How to connect your DAW to OBS and send audio and video to Zoom

[tobyjenner]

Following the last Open Mic back in October '21, there was some discussion about being able to use your Digital Audio Workstation or DAW to provide input into Zoom and therefore be able to "mix" your performance and stream that live into the Open Mic Zoom "meeting" or just to record your own video. Well it is possible, using OBS (Open Broadcast Software) as an interface between the DAW and Zoom but also means that you can stream your OBS video feed into Zoom and so opening up a world of both audio and video enhancements.

The following guide is a simple step by step explanation of how to set the connections up and any additional software or drivers that are needed (all free). I have also recorded a video, which turned into a "how to" instead of just a visual reference as planned. I have used Reaper as the DAW of choice but the instructions apply to any DAW as the "software" is cross application.

But at a high level the chain is :

mic/gtr --> DAW --> master track --> OBS --> OBS Video --> Zoom         
                                                               --> DAW Audio -->              
and of course you could add pre recorded backing in the DAW for that "band" experience.

Beware long semi technical post and 30 minute video

Connecting Reaper/DAW to OBS to Zoom using Windows 10 (but should apply to all OS).

This is not at tutorial on the above applications and assumes you are familiar with all 3 and the standard operational controls and settings when used in standalone mode. This is just a step by step guide, to what needs to be downloaded and what needs to be done on each application.


1.   Downloads – choose the right version for your operating system.

ReaPlugs VST from the Reaper creators Cuckos https://www.reaper.fm/reaplugs/
This will include the plug-in Reastream, which will allow Reaper and OBS to communicate.
These plug-ins are standalone and can be used on any DAW, so if you are not using Reaper, you can still use Reastream-standalone to connect your DAW to OBS.

VB Audio Virtual Cable plugin from https://vb-audio.com/Cable/  to allow OBS audio to be sent to Zoom.
Care when the driver is installed “Cable Input (VB Audio Virtual Cable)” will be set as you default device for playback and recording. Open the Sounds/Manager Audio Device menu in Windows Settings and ensure Cable Input is in a Ready state but not the default device.
For Recording select your Audio Interface and for Playback select your system speakers/headphones.

After installing the VB Audio Virtual Cable driver, you may need to reboot your system. So, reboot it anyway.

OBS Virtual Camera plug-in, which will send the OBS video capture to Zoom.
https://obsproject.com/forum/resources/obs-virtualcam.949/

2.   Reaper/DAW

In Reaper or your DAW load an existing project or start a new one with a track(s) to monitor your audio input as you would do normally. Make sure a track is added and armed (ready for recording) for your mic input or for each instrument you are playing live.

On your Master Track (Reaper) or final output channel on other DAWs add the Reastream vst plug-in from the FX menu/window.
In the dialogue box, the identifier will be named “default” and must be set to enabled.
You could change the name from default but the matching plugin in OBS MUST have the same name.

Select Send Audio Midi IP and from the dropdown box select *local broadcast.

Double check your Reaper/DAW Audio Device Setting in Preferences and ensure your AI is declared for both input and output. This assumes you are declaring your AI as an ASIO device for minimal latency.

3.   OBS - Audio Input from Reaper/DAW.

To an existing scene (the one you will use to be seen in Zoom, like your main webcam scene) add a new Audio Input Capture device (AIC) in Sources to receive audio from Reaper/DAW and name it appropriately. e.g. you could call it DAW or Reaper.

Double click or right click and select Properties and select your webcam mic as the device or any Audio Input device mic that you are not using in this Scene or "project".

Next right click on the new AIC select Filters.
Use the + (plus) button and select VST 2.x Plug-in and from the dropdown menu select Reastream-standalone. OBS will see all the plug-ins in your VST folder, so if you have a lot like me Reastream-standalone will be down the bottom.
Then in the box below select Open Plug-in Interface.
This will show a box the same as in Reaper/DAW.
Make sure the identifier name matches the name in Reaper/DAW - if you left it as Default, it will be ok.
In OBS this should be set to Receive Audio/Midi.
Note : If you plan to send multiple OBS scenes to Zoom, each one most have the Reaper/DAW AIC source added.

In the OBS Audio Mixer select any of the settings cogs, then select Advanced Audio Properties.
Audio Monitoring should set to Monitor off for all devices except your Reaper/DAW audio input which should be set to Monitor and Output.

4.   OBS Audio and Video Output To Zoom

Open settings in OBS and select Audio.
Go to Advanced and in the Monitoring Device dropdown select Cable Input (VB Audio Virtual Cable).
Exit settings.
On the OBS control panel select Start Virtual Camera.

