Your Mic Works in the Browser. Why Is OBS Silent?

Your webcam site can hear you in its browser broadcaster, but switching to OBS leaves the room silent. You have a useful clue: the microphone worked in one app. Check where the signal disappears before replacing hardware or changing your stream settings.

Quick check: If the OBS meter stays flat, check the input device and mic permission. If it moves but the recording is silent, check mute and track routing. If the recording has sound but the room does not, check what reaches the platform.

Start with the meter

Open the scene you actually stream from and speak at normal volume. If the microphone meter stays flat, select the device by name. In OBS, check Settings → Audio for a global mic or the properties of the scene’s audio input source. Pick one route for the same microphone. OBS warns that adding the same device globally and in a scene can create echo. On macOS, check OBS’s microphone permission separately from the browser’s.

Make a local recording

If the meter moves, check mute and the audio track used for streaming. In Advanced Audio Properties, make sure your mic is assigned to the streaming track. If you use monitoring, check whether you’ve selected a monitor-only mode. Record a short sample using the same mic track and play it back. Test each scene you switch to during a show, especially if the mic is attached to a single scene.

Check what reaches the site

If the local recording sounds right, check the cam platform’s encoder setup and use its preview or test option if available. A browser test checks the browser’s inputs. Your OBS stream follows a different route. When asking support for help, say whether the OBS meter moved, whether the recording had sound, and which scene and audio track you tested.

Official references

• obsproject.com — reference 1
• obsproject.com — reference 2