Well, first you need to recognize real-time video encoding is computationally demanding. GPU encode offload ability really helps, but is not a cure-all. so you have to be careful with your other settings
And resolution, downscale filter, YUV mode... all need to be correct for your system (and hopefully the auto-config settings are correct, but worth confirming on your own, or someone who knows more about these specific systems than I do).
00:12:07.297: Number of remaining views: 1
00:12:07.297: ---------------------------------
00:12:07.297: video settings reset:
00:12:07.297: base resolution: 1920x1080
00:12:07.297: output resolution: 1920x1080
00:12:07.297: downscale filter: Lanczos
was Lanzcos selected by auto-config? that wasn't the default on Windows
00:12:07.297: fps: 60/1
00:12:07.297: format: NV12
00:12:07.297: YUV mode: sRGB/Full
I'm also wondering if Full vs Partial is the problem
00:15:03.201: Starting recording due to hotkey
00:15:03.262: ---------------------------------
00:15:03.262: [x264 encoder: 'advanced_video_recording'] preset: ultrafast
00:15:03.262: [x264 encoder: 'advanced_video_recording'] profile: high
00:15:03.262: [x264 encoder: 'advanced_video_recording'] tune: zerolatency
00:15:03.263: [x264 encoder: 'advanced_video_recording'] settings:
00:15:03.263: rate_control: CBR
Why are you using CBR? CBR tends to be required for streaming, but wasteful for Recording, where you are better served by one of the VBR options, like CQP
And this is me not knowing M-series systems and OBS Studio that well (just chiming in until someone who knows better starts responding)... I'm not sure with teh integrated CPU/GPU, if X264 is the right encoder (usually wouldn't be for x86).. At this point, look in the log for the various Available Video encoders... then ask if you plan to do video editing after Recording... and then what format does final output format do you desire... think entire workflow, and other Apps (video editor) involved. One of the other Encoders may )or may not) do better.
from (related to Windows, and an older OBS Studio version, but most (all?) of this still applies
https://obsproject.com/forum/threads/best-settings.140188/#post-514693 @FerretBomb comment #2
1) NEVER RECORD TO MP4 DIRECTLY, FOR ANY REASON. It is not a recording-safe format; if anything goes wrong during the recording, even for a split second, the ENTIRE recording will be corrupted and absolutely not recoverable by any means. Record to MKV, and remux to MP4 after the recording is complete from OBS' File menu, Remux Recordings.
2) Record using CQP or CRF, not CBR. CBR is only used for streaming, where the back-end infrastructure requires it. CQP/CRF are quality-target based encodes, and will use as much or as little bitrate as is needed to maintain a constant image quality. No wasting bitrate on simple/slow scenes, no choking on fast-moving or complex scenes. 22 is a good starting point. 16 will result in much larger files, but near-perfect video. 12 should only be used if you plan to edit and re-encode later, and will be VERY large. Anything lower than 12 shouldn't be used unless you know exactly why you need it, and what problems it can cause.
..snip..
Related to # 2 above ["FerretBomb, post: 529433, member: 4349"]
Don't record with CBR or VBR, use CQP instead.
CQP is a quality-based encoding target that uses as much or as little bitrate as is needed to maintain a given image quality level.
22 is the normal 'good' point, 16 for 'visually lossless', and 12 is generally the lowest you'll want to go even if you plan to edit the video later (to cut down on re-encoding artifacts). The lower the number, the closer to 'lossless' video it gets. But below 16 the filesizes get ridiculously large very fast.
For easy setting, use simple output mode instead of advanced and choose "High Quality, Medium File Size" as quality. Or if you insist on advanced output mode, increase the cq value to get smaller files. Increasing the cq value by 3-4, you're halving the file size.
…. recording, use a quality based rate control like CQP (if you use nvenc on a Nvidia GPU) or CRF (if you use x264) or ICQ (if you use Quicksync on a Intel iGPU). CBR/VBR is for streaming only.
00:15:03.263: bitrate: 20000
00:15:03.263: buffer size: 20000
00:15:03.263: crf: 23
00:15:03.263: fps_num: 60
00:15:03.263: fps_den: 1
00:15:03.263: width: 1920
00:15:03.263: height: 1080
00:15:03.263: keyint: 120
00:15:03.263:
00:15:03.281: ---------------------------------
00:15:03.286: [FFmpeg aac encoder: 'Track1'] bitrate: 160, channels: 2, channel_layout: stereo, track: 1
00:15:03.286:
00:15:03.519: ==== Recording Start ===============================================
00:15:03.520: [ffmpeg muxer: 'adv_file_output'] Writing file '/Users/user/Documents/OBS Recordings/2025-01-23 00-15-03.mkv'...
00:15:38.365: Stopping recording due to hotkey
00:15:38.700: [ffmpeg muxer: 'adv_file_output'] Output of file '/Users/user/Documents/OBS Recordings/2025-01-23 00-15-03.mkv' stopped
00:15:38.700: Output 'adv_file_output': stopping
00:15:38.700: Output 'adv_file_output': Total frames output: 2101
00:15:38.700: Output 'adv_file_output': Total drawn frames: 1579 (2111 attempted)
00:15:38.700: Output 'adv_file_output': Number of lagged frames due to rendering lag/stalls: 532 (25.2%)
00:15:38.701: ==== Recording Stop ================================================
00:15:38.715: Video stopped, number of skipped frames due to encoding lag: 148/2116 (7.0%)
