeks.us/ Online Resources

• The Unofficial Guide to Open Broadcaster Software
• The OBS Superuser Guidebook
• The Basics of Live Streaming

 

[bcoyle]

Thank you, @AaronD . You guys were scaring me I don't have a clue what you were talking about.

But we don't need, really, to "get us back on track." I think this thread has served its purpose, being, explaining the sources. I don't need any more info. (I do have a new Dumb Question of the Day for which I'm starting a new thread.)

Other than! @bcoyle your "Douglas County Public Access TV" is surely not Douglas County Nebraska, is it?!?! I'm sure there are a lot of Douglas counties in the US.

Thanks again all of you.

Douglas county nevada. Sorry if things got too complicated. Really you can use groups or down stream keyer to be a source that can appear in all scenes. The groups of course have to appear in all the scenes. iF you have a source in a group turned on, it will be turned on in all scenes. That way , you might have a web cam in a group and by using hot keys, turn on it on and off in all scenes.

 

[matonanjin]

@bcoyle don't be sorry for being helpful. Some of it (most!) was above my comprehension but certainly reflects how helpful you and others are here. That is not lost on me and someday I will be able to digest the material. I will investigate the concept of groups.

 

[bcoyle]

@bcoyle don't be sorry for being helpful. Some of it (most!) was above my comprehension but certainly reflects how helpful you and others are here. That is not lost on me and someday I will be able to digest the material. I will investigate the concept of groups.

Down stream keyer gives you one overlay. while group gives you multiple layers. If you look at the following snapshot, you will see a bunch of scenes and on the source side, you will see a bunch of groups surrounding the main video "vlc_main_filler". Each scene is set up this way so that if you change an item in a group, it changes the same item in other groups in other scenes. also. In the second snapshot, i expanded out the group. I had assigned the station logo to source "overlay_logo_1" and you can see that it is enabled. It will appear in all scenes when you switch. This is how my app 'CASTTOR" does compositing. For instances, one of my group entries is a slide show. You will see how that slide show gets turned on in the 3rd snapshot. Really the mindset is to use OBS as a compositor.
The possibilities are endless.

 

[AaronD]

Down stream keyer gives you one overlay. while group gives you multiple layers...

Ehh...not really:

• DSK puts an entire scene on top of OBS's final output, so whatever you do in that scene is reflected accordingly.
• It only takes one scene at a time, but you can have multiple scenes set up and switch between them. At that point, it's almost like a whole 'nother copy of OBS, with the output of one replacing the default black background of the other.

I find that to be entirely equivalent to groups (at least as much as you've said so far and what I've done so far...), except that I don't have multiple copies of them all over the place. Yes, you've made them to all be references to the same thing, so changing one group also changes the others, but it's still cleaner to only have one visible copy.

 

[bcoyle]

Ehh...not really:

• DSK puts an entire scene on top of OBS's final output, so whatever you do in that scene is reflected accordingly.
• It only takes one scene at a time, but you can have multiple scenes set up and switch between them. At that point, it's almost like a whole 'nother copy of OBS, with the output of one replacing the default black background of the other.

I find that to be entirely equivalent to groups (at least as much as you've said so far and what I've done so far...), except that I don't have multiple copies of them all over the place. Yes, you've made them to all be references to the same thing, so changing one group also changes the others, but it's still cleaner to only have one visible copy.

Many roads to the same thing. Maybe just preference. Thanks . you learn things all the time.