Question / Help Selecting Proper Audio Stream

K

Kingdom Grace

New Member
I’m hoping someone can help us optimize our live stream configuration. We had a nice system patchworked together, but some changes to personnel combined with hardware & software failures are requiring us to start over. We want to make sure we’re doing things right before we invest in new equipment, and the Open Broadcast Software (OBS) will be a critical part.

Originally, our components included:
— Dell Windows PC
— vMix Live Production & Streaming Software
— webcam (USB connector) = video 1
— camcorder (HDMI connector) = video 2
— Yamaha digital 16-channel audio mixer
— Steinberg MI4 audio-MIDI interface (USB connector)

The webcam & camcorder connected directly to the Dell via their respective USB & HDMI ports.

The digital audio mixer’s audio out needed to be routed through the audio-MIDI interface in order to covert to a USB connector to be accepted by the Dell.

Our first challenge was when we lost use of the vMix software. A change in security protocols at our internet router blocked the outbound port vMix was using, and our personnel couldn’t figure out how to update the vMix settings.

That was when we changed over to OBS for Windows, which was a superior & more user-friendly application for our needs; however, we developed a problem with the audio in.

For whatever reason, OBS defaulted to using the audio stream originating from the camcorder instead of using the audio input from the digital mixer-MIDI interface configuration. Although we were far happier with the video stream and overall management of the OBS software, our sound quality dropped dramatically.

We tried (and thought we were) selecting the appropriate audio feed in OBS, but nothing seemed to help; it was almost as if OBS wasn't recognizing the audio-MIDI input.

Our plan now is to update & change as much as we can:
— Apple MacBook running MacOS 10.13 (or higher)
— OBS Live Streaming Software
— webcam (USB connector) = video 1
— video camera (HDMI connector) = video 2
— Yamaha digital 16-channel audio mixer
— Steinberg MI4 audio-MIDI interface (USB connector), if required

Our primary concern is the audio coming into & out of the OBS streaming software. I need ideas/help to make sure I’m IDing and using the right audio stream, given our set-up. Since I'm also changing my core device (from Windows to MAC OS), I want to be able to make sure I will be able to select the right audio-in.

Thoughts?

Thanks.
 
Narcogen

Narcogen

Active Member
I believe you will have trouble using multichannel input devices on MacOS with OBS. I'm not certain there is any facility to select which channels on those devices OBS uses. Others have complained about this in the past. OBS is not necessarily a drop-in replacement for vMix. I'm also not certain it supports MIDI input at all.

If you want to be able to use all the channels on the Yamaha mixer and select which ones you assign to various tracks in OBS, I would suggest looking at LoopBack, which allows for the creation of an arbitrary number of virtual audio devices and has individual monitoring options for each of them. If you were doing a simple game capture then you could get away with just something like SoundFlower or iShowU, but for something more complex, LoopBack might be something to consider.
 
K

Kingdom Grace

New Member
Narcogen…

Thank you for your reply; I’m certain it can prove helpful.

Unfortunately, it also revealed that I don’t know as much as I thought/hoped about what we’re doing and what the possible solutions are. I think I can piece together something workable from your suggestions, but I’m not positive…

For reference: We’re trying to use OBS to support the live-streaming of a public event/meeting:
— video sources include the webcam & video camera mentioned in the original post; there are no apparent issues with these
— audio sources include musical instruments & microphones (for both singing & speaking)
— all audio sources are connect “IN” to the Yamaha board for mixing
— mixed audio is sent “OUT” to (a) a set of monitors/speakers that play in the meeting room for the audience and (b) the computer (hopefully OBS) for live-stream broadcast.

Thus, we’ve been trying to handle the OBS audio issues as if the Yamaha board is a single source; it appears the camcorder or video camera source is interfering.

Re using multichannel inputs to OBS: I figure you’re talking about either (a) the Yamaha 16-channel mixer or (b) the Steinberg MI4 audio-MIDI interface or (c) both. Either way, we’re not trying to send multiple channels to OBS; instead, our intention is to send a single mixed audio source from the Yamaha board (e.g., as if our live-stream audience were hearing mixed audio via a set of headphones).

We’ve routed it this way:
— Yamaha board to Steinberg MI4 audio-MIDI interface via two 1/4-inch TRS connectors (one each for left & right)
— Steinberg MI4 to Windows PC via USB connector

In other words, the Steinberg MI4 is merely acting as a converter/adapter that allows us to connect the Yamaha’s 1/4-inch TRS “OUT” to the PC’s USB “IN.”

At the same time, there’s an HDMI connection from a camcorder to the Windows PC. This HDMI line supplies input of both video & audio.

If I’m understanding you correctly, the problem may be that OBS isn’t recognizing the Steinbert MI4 audio-MIDI as an input; instead, it’s defaulting to the audio included in the camcorder’s HDMI line.

One way to solve this may be to ensure OBS is receiving a single audio source (i.e., the one from the Yamaha board) and that audio source does NOT come from a MIDI device (e.g., the Steinberg MI4). In other words, we need to use a different converter/adapter mechanism because the Steinberg isn’t offering any other functionality.

Does that sound better?

Thanks!
 
Narcogen

Narcogen

Active Member
Yes.

I'm not entirely sure what you mean in the OP about "OBS defaulted to using the audio stream originating from the camcorder instead of using the audio input from the digital mixer-MIDI interface configuration."

For anything more complex than game capture you should be building a scene with the individual video and audio sources you want, rather than just selecting all the available inputs as activated in the Audio settings panel.

This way you can add them one by one in a scene and see if they are working properly. It isn't that OBS preferred or treated as "default" one input over another; it's just that it received audio from the camera feed but not from the Steinberg because OBS supports audio inputs but not MIDI inputs.

Sorry if I misunderstood about the mixer; when you wrote "I need ideas/help to make sure I’m IDing and using the right audio stream" I thought you were trying to use a multitrack USB audio device and isolate select stereo pairs, which I'm not sure OBS can do (at least now).

Does the Yamaha mixer not have its own USB interface?
 
Last edited:
K

Kingdom Grace

New Member
Narcogen...

Not sure if the Yamaha has its own USB interface. I found a website that lists USB as a "feature," but I've not seen USB-IN, if that's what you mean. What I need, though, is the 1/4"-to-USB OUT. I think I can accomplish that with a converter/adapter.

Thanks, too, for the explanation of the OBS "scene" settings. That's what we thought we were doing, and we were presented with what looked like multiple audio feeds; problem was, they were all the same -- and it wasn't until many months later that I realized the only audio we were getting was coming in via the camcorder HDMI.

I believe now if I connect the mixer directly to OBS (i.e., by eliminating the Steinberg MIDI), then I will actually "see" the mixer as an audio feed in my OBS audio settings panel. I can make double-sure by connecting the camcorder via a single video-RCA (i.e., no audio connectors); that way, the camcorder's mic will be taken out completely.

Thanks a lot!!! This has been a very big help and a HUGE relief.
 
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