“I use VLC Media Player to play almost every video file. But, recently, while opening an MP4 video with VLC, I faced an error – ‘Unable to open the file.’ Although every other video file format was working fine, only the MP4 video was not working. Is there an issue with the VLC media player or the MP4 video?”
You can find many queries on the Internet that users have posted related to VLC not playing MP4 videos.
Der VLC Player ist nicht nur ein Programm mit dem man nahezu alle Formate abspielen kann, Nein er kann noch vieles mehr. Wir haben Euch letztens gezeigt wie. To start converting, open VLC and click Media Convert/Save. Click “Add” to the right of the File Selection list on the File tab. Browse to the video or audio file you want to convert and open it. Click “Convert/Save” to continue. Under Convert, select the video or audio codec and container to which you want to convert.
Reasons for VLC not Playing MP4 Videos
The VLC media player is amongst one of the widely used media players that support almost every video file format, and MP4 is one amongst them. However, sometimes, users are unable to open their MP4 videos with VLC, which can take place due to various reasons.
- Using an older version of VLC
- MP4 codecs are missing
- Video settings are not enabled
- MP4 file is corrupt
Don’t worry! There is a solution to every problem. In this article, we will talk about multiple solutions to fix ‘VLC not playing MP4 videos’ issue.
But, before proceeding to the methods, it’s necessary to verify whether the MP4 file is corrupt or the VLC is the culprit? To know the actual problem, do the following:
- Play the MP4 file with other media players. If it works with other media players, then the problem lies within the VLC media player.
- If the MP4 file doesn’t work on other media players as well, then the MP4 video is corrupt.
Methods to fix the ‘VLC not Playing MP4 Videos’ issue
Here, we will discuss the solutions for both the problems so that you get the maximum benefit from this blog.
- Fix MP4 Codec Problem
- Disable Hardware Video Decoding in VLC
- Open the VLC media player and go to the Tools and select Preferences.
- In the opened tab, click Show Settings from the lower left on the window and then select the ‘All’ button.
- The options will display on your window, go to Input/Codec >>Video Codecs>>FFmpeg, and then disable the ‘Hardware decoding’ option.
- Download the Latest Version of VLC
- Repair MP4 File with Kernel Video Repair Utility
- Download and configure the software on your system.
- On launching the tool, click the “+” folder icon to select the corrupt MP4 videos.
- Select the MP4 files or other videos that you want to repair and click OK.
- Once the files are uploaded, click ‘Repair Files’ at the bottom.
- A pop-up window will appear on the screen to select a location for saving the videos after repairing. Click OK after choosing the location.
- The tool will start repairing the corrupt videos. You can stop the process in-between by clicking the Stop button.
- Once the files are repaired, click OK to end the process. And if you want to save the repairing report to CSV, click ‘Save the report to CSV.’
One of the main reasons behind VLC not playing MP4 video could be the incompatibility of MP4 codec with VLC. To fix this issue, you need to convert the MP4 file to other formats that are fully compatible with VLC. To convert the MP4 file to another format, you can use the Kernel Video Converter tool that is packed with multiple convertible formats.
Or you can download the VLC codec pack from the VLC site to install the required codecs for the MP4 video. After downloading or converting the MP4 file, see if the problem still persists or not.
The Hardware decoding of VLC is often not capable of handling the rendering effects of video files. It generally happens when the video file has many subtitle tracks. So, what you can do is to disable the hardware video decoding option on VLC with the following steps:
After that, close the VLC media player and restart it, and then play the MP4 video file with it.
When the MP4 codecs are not compatible with the VLC media player, it will not play the video. So, try to upgrade the VLC Media Player to the latest version, which is equipped with all the codecs. Generally, users keep their VLC media player to auto-update.
However, if you haven’t enabled that option, then check the official website of the VLC media player to download the latest version.
Most of the time, this error occurs due to a corrupt MP4 file. So, you need to repair corrupt MP4 videos to play it with the VLC media player. To repair the file, you can use the Kernel Video Repair tool, which is specifically designed to repair video files of all formats. It is integrated with advanced algorithms that can fix all severe corruption issues of video files.
Also, it comes with a friendly and easy-to-use interface, which makes it easier for users to use the tool and repair the video files. Let’s go through the working process of this tool to understand it better.
