Below on this page you can find some answers to frequently asked questions and solutions to some common problems.

If you need more help, please visit the forum.

Most players use DirectShow for playback. DirectShow is a system that uses multiple DirectShow filters as building blocks to construct what is called a DirectShow graph. A file is a root of this graph and the audio and video renderers are the leaves of the graph. During playback data flows from the root to the leaves. Each filter in the graph performs a subtask of the whole process. Typical elements in the graph are a source filter, also called a splitter, and decoders for the audio and video. A source filter is responsible for reading the file format and feeding the data to the other filters downstream in the graph. During graph creation, if DirectShow finds multiple filters that are able to perform the same subtask, then it will typically select the filter that has the highest merit. The merit of a filter is simply a numerical value that indicates the preferability of the filter. Tools exist to alter the merit of a DS filter. Advanced players are often able to manipulate which filters are used in the graph, allowing for example to block or prefer certain filters. If no suitable DirectShow filter can be found to decode a certain audio/video format, then DirectShow is able to fall back to using VFW and ACM codecs (see below) through special wrapper filters.

It is a myth that filters can 'conflict' with each other. If something goes wrong it is simply because some filters in the graph are not performing their subtasks correctly. The filters in this pack are carefully selected to provide you with optimal functionality and a minimal chance of running into problems.

Codec is short for 'compressor-decompressor', a piece of software that is able to decode and encode a certain format. By this definition, a DirectShow filter is not a codec.

Two other systems are VFW (Video For Windows) and ACM (Audio Compression Manager). Components for these system are called codecs, because they are typically able to both encode and decode. These two types of codecs are required by most video editing applications, such as VirtualDub. Traditional video editing applications are not able to use DirectShow. More modern applications are sometimes capable of using DirectShow for decoding, but they usually still require VFW and ACM codecs for encoding.

It is always recommended to uninstall old versions first. However, it is not a requirement. If there only have been a few small changes between your old and the new version, then you can just install the new version on top of the old version. That should work fine, without any problems. If there have been major changes, then the installer will automatically prompt you that you should uninstall first.

No, that is not required. Simply click 'No' to keep your existing software.

It is however highly recommended to uninstall other codec packs. This to avoid problems and keep your system as clean as possible.

No, that is not required. Simply click 'No' to keep RealPlayer.

If you want to use Real Alternative, then you must uninstall RealPlayer.

This means the installer tries to replace a file that is currently in use by another program.

Close all programs that are active and click on 'retry'. If the same error keeps appearing, then just click on 'ignore' and let the installation continue.

No. You'll have to uninstall the whole codec pack. Then install it again with only those components selected that you want.

You can however disable (and re-enable) all codecs and filters using the Codec Tweak Tool. This will not uninstall the codecs, but it will effectively disable them.

See the instructions on this page.

Click on 'ignore' and let the installation finish. Everything will work, except for the Matroska Splitter.

You are probably getting this error because there are one or more crucial Windows components missing on your system. Most likely comctl32.dll or DCOM.

Click HERE if you have Windows 2000/XP.
Click HERE if you have Windows 98/ME.

Some of the codecs that come standard with Windows are:
- Microsoft ADPCM Audio Codec
- IMA ADPCM Audio Codec
- RLE Video Codec
- TrueSpeech Software Audio Codec
- Video 1 Video Codec

Make sure the registry value ProgramFilesDir under the key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion points to the 64-bit program files path, which is usually C:\Program Files\.

Make sure the registry value CommonFilesDir under the key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion points to the 64-bit common program files path, which is usually C:\Program Files\Common Files\.

To start the Registry Editor do this:
Start > Run > regedit

Yes.

Yes. All files and registry keys are removed.

Microsoft:
Has problems playing incomplete and truncated files.

Gabest / MPC internal:
This one is able to play most incomplete and truncated files without problems.

Haali:
Has problems playing (truncated) files that don't contain an AVI index.

Contains an audio switcher. That is useful for playing AVI files that have multiple audio tracks (which are quite rare) in players that don't contain an audio switcher themselves, such as WMP and Media Center.

Yes. That is possible.

If ffdshow is causing an incompatibility problem with an application or a game, then you should blacklist that application in ffdshow.

First you need to find out the filename of the main executable of the application. For example "oblivion.exe".

Now go to ffdshow video decoder configuration. Click on "DirectShow Control". Enable the box in front of "Don't use ffdshow in:". Then click on the Edit button behind it. Add the filename of your application to the list and then click on OK.

You can do the same thing in ffdshow audio decoder configuration.

This registry error will occur when the security permissions for a registry key are incorrect.

To fix the problem, open the Registry Editor:
Start -> Run -> regedit.exe

In the Registry Editor, navigate to the key that gave the error. Right-click on that key and select 'Permissions'. Then make sure that the Administrators group has 'Full Control'.

Read the rest of the FAQ. There may be a topic related to the filetype that you are trying to play. Here is a list of general tips:

• Click on the shortcut called "Reset to recommended settings" in the start menu.
• Load the file in the GSpot Codec Information Appliance tool. It usually can give you some useful information.
• If it is a RealMedia file (.ra .rm .ram .rmvb) then you need to install Real Alternative or the K-Lite Mega Codec Pack.
• Test the file in Media Player Classic. For two reasons:
  1) It is better able to play certain files than other players.
  2) It shows more helpful error messages.

If all fails, then try the VideoLAN player. This player doesn't use DirectShow filters to play files, but it's own plugins. It should be able to play almost anything.

The solution is to disable the User Account Control (UAC) functionality of Vista.

To play DVDs in Windows Media Player (version 9, 10 or 11) you need a MPEG-2 decoder that is capable of decoding DVD video and is also compatible with WMP. The K-Lite Codec Pack contains a compatible decoder.

Some examples of compatible decoders are: Cyberlink, DScaler5, InterVideo, MainConcept and nVidia PureVideo.

Enable the internal MPEG-2 decoder in Media Player Classic.

MPC Options -> Internal Filters -> Transform Filters

There are two types of MPEG video, MPEG-1 and MPEG-2. The most common one of these two that is used in .mpg/.mpeg files is MPEG-1. Windows should support playback of MPEG-1 video without the need to install any additional codecs or filters.