5.   Zoom – Audio and Video Input from OBS/Reaper

In Zoom open settings.
In Video for Camera select OBS Virtual Camera
In Audio set Speakers to your Audio Interface
In Audio for Microphone set to CABLE Output (VB Audio Virtual Cable)

And that is it but some things to be aware of.

•   If Zoom is just showing the OBS logo and not your video feed, start OBS virtual camera.

•   If you lose Reaper/DAW sound, especially your AI input.
Check the Reaper/DAW Audio settings and make sure the AI is still visible for Input and Output.
If not shutdown OBS and Zoom and then refresh Reaper/DAW audio preferences.
You may need to toggle between Audio Systems before ASIO picks up the AI for Input and Output.
Once reconnected test your audio in Reaper.
Then fire up OBS. You should not need to change anything but select the Audio Input Device you set up for Reaper bring up the filter and open the plug-in interface to verify Reastream-standalone in OBS is receiving sound by playing the project or input via guitar/mic. Although you should also see this via the OBS Audio Mixer for the same AIC. If all is good, refire Zoom and enter meeting. Don’t forget to start OBS virtual camera.

•   If audio interference occurs (echos, feedback etc) it is most likely due to another mic being open on the system. Check Windows Sound Device Manager
For Playback all devices should be disabled apart from :
Speakers (set as default),  Your Audio Interface (status Ready) Cable Input (status Ready)
For Recording all devices should be disabled apart from :
Your AI (set as default), Cable Output (status Ready), Webcam Microphone (Status Ready)





I am no expert and have discovered this by trial and error and there are other ways to hook these three applications together. I also know we have subject matter expert on the forum (Majik) who may identify some weaknesses in this method. And that’s is great. If it can be simplified or improved, I am more than happy to tweak my set up to make it more streamlined or resilient. But I hope it works for you as it does for me.
 
Big thank you to David Preece for acting as my guinea pig and confirming the the guide actually worked and for the suggestions for streamlining the process and for vetting the video, to ensure it all made sense. (I was up to take 14 and getting weary !!)

Best of luck if you plan to use this method in the future. The instructions should work but be mindful of the potential pit falls I have highlighted. As I said in the video, I will try to answer any questions to the best of my knowledge and ability but as I have said, I am no expert.

Enjoy 

Cheers

Toby
 



 

[tobyjenner]

PLEASE NOTE AS NOT IN THE VIDEO
The only downside to this configuration is that you will only hear your DAW/OBS output when your headphones/monitors are connected to your Audio Interface but you will not hear sound from Zoom at the same time (but Zoom will hear you !!). You will only hear the sound from Zoom when listening to your system speakers or via your system's headphone jack. If you declare your AI as the systems speakers, that is when Reaper or your DAW loses connections and there is no sound going to OBS. So you would need to switch speakers/headphones connections (AI or PC) when swapping between performer and audience.

There is a method of using another virtual cable to send audio from Zoom back to OBS (and your AI) but I have yet to fully explore that - the videos out there don't include adding a DAW into the equation. It would mean making a small donation to VB Audio Cables for the pair of virtual cables but that can be as little as $5 or euros. Given my experience setting up the DAW/OBS/Zoom connection, I do not expect it to be any more complicated but need to confirm and test it all works before adding it here. So more to come.

STOP PRESS

OK I have just successfully passed the Zoom speaker test to my headphones, plugged into my AI, while the project track played in Reaper. Which means you should be able to hear your DAW and Zoom simultaneously using this method.

All I did was change the Zoom speaker setting to my UMC AI output 1/2 channels !! 
When using my old Xenyx AI I would either choke the audio on Reaper or hear nothing on Zoom - maybe another foible of it being a "mixer" desk not really fit for recording.

So declaring your AI in Zoom as your speakers should do the job. However, I will set up a test meeting with Zoom on the PC and laptop and feed audio back from the laptop and confirm I can hear it via the AI Headphone interface. That won't be until this evening but I would prefer to put a big tick in the box, before changing the information in the guide as it stands.

Thank you for your patience and understanding, still learning on my feet but I'll be back.

Cheers

Toby
 

[tobyjenner]

Further update

Like your average Madman, I held a meeting with myself a few minutes ago and can confirm that the audio being received by Zoom on my Laptop (The One Show for folks in UK), could be heard via my headphones connected to Audio Interface connected to the PC, which was hosting the Zoom meeting and situated in another room. The issue I was having in the past, losing the Reaper connections and audio, was obviously down to the limitations of my old "mixer" Audio Interface.

The video has been amended with a text advice around 18:30, along with the guide above. To clarify...

Audio settings for Speakers in Zoom should be set to your Audio Interface device. Which is what you would have been doing anyway. The only changes are to the Microphone (Cable Output) and Video Camera (OBS Virtual Camera).

