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Optimized Previews
A free, open-source plugin with lighter, read-only previews for OBS Studio and Aitum Vertical. It reduces native preview overhead while you stream or record.
Why the OBS preview uses resources
Drawing the native OBS and Aitum Vertical previews adds work alongside your stream or recording. Under heavy load, that overhead can contribute to rendering lag and missed frames.
Optimized Previews gives you a lighter way to keep watching both canvases while the native previews are disabled. The benefit depends on your hardware and workload; the original improvements were measured on macOS.
How it works
The plugin displays the image OBS has already produced, without rendering your scenes again. You can replace the native previews in their usual positions or open the optimized previews in separate docks:
- Optimized Preview: your main OBS canvas.
- Optimized Aitum Vertical Preview: your Aitum Vertical canvas, or another additional canvas you select.
The previews are read-only: to select or move sources, or to see guides and safe areas, switch back to the native preview. The horizontal replacement pauses in Studio Mode, which requires the native preview.
Configuration options
- Direct replacement: right-click the preview and enable Use optimized preview (read-only). Uncheck it to restore the native preview.
- Separate docks: open them from the Docks menu and disable the matching native preview manually.
- Frame rate limit: follow the OBS frame rate or limit the preview to 60, 30 or 20 FPS. A lower limit reduces preview work.
- Automatic switching: use optimized previews when streaming or recording starts and restore native ones when it stops, from Tools → Optimized previews…
- No background work: hidden previews stop rendering.
- Update checks: optional check when OBS starts. You download and install updates yourself.
More streaming tools
To plan your broadcasts on YouTube, Twitch and Kick, there is LivePilot. Streaming from a Mac? Try VideoToolbox Encoders to tune the H.264 and HEVC encoders.