MPEG-2 is the video format that is used on DVDs and also for SVCDs. To play MPEG-2 you need to install a MPEG-2 decoder. The K-Lite Codec Pack has several decoders from which you can choose.

You can use the GSpot tool to find out which type of MPEG video a file contains.

There are also two different MPEG container formats. A container is simply a wrapper for holding audio and video. The most common one is MPEG Program Stream (PS). Windows contains a filter to read this container format. The other one is MPEG Transport Stream (TS). K-Lite contains a filter for that format.

If a mpeg file completely fails to play, then that usually means that the required filters are not installed. Your player will normally give some sort of error in this case.

If the file plays, but incorrectly, then try using a different decoder.

A general solution that you can try when having problems with MPEG files is to use Media Player Classic and to enable its internal MPEG filters. You can do that in MPC Options -> Internal Filters. The filters that you should enable are "MPEG PS/TS/PVA" and "MPEG-2 Video".

If the problem only occurs with some AVI files, then those files are probably (partially) broken. Either use a tool that can fix the files, or use a different AVI splitter:

If you use Media Player Classic then enable the internal AVI splitter. You can do that in Options -> Internal Filters -> Source Filters. If you use another player, then install Gabest AVI splitter, which is a standalone version of the internal one in MPC. This splitter is able to handle most broken AVI files.

If you are not able to play any AVI files at all, then the AVI source filter of Windows is probably broken. You can fix it by doing the following:
Start -> Run -> regsvr32 quartz.dll

The cause for this is currently unknown. The following solves the problem for most people:

If you use Media Player Classic then enable the internal AVI source filter. You can do that in Options -> Internal Filters -> Source Filters. If you use another player, then install Gabest AVI splitter, which is a standalone version of the internal filter in MPC.

WinAVI sometimes breaks the AVI source filter of Windows. You can fix the filter by doing the following:

Start -> Run -> regsvr32 quartz.dll

Enable the internal AVI splitter in Media Player Classic. That is better able to handle incomplete files than the default AVI source filter that is part of Windows.

Media Player Classic -> Options -> Internal Filters -> Source Filters

Early versions of CoreAVC have trouble decoding H.264 video when the video is stored in a container in VFW mode instead of native mode (which is the best way). In the AVI container, H.264 video is always in VFW mode due to limitations of the container format.

The solution for playing these files is to enable H.264 decoding in ffdshow. Go to ffdshow video decoder configuration. At the 'codecs' page, set H.264 to 'libavcodec'.

Enable the internal AVI splitter in Media Player Classic. That is better able to handle those files than the default AVI source filter that is part of Windows.

Media Player Classic -> Options -> Internal Filters -> Source Filters

For other players you need to install Gabest AVI splitter.

The solution for playing these files correctly is to enable H.264 decoding in ffdshow. Go to ffdshow video decoder configuration. At the 'codecs' page, set H.264 to 'libavcodec'.

Make sure DirectVobSub is installed. This filter will display the subtitle stream. The K-Lite Codec Pack installs this filter by default.

Now all you have to do is give your subtitle files the same filename as your movie file (except for the extension). If you do that, the subtitles will automatically be detected and displayed.

For example:
This is some cool movie (CD1).avi
This is some cool movie (CD1).srt

Common subtitle file formats are: srt, idx/sub, idx/rar, smi, ssa, sub

Make sure DirectVobSub is installed. This filter will display the subtitle stream.

Right-click on the Haali Media Splitter icon in the system tray (right-bottom of your screen). There you can select the subtitle that should be displayed.

If nothing else helps, then try enabling the option "Autoload VSFilter" in Haali Media Splitter. You can do that here: Start > Programs > K-Lite Codec Pack > Configuration > Haali Media Splitter > Options > Compatibility.

A solution for this problem is to use an older version of DirectVobSub. You need to install version 2.33.

Alternatively you can disable the DirectVobSub filter and use the internal subtitle filter in ffdshow video decoder instead.

You should see a white icon in your system tray (right-bottom of your screen). That is Haali Media Splitter. Right-click on that icon to switch between the audio tracks that are in the file.

You should see a white icon in your system tray (right-bottom of your screen). That is Haali Media Splitter. Right-click on that icon to switch between the available subtitles that are embedded in the file.

You should see a white icon in your systemtray (right-bottom of your screen). That is Haali Media Splitter. Double-click on that icon to view its options. You can also get to the options by clicking on the Haali Media Splitter shortcut in the start menu.

Once you are in the Options screen, click on 'Languages'. There you can set the preferred language(s) for audio and subtitles. The language should be input using a three character code, for example eng for English. A list of codes for each language can be found here. The language code should be input as lowercase, so 'eng' is correct and 'ENG' is incorrect.

There is no way to select a specific audio track during playback in Media Center. It is only possible to pre-configure which one to use. By default the first one is used.

See above for instructions on how to configure the preferred language for audio streams in Haali Media Splitter.

You should see a green arrow shaped icon in your systemtray (right-bottom of your screen). That is DirectVobSub. Right-click on that icon to enable or disable the subtitles.

For subtitles that are embedded in the file, you can select the desired one by right-clicking on the Haali Media Splitter icon. That is a white icon in your system tray (located in the right-bottom of your screen).

For external subtitle files, you can select the desired subtitle by right-clicking on the DirectVobSub icon. That is a green arrow shaped icon in your system tray.

Yes, that is possible!

Subtitles can only be placed on top of the video. Placing the subtitles below the original video is possible by enlarging the video frame. This is done by adding black bars to the top and bottom of the video. These black bars will be visible when the video is not in fullscreen. They are different from black bars that are only visible during fullscreen playback. Those are not part of the video frame and thus can not be used to put the subtitles onto.

So two steps need to be taken: (1) enlarge the video frame, and (2) move the subtitles down a bit. Step 1 is the most important, step 2 is often not even needed.

Below you will find instructions for configuring DirectVobSub and ffdshow. You only need to configure the filter that is responsible for displaying the subtitles. Usually that will be DirectVobSub, unless you explicitly configured ffdshow to handle the subtitles.