Hope that clears things up and I apologise for any confusion.

Cheers

Toby
 

[close2u]

Madman on the rampage.
Multiple vibes for this Toby.

[tobyjenner]

Madman on the rampage.
Multiple vibes for this Toby.

Thank you Richard, now time to concentrate on more important things......like OM5 !! 

[close2u]

Madman on the rampage.

Mmh ... I'm wondering if this reference went over your head?

[CT]

Cool beans! Big time studio production tool! Thanks for treading the deep waters and bringing back some cod. Too bad it won't help me play better.

[tobyjenner]

Mmh ... I'm wondering if this reference went over your head?

Most likely. My head is pretty fried after yesterday evening's marathon takes and doing something with technology complete alien to me and then following up the outstanding issues today, then testing it all.

Should I be worried ? Hang on the penny might be losing the gravity fight. Are we stressing the RAM element here ? If not I'm lost but too tired to care.

Need to learn songs learn songs learn songs learn songs.

Help me out if I am miles away or wake me up when November ends.

Cheers

Toby
 

[tobyjenner]

Cool beans! Big time studio production tool! Thanks for treading the deep waters and bringing back some cod. Too bad it won't help me play better.

Aye there's nothing like a cod war to stir the waters. Hey Clint you are the man making yourself play better week in week out but this could add some spice to the Cioppino 

[close2u]

To help a tired man out.

The distant echo -
of faraway voices boarding faraway trains
To take them home to
the ones that they love and who love them forever
The glazed, dirty steps - repeat my own and reflect my thoughts
Cold and uninviting, partially naked
Except for toffee wrapers and this morning's paper
Mr. Jones got run down
Headlines of death and sorrow - they tell of tomorrow
Madmen on the rampage
And I'm down in the tube station at midnight

[adi_mrok]

Wow Toby kudos for having a go and successfully getting through all technical fun! It needs to be sticked somewhere in tech talk as this is gold for anyone willing to step up their game in live online performances. I will definitely look at it one day, hope sooner rather than later!

Keep on rockin' my friends

[batwoman]

Big thanks to you Toby for this marathon effort. I can only imagine the time and testing it's taken.

Thankyou 

[tobyjenner]

@Adi/Maggie

Thank you. If just one person benefits from all this it will have been worth it. 

@Richard - Ah more Jam than Ram !! Well I had to get to the last line to suss that out.  I think there are times in your life when some music and lyrics just gets imbedded in your bones. For me the Punk/pseudo punk period wasn't in it. By 78 I was still reeling from the Skynyrd crash the previous year, which heavily influenced my listening. Enjoyed the music at the time but it never got into the marrow. Bit like that New Romantic stuff, the pink panther band did some great songs but all I recall is a geezer on a boat singing "my name is Leo" something like that. I also think your teens are such years when music starts getting grafted to your soul. You'll be surprised I was heavily into Marvin Gaye and just a few bars of anything from the album What's Going On and the lyrics flow back after half a century. But I digress. 

[DavidP]

Thank you. If just one person benefits from all this it will have been worth it. 

Is that one more person, Toby, as I'm already a happy beneficiary

Once again, many thanks for the effort to figure this out and do that little bit more than the typical YT educational that I looked at the first time I tried and failed to get Reaper feeding OBS.

[tobyjenner]

Is that one more person, Toby, as I'm already a happy beneficiary

Once again, many thanks for the effort to figure this out and do that little bit more than the typical YT educational that I looked at the first time I tried and failed to get Reaper feeding OBS.

Well guess that will have to be 3+ as I am a happy bunny as well. And yep those other vids assume knowledge and that all works perfectly in their YT bubbles. As we know reality don't do that !
Looking at OBS Audio Monitor plug in over the coming days but low priority. That appears to act as a central audio hub for multiple applications, so more flexibly but needs the A+B virtual cables but for a few SAR it would be worth it. Logic tells me it would also be simple to apply but need to verify that.

And despite your remonstrations, your assistance was hugely valuable. It is always better to get a third party to run through a script and flush out the things that have been missed, especially the bits you take for granted. So vibes for that sir. 

[willsie01]

About to take a dive into your info Toby. Above and beyond to come up with it. I did have a partially complete trial of getting OBS into Zoom last weekend but it kept falling over. An interesting moment was when I joined a Zoom meeting mid week and didn't realise that the trial stuff I had tossed into OBS would feed into Zoom even though OBS was switched off. Maybe I'll find out how that works following your post? Rapidly had to change the audio/video setting to get rid of the various things I had chucked in: the goal highlights from last weekends defeat of Liverpool by the Irons, the Beatles in an early BBC concert and other sundry items.
Here goes...

[tobyjenner]

Bump, so I remember to migrate to Discourse.