Choose, connect, fix
Streaming equipment and connection guides
Choose your gear, connect it, or fix whatever is stopping your stream from working.
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Choose your gear
What each kind of equipment does, and which one fits your setup.
Webcam vs camera for streaming
Webcam or a real camera for streaming? What each needs to connect, whether a camera can run for a whole stream, and when a webcam is enough.
Read the guide →Best webcam for your streaming setup
The webcam to choose for your shot: a 1080p60 everyday camera, a fixed desk shot, 4K for cropping, or one that follows you, with each one’s catch and what else it needs.
Read the guide →Best camera for streaming
The camera to choose for streaming: one that plugs in over USB as a webcam, or a camcorder into a capture card, and how each stays on and clean for a whole stream.
Read the guide →Best microphone for streaming
Choose by your room and your connection before the brand: a dynamic microphone for an ordinary room, USB to start, XLR once you have an interface. The current models by job, and what each needs to run.
Read the guide →Best capture card for streaming
Choose by what you plug in and what you play at: 1080p60 capture covers Twitch, 4K60 suits YouTube and recordings, and 120 Hz play needs 120 Hz passthrough.
Read the guide →Do you need a capture card?
You need a capture card only when the picture starts outside the streaming computer: a console, a second PC or an HDMI camera. Here is when OBS alone is enough, and what a card cannot fix.
Read the guide →USB vs XLR microphones for streaming
USB or XLR microphone for streaming? USB plugs straight in; XLR needs an interface but grows to two voices and a mixer. Hybrids do both. What each route needs, with current models.
Read the guide →Best audio interface for streaming
An audio interface is for an XLR microphone. Choose by how many people talk, whether guests join by call, and the gain your microphone needs. Current models by situation.
Read the guide →Audio interface vs mixer for streaming
Audio interface or mixer? Decide by how many mics you plug in, who needs their own headphone mix, whether guests call in, and the knobs you want.
Read the guide →What is a Stream Deck?
A Stream Deck is Elgato’s panel of programmable keys. Each key runs an action on your computer, such as switching an OBS scene or muting your microphone.
Read the guide →Stream Deck alternatives
Compare Stream Deck alternatives: phone apps, OBS hotkeys, and desk controllers from AJAZZ, Razer, MiraBox and Logitech, with the software each runs on.
Read the guide →Streaming software compared: OBS, Streamlabs, Meld, XSplit and vMix
Five programs for streaming from a computer, side by side: what each costs, which systems it runs on, and when one of them is the better choice than free OBS Studio.
Read the guide →Best podcast microphone for your setup
The podcast microphone to choose for your room, your number of hosts and your recording path: USB or XLR, dynamic or condenser, and what else each one needs.
Read the guide →ASMR microphone for streaming
The microphone and settings for ASMR streams: stereo from one USB microphone, the quietest capsule for whispers, and the OBS filters to leave off.
Read the guide →Best streaming light for your desk
The streaming light to choose for your desk and camera: a small light on the monitor, a bigger panel on a clamp, USB or mains power, and what each one needs.
Read the guide →Best streaming mixer for your setup
The streaming mixer to choose by how many people talk, whether a guest calls in and which computer you use: faders, headphone mixes, mix-minus and what each needs.
Read the guide →Best headphones for streaming
Headphones to choose for streaming: closed-back studio models that keep sound away from your microphone, a wireless PlayStation headset, a wired gaming headset for consoles and PC, and earbuds for a phone or Switch.
Read the guide →Connect and set up
Settings and routing that cross hardware and OBS.
How to set up a capture card in OBS
Connect your console or camera, the capture card and your computer, add the card’s picture and sound in OBS, then check a test recording.
Read the guide →Loopback and mix-minus explained
Get computer sound into your stream with loopback, and send a remote guest everything except their own voice (mix-minus) so they hear no echo.
Read the guide →Streaming lighting layout
Where to put your key light so your face is lit and your glasses don’t glare, and when a second light actually helps.
Read the guide →How to set up Stream Deck for OBS
Set up Stream Deck keys for your OBS scenes and mic mute, keep your emergency keys on the first page, and check each key controls the right source.
Read the guide →Streaming cables and ports
Which cable goes where: USB, HDMI and XLR, and why a USB-C plug doesn’t tell you the speed.