DirectVobSub

(1) DirectVobSub options -> General -> Vertical Padding -> Extend to 16:9
(2) DirectVobSub options -> Main -> Override placement

ffdshow

(1) ffdshow video decoder configuration -> 'Subtitle' page -> Enable 'Letterbox' with value 16:9
(2) ffdshow video decoder configuration -> 'Subtitle' page -> Vertical Position

Values that you should use

Extend and Letterbox 16:9 means that the video height will be enlarged so that the ratio of the video width/height becomes 16/9. A different ratio may be more optimal depending on your monitor/tv. Some indications:
Monitor with screen resolution 1600x1280, 1280x1024, 1280x800 -> use 16:9
Monitor with screen resolution 1600x1200, 1024x768, 800x600 -> use 4:3
HDTV -> use 16:9
PAL TV -> use extend to 576 lines
NTSC TV -> use extend to 480 lines

Both filters have a default vertical position of 90%. To move the subtitles further down, increase this percentage with a few %. Don't make it too big, otherwise the bottom part of the subtitles may fall outside of the visible video area.

This means that you are using a player that doesn't contain a stream switcher. If you play a file that contains multiple audio/video/subtitle streams, then your player is trying to play them all instead of just one of them.

Solutions:

• Use a player with a build in stream switcher. For example Media Player Classic.
• Use a source filter that contains a build in stream switcher. For example Haali's splitter has one. The K-Lite Codec Pack uses Haali by default for .mp4, .mkv and .ogm files. If you also want to use it for .avi files, then you need to manually select it during installation of the codec pack.
• Use a special stream switcher filter such as "Morgan Multimedia Stream Switcher". However, usage of this filter is NOT recommended since it is very buggy.
• Use the audio stream switching functionality of ffdshow. Take the following steps to activate it:
  (1) Go to ffdshow audio decoder configuration. Enable the checkbox on the "Stream switcher" page.
  (2) On the "Tray, dialog & paths" page, enable "Add tray icon menu to player's stream/languages menu". This will allow you to select the desired audio stream from within the player.
  (3) The audio stream switching will only work if ffdshow is decoding the audio. So on the "Codecs" page enable those audio format(s) that your file contains.

Disable the option "Pre-buffer subpictures" in DirectVobSub. This uses a little more CPU power, but karaoke subtitles are displayed correctly.

You need to disable the internal audio switcher of Media Player Classic.

Options > Internal Filters > Audio Switcher

Enable the internal MPEG-2 decoder in Media Player Classic.

Options -> Internal Filters -> Transform Filters

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/player/faq.aspx

If you find that a video disappears (turns all black) or turns purple and green about 20 seconds before it stops playing, or that video for every file in the playlist isn't displayed, turn off overlays.

To turn off overlays in Windows Media Player 9 Series or later, do the following:

1. On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Performance tab.
2. Click Advanced.
3. Clear the Use overlays check box.

If the problem continues, try turning off the video mixing renderer (VMR). You can turn off the VMR by clearing the Use video mixing renderer check box (available in the same location as the Use overlays check box).

ReClock might solve your problem.

Solutions:

• Use ffdshow to decode Xvid instead of the Xvid decoder.
• Use ffdshow to decode DivX instead of the DivX decoder.
• In Xvid decoder configuration, force Output Colorspace to YV12.
• Use DirectVobSub version 2.33 instead of newer versions.
• Enable YV12 on the 'Output' page in ffdshow video decoder configuration.
• Use Vista's default theme instead of the classic theme.

General solutions to try when the video displayed is all messed up:

• In Media Player Classic, go to Options -> Playback -> Output -> DirectShow video, select a different renderer.
• Use a different version of your graphics card driver.

This may happen with some buggy graphics drivers.

A workaround that often helps is to disable usage of the YV12 colorspace. In ffdshow video decoder configuration, on the Output page, uncheck YV12.

This may happen with some buggy graphics drivers.

If this only happens with .wmv files, then you should disable "DXVA Hardware acceleration". See the Windows Media section below for more details.

If the problem occurs with other video formats, such as DivX or Xvid, then a workaround that often helps is to disable usage of the YV12 colorspace. In ffdshow video decoder configuration, on the Output page, uncheck YV12.

This may happen when Haali Media Splitter is used as a source filter for AVI and CoreAVC for decoding the H.264 video.

Solutions:

• Use a different source filter for AVI. Either Microsoft or Gabest.
• In CoreAVC options, move YUY2 to the top of the list of color spaces.

This problem is usually caused by a bug in the graphics drivers. First try resetting all the drivers settings to their default values. NVIDIA drivers often have wrong settings. If that doesn't help, then try a different version of the driver, either older or newer.

A workaround that often works:

In WMP menu go to Tools -> Options -> Performance -> Advanced. That brings up the video acceleration settings. There you should see options called "Use overlays" and "Use high quality mode". Change those settings and restart the player.

This is usually caused by buggy graphics drivers. If you are using Windows Vista, then make sure that you are using recent drivers. It doesn't matter if they are beta versions. The latest WHQL drivers are simply too old and too buggy.

This can be a result of certain graphics card settings. Try changing the following settings in your graphics card control panel:

- Set FSAA to 'Let the application decide'
- Disable anisotopic filtering (AF)
- Disable antialiasing

This problem may occur if you have the WindowBlinds or ObjectDock programs installed. Disable those programs.

If you have a nVidia GeForce graphics card, then you could try to update its drivers.

This is a common problem that is usually caused by playing 5.1 channel audio on stereo speakers. As a result only two channels are send to your speakers. This means that the center channel, which usually contains the dialogs, is not outputted to your speakers.

Solutions:

• Use the Codec Tweak Tool to configure your speaker settings. This will make sure that the audio decoders that are included in the pack downmix (or upmix) the decoded audio to the appropiate number of speakers.
• If you are using AC3Filter to decode AC3 or DTS audio, then try the "Boost voice/dialog volume" tweak that is available in the Codec Tweak Tool. You can also manually perform this tweak in AC3Filter settings by adjusting the gain for the Voice audio channel.
• If you are using ffdshow to decode the audio, then go to "ffdshow audio configuration". Enable 'Volume' in the left panel. On the Volume page you can find a slider to adjust the general volume level. Alternatively you can enable Normalization, which will automatically adjust the volume level.
• Another method in ffdshow is to enable 'Voice control' on the 'Mixer' page. That gives the center channel a 3dB boost. There you can also find a slider to further increase the volume of the Voice audio channel.

See above.

