OBS choppy recordings and low quality stream.

[H4T3K]

Hi, so there was like a 1000 posts about this problem but i've never found a solution for this one. My video recordings looks choppy and looks like im dropping or losing frames even tho my OBS does not show it. Im running program as an administrator, I've tried many many different settings including turning on /off Psycho Visual Tunning and Look ahead, recording and streaming with CQP, CBR, VBR. Basically nothing works. Log file from last recording included. Im mostly streaming and recording rocket league and CoD Warzone. I can also include link to my saved streams. (of course my game runs at milion fps but i have tried to lock it on 60fps for better recording - it does not help at all, game does not drop any frames, recording is)

My PC specs:
RTX3060ti
R5 3600
16GB of 3200 cl16 ram
Nvme ssd storage for files

Next one is that my stream looks really pixelated with high motion in game. Is there any way to get rid of those movement artifacts without setting bitrate to 14000? My internet can handle that but im not twitch partner so rn Im streaming 1080p 60fps with 6000bitrate. Thank you for all of your replies to this

 

[FerretBomb]

Your logfile does not contain a streaming or recording session, so contains no diagnostic information for us to look at.

That said, 1080p60 video "wants" 12000kbps to reach the 0.1bpp (bits per pixel) density which is generally considered to be the start of reducing rate of returns for average video. You may simply need to downscale, or use a lower framerate to fit within your bitrate budget.

That said, Partners still are limited to the same recommended bitrate maximum of 6000kbps. Going past that point is the same for EVERYONE... it's at-your-own-risk.
That said, Partners can run higher rates mostly due to guaranteed transcoding. The more bitrate you use, the fewer people can watch your stream smoothly. Transcoding just allows low-bitrate folks to still tune in.

My recommendation would be running 1080p30, which fits very nicely in that 6000kbps (or down to 4500 for more accessibility). 60fps is a nice-to-have, but literally doubles the bitrate needed. It's a waste unless you're playing a retro-game that blits sprites to fake transparency.
Alternately, 720p60 does work and reaches its 0.1bpp level around 4800kbps.
Realistically, for maximum accessibility, 720p30 is really the way to go. 2000-2500kbps can handle it pretty well, giving you the maximum potential audience.

And really, a large portion of your 'viewers' aren't going to be watching at all. They'll be listening while working, or as background noise, or windowed (fun fact: the windowed Twitch player is right around 720p with chat open. Most people will never see the full 1080p feed.)

 

[H4T3K]

Your logfile does not contain a streaming or recording session, so contains no diagnostic information for us to look at

So where can I find files that contain recording sessions?

My recommendation would be running 1080p30, which fits very nicely in that 6000kbps (or down to 4500 for more accessibility). 60fps is a nice-to-have, but literally doubles the bitrate needed. It's a waste unless you're playing a retro-game that blits sprites to fake transparency.
Alternately, 720p60 does work and reaches its 0.1bpp level around 4800kbps.
Realistically, for maximum accessibility, 720p30 is really the way to go. 2000-2500kbps can handle it pretty well, giving you the maximum potential audience.

So i lowered my bitrate today to 6000 with 720p60 and it looks pretty nice but I'm still getting some frame drops and sometimes my stream or recording is looking choppy (like i said its not choppy all the time but it has its moments) How can i get rid of it?

 

[FerretBomb]

So where can I find files that contain recording sessions?
...
So i lowered my bitrate today to 6000 with 720p60 and it looks pretty nice but I'm still getting some frame drops and sometimes my stream or recording is looking choppy (like i said its not choppy all the time but it has its moments) How can i get rid of it?

There's a pinned thread at the top of this forum with instructions on how to generate and post a relevant logfile.

Logs are stored in %APPDATA%\obs-studio\logs, you can go into that directory and search for "Recording Stop" if you have in-file search indexing turned on in Windows to easily find logs containing a recording session.

We'll need to see one to be able to diagnose any problems.

Preemptively: If you're using NVENC, make sure you have turned OFF the Lookahead and Psychovisual Tuning options, and are using the Quality preset, not Max Quality. Those three use CUDA cores and cause a lot of rendering delay issues when they're turned on, even in situations where there shouldn't be any problems. Also that your b-frames are at 2 or less (for some reason there's some TERRIBLE advice going around to set these to 4, which you should almost never do).

 

[H4T3K]

So here is my log file wich contains recording session

 

[FerretBomb]

The logfile does not show any issues. You ARE running BLOPS ColdWar in DX12 mode; we've had several reports of people getting the out-of-order frames bug with that game specifically. The fix is either to run it in DX11 mode, or run it Windowed (or Fullscreen Borderless) and use a Window Capture.


There is no streaming session to address the pixelation you'd mentioned, but 1080p60 video 'wants' 12mbps for average-motion content. You're giving it half of what it needs, in a fast-motion game with lots of detail (which needs even MORE bitrate). It's going to artifact, no way around that. Only fix is to lower the framerate, lower the resolution (downscale), or raise the bitrate (unfeasible given Twitch's limits).
I would recommend going to 30fps video. It cuts your bitrate needs in half, and 60 is purely a nice-to-have outside of retro games (which flash sprites at 60hz to fake transparency, making them solid or invisible at 30fps). This will not affect your gameplay experience, and will leave you with a much visually improved stream.

That said, dropping to 720p30 and lowering your bitrate to 2000-2500 can be a VERY good idea, for new streamers wanting to grow.
Using more bitrate means fewer people can watch your stream smoothly. Especially mobile viewers, which are a growing segment.
You want to be as accessible as possible, especially in a saturated game like BLOPS.
The Twitch Player when NOT fullscreened, and with chat open is... a 720p window. So few will ever see your 1080p feed anyway.
It's much more important to have good-quality audio (mic sounds nice, good balance between mic and gameplay audio, good levels), as many will just have you on for background noise, and not even be watching the video at all.

I got lost chasing numbers when I started. I obsessed over 1080p60.
Then I pulled my head out, dropped to 720p30@2000, and grew to the point I'm now Partnered. Do as you like though, just advice from someone who's been down this road already. :)

 

[H4T3K]

OMG thanks a lot with the specific window capture mode! It just solved all my problems with stutters and frame drops <3

Im currently using Rode M3 mic with SSL2+ audio interface. Im also a student of Academy of Jorunalism and Sound Engeneering so audio quality is not a problem at my streams. Rn with the specific window capture i can record 1080p60 with CQP15 and Im streaming 720p60 with 5000bitrate. My (small ngl) audience appreciates your advice cause now my streams and recordings looks great. Ty so much.