Are you having trouble streaming or recording videos with OBS Studio because the “Encoding overloaded” error message appears? One of the most well-liked free and open-source live broadcasting, game, and video recording programmes is OBS, which stands for Open Broadcaster Software. Many OBS users have expressed frustration at the Encoding overloaded problem they encountered when streaming. You will get the following error notice when it happens:
Overwhelming encoding! Consider using a quicker encoding preset or lowering the video settings.
If you’re wondering why you’re receiving this error message, a CPU bottleneck is the cause. The main cause of this error message is the excessive CPU utilisation of OBS Studio, which your machine cannot handle. Now, the main reason OBS Studio uses a lot of CPU is higher output video settings.
The following are a few causes of the “Encoding overloaded” problem on OBS:
- When the output resolution is set very high, OBS’s CPU consumption will increase.
- Another justification for the same is choosing an output video framerate different than 30 fps.
- This error message can also be caused by choosing a slower encoder preset that produces high-quality video but uses a lot of CPU power.
- This error notice is likely to appear if your hard drive is insufficient for rendering and saving output videos.
- OBS may not be able to process OBS if you have the Game Mode function enabled because your PC will be set up for gaming.
- OBS Studio and other demanding software can’t run on your hardware.
- OBS may not have adequate system resources if there are too many background apps active, which is why you see this error.
- This problem can also be brought on by overlay apps and other clashing apps.
Resolve the OBS Studio issue with encoding overload.
You can apply the following workarounds to resolve the “Encoding overloaded” problem in OBS Studio on your Windows computer:
- Reduce the resolution of the output.
- Change the frame rate.
- alter the preset for the encoder.
- Put hardware encoding to use.
- The Task Manager’s OBS priority setting.
- Verify the recording’s origin.
- Using Task Manager, end apps that are in conflict.
- Spare a little disc space.
- Disable Game Mode.
- Use a different system than OBS.
1] Reduce the resolution of the output
Reducing your output resolution is the first step you should take to resolve the problem. A higher resolution will use more CPU power than your machine can handle when streaming gameplay or screen video. As a result, OBS displays the error “Encoding overloaded.”
Your CPU might not be able to handle a high-quality movie right now despite your desire for one. Therefore, if the situation applies, all you have to do to fix the problem is reduce the output resolution in OBS’s video settings. Here’s how to go about it:
- To begin, launch OBS Studio and select File > Settings from the menu or click Settings in the bottom right corner of your screen.
- Now select the Output (Scaled) Resolution drop-down menu under the Video tab in Settings.
- Then pick a lower resolution than the one you’re using now. Play around with this setting to find the resolution that works best for you.
- After finishing, click Apply > OK and restart your computer.
- Relaunch OBS to see if the problem has been fixed.
The next fix can be used if you still receive the “Encoding overloaded” warning in OBS.
2] Change the frame rate.
The quantity of frames that are recorded and shown in a video per second is known as frame rate. A higher frame rate may probably overtax your CPU and GPU and result in the current problem. In order to see if the issue has been resolved, consider dropping your frame rate and setting it below 30 FPS. Here’s how to go about it:
- Start by launching OBS Studio and selecting File > Settings.
- Go to the Video tab now, and then select the Common FPS Values drop-down menu.
- Choose a frame rate less than 30 from the range of options.
- Finally, press Apply > OK to restart OBS. Launch your stream and then check to see whether the issue has been resolved.
Try the following alternative solution if your frame rate is not the problem.
View: Windows OBS Game Capture Black Screen Fix
3] Change the encoder preset
By default, OBS utilises the x264 video encoder. Now, you may encode videos using a variety of presets. In terms of video quality and CPU use, these presets vary. The “ultrafast” preset uses less CPU power but generates videos of worse quality than the “fast” encoder option, which uses a lot of CPU power. The “Encoding overloaded” warning may appear if you choose a preset that uses more CPU power than the others, such as fast. Therefore, pick a faster encoder preset to solve the problem. The “veryfast” encoder preset, which uses a moderate amount of CPU power and produces standard video quality, is an option.
The steps to alter the encoder preset in OBS are as follows:
- Launch OBS first, then select File > Settings.
- Next, select the Encoder preset drop-down menu from the Output tab of the left-side panel.
- Next, choose a faster encoder preset, such as veryfast, faster, or superfast.
- Press Apply > OK to save your changes after that, and then run OBS again to see if the issue has been fixed.
Continue to the following remedy if the error message remains the same.
4] Use hardware encoding
Use a hardware encoder like Quicksync (Intel Integrated GPUs), AMF (newer AMD GPUs), or NVENC to reduce CPU utilisation (latest Nvidia GPUs). However, although providing inferior video quality, these hardware encoders are less taxing on your CPU. Therefore, it is advised to use one of these as an appropriate hardware encoder. The steps to replace the hardware encoder in OBS are as follows:
- Open OBS, then select Files > Settings.
