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How to Fix OBS Media Source Restarting Instead of Continuing a YouTube Playlist

The fix depends on whether OBS is playing one local file, a local playlist, or an embedded YouTube playlist. Set the matching loop and visibility controls.
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First identify what is playing the playlist: a local file in Media Source, several local files in VLC Video Source, or a YouTube playlist in a Browser Source. Each uses different loop controls. For a single local file, enable Loop and check the separate activation setting; for a local playlist, use VLC Video Source and enable Loop Playlist; for an embedded YouTube playlist, configure YouTube’s playlist parameters.

Identify the source that is restarting

In OBS, select the source in the Sources list and open its properties. Determine whether it is a Media Source, VLC Video Source, or Browser Source showing a YouTube embed. The controls are not interchangeable: OBS Media Source handles a media file, VLC Video Source handles a playlist of local files, and an embedded YouTube playlist follows YouTube player parameters.

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OBS describes these source types in its Media Sources documentation and Sources Guide.

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Fix a single local file in Media Source

  1. In the Sources list, select the Media Source and open Properties.
  2. Enable Loop if the same file should start again after playback completes. OBS defines this control as specifying whether the file plays again once playback has completed.
  3. Check Restart playback when source becomes active. This is separate from Loop. It controls what happens when the source becomes active, such as when it is made visible in a scene. If you do not want activation to send playback back to the beginning, turn this option off.
  4. Click OK and test the source both after it reaches the end and after switching away from and back to its scene.

Loop repeats the file at its end; restart-on-activation can start it over when the source becomes active. Choose each setting for the behavior you want rather than treating them as one loop control. See the OBS Project’s Media Sources documentation.

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Fix a playlist of local video files

Media Source is for a media file. For multiple local files in a sequence, OBS documents VLC Video Source, which supports playlists and visibility behavior.

  1. Add or select a VLC Video Source in the scene and open its properties.
  2. Add the local files to the playlist in the order you want them to play.
  3. Enable Loop Playlist if playback should return to the first item after the final item finishes.
  4. Set Visibility Behaviour according to what should happen while the source is hidden: stop and restart when visible, pause and resume, or always play.
  5. Apply the settings and test the playlist through the end of its list, then hide and show the source to verify its visibility behavior.

VLC must be installed for this source. OBS specifies that a 64-bit OBS installation requires 64-bit VLC. If VLC Video Source is unavailable or cannot play the list, check that VLC is installed with the matching architecture. Details are in OBS’s Media Sources documentation.

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Fix a YouTube playlist inside a Browser Source

A YouTube playlist embedded in a Browser Source does not use Media Source’s local-file Loop setting. Configure the YouTube player embed with listType=playlist and list=PLAYLIST_ID, replacing PLAYLIST_ID with the playlist’s ID.

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  • Use autoplay=1 if the embedded player should begin automatically.
  • Use loop=1 to repeat a playlist after its final video.

YouTube distinguishes looping a playlist from looping one video. If the goal is to replay the complete playlist, make sure the embed is configured as a playlist with its playlist ID; do not rely on the local Media Source Loop option. Refer to Google’s YouTube Embedded Players and Player Parameters documentation.

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If the correct settings still restart playback

  • Playback resets when changing scenes: Check whether the source is being hidden and then activated again. Review Media Source’s restart-on-activation option or VLC Video Source’s Visibility Behaviour, depending on the source type.
  • The list starts over after one item: Confirm whether you have a single file or a playlist. Media Source loops one file; a local playlist belongs in VLC Video Source, while an embedded YouTube playlist needs YouTube’s playlist parameters.
  • The list stops at the end: Confirm that Loop Playlist is enabled for a local VLC playlist, or that loop=1 is configured for a YouTube playlist embed.
  • VLC Video Source is missing or fails to work: Install VLC and match its 64-bit or 32-bit architecture to OBS; OBS requires 64-bit VLC for 64-bit OBS.

A third-party option is the OBS forum’s Media Playlist Source. Check its current maintenance and compatibility with your OBS version before installing it.

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