Enable the internal Ogg splitter in Media Player Classic. A few files don't seem to work properly with Haali's Ogg splitter.

Media Player Classic -> Options -> Internal Filters -> Source Filters

Enable the internal MPEG PS/TS/PVA source filter in Media Player Classic.

Media Player Classic -> Options -> Internal Filters -> Source Filters

Adjust the brightness. There are several ways to do that:

Graphics card

Most graphics card drivers allow you to adjust various picture properties such as Brightness, Contrast, Gamma and saturation.

You can access your graphics card control panel via:
Start -> Settings -> Control Panel -> Display -> Settings -> Advanced

Decoding filter

Most video decoding filters have an option to adjust the brightness. For example DivX, Xvid and ffdshow have such an option.

In Media Player Classic the properties of a filter can be accessed via:
MPC menu -> Play -> Filters -> [name of decoder]

In BSplayer the properties of a filter can be accessed via:
Right-click menu -> Options -> Filters -> [name of decoder]

In Windows Media Player it is not possible to access the properties of a filter.

In ZoomPlayer the properties of a filter can be accessed via:
Right-click menu -> Filter Properties -> [name of decoder]

Windows Media Player

1. In WMP, right-click on the title bar of the window or the Now Playing tab
2. In the context menu, select: View -> Enhancements -> Video Settings

Note: If you can't adjust the sliders in Video Settings, then you need to enable the option in WMP to use the video mixing rendering (VMR). To turn on VMR in WMP, do the following:

1. In WMP, right-click on the title bar of the window or the Now Playing tab
2. In the context menu, select: Tools -> Options
3. Click on the Performance tab.
4. Click on the Advanced button.
5. In the Video Acceleration area, enable Use video mixing renderer.

This is probably caused by incorrect settings of your graphics card drivers. Some versions of the nVidia drivers are notorious for messing up their own settings.

You can access the graphics card control panel via: Start -> Settings -> Control Panel -> Display -> Settings -> Advanced

• Go to your graphics card control panel. Reset all settings to their default values. Important settings are Brightness, Contrast, Saturation and Gamma. You can access the control panel via: Start > Settings > Control Panel > Display > Settings > Advanced.
• Go to your graphics card control panel. Select the "Color Correction" page. Select "All" in the dropdown box called "Apply color changes to:". Then click on the button called "Restore Defaults".
• Go to your graphics card control panel. Open the "video and television" options. (You need to be in the advanced view). Select "adjust video colour settings", then select "correction". Hit "do not use colour temperature correction".
• If resetting the settings does not help, then find a newer or an older version of the graphics drivers. Uninstall your current drivers, reboot, and install the older ones.

Another solution (read: workaround) is too change the output renderer in Media Player Classic. By default it uses the Overlay Mixer. If that gives you troubles, then change it to either VMR-7 or VMR-9 (renderless). You can find this option via: MPC Options -> Playback -> Output -> DirectShow Video

In Windows Media Player there also is an option that influences the renderer that is used. In the WMP menu go to Tools -> Options -> Performance -> Advanced. This brings up the video acceleration settings. There you can choose between 'Use overlays' and 'Use high quality mode' (VMR).

Use Haali MP4 splitter instead of Gabest MP4 splitter.

Go to AC3Filter settings. On the System tab, disable PCM.

Go to AC3Filter settings. On the System tab, disable PCM.

QuickTime (or QT Lite or QTA) is required. You should then be able to play .amr files in Media Player Classic. It doesn't work in Windows Media Player and most other players.

The MainConcept MPEG decoder may freeze the player when the Overlay Mixer renderer is used.

Solutions:

• Click on the "Reset to recommended settings" shortcut in the startmenu.
• Or import this registry script:
  
  REGEDIT4
  
  [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\MainConcept\DirectShow\MPEGVideoDecoder]
  "AllowReordering"=dword:00000000
• Or change the renderer in Media Player Classic:
  Options -> Playback -> Output -> DirectShow Video
  

Videos belonging to games from Blizzard contain DivX video, but with a different FourCC, namely "BLZ0".

To play such videos you need to use ffdshow for decoding DivX video. The regular DivX decoder won't work (unless you manually change the FourCC).

Go to ffdshow video decoder configuration. On the Codecs page, set DivX 4/5/6 to libavcodec.

Rename the files to .qt

If that doesn't solve the problem, then you should use Media Player Classic or VideoLAN to play the file.

WMVHD files, typically created for playback on the XBOX360, can contain a 5.1 audio stream. If you play such a file on a computer that only has two speakers then you will only hear the sound from two of the six channels. This causes for example the voices (center channel) to be almost unhearable.

The solution is to downmix the 5.1 channels into 2 channels. There are two ways to do this. You can either use AC3Filter or ffdshow.

In ffdshow audio decoder configuration, go to the 'Codecs' page. Scroll down to the bottom of the list and set 'Uncompressed' to 'All supported'. Now go to the 'Mixer' page and set the speakers to '2/0 Stereo'. Also enable the checkbox in front of 'Mixer' to activate the mixer filter.

In AC3Filter options, go to the 'System' tab and enable 'PCM'. Configure the output setting to stereo speakers.

Disable Gabest AVI splitter using the Codec Tweak Tool. Or select the Microsoft AVI splitter during installation of the codec pack.

This problem only occurs for some people. Symptom is that the video freezes or goes black for a short while (a few seconds).

Disable Gabest AVI splitter using the Codec Tweak Tool. Or select the Microsoft AVI splitter during installation of the codec pack.

This error is given by Haali Media Splitter. It basically means that the file is not fully correct according to the Matroska container specification.

The latest version of Haali's splitter contains a workaround for this problem and should no longer give an error.

Another solution is to use the Gabest Matroska splitter. That filter is less strict about the values in the file header. Either select the Gabest Matroska splitter during installation of the K-Lite Codec Pack, or enable the internal Matroska splitter in Media Player Classic.

This error is given by Haali Media Splitter. It basically means that the file is not fully correct according to the Matroska container specification.

The latest version of Haali's splitter contains a workaround for this problem and should no longer give an error.

Another solution is to use the Gabest Matroska splitter. That filter is less strict about the values in the file header. Either select the Gabest Matroska splitter during installation of the K-Lite Codec Pack, or enable the internal Matroska splitter in Media Player Classic.

Updating your graphics driver to a recent version should fix this problem.

