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In OBS, make a separate scene for your countdown slate and switch to it between playlist videos. For automatic switching, OBS community users describe using the Advanced Scene Switcher plugin to detect when a VLC playlist item is nearly finished, then switch back after the countdown ends. That boundary-detection method is a workaround, not a built-in OBS recipe, so test complete playback cycles before leaving a stream unattended.
Choose how to play the videos
Use OBS scenes to organize what viewers see. One scene can contain the video or playlist; a second can contain the countdown slate. For one repeating video, use a Media Source. For multiple clips, use VLC Video, which provides playlist controls. OBS documents both sources and their settings in its Media Sources guide (2022-01-11).
| Need | OBS source | Useful settings | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Repeat one video | Media Source | Loop; optionally restart when active or show nothing when playback ends | Simple single-file playback, not a multi-item playlist |
| Play several clips in sequence | VLC Video | Playlist order, Loop Playlist, Shuffle Playlist, and visibility behavior | Requires VLC installation; behavior when the source is hidden matters during scene changes |
For Media Source, Loop defaults to Off, Restart playback when source becomes active defaults to On, and Show nothing when playback ends defaults to On. VLC Video defaults to Loop Playlist On, Shuffle Playlist Off, and Stop when not visible, restart when visible. Set these deliberately for your intended sequence.
VLC must be installed for VLC Video to appear; if you use 64-bit OBS, OBS documents that you need 64-bit VLC. OBS lists Media Source video formats including MP4, TS, MOV, FLV, MKV, AVI, GIF, and WebM, and audio formats including MP3, AAC, OGG, and WAV. These listed formats do not guarantee that every codec combination will behave identically.
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Create the video and countdown scenes
Set up the video scene
- In OBS, create or select a scene for the clips.
- In the Sources dock, add a Media Source for a single file, or add VLC Video and populate its playlist for multiple files.
- For VLC Video, arrange the clips in the desired order and leave Shuffle Playlist off if you want them to play sequentially.
- Choose the loop and visibility behavior. If a scene change hides the playlist source, stopping or restarting it can affect progression; test the selected behavior with your actual playlist.
Build the countdown slate
- Create a second scene, such as “Countdown.”
- Add a countdown video as a Media Source, or create a card using an image and text. OBS also supports browser and text sources.
- Arrange sources in the Sources list: higher items appear above lower items. Position and resize them in the preview until the slate is legible.
- If using a pre-rendered countdown, make its duration match the break you want. The OBS source documentation covers media playback but does not provide a built-in countdown-timer procedure.
A browser source can show web content, but the OBS documentation cited here does not verify a specific timer page or its reliability. A pre-rendered countdown video is a straightforward source-compatible option.
For details on adding, showing or hiding, sizing, and positioning sources, see OBS’s Sources Guide (2022-01-11).
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Automate the switch between each video and the slate
The official OBS documentation establishes the scene and source controls, but not an automatic between-playlist-items countdown workflow. OBS community forum discussions dated 2021-11-01 and 2023-01-05 describe using the Advanced Scene Switcher plugin to detect a VLC item nearing its end, switch to the slate, then return after the slate media ends. Treat this as a community workaround; conditions and behavior may vary with OBS, plugin versions, and source settings. See the OBS community discussion.
- Install and configure Advanced Scene Switcher for your OBS setup.
- Create a macro using a media condition for the VLC playlist item. Forum examples use a “playing” condition with “time remaining shorter than” roughly 1–2 seconds; another example uses less than 1000 ms.
- When that condition is met, switch to the countdown scene. Configure the playlist to advance as intended; community examples differ in how they handle advancing the playlist.
- Create a separate return rule that switches back to the video scene when the countdown media finishes.
- Run several complete cycles and verify that each clip advances, the slate appears for the intended duration, and playback resumes in the right place.
A simple “ended” trigger may not fire as expected in a looping playlist because the playlist can advance instead of entering an ended state. Forum users also report inconsistent results involving hidden-source pause behavior and media rules. These reports are not compatibility guarantees. Do not rely on unattended automation until it works repeatedly with your installed OBS and plugin versions, actual media, loop configuration, and visibility settings.
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If you prefer a manual transition, switch scenes using OBS controls or a configured hotkey. The cited documentation does not establish a hardware controller requirement or recommend a particular controller.
Troubleshoot missed or mistimed countdowns
- The countdown never appears: Check that the macro’s media condition is detecting the VLC item and that its scene-change action targets the countdown scene. Confirm the macro is enabled and test with a clip long enough to observe the trigger.
- The playlist stops or restarts after the slate: Review VLC Video’s visibility behavior. Its documented default is to stop when not visible and restart when visible; test whether that matches your scene-switching workflow.
- The playlist advances without triggering an “ended” rule: A looping playlist may move to the next item rather than enter an ended state. Try a near-end time-remaining condition, then verify playlist advancement and return behavior.
- The switch happens too early or too late: Adjust the near-end threshold in small increments and repeat a full cycle. The forum examples use roughly 1–2 seconds or less than 1000 ms, not a universally validated value.
- VLC Video is missing from the source list: Install VLC, matching OBS’s architecture; OBS specifies 64-bit VLC for 64-bit OBS.
- The countdown ends but the videos do not resume as expected: Check the return rule, the playlist’s current item, and the source’s visibility behavior. Test these together rather than assuming that hiding and showing a source preserves its playback position.
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