OBS

Guides

How I Record and Encode for Upload to YouTube

1. OBS
   1. Setup:
      1. Fullscreen to capture application plus any overlays you might be using eg. SimHub overlays, RivaTuner Statistics Server overlays, NVIDIA/AMD/Xbox overlays
      2. Defaults
      3. 60fps
      4. Native resolution
      5. Record to a fast hard drive, preferably one dedicated to only recording the video. Consider even using a standalone USB drive/flash drive if it's fast enough
2. Movavi
   1. Trim unwanted lead content ie. from when you start recording to opening the app to getting to the place you actually wanted to record
   2. Trim unwanted trailing content ie. from when you want to end the recording to exclude when you exited the app your were recording
   3. Sync audio: See Movavi - The Real Video Editing Fix for Out of Sync Audio
   4. Export:
      1. Correct resolution as needed: Mine keeps defaulting to 1080p but I want 1440p
      2. Correct FPS as needed: Mine keeps defaulting to 30fps but I want 60fps
      3. Quality: High (first High setting after Medium on the slider)
         • I was using the default Medium quality preset but found out higher settings aren't that much bigger in file size and don't take much more encoding time
         • YouTube will already compress and ruin your video quality so go as high as you're comfortable with
3. YouTube
   1. Upload as normal
   2. Set Title, Description
      1. People really like info in the Description so be as verbose as you want
      2. Include people, featured content like mods, links to any downloadable content, your computer setup, and any other relevant information
   3. Create a thumbnail:
      • Use a screenshot from your original video file
      • Place your photo or an avatar in one of the corners ie. YouTuber users are drawn to faces in thumbnails so it helps your video's performance
   4. Add video to playlist(s)
   5. Set Category
      • May need to click "Show More" button to see all the available options
   6. Set Game Title
      • Just type in your game and it will search all available game titles you can use
      • May need to click "Show More" button to see all the available options
   7. Publish or Schedule
      1. I may publish immediately or schedule days in advance if I have multiple videos
   8. Pin a Comment
      • I may leave a video as Unlisted, instead of publishing immediately, open the video, add a comment and pin it. Usually it's a key highlight from the description

Tips and Tricks

Prefer Fullscreen Recording Over Window Recording

• I've found the best results are from fullscreen recording rather than recording a specific window
• It also helps record things like SimHub overlays that are not the same window(s) as what you are recording
• This means you may need to edit your videos to crop out portions where you record your desktop or other windows that you don't want visible to others
  • See video editors like Movavi

Troubleshooting

Choppy Low Framerate Recording

• GPU Load Headroom
  • Ensure GPU load headroom of at least 10% on average ie. GPU usage should be 90% or less
    • If you don't have video encoders then try to ensure 20% GPU headroom
    • Even budget mainline GPUs come with some dedicated video encoders these days
• Fast Recording Drive
  • Record to a fast drive, with nothing else using it, dedicated to recording your video to ensure maximum potential IO bandwidth available