Read the guide →OBS audio filters and settings for your microphone
Which OBS audio filters to add to your microphone, in which order, and OBS’s own starting values for the noise gate, compressor and limiter, set from your room.
Read the guide →OBS audio routing
Get your mic, game, capture card and guest into OBS once each, and send the right sound to the stream, the recording and your headphones.
Read the guide →Monitor streaming audio without echo
Hear yourself, the game and your guest in your headphones, without echo or doubled sound.
Read the guide →Console party chat routing
Get game sound and party chat onto your stream and into your headphones, without your friends hearing their own voices echo back.
Read the guide →Dual-PC audio routing
Get game sound, your voice and team chat between a gaming PC and a streaming PC, with one headphone mix and no echo.
Read the guide →Separate stream, recording and VOD audio
Send one complete mix to the stream, and keep your mic, the game and guests on their own tracks in the recording for editing.
Read the guide →USB bandwidth for cameras and capture
Why your webcam or capture card freezes on a shared USB port, and how to check port speed.
Read the guide →OBS output settings for streaming
Set OBS’s resolution, frame rate, encoder, bitrate, keyframes and audio for streaming, then check them with a private YouTube or Twitch test.
Read the guide →What computer do you need to stream?
OBS’s minimum systems, why the video encoder matters more than the processor, and the processor, graphics and memory each capture card and webcam maker asks for.
Read the guide →Home network for streaming: Ethernet, upload and bufferbloat
Why the streaming computer should be on a cable, how much upload the stream needs, and how to stop the router’s queue from dropping frames when the house is busy online.
Read the guide →How to use a camera as a webcam
Use your camera’s own USB webcam mode if it has one, or its clean HDMI output through a capture card, and check it can run for a whole stream.
Read the guide →Teleprompter for streaming: camera and mount setup
Before you buy a teleprompter, check how your camera fits behind it, how its screen connects and whether your stand or arm can hold the whole thing.
Read the guide →Green screen for streaming: setup in OBS
Add OBS’s Chroma Key filter to your camera, then check the background stays removed while you move. The screen needs room behind you and even light.
Read the guide →Microphone boom arm and camera mounts for streaming
Check the mount’s thread, weight limit and clamp fit your mic or camera, then that it holds them where you need them without pulling on cables.
Read the guide →How to stream on Twitch for the first time
Go live on Twitch: turn on two-factor authentication, connect OBS to your channel, run a private bandwidth test, then start and end the stream.
Read the guide →How to go live on YouTube for the first time
Go live on YouTube from a computer: verify your channel, wait for live streaming to switch on, connect OBS, rehearse with a private stream, then start and end it.
Read the guide →Stream Deck software and plugins
Get the free Stream Deck app running: what your computer needs, how actions, profiles and pages work, adding plugins, the OBS actions and the phone app.
Read the guide →How to stream on Kick for the first time
Go live on Kick: copy your stream URL and key into OBS, set H.264 at a constant bitrate up to 8,000 kbps, add a title and category, then start and end.
Read the guide →How to go live on Facebook for the first time
Go live on Facebook with OBS: the 60-day and 100-follower rule, the stream key from Live Producer, a preview before Go Live Now, and what happens after.
Read the guide →How to go LIVE on TikTok from a computer for the first time
Go LIVE on TikTok from a computer: the age and follower rules, LIVE access in LIVE Studio, scenes in portrait or landscape, and a check before you start.
Read the guide →How to multistream from OBS
Stream to Twitch, YouTube, Kick and more at once from OBS: through a restream service or a multistream plugin, the upload each needs, and Twitch’s rules.
Read the guide →Use OBS as a webcam: the virtual camera
Send your OBS scene to Zoom, Teams, Discord or Meet as a webcam: start the virtual camera, choose what it shows, and fix it when it is missing.
Read the guide →Capture one app’s sound in OBS
Give the game, Discord and music their own OBS sources with Application Audio Capture on Windows, so you can mute, mix or leave one out of the recording.
Read the guide →MKV, MP4 or Hybrid MP4: choosing OBS’s recording format
Which recording format to pick in OBS: why MKV survives a crash, what Hybrid MP4 adds, which codecs each holds, and how to turn MKV into MP4 for editing.
Read the guide →How to capture a game in OBS
Add a PC game to OBS with Game Capture, choose the right mode, and know when Window Capture or Display Capture works better, from OBS’s own guides.
