Question / Help New to OBS, Unwatchable Video Playback

[Lynxx0r]

Hello everyone, I just installed OBS today. After testing it out with CS:GO, I noticed that the video playback was terrible, with about 3 frames per second. I have already seen other forums similar to my issue and I have already tried a few things out, but to no avail. Keep in mind I am running pretty low-end hardware (specs below), so I won't rule out the possibility that my PC simply can't run it smoothly at 1920x1080. During gameplay the game runs smoothly with the usual small amount of chop I'd get without having anything else going on in the background, but the resulting video is terrible. I was wondering if there were things I haven't tried, or simply missed since I'm new. Thanks in advance.

Specs:
Ryzen 3 1200
R7 370 4G
16 GB DDR4
1 TB WD Blue HDD
some other 500 GB HDD
(feel free to laugh at my college-student specs)

 

[FerretBomb]

02:23:30.917: Output 'simple_file_output': Number of lagged frames due to rendering lag/stalls: 842 (20.2%)
02:23:31.137: Video stopped, number of skipped frames due to encoding lag: 3346/3425 (97.7%)

Yeah, this is your hardware. The first is due to GPU overload, the second is due to the CPU being overwhelmed.

1) Run OBS as Administrator. There's a workaround that allows OBS to take GPU priority, even if a game is trying to use up all the resources (such as being run without a framerate cap).
2) Use Simple output mode, Indistinguishable quality, x264 Low-CPU encoder. This is just about the lightest-weight possible recording setup. It will result in larger filesizes, using extra bitrate to compensate for the cpu-friendly poor quality video encoding.
3) NEVER EVER FOR ANY REASON RECORD TO MP4 DIRECTLY. Record to MKV or FLV, then remux if you need mp4s. MP4 is not a recording-safe format, and has several issues. There's a reason it pops up an orange warning if you set it to mp4. If you need mp4s for editing, use the 'remux recordings' option in OBS' File menu after the recording is complete, or set the 'auto-remux to mp4' option in Settings->Advanced.

If this is not a laptop, consider upgrading to an nVidia GPU. The 9, 10, and 20-series NVENC is anywhere from usable to quite good depending on the GPU generation, and will render almost any system capable of smooth recording and even streaming.
Sadly, AMD's AMF is... not. They care exactly enough to say 'we care about AMF' while toasting marshmallows over the tire fire that is AMF.

 

[Lynxx0r]

Yeah, this is your hardware. The first is due to GPU overload, the second is due to the CPU being overwhelmed.

1) Run OBS as Administrator. There's a workaround that allows OBS to take GPU priority, even if a game is trying to use up all the resources (such as being run without a framerate cap).
2) Use Simple output mode, Indistinguishable quality, x264 Low-CPU encoder. This is just about the lightest-weight possible recording setup. It will result in larger filesizes, using extra bitrate to compensate for the cpu-friendly poor quality video encoding.
3) NEVER EVER FOR ANY REASON RECORD TO MP4 DIRECTLY. Record to MKV or FLV, then remux if you need mp4s. MP4 is not a recording-safe format, and has several issues. There's a reason it pops up an orange warning if you set it to mp4. If you need mp4s for editing, use the 'remux recordings' option in OBS' File menu after the recording is complete, or set the 'auto-remux to mp4' option in Settings->Advanced.

If this is not a laptop, consider upgrading to an nVidia GPU. The 9, 10, and 20-series NVENC is anywhere from usable to quite good depending on the GPU generation, and will render almost any system capable of smooth recording and even streaming.
Sadly, AMD's AMF is... not. They care exactly enough to say 'we care about AMF' while toasting marshmallows over the tire fire that is AMF.

Thanks very much, I'll try out your suggestions first. I'm planning on upgrading my build to a GTX 1070 sometime, but maybe I should do something about that poor little Ryzen 3 too so I don't bottleneck.
Appreciate the help.

 

[FerretBomb]

Thanks very much, I'll try out your suggestions first. I'm planning on upgrading my build to a GTX 1070 sometime, but maybe I should do something about that poor little Ryzen 3 too so I don't bottleneck.
Appreciate the help.

Not a bad idea, but if streaming/recording is the concern, the nVidia GPU far and away takes priority. Bottlenecking just means you won't get as much out of the GPU in games as it can provide... but even at-worst it'll still be an improvement there too over the current GPU. NVENC will take care of the 'heavy lifting' part of streaming/recording entirely itself, the encoding step. Even a cheap $30 used 1050 would tide you over in the meantime, until saving up for a full new build is feasible.

Good luck!