OBS Replay Buffer - Shadowplay alternative

[Kai McKee / MoistGoat]

Requirements

OBS Studio v21.0.0

A bit of patience

 

Let's assume you literally just installed OBS for the first time. Be sure that you're on version 21.0.0 of OBS, if not go ahead and click "Help" and check for updates.

Output > Recording

1. Go to Settings > Output and change "Output Mode" from Simple to Advanced.
2. Click on the recording tab and keep "Type" as Standard.
3. Set your recording path to where ever you want.
4. Recording format is best set to .mp4
5. Set Encoder to x264 
6. Tick "Rescale Output" and set it to 1280x720 (Best if you use 1920x1080, ultrawide will need to be scaled differently or you can leave it)
7. Rate control should be CBR, and then Bitrate at 5000
8. Leave the rest as default.

Output > Replay Buffer

1. Click on "Replay Buffer" and check the "Enable Replay Buffer" box.
2. Set maximum replay time to 600 seconds (10 minutes).

Video

1. Click on Video on the side panel, and change "Output (Scaled) Resolution" to 1280x720
2. Downscale filter, leave as default (mine is bicubic, no idea if it effects much)
3. Set the FPS to 30, which will be under "Common FPS Values"

Hotkeys

1. Click on Hotkeys on the side panel, and go to the "Replay Buffer" section. Set a hotkey (I personally use F9)
2. It may also be a good idea to set a recording hotkey so you can press it afterward in case you'd typically forget to wait a minute or two after an incident. In this case, you can set the same hotkey for both start and stop recording to toggle recording.

 

All your settings should be good to go. Be sure to click "Start Replay Buffer" when you open OBS and then just tap F9 (or which ever key you assigned to Replay Buffer) and it will save the last 10 minutes of recording. 

Edited March 1, 2018 by Kai McKee / MoistGoat

[Thorgs]

Thanks for that info also if you have an ultra-wide as I do I have to leave my resolution 3440x1440 otherwise when I look at my recording my police car is like to the far right on the screen

Edited March 1, 2018 by Thorgs

[BrandonM]

I also use the replay buffer when I'm not streaming.

I recommend adding a hotkey for Start Recording and Stop Recording, as well. I use Shift+F10 for both of these (you can use the same hotkey on them). Then when you have your stuff you need to capture, you can hit Shift F10 first, then F9. You'll be able to submit a report with more detail with a longer video

[Kai McKee / MoistGoat]

6 hours ago, Thorgs said:

Thanks for that info also if you have an ultra-wide as I do I have to leave my resolution 3440x1440 otherwise when I look at my recording my police car is like to the far right on the screen

Added to main post. Thanks Thorgs!

 

3 hours ago, BrandonM said:

I also use the replay buffer when I'm not streaming.

I recommend adding a hotkey for Start Recording and Stop Recording, as well. I use Shift+F10 for both of these (you can use the same hotkey on them). Then when you have your stuff you need to capture, you can hit Shift F10 first, then F9. You'll be able to submit a report with more detail with a longer video

Also added to main post. Probably going to use that hotkey in line with the replay buffer and see how it goes. Thanks Brandon 

[Hoopsure]

For those that find their video is laggy, try changing the FPS value to 24 instead of 30 and under advanced output settings set the CPU to ultrafast. The main reason its laggy is because your probably CPU can't handle the encoding.