Read the guide →Stream a pre-recorded video
Play a recorded video as a stream with OBS’s Media Source, or premiere it on YouTube, and label it the way Twitch asks for reruns so viewers know it isn’t live.
Read the guide →Stream audio only
Stream a radio show, podcast or music set without a camera: why YouTube needs a video track, a still picture in OBS, and an upload spent on the sound.
Read the guide →Use your phone as a webcam for streaming
Turn an iPhone or Android phone into your stream camera: Continuity Camera on a Mac, a linked Android phone on Windows 11, or a phone webcam app in OBS.
Read the guide →Use your phone as a microphone for streaming
Use an iPhone’s microphone on a Mac with Continuity Camera, or any phone’s microphone in OBS through DroidCam, and know when a real microphone is worth it.
Read the guide →Use an external microphone when you stream from a phone
Plug a USB microphone into an iPhone or Android phone for live streams: what USB-C and Lightning iPhones need, when the phone can’t power the mic, and how to check it before you go live.
Read the guide →Fix a problem
Start from the symptom and work through the checks in order.
Capture card black screen troubleshooting
Capture card showing a black screen in OBS? Turn off HDCP first, then find where the picture stops: the display, the mode, the USB link or OBS itself.
Read the guide →Fix audio and video sync in OBS
Audio ahead of or behind your video in OBS? Measure the offset with one clap, set it in OBS’s Sync Offset or a video delay filter, then check it does not drift.
Read the guide →Fix OBS dropped frames and encoder overload
Use OBS Stats to tell network drops from rendering and encoding lag, or viewers buffering, then change one setting at a time and test again.
Read the guide →Microphone not working in OBS
Your microphone works everywhere except OBS, or OBS shows no level. Check the device OBS listens to, the scene, the mixer and your system’s microphone access, in that order.
Read the guide →Webcam not detected or black
Your webcam is missing, or shows black in OBS or a call. Check it outside the app, then the switch and port, other apps holding it, camera permissions, drivers and OBS.
Read the guide →Capture card has no sound in OBS
Game picture but no game sound from your capture card. Check whether OBS is capturing it, then the console’s headphone and stereo settings, then OBS’s audio device.
Read the guide →Party chat not captured in OBS
If game sound reaches OBS but party voices don’t, check where the console sends chat. Game sound on the meter doesn’t mean chat is getting through.
Read the guide →USB camera or capture card keeps disconnecting
Plug it straight into the computer with the cable from the box. If it works there, add the hub and your other video devices back one at a time.
Read the guide →Remote guest hears their own voice echo
Remove the guest’s voice from the audio you send back to them. Then test whether the remaining echo comes from speakers reaching a microphone.
Read the guide →Game audio comes through the microphone in OBS
Mute the microphone, then the game, one at a time in OBS. That shows whether game sound leaks into your mic or OBS is capturing it twice.
Read the guide →OBS Game Capture black screen
Check how the game can be captured before changing hardware. Some games need Window Capture, and a fullscreen game can stop drawing while you look at OBS.
Read the guide →Stream Deck not connecting or keys do nothing
First check whether the Stream Deck app sees your Stream Deck. If it does, check the profile and what each key controls before changing the USB cable or port.
Read the guide →Wave Link 2 double audio in OBS
In Wave Link 2, capture a sound either through the Wave Link stream mix or through its direct OBS source. Capturing both can make the same sound play twice.
Read the guide →Camera stops during a stream
Check the camera’s auto power-off, its HDMI output and its power before blaming the capture card. Then test for as long as you actually stream.
Read the guide →Camera in use by another app
Your webcam won't start because another app holds it. Find and close that app on Windows or Mac, check camera permissions, then test the camera again.
Read the guide →No sound in your headphones
Headphones silent on your computer? Choose them as the output on Windows or Mac, check mute and volume, and send the sound to the jack you are plugged into.
Read the guide →Default device or default communication device
Game in one headset, Discord in another? Windows keeps two defaults for sound. See what each one does, set one headset as both, and stop calls from quieting your game.
Read the guide →No sound on your YouTube live stream
Viewers can’t hear your YouTube stream? Check OBS’s meters, the track your stream sends and the audio encoder, then read YouTube’s own message in Live Control Room.
Read the guide →