benano

Nerd I guess

  • she/her

I'm a 26 years old trans woman.
IRL, I'm a signal processing engineer (I design algorithms for effects in VST).
Things I like: manga /anime /cartoons /science fiction books/ video games/ learning skateboard.
Avatar : my oc by @woofycakes


hootOS
@hootOS

previous post (start here!)

I noticed my basic livestream audio production post started getting a LOT of rechosts lately, so I thought it might be a good idea to chost some more production how-to's for people looking for slightly more dynamic, advanced setups. For this guide, we're gonna learn how to install third-party VST audio plugins on OBS Studio, as well as Equalization and Ducking/Sidechaining.

"Why Should I Care?"

These are some advanced audio production techniques in this guide, so you don't really need them to have perfectly adequate livestream audio. Most streamers do what I detailed in the previous post at the most and just stop there, so it's fine if you don't think this is worth your time. However, these techniques can bring your production quality to the next level and set you apart from your peers. Very few streamers implement Equalization and Ducking in their livestreams, but you can tell when someone's done the work to make their audio shine.

While it may seem counter-intuitive, video quality isn't actually the primary turn-off for other viewers - it's audio quality that makes viewers either leave your stream quickly, or stick around for more. Especially on Twitch, you're always gonna have some level of video artifacting and distortion, but the human brain is capable of putting pieces of the messy visual puzzle together to figure out what's going on. Audio, however, is a much more delicate process for the brain, and it takes more effort to understand an audibly noisy situation than a visually noisy one. In addition to that, many viewers actually keep livestreams running in the background while doing something else - almost as if the stream is like a podcast with a visual element, where they can turn their eyes to the livestream if they hear somebody getting excited to see what's happening. In conclusion: the better your audio sounds, the better your stream will be.