If you are able to videos at their normal resolution, but not in full screen, it means something is wrong in the graphics drivers or its settings.

Updating your graphics driver should fix this problem.

In the menu, click on 'Play', then on 'Filters'.

MPC Options -> Player -> Hide CD-ROMs Menu

This can happen if the region code of the DVD does not match the region code of your DVD drive. Set your drive to the correct region.

This usually means that there is a filter missing that is needed to decode one of the streams in the file. The error message should show some information about the required format, but this information is very cryptic. Below you can find some of the values that the error might show you, together with the format that belongs to it.

majortype: MEDIATYPE_Audio {73647561-0000-0010-8000-00AA00389B71}
subtype: Unknown GUID Name {726D6173-0000-0010-8000-00AA00389B71}
formattype: FORMAT_WaveFormatEx {05589F81-C356-11CE-BF01-00AA0055595A}

The format above is AMR audio. To play this you need to enable AMR in ffdshow audio decoder.

majortype: MEDIATYPE_Video {73646976-0000-0010-8000-00AA-00389B71}
subtype: Unknown GUID Name {31535046-0000-0010-8000-00AA00389B71}
formattype: Format_VideoInfo {05589F80-C356-11CE-BF01-00AA0055595A}

The format above if FPS1 video. To play this you need Fraps. Or enable FPS1 in ffdshow video decoder configuration.

majortype: MEDIATYPE_Stream {E436EB83-524F-11CE-9F53-0020AF0BA770}
subtype: MEDIASUBTYPE_MPEG1System {E436EB84-524F-11CE-9F53-0020AF0BA770}
formattype: TIME_FORMAT_NONE {00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000}

The format above is MPEG-1. Try enabling the internal MPEG PS/TS/PVA source filter and MPEG-1 decoder in Media Player Classic. See Options -> Internal Filters -> Transform Filters.

majortype: MEDIATYPE_Stream {E436EB83-524F-11CE-9F53-0020AF0BA770}
subtype: MEDIASUBTYPE_Avi {E436EB88-524F-11CE-9F53-0020AF0BA770}
formattype: TIME_FORMAT_NONE {00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000}

The types above usually mean that you are trying to play an incomplete AVI file or a non-standard compliant AVI file. The default AVI splitter of Windows has difficulty to handle incomplete files. Enable the internal AVI splitter in Media Player Classic. See Options -> Internal Filters -> Source Filters.

majortype: MEDIATYPE_Audio {73647561-0000-0010-8000-00AA00389B71}
subtype: Unknown GUID Name {34616D69-0000-0010-8000-00AA00389B71}

The format above is IMA4 audio. Enable IMA ADPCM in ffdshow audio decoder.

majortype: MEDIATYPE_Audio {73647561-0000-0010-8000-00AA00389B71}
subtype: Unknown GUID Name {00006771-0000-0010-8000-00AA00389B71}
formattype: FORMAT_WaveFormatEx {05589F81-C356-11CE-BF01-00AA0055595A}

The format above is Ogg Vorbis audio. Enable Vorbis in ffdshow audio decoder.

majortype: MEDIATYPE_Stream {E436EB83-524F-11CE-9F53-0020AF0BA770}
subtype: Unknown GUID Name {57428EC6-C2B2-44A2-AA9C-28F0B6A5C48E}
formattype: TIME_FORMAT_NONE {00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000}

The format above is RealMedia. You need to install Real Alternative or the K-Lite Mega Codec Pack. If you have already got that installed, then you need to make the following adjustment in Media Player Classic:
MPC Options -> Formats -> Scroll down to RealMedia file. Behind it you'll see the word DirectShow. Click on that and change it to RealMedia.

majortype: MEDIATYPE_Audio {73647561-0000-0010-8000-00AA00389B71}
subtype: Unknown GUID Name {736F7774-0000-0010-8000-00AA00389B71}
formattype: FORMAT_WaveFormatEx {05589F81-C356-11CE-BF01-00AA0055595A}

The format above is TWOS audio. There is no DirectShow decoder for this audio format. You should however be able to play this file in Media Player Classic if you install QuickTime (or QTA or QT Lite).

Change the output renderer. You can do that in Options -> Playback -> Output

Try the different renderers until you find one that works for you. Restart the player each time you change the renderer.

Media Player Classic gives error: GetCurrentImage failed, hr = 8000ffff

The solution is to change the output renderer. The renderer in Media Player Classic is set to Overlay Mixer by default, since that is the most compatible renderer. However, saving images or taking screenshots is not possible with Overlay.

You can change the renderer in MPC Options -> Playback -> Output -> DirectShow Video.

Make sure that your DVD drive is set at the correct region, and that the region of your DVD drive matches that of the DVD.

You can edit the region settings of your DVD drive here: Start -> Settings -> Control Panel -> System -> Hardware -> Device Manager -> DVD/CD-ROM drives

Media Player Classic can only play DVDs on Windows 2000/XP/2003/Vista.

Change the name of the file so that it only contains letters and numbers. Remove all non ASCII characters.

In some rare cases Overlay Mixer in combination with YV12 colorspace output causes the video to stutter. Probably due to a bug in the graphics drivers.

Solutions:

• Change the renderer in Media Player Classic:
  Options -> Playback -> Output -> DirectShow Video
• Force RGB32 output in ffdshow:
  ffdshow video decoder -> Output ->
  Deselect all colorspaces (YV12, etc) except RGB32. Enable "High quality YV12 to RGB conversion".
  

This happens if Haali MP4 splitter gets used to play the file.

Solutions:

• Enable the internal MP4/MOV splitter in Media Player Classic.
  MPC Options -> Internal Filters
• Install QuickTime (or QTA or QT Lite). That way MPC will use the QuickTime framework for playing .mov files.
• Select Gabest MP4 splitter during installation of KLCP.

Solutions:

• Enable the internal MP4/MOV splitter in Media Player Classic.
  MPC Options -> Internal Filters
• Install QuickTime (or QTA or QT Lite). That way MPC will use the QuickTime framework for playing .mov files.
• Select Gabest MP4 splitter during installation of KLCP.

