How to Record Only Game Audio in OBS Studio

Recording only the audio from a specific Steam game while excluding background sounds like Discord, music, or system notifications is easy with OBS Studio. This guide will walk you through using the “Application Audio Capture” feature in OBS Studio to isolate and record a single game’s audio feed directly, ensuring a clean and professional mix for your videos and streams.

Prerequisites

To use this feature, ensure you are running Windows 10 (version 20H2 or later) or Windows 11, and have a recent version of OBS Studio installed.

Step 1: Launch Your Steam Game

Before configuring OBS, launch the Steam game you want to record. The game must be running in the background so OBS Studio can detect its active audio process.

Step 2: Add the Application Audio Capture Source

  1. Open OBS Studio.
  2. Locate the Sources dock at the bottom of the screen.
  3. Click the + (Add) icon at the bottom of the Sources dock.
  4. Select Application Audio Capture (BETA) (labeled as Application Audio Capture in newer versions) from the dropdown menu.
  5. In the pop-up window, select Create New, name it something recognizable (e.g., “Game Audio Only”), and click OK.

Step 3: Select the Steam Game Process

  1. A properties window for your new source will appear.
  2. For Mode, select Capture specific window.
  3. Click the Window dropdown menu and select the active window of your Steam game (e.g., [game.exe]: Game Title).
  4. Set Window Match Priority to Match title, otherwise find window of same executable. This helps OBS locate the game even if the window title changes slightly.
  5. Click OK to save the settings.

Step 4: Disable Global Desktop Audio

To ensure you are only capturing the game audio and not duplicating sounds or capturing unwanted background noise, you must disable the global Desktop Audio device.

  1. Go to the Audio Mixer dock in OBS.
  2. If you see Desktop Audio active, click the speaker icon next to it to mute it, or slide the volume bar to the far left.
  3. Alternatively, disable it permanently by going to Settings > Audio > Global Audio Devices and setting Desktop Audio to Disabled. Click Apply and OK.

Step 5: Test and Record

  1. Look at the Audio Mixer in OBS. You should see a green/yellow bar moving next to your “Game Audio Only” source when the game plays sound.
  2. Make some noise in other applications (like playing a YouTube video or sending a message on Discord) to verify that their audio does not register in the OBS Audio Mixer.
  3. Click Start Recording in the Controls dock to begin capturing your isolated game audio.