Mute Specific Audio Sources with OBS Hotkeys

Controlling your audio levels quickly is essential for a professional live stream or video recording. This guide provides a straightforward, step-by-step walkthrough on how to assign custom keyboard shortcuts (hotkeys) to mute and unmute individual audio sources in OBS Studio, allowing you to manage your broadcast audio seamlessly without disrupting your workflow.

Step 1: Open OBS Settings

Launch OBS Studio on your computer. In the bottom-right corner of the interface, click on the Settings button. Alternatively, you can click on File in the top menu bar and select Settings from the dropdown menu.

Step 2: Navigate to the Hotkeys Menu

Once the Settings window opens, locate the sidebar on the left side of the screen. Click on the Hotkeys tab. This menu contains a list of every controllable action within your OBS scenes and sources.

Step 3: Locate Your Audio Source

Scroll down through the hotkey list. The list is organized by scenes and global sources. Look for the specific name of the audio source you want to control (such as “Mic/Aux”, “Desktop Audio”, or a custom-named browser source).

Tip: If you have a lot of sources, use the Filter search bar at the top of the Hotkeys window to type the name of your audio source directly.

Step 4: Assign Your Custom Shortcuts

For each audio source, you will see several command options. Locate the following fields: * Mute: Click inside the empty box next to “Mute” and press the key combination you want to use to turn the audio off (e.g., Ctrl + Alt + M). * Unmute: Click inside the empty box next to “Unmute” and press the key combination you want to use to turn the audio back on (e.g., Ctrl + Alt + U). * Push-to-mute / Push-to-talk (Optional): If you only want the source muted or active while holding down a key, you can assign a hotkey to these fields instead.

If you want a single key to toggle the mute status on and off, simply assign the exact same key combination to both the Mute and Unmute fields.

Step 5: Save and Test Your Settings

Once you have configured your hotkeys, click the Apply button in the bottom-right corner of the Settings window, and then click OK to close it.

To ensure everything is working correctly, speak into your microphone or play some audio, then press your newly created hotkeys. Watch the volume meter in the Audio Mixer dock at the bottom of the main OBS screen to verify that the red mute icon toggles on and off as expected.