Media Player Classic Options -> Tweaks -> uncheck "Use the WM ASF reader for Windows Media files"

Media Player Classic Options -> Tweaks -> uncheck "Use the WM ASF reader for Windows Media files"

Media Player Classic Options -> Tweaks -> uncheck "Use the WM ASF reader for Windows Media files"

The context menu and most of the keyboard shortcuts do not work in Direct3D mode. The only way to exit Direct3D fullscreen is to press Ctrl+C. This will also stop playback.

Media Player Classic does not properly support these file types. Use Windows Media Player for these files.

The only difference is how Media Player Classic will play the file. Media Player Classic will use the QuickTime framework to play .mov files (and .qt and .amr files). This generally works very well and it will also play some files that can not be played properly otherwise. The only downside is that QuickTime has a relatively slow decoder for H.264 video. That video format is commonly used for movie trailers. Fortunely, .mov files that contain H.264 can also be played using DirectShow filters. The K-Lite Codec Pack contains efficient DirectShow decoding filters for H.264 video. Media Player Classic will use DirectShow filters to play your file if you rename the .mov file to .hdmov (or .mp4). If QuickTime is not installed, then MPC will automatically fall back to using DirectShow for .mov files.

This can be fixed by changing the rendering method.

MPC options -> Playback -> Output

Select either the DirectX 7 or DirectX 9 mode for QuickTime and RealMedia. At least one of the two should give proper playback.

You need to install the Windows Media Format Runtimes.

Windows XP/2003/Vista:
Windows Media Format Runtimes v11

Windows 98/ME/2000:
Windows Media Format runtimes v9

Additional codecs can be found here:
Windows Media Codecs

You need to install WMV9VCM.

That means that the file is DRM protected. DRM is a copyright protection method. You generally need to get (read: buy) a license to be able to play the file.

If one or more of the following filters is installed on your computer, then disable or uninstall them:

- Matrix Mixer
- Morgan Multimedia Stream Switcher
- DC-DSP

If you have an ATi video card, this is caused by the driver trying to accelerate WMV decoding and failing. You need to disable DXVA WMV hardware acceleration.

With newer ATi drivers, this can only be done from the Catalyst Control Center:

1. Start the Catalyst Control Center.
2. Click "View -> Advanced View".
3. Go to "Video -> All Settings".
4. Scroll down to the bottom.
5. Uncheck "Windows Media Video Acceleration".
6. Click "Apply".
7. Close the CCC and reboot your computer.

If you have an older ATi driver that doesn't use the Catalyst Control Center, you'll find the WMV acceleration setting in the Windows Desktop properties:

1. Right-click the desktop and click "Properties".
2. Click the "Settings" tab.
3. Click the "Advanced" button.
4. Here, find a checkbox called "WMV9 acceleration" or something like it. Uncheck it.
5. Click OK, and reboot your computer.

This is a 'bug' (or limitation) in Media Player Classic.

The only way to replay the file is to re-open the file.

Solutions:

• Change the name of the file so that it only contains letters and numbers. Remove all non ASCII characters.
• Rename the file from .rm to .rmvb

Media Player Classic options -> Player -> Formats

Scroll down to "Real Media File". Behind it you should see "RealMedia". If you see "DirectShow", then click on it and change it to "RealMedia".

This option sometimes resets itself. It is currently unknown to us when and why that happens.

Use Media Player Classic. It can handle RealMedia files better than other players.

If you use an external instance of Media Player Classic, then make sure it is properly configured. See topic above.

Rename your file to .rmvb. If it already is a .rmvb file, then do the opposite, rename it to .rm.

Media Player Classic will play .rmvb files using DirectShow and .rm files using the RealMedia engine. That's why renaming can make a difference.

You need to have the K-Lite Mega Codec Pack or Real Alternative installed. The 'RealMedia DirectShow filter' and 'RealMedia codecs' that come with these two packages are required.

You must use Media Player Classic to play streaming RealMedia. Other players are not supported.

Rename your file to .rmvb

It is recommended to first uninstall your old version before you update. It is not a requirement.

Yes, that is possible.

You do need to make sure that you use the appropiate version of QuickTime Alternative. It must be based on the same version of QuickTime as the one bundled with iTunes. If the versions don't match, then iTunes will install QuickTime. If that happens, simply uninstall QuickTime and update QuickTime Alternative.

We recommend using the K-Lite Codec Pack. With that you can play most QuickTime files and also many other filetypes in your favorite player.

Another method to enable support for playing QuickTime files in DirectShow players is to install the MediaLooks QuickTime DirectShow filter.

QuickTime 7 uses a new video format called H.264. This is a very efficient video format in terms of quality versus filesize. The downside of this format is that it needs a lot of processing power to decode the video. This can result in high CPU usage, even on fast computers. The QuickTime decoder is not very efficient compared to some other H.264 decoders.

It is possible to play these QuickTime files using DirectShow filters. With for example the K-Lite Codec Pack you can play QuickTime files. When using Media Player Classic it is recommended to rename your files from .mov to .hdmov. That way MPC will use DirectShow filters instead of the QuickTime framework for decoding. The DirectShow filters use much less CPU power compared to the QuickTime framework.

The questionmark means "File not found". So the webpage is pointing to a non-existent file. Just try again a little later to see if the link has been fixed.

Unfortunely it doesn't work the same way anymore as on Windows XP. On Vista there is no direct way to change those settings in the QuickTime control panel. Blame Apple and/or Microsoft.

Adding a MIME type is not possible at this moment. Removing a MIME type must be done in the browser.

Firefox
In the menu go to: Tools > Options. On the Content tab, click on the Manage button for File Types. Select the file extension and click on the Change Action button.

Opera
In the menu go to: Tools > Preferences. On the Avanced tab select Downloads. There you can modify the action that should be taken for a MIME type.

This problem may occur on Windows Vista. There are two solutions:

• Disable User Account Control (UAC).
• Go to "C:\program files\Quicktime Alternative\". Right-click on "QuickTimePlayer.exe" (= MOV Download Tool). On the 'Compatibility' tab, you should enable "run this program as an administrator".

The solution is to change the filename so that it only contains ASCII characters.

Avoid filenames that are longer than 63 characters.

Open Windows Explorer (hold the Windows Key and press 'E')

In the top menu go to: Tools -> Folder Options -> File Types

Now select the file type that you want to change and click on 'change'. Select the program that you want to use to open the selected file type and press OK.

