Question / Help Strange issue: "overscan" black box around all videos

Mr. Math

Mr. Math

New Member
Running Windows 10; Version 1607; Build 14393.447

Last log file at: https://gist.github.com/fad4a4fe6bd5555c0f9d49b80bb07cd8

Whenever I record game captures, the videos always have the outer edge cut off and replaced with what looks like a black overscan box. I have absolutely no idea why this is happening. If I've checked some box in the settings to cause this, I don't know it. I do know that it was happening on OBS Classic. I upgraded from Classic to Studio in the hope that would solve the issue, but it hasn't. Help please.
 
Fenrir

Fenrir

Forum Admin
Can you provide a screenshot of what you mean? And is your source inside the OBS preview filling the entire preview area?
 
Mr. Math

Mr. Math

New Member
Fenrir said:
Can you provide a screenshot of what you mean?
Click to expand...

I've included a screenshot of a Skyrim capture I just did. It's a very bright scene, so as long as you don't view it on a black background, you'll see the box around the outside of the picture quite clearly.

Capture.png

If you look closely, you can see the black box isn't merely around the outside of the picture. It actually cuts off some of the image.

Fenrir said:
And is your source inside the OBS preview filling the entire preview area?
Click to expand...

As far as I know, yes. I've included a second screenshot, this one of the OBS window.

OBS-Window.png
 
S

sam686

Member
In game capture settings, do you have "Allow Transparency" on? Try turning this off.

Log shows "source: 'Watermark' (image_source)" and your screenshot shows "Logo", both of which might be the one adding the black border if transparency is incorrectly made in the image, uncheck or remove to check this.
 
S

sam686

Member
Logs still shows using images like 'Watermark' (image_source), 'Logo' (image_source). If you don't want to show us logs with only the game capture and no images, how about showing us those images to us?

How about running the game in windowed mode so you can see and change how OBS capture the game?
OR, use a second display monitor for multiple monitors, to see OBS on second display to see a game capture working?
 
Mr. Math

Mr. Math

New Member
You did say to try unchecking the logo. I completely forgot about that, oops. I tried that just now, but still got a black box. Here's the latest log file and another screenshot of the resulting video:

https://gist.github.com/d1b49d3fbd46e8dbd676b01836be4c4e

Skyrim-Capture.png

The second monitor idea is a good one, I should have thought of that sooner. I'm running out of time for today and probably won't have any more for the next couple of days, but I'll try that ASAP and let you know what I see.
 
Mr. Math

Mr. Math

New Member
OK, I haven't had time to do more testing yet, but I'm starting to think it isn't OBS. I've been rewatching some old videos in my spare time, and I'm starting to see black boxes around them also, even though I never saw that before. I'm starting to think this isn't about how OBS records videos, but how my computer plays them. And this isn't just with videos I have saved to my hard drive. I'm starting to see this on youtube videos also.

Does anyone here have any ideas why a Windows 10 system might start putting black boxes around videos while playing them?
 
Mr. Math

Mr. Math

New Member
OK, I've had success in fixing the issue, but I have only the barest idea of how. I used sam686's idea of putting OBS on a second monitor and seeing how it records. My second monitor is an ultra-HD 4k monitor, and I enlarged the OBS window to take up the entire screen. Because of this, the preview window for the recording is full-sized (1920x1080), and that, for some reason, influences the recording output. I now get the entire screen in the outputted movie files, without any overscan box cutting away the outer layer.

This makes absolutely no sense to me. Shouldn't OBS just record what's on screen without being affected by the size of the preview window? But, whatever. Lesson learned, I guess. Keep the OBS window as large as possible to make sure the entire game window actually gets captured.

Fenrir and sam686, thank you both for the help.

EDIT TO ADD: If anyone cares, here's the latest log file from the successful game capture.

https://gist.github.com/910a396e6f364c2de4a6e6806524832b
 
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