That’s how you can quickly repair corrupt video files with this practical video repair utility.
Wrap Up
MP4 is an extensively used video format, which is compatible with all the media players and operating systems. But it sometimes doesn’t function properly with VLC media player, which could be due to a problem with the VLC or corruption in the video files. In this article, we covered all the aspects of fixing the problem, and suggested some alternative methods and third-party tools that can be used to fix the problem.
More Information
VLC is a multi-functional media player. It can capture screen, recording videos playing on your laptop, the game you are playing, and the steps you are taking on the desktop.
In this post, we will show you how to capture screen with VLC and how to fix it if the VLC capture screen is not working. You will also learn how to easily extract video clips with VLC.
Capture Screen with VLC
Download and install VLC on the official website first.
Step 1
Click 'Media'> Open 'Capture Device'.
Step 2
Change the capture mode to 'Desktop'.Change the frame rate to 30% if you need a high-quality recording. The higher the frame rate you set, the smoother the video is.
Vlc Media Player Mac Video Verkleinern
Step 3
Click the pull-down menu beside the 'Play' button and choose Convert. Go to 'Browse' to select a destination to save the screen recording and name the file.
Step 4
Next, click Start and your screen will be recorded.To stop the recording, click the 'Stop' button on VLC and the recording file will be saved on the destination automatically.
Tip: How to Capture Screen with Audio on VLC
Although the VLC records screen easily, VLC cannot record screen with audio on the computer. Besides, the mouse pointer is also beyond the screen record.Thus, if you want to record screen with both audio and mouse pointer, a professional screen recorder like FonePaw Screen Recorder is a better choice.
Step 1
Open FonePaw Screen Recorder > Choose 'Video Recorder'.You can choose to record the full screen, fixed region or customized region.
Step 2
Toggle on the buttons of System Sound and Microphone to record screen along with audio from your computer and your sound from microphone.
As for microphone, there are two useful features for you: 'Microphone noise cancellation' and 'Microphone enhancement', which work for sound optimization. Before recording, please use sound check feature to test whether the sound is good.
Step 3
Click 'REC' to start recording.Click the red button to stop recording. During the recording, you can highlight the important area that you want the viewers to notice with the built-in annotation tools.
Step 4
If the video is too long, you can set the start and end point to clip the video.
Click 'Re-record' to record again and the video will not be saved.
Click 'Save' to select the destination and save.
The free trial version can save videos within 3 minutes.
Compare with VLC, FonePaw Screen Recorder is more versatile and it can record not only the screen but also webcam, internal sound of the computer and external voice.
What ' more, you can choose a fixed region or custom the size of the recording area and it also records the mouse pointer, which makes the steps you take on the screen more clear. When you finish the recording, it can also help you simply edit the long videos.
VLC Screen Capture Not Working, How to Fix?
Some users said they tried to do a screen capture on VLC but the exported video was all black. Here are some tips that might be helpful to you.
Change the video output module
Go to 'Tools'> 'Preferences'> 'Video' > 'Output'. In the pull-down menu, choose 'Direct X video output', save and reset VLC.
Edit capture screen width/height
Go to 'Tools'> 'Preferences'> 'Show Settings'> Choose 'All'. Scroll down and find 'Video', from the right panel, set the width and height.
Disable video acceleration
Go to Tools > Preferences > Codecs > Select 'Disable'.
Reinstall VLC
Uninstall VLC first then go to the official website to download and install it again.
Record Video with VLC Record Button
When you play a video by VLC, click the red button to start recording. In this way, you can extract a video clip from the video you are playing. If you cannot find the record button, turn on Advanced Controls.
Go to 'View' > 'Advanced Controls'. Now you will see the recording button.
Tip: Where does VLC save recordings
Usually, the recording clip will save automatically on the default video folder of your computer.
For Windows users: C:Usersyour-user-nameVideos.
For Mac users: Macintosh HD > Users > your user name > Movies.
Also, you can change the location path by yourself: Go to 'Tools' > 'Preferences' > 'Input/Codecs' > 'Files' >'Browse' . Then select the location.
Vlc Player Mac Video Verkleinern
In conclusion, the post tells you how to capture screen with VLC or record video with VLC. Although VLC is a powerful media player, it cannot record the system sound and mouse point. If you have the request for more professional features, FonePaw Screen Recorder is also a good choice for you.