If the file type is not yet in the list, then click on 'New' to add it to the list yourself.

Execute the following command to disable the Explorer shell extension that is responsible for thumbnail generation:

Start -> Run -> regsvr32 /u shmedia.dll

1. Start the Windows Registry Editor program: Start -> Run -> regedit
2. Navigate to the following key:
   "HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.xyz\ShellEx\{BB2E617C-0920-11d1-9A0B-00C04FC2D6C1}"
   (replace .xyz with the desired file extension)
3. Right-click on "{BB2E617C-0920-11d1-9A0B-00C04FC2D6C1}" and select Delete.

When the thumnail view is enabled in Windows Explorer, then it will generate thumbnails for your video files. It can happen that Explorer encounters a file that it doesn't like and this may result in a crash of Explorer.

The solution would be to remove the file that causes the crash. But it may be difficult to indentify the 'bad' file.

Another solution is to disable the thumbnail view in Explorer.

The most drastic solution is to disable the shell extension that is responsible for genersating the thumbnails. See above on how to (completely) disable thumbnail generation.

This happens because Explorer is generating thumbnails for your videos and it uses a decoder that has a tray icon (like for example ffdshow).

Normally the DirectX installer will refuse to install if it detects that you already have the latest version of DirectX installed. This makes it a pain in the ass to fix a broken DirectX installation. Luckily, there is a small workaround to trick the DirectX installer into a full re-installation.

Run the Registry Editor: Start -> Run -> regedit

Navigate to this key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\DirectX

Change the value of version from '4.09.00.0904' to '4.08.00.0904'.

Now run the DirectX installer.

Run the Codec Tweak Tool. It has a fix for broken audio (Midi, WaveOut). It will restore some missing registry keys.

Start -> Programs -> K-Lite Codec Pack -> Tools -> Codec Tweak Tool

If the fix is greyed out, or if the fix does not have any effect, then your problem is probably more severe than a few missing registry keys. Re-installing the audio drivers might solve your problem.

If your sound problem only occurs with Flash videos, then scroll down for a topic with solutions specifically for Flash.

Click here for a description of the System Restore function of Windows.

Please note that System Restore does NOT magically restore your ENTIRE system to a previous state. It ONLY reverts some important parts of your system.

Therefore it is highly recommended to FIRST uninstall the problematic software, BEFORE you use System Restore to go back to a point prior to the installation of that software.

This error may pop up when you browse a folder that contains many video files in it.

To see what exactly caused the error go to:
Start -> Settings -> Control Panel -> System and Maintenance -> Problem Reports and Solutions -> View Problem History -> Then double-click on the COM surrogate error. Then have a look at the 'Fault Module Name' item.

Workarounds:

• Open DivX Decoder configuration. Uncheck "Use advanced hardware overlay".
• If you got an old version of DivX installed, then uninstall that. If you get the problem with the DivX version that is included in the pack, then disable it with the Codec Tweak Tool. Use ffdshow instead to decode DivX video.
• Disable the "Nero MPEG-1/2/4 & AVC video decoder" filter (NeVideo.ax). You can do that with the Codec Tweak Tool.

Solution:

• Disable thumbnail generation in Windows Vista. Open Windows Explorer and click on Organize -> Folder and Search Options -> View -> Enable Always show icons, never thumbnails.

Details about what caused the crash can usually be found in the Event log of Windows. You can access the Event Viewer through:
Start -> Settings -> Control Panel -> Adminstrative Tools -> Event Viewer

Some people experience this problem when the Gabest MPEG splitter (MpegSplitter.ax) is installed. You can disable this filter with the Codec Tweak Tool.

If the problems continue, then look in the Event Viewer logs to see what causes it.

A corrupt file or a buggy codec may cause a player to crash, but not the whole system. A "Blue Screen Of Death" or a spontaneous reboot is usually an indication of hardware or driver failure.

Re-install your graphics and sound drivers. Preferably a different version, either newer or older.

Some details about what caused the crash can usually be found in the Event log of Windows. You can access the Event Viewer through:
Start -> Settings -> Control Panel -> Adminstrative Tools -> Event Viewer

The 64-bit version of Windows Explorer is not able to load 32-bit shell plugins. That is the reason why it won't be able to generate thumbnails for some video formats.

The solution is to run the 32-bit version of Explorer. That will be able to generate thumbnails. The thumbnails are cached, which means that the 64-bit version of Explorer will able be able to display them.

Use the following command to run 32-bit Explorer:
Start -> Run -> "C:\windows\syswow64\explorer.exe" /separate

That error means "access denied".

This error can be avoided by starting a command prompt window with administrator privileges and running regsvr32.exe from there.

In your startmenu, go to "Accessories", and find a shortcut called "Command Prompt". Right-click on that shortcut and select "Run as". A window will be shown where you can select a user account. You should select an Administrator account.

1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
2. In Control Panel, click User Accounts.
3. In the User Accounts window, click User Accounts.
4. In the User Accounts tasks window, click Turn User Account Control on or off.
5. If UAC is currently configured in Admin Approval Mode, the User Account Control message appears. Click Continue.
6. Clear the Use User Account Control (UAC) to help protect your computer check box, and then click OK.
7. Click Restart Now to apply the change right away, or click Restart Later and close the User Accounts tasks window.

Most configuration screens can be accessed through:
Start -> Programs -> K-Lite Codec Pack -> Configuration

Media Player Classic: Press O (as in Options)

Possible solutions:

• Blacklist your game in ffdshow. This prevents ffdshow from being used by your game.
  Find out the filename of the main executable of your game. For example 'oblivion.exe'.
  Go to: ffdshow video decoder configuration -> DirectShow control
  Check the box in front of "Don't use ffdshow in:". Press the 'Edit' button behind it and add the filename to the list.
  Repeat these steps for ffdshow audio decoder.
  
• Disable the Elecard MPEG-2 demuxer (if installed). You can do that with the K-Lite Codec Tweak Tool.
• Use the Fraunhofer DirectShow MP3 decoder instead of ffdshow for decoding MP3 audio.
• Disable the Nero audio decoder filter (NeAudio.ax).
  You can do that this way:
  Start -> Run -> regsvr32 /u "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Ahead\DSFilter\NeAudio.ax"
  Alternatively, you can use the K-Lite Codec tweak Tool to disable it.
• Update your graphics card drivers.

