How to Use the New OBS Audio Mixer

OBS Studio's Audio Mixer has recently had one of its biggest interface changes in ages. The mixer was rewritten from scratch for OBS Studio 32.1, giving it a new layout, easier monitoring controls, pinned audio sources and better visibility over sources that are not currently part of your active scene. So if you have used OBS for a while, or are completely new, the new mixer is going to look really weird. But the basic workflow you're used to is pretty much the same.

What Has Changed in the OBS Audio Mixer?

If you've been using OBS Studio for a while, the first thing you will notice is the new layout, which is probably going to annoy you a lot! But once you get used to it, the change is worth a little bit of relearning... OBS now supports both horizontal and vertical mixer layouts, with a button in the mixer toolbar allowing you to switch between them. The vertical layout is now the default, which might not be for everyone...

The change also gives you way more choices on which sources are displayed. You can pin important audio sources so they remain visible, even when they are not part of the current scene and global audio sources are automatically pinned.

This is super handy if you constantly switch between scenes. For example, your microphone can remain visible while you move between an introduction scene, gameplay scene and ending screen.

If you are updating from an older OBS version, it is worth spending a few minutes checking your mixer before an important recording or livestream. A few of my configurations changed, though thankfully all my filters and filter settings were still unchanged.

• Your important audio sources are visible.
• Your pinned sources remain available when changing scenes.
• Your monitoring settings are correct.
• Your audio meters respond normally.
• Your microphone and desktop audio are being routed correctly.

How to Use the New OBS Studio Audio Mixer

Open OBS Studio and find the Audio Mixer dock. If you can't see it, you can enable it from the Docks menu.

• Open OBS Studio.
• Find the Audio Mixer dock.
• Click the mixer layout control in the mixer toolbar.
• Choose between the horizontal and vertical layouts.
• Resize or reposition the mixer dock to suit your OBS workspace.

The horizontal layout makes sense if you have plenty of horizontal space available. The vertical layout is useful when the mixer is positioned alongside your Scenes and Sources docks. I personally use the vertical layout on a vertical second monitor. It's a handy way to keep everything visible without using up a lot of space. There is no performance difference between the two.

How to Pin an Audio Source

Pinning is probably the most useful feature inside the new mixer.

• Find the source in the Audio Mixer.
• Open the source's options menu.
• Select the option to pin the source.
• Switch to another scene and check that the source remains visible.

A pinned source stays available even when you change scenes. This means you can keep important stuff like your microphone or background music close without having to make sure those sources are in every scene. If you are someone who's got a crazy complicated scene collection, this makes the mixer way easier to manage.

How to Monitor Audio

To change monitoring for a source:

• Find the source in the Audio Mixer.
• Open its options or monitoring control.
• Select the appropriate monitoring option.
• Test the source to make sure you can hear it correctly.

This is handy when you need to listen to a microphone, media source or other input without necessarily changing what your audience hears.

• Remember that monitoring and muting are separate functions.
• Muting a source prevents it from being sent through the normal output, while monitoring controls what you hear through your monitoring device.

How to Show Other Audio Sources

The new mixer can also show sources that are hidden or belong to another scene. You can use this when you want to keep an eye on a source that isn't currently being used. For example, you might want your microphone and music controls visible while working on a scene that does not currently contain either source.

• Open the Audio Mixer.
• Open the mixer options.
• Enable the option for displaying the sources you want to see.
• Include hidden or other-scene sources if required.
• Pin important sources so they remain readily available.