Updated October 2026 · Streaming mic and noise
In OBS, open the Audio Mixer, click the gear next to your mic, choose Filters, and add Noise Suppression (RNNoise), then a Noise Gate, then a Compressor. If steady noise such as a fan is still audible, clean the mic before OBS with a free browser noise canceller and a virtual audio cable.
Right-click your microphone in the Audio Mixer (or click the gear icon), choose Filters, press the plus button and add Noise Suppression. You normally get a choice of methods:
Menu names change a little between OBS versions, but the idea is the same. Listen in the OBS preview or a local recording, not just the meter.
Suppression turns noise down while you talk. A Noise Gate silences the mic between words. Add it below Noise Suppression. The OBS defaults (open around −26 dB, close around −32 dB, attack 25 ms, hold 200 ms, release 150 ms) are a sane starting point; see our guide to noise gate settings for streaming for how to tune them to your own noise level.
Filters run from top to bottom, so order matters. A good order is:
Compressing before removing noise makes quiet noise louder, which is the most common reason a mic that “should be fine” still sounds hissy.
No filter beats a quieter source. Set the mic gain low in Windows or your audio interface and sit closer instead; every 3 dB of gain you remove also removes 3 dB of noise. Keep the mic away from the PC and point the dead side of a cardioid mic toward the fan. More ideas are in how to stop fan noise on your microphone.
If the noise is steady (a fan, hiss, hum, air conditioning), a tool that learns your room can remove more than a generic model. The free Clean Streaming Mic listens to three seconds of your room tone, removes that noise live in your browser, and sends the clean mic to OBS through a virtual audio cable. Setup is in our virtual audio cable guide. In OBS, add the cable as an Audio Input Capture, and keep OBS suppression on low or off so you do not process the voice twice.
| Problem | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Words cut off at the start | Gate opens too late | Lower the open threshold, shorten attack to 10 ms |
| Voice sounds watery or robotic | Over-processing | Use only one suppression method; lower reduction |
| Noise pumps up between sentences | Compressor before the gate | Move the gate above the compressor |
| Keyboard still audible | Sudden noises are hard to remove | Mic closer, mechanical keyboard further, lower gain |
Learn your room noise, remove it live and feed OBS, Discord or Zoom. Runs in your browser, nothing is uploaded.
RNNoise is usually the best all-round choice on a normal computer. Speex is lighter but weaker, and NVIDIA noise removal is available on some setups with a supported graphics card.
Common reasons are high mic gain, a sensitive condenser mic, no gate, or compressing the signal before the noise is removed. Lower the gain, add the gate, and put the compressor last.
Yes. OBS has built-in Noise Suppression and Noise Gate filters. A browser tool and a virtual audio cable can add stronger cleaning for steady noise.
