Question / Help OBS Studio Mic & Game Audio Configuration

[aregowe]

Hello,

I would like to edit my audio configuration as to ensure that my mic and game audio levels are consistent across the board.

How do I do this in OBS Studio?

For instance, I'd like to ensure my mic stays around -6 dB, my game is at around -12 dB and if I play music, at -18 dB.

Is there a way to keep this consistent in OBS? For instance, setting a max peak of-6 dB somewhere or something? I'd like to prevent that weird clipping that happens when you yell out of excitement or are too loud as well.

My mic is an AT2020 USB Mic with a pop filter & foam windscreen. I'm also using the most recent version of OBS Studio, 19.0.2

Thank you.

 

[Simes]

You might not be able to avoid clipping if you're overloading your mic's A/D converters. If that's the case the only option you have is to be less loud. :)

Other than that, using the compressor filter on your inputs may help a bit.

 

[aregowe]

You might not be able to avoid clipping if you're overloading your mic's A/D converters. If that's the case the only option you have is to be less loud. :)

Other than that, using the compressor filter on your inputs may help a bit.

Ah, I'm looking at the compressor filter and I'm kinda confused on what these settings mean. Is there a recommended settings or something for the compressor filter that I can at least start out with?

 

[Simes]

Threshold sets the level above which you want compression to take place, and Ratio determines how much the signal will be compressed, e.g. if you have a compression ratio of 2:1, a signal 2dB above the threshold will be reduced to 1dB above, 10dB above the threshold will be reduced to 5dB above, and so on. Because you're wanting to prevent loudness spikes you'll probably want a pretty aggressive setting, so I'd put the Ratio up to maximum. It's not quite as much compression as a full limiter but it should help. You want the volume around -6dB so try setting the threshold around there to begin with.

Set the attack time to 2ms or so because you're trying to squash sudden loud noises. Leave the other settings alone for now.

These aren't "recommended" settings as such, but they're probably a good starting point for the effect you're trying to have. See how they sound and tweak them until you find a configuration that works well for you.