How to Add a Music Visualizer to OBS

Last updated: July 10, 2026

The short answer: run a desktop visualizer like ProVisHD, press Ctrl+H in it to hide the window controls, then add a Window Capture source in OBS and pick the ProVisHD window. The visuals react to your stream's music automatically. The details:

Step 1 - Run the visualizer and your music

1. Install ProVisHD (Windows / Mac) and open it.
2. Play your stream's music from any app on the same machine - Spotify, a local playlist, a browser. ProVisHD reacts to whatever the computer plays; no audio routing is needed.
3. Pick a visualizer with the arrow keys (or see all 29 to choose), and press Z for its second mode if you prefer.

Step 2 - Make the window capture-clean

1. Press Ctrl+H in ProVisHD to hide the window controls and record button - the window becomes pure visuals.
2. Optional: overlay your channel logo or name from the app menu (Esc), so your branding is part of the visualizer itself.
3. Size the window roughly how you'll use it - visuals scale with the window, and a smaller window uses less GPU.

Step 3 - Capture it in OBS

1. In OBS, click + under Sources and add a Window Capture.
2. Select the ProVisHD window from the dropdown.
3. Scale and crop the source (hold Alt while dragging the edges) to fit your scene - fullscreen backdrop for a music stream, or a corner panel for gaming and just-chatting scenes.

Tips

• Audio: the visualizer window carries no sound - OBS gets the music from your Desktop Audio source, as usual.
• Keep it visible to you: Ctrl+Shift+A keeps ProVisHD on top of your own screen, handy on a single-monitor setup.
• Change looks mid-stream: arrow keys switch visualizers and the B, N, M, comma and period keys modify the current one live - no need to touch the OBS scene.
• Performance: ProVisHD is GPU-accelerated; if you need headroom on a busy scene, just keep its window small.

Related: Music visualizer for OBS & streaming · Make a music video from an mp3 · all guides

OBS and OBS Studio are trademarks of the OBS Project. ProVisHD is an independent app and is not affiliated with the OBS Project.