Here are some things you can try to solve the problem:

• Flash stores its files in a temporary files folder. A corrupt download can cause the sound problems.
  
  Delete the following folder:
  C:\Documents and Settings\%UserName%\Application Data\Adobe\Flash Player
  C:\Documents and Settings\%UserName%\Application Data\Macromedia\Flash Player
• Empty your temporary internet files.
  
  Internet Explorer: Tools -> Internet Options
  Firefox: Tools -> Clear Private Data
  Opera: Tools -> Delete Private Data
• Empty your temporary files folder.
  
  Use this command to empty your temporary files folder:
  Start -> Run -> RMDIR /S /Q "%TEMP%"
  
• Install the latest version of the Flash plugin. You can download it HERE. If you have problems upgrading the plugin, then uninstall your existing version first with this tool. Close your browser(s) before you run the uninstall tool.
• Run the K-Lite Codec Tweak Tool. Near the top you should see an option to fix the sound (Midi, WaveOut). Select that and press Next. If the option is greyed out, then that particular registry fix is not needed.
• Go to the Flash Player Settings Manager website. Click HERE.
  Check the box called "Allow third-party Flash content to store data on your computer."
• Check if your sound device settings are correct:
  Start -> Settings -> Control Panel -> Sound and Audio Devices -> Audio
• If you have QuickTime installed, then go to the QuickTime control panel. On the Audio tab, set "Default Music Synthesizer" to "General MIDI".
  On the Advanced tab, disable "Enable playback of Adobe Flash tracks".
  On the browser tab, click on "MIME Settings". Under "Miscellaneous", make sure "Flash media" is unchecked.
• Check if the file msacm32.drv is present in your Windows system32 folder. If not, copy it from another PC (that has the same version of Windows) and place the file in the system32 folder.
• If you are also having sound problems with other applications, then re-installing your audio drivers might solve the problem.
  

If you get "INTERFACE NOT SUPPORTED" errors with AVI files, then enable Gabest AVI splitter during installation of the K-Lite Codec Pack.

If you get "Floating point division by zero" errors on files with AC3 audio, then go to AC3Filter options and set Master volume, Gain, and Surround levels to their default values (= 0).

This application seems to be incompatible with Haali media Splitter.

Disable "MPEG TS splitter (Haali)" with the Codec Tweak Tool. Then you should be able to open your files in Sony Picture Motion Browser.

In order to be able to play .m2ts and .ts files in your regular player you should re-enable the splitter when done using the Sony application.

Uninstall the codec pack. Now install the codec pack again. Only this time select a subset of the components that you had installed previously when the problem occurred. Add one or a few components to that subset each time you install the pack, until you run into the problem again. It is not required to uninstall the codec pack each time during this process. Installing on top of the current installation should work too.

Once you have found the problematic component(s), you can do a fresh install of the codec pack with the desired components selected minus the problematic one(s).

Please also report the problem plus the problematic component that causes the problem. Then that information can be added to this FAQ, or a solution can be devised to prevent or workaround the problem.

You can do that in several ways.

Media Player Classic: While playing a file, click on 'Play' in the top menu, then move your mouse onto 'Filters' in the dropdown menu.

BSplayer: While playing a file, right-click on BSplayer. In the menu that appears, click on 'options', then on 'Filters'.

GraphEdit: Start GraphEdit. Drag and drop a file into the window. A graph will be build showing all filters that are used to play the file.

GSpot: Start the GSpot program. Open a file in it. At the bottom you see "Proposed Codec Solutions and Tests". Click on the "1" below "MS A/V". Now you can see the names of the filters that are used to render that file. Move you mouse over them to see their filenames.

ZoomPlayer: While playing a file, right-click on ZoomPlayer. In the menu that appears, click on 'Filter Properties', then on 'Graph Information'.

Run the Codec Tweak Tool and select the option to generate a text file containing all the installed DirectShow filters and VFW/ACM codecs.

Run the Codec Tweak Tool and select the two options to detect broken codecs and DirectShow filters. If the tool detects something that is broken, it will prompt you with the details and you will be given the option to remove the broken item.

You can do this in several ways.

Codec Tweak Tool:

Run the codec tweak tool that is included with the K-Lite Codec Pack. It has the ability to disable several DirectShow filters ("DirectShow Filter Management").

GSpot:

Open the GSpot Codec Information tool. In its menu click on 'System', then on 'List Codecs and Other Filters'.

To find the location of the filter, right-click on it and select 'Detailed Properties'.

To disable a filter, right-click on it and select 'Un-Register Filter'.

Manually:

To manually disable a filter from the command-line use:

Start -> Run -> type: regsvr32 /u example.ax and press enter

If the file is located outside the Windows system32 folder, then you need to use the full path of the file instead of just the filename. If the path contains spaces, then surround it with quotes. For example:
regsvr32 /u "c:\program files\ac3filter\ac3filter.ax"

Some notes:

If unregistering fails, it usually is because the file is no longer present on your system, but it's information is still present the Windows Registry. GSpot usually indicates (with a red color) if there is a problem. The Codec Tweak Tool that is included with the K-Lite Codec Pack has the ability to scan for broken filters and remove them.

If unregistering succeeds, then the filter is disabled and it won't be used anymore. The file itself must be removed manually.

Be careful what you remove. Don't simply remove everything. A lot of filters are standard components of Windows or DirectX (e.g. quartz.dll). Don't remove those. If you are unsure, then right-click on the file (in Windows Explorer) and select properties. If is says anything about Microsoft Windows or DirectX in the properties, then you shouldn't touch it.

Go to the Windows Control Panel (Start > Settings > Control Panel) and double-click on 'System' to go to the System Properties.

Click on the 'Hardware' tab, then on the 'Device manager' button. Open 'Sound, video and game controllers'. Right-click on 'Audio Codecs' and select 'Properties'. On the properties tab you can remove audio codecs.

Go to the Windows Control Panel (Start > Settings > Control Panel) and double-click on 'System' to go to the System Properties.

Click on the 'Hardware' tab, then on the 'Device manager' button. Open 'Sound, video and game controllers'. Right-click on 'Video Codecs' and select 'Properties'. On the properties tab you can remove video codecs.

Take a look at the guides section of Doom9.org