Question / Help What does the buffer number in settings mean?

[Torbjörn Lindström]

Hi!
Trying to tweak a broadcast in OBS Studio and I am messing with the buffer size parameter in advanced settings. But what does the number stand for? Is it a data parameter or time parameter? Probably a stupid question this but I really need to know. Thank´s for any help with this!

 

[sam686]

I can repeat most of what I said there...
https://obsproject.com/forum/threads/twitch-upload-cap-limit.75684/#post-321170

If not using custom buffer size, OBS use the default, that makes buffer size the same as bitrate.

Too little buffer might have poor quality keyframes.

Too much buffer or unlimited buffer (if set to zero) increases latency over slow connection, and makes the bitrate less constant. This might cause Twitch to show a warning, because it produces higher peaks in bitrate. Black screen for a few seconds followed by high motion high details is the most likely time to cause this excessive peak bitrate when buffer size is too high or unlimited.