- Go to the Output tab now and change Hardware to Encoder. Since my GPU is an Intel one, for instance, I might choose Quicksync hardware encoder.
- Last but not least, click Apply > OK and restart OBS to see if the “Encoding overloaded” warning has been eliminated.
Read: Windows PC OBS not capturing Game Video.
5] Modify the priority of OBS in Task Manager
The following action you should do is to change the OBS process’s priority in Task Manager to Above Normal or High. This is as a result of how the CPU prioritises tasks. OBS might not be able to make full use of your system’s resources if there are numerous background programmes and tasks active. You consequently see the warning “Encoding overloaded.” Therefore, you must adjust OBS’s priority appropriately before determining whether the issue has been resolved.
The steps are as follows:
- Open Task Manager by pressing Ctrl + Shift + Esc first.
- Right-click OBS Studio in the Processes tab and choose the Go to details option.
- Next, right-click the obs64.exe process in the Details column and choose Set priority as Above Normal or High.
- Open OSB once more to see if the issue has been fixed.
6] Verify the recording’s origin
You may be experiencing the current issue because your recording device, such as cameras and capture cards, uses a lot of CPU power. So make sure your recording source is set up appropriately and check it.
Make sure your webcam isn’t set to operate at a higher resolution, like 480p, if you’re using one. Users of the Logitech C920 who are using it at 1080p resolution may run across this issue.
7] Use Task Manager to end apps that are incompatible
The current problem might be brought on by some competing apps that are running in the background. Such problems are frequently caused by overlay apps like NVIDIA Overlay and Discord. Therefore, use the Task Manager to end all such programmes, and then check to see if the issue has been rectified. If not, you can move on to the following possible solution.
Check out OBS Display Capture not functioning properly on Windows if you’d like.
8] Make room on the hard drive
Storage space is needed for the OBS Studio application to write some files, including the output video recordings. If OBS keeps displaying the message “Encoding overloaded,” your disc may be running out of room that the programme needs. So you won’t be able to use OBS to stream your videos. To resolve the problem, you must make some disc space available.
To free up some space on your hard disc, you can use the Disk Cleanup utility that comes with Windows. This is how to use it:
- Open Disk Cleanup first by selecting it from the Startup menu.
- Select the hard drive where OBS Studio is installed now, and then click OK.
- Select the files you want to delete by checking the box, then click OK.
In addition, you can remove personal files from the disc that you don’t need them on or move them to a new drive to free up space.
It’s excellent if this approach works for you. The following remedy can be used, nevertheless, if the “Encoding overloaded” warning notice continues to appear.
9] Disable the game mode
OBS Studio will use fewer system resources if Game Mode is activated on your PC to optimise gaming performance. You now have the problem at hand. Therefore, you might want to try turning off Game Mode on Windows 11/10. This is how to accomplish it:
- To start, use Win+I to launch Settings, then select the Gaming tab.
- After that, select Game Mode and turn off the corresponding toggle.
Hopefully this will put an end to the “Encoding overloaded” warning.
Read: On-PC OBS recording stutters and freezes periodically.
10] Use an OBS substitute.
Utilizing an OBS Studio substitute is your final resort if all else fails. You may download and install a lot of free ones from the internet to use for live broadcasting and to record your gaming. Software like XSplit Broadcaster, Lightstream Studio, or Streamlabs are a few examples. They are well-liked and effective.
Upgrade your hardware if you intend to continue using OBS Studio. This is due to the possibility that your CPU isn’t powerful enough to stream high-quality videos and get the best performance out of the OBS software. You continue to have “Encoding overloaded” troubles as a result. Additionally, you need to update and improve your hardware if it is too old if you want better performance.
Read: Windows PC OBS Studio crashes frequently.
How do I resolve OBS’s encoding overload?
Change your output options, such as output resolution, frame rate, encoder preset, etc., since these lead to excessive CPU utilisation and can resolve the “Encoding overloaded” problem notice in OBS Studio. In addition, you can switch from a software encoder to a hardware one, set OBS’ priority to high, kill any competing background processes, turn off Game Mode, and free up some disc space. If the issue persists, ensure sure your recording source is not using an excessively high resolution that takes a lot of CPU power.
How can I reduce OBS’s CPU usage?
You will need to reduce your output resolution and framerate because the higher these output options are, the higher the CPU consumption will be in the OBS Studio programme. In addition, you can alter your encoding settings, including the preset, and change it to a quicker preset with little CPU utilisation. To resolve this issue, you can also utilise a hardware encoder like Quicksync (for Intel Integrated GPUs), AMF (for more recent AMD GPUs), or NVENC (for most recent Nvidia GPUs).
OBS Camera Not Showing Up or Working, to be precise.
