Virtualdub won't process audio of certain .AVI files

[ivanlc]

Hi.

When I use Vdub to convert certain types of AVI files (so that they use less HDD space) Vdub throws up the message:

"Error initializing audio stream decompression:
No installed audio codec could be found to decompress the compressed source audio.
Check to make sure you have the required codec."

I've used GSpot to identify the codecs required and apparently, I have them already installed. This is evident, as the videos alway play fine in Media Player Classic (whjich apparently has its own codecs anyway!), Windows Media Player or whichever player I use to play the files. It's just Vdub that won't process them.

A technique I came up with to get around the issue was:

1. Use Nero to burn the video (or rather, simulate burning, as I only need the VCD file created, so I can just use the temp file Nero creates instead of actually burning a disc) to VideoCD. Nero has its own audio codecs and seems to be able to burn any video you throw at it.

2. Pull the VCD file which it creates into Vdub and extract the audio to a .WAV file.

3. Multiplex the video file and the .WAV created above in Vdub by selecting "WAV audio" (from the Audio menu) in Vdub and browsing to the .WAV file and using the original video file. I usually set the compression of the audio to mp3 128kbps. (ie. by selecting Audio->Compression->MPEG Layer III.). The video is set to compress using the Divx 5.2.1 codec.

To my surprise, there have never been sync issues with this method; the audio has been perfectly synched to the video every time I've done it...

... When the multiplexed .AVI file is played on my PC that is.

When I play it on my DVD player (which plays Divx CDs/DVDs), it is also synched - until I fast forward or rewind the divx, at which point the audio goes out of sync by a fraction of a second or so - enough for you to notice when playing it back. At this point, the only way I can return to synched audio is by stopping and restarting the dvix and *not* fast forwarding or rewinding at all - not always easy/possible.

.AVIs which are not multiplexed play fine on the DVD player, and can be fast forwarded or rewound to my heart's content.

Has anyone else experienced this sort of thing? If so, my question is: do you have any idea WHICH codec would be required for VirtualDub to be happy so that I no longer need to use the above multiplexing process, thereby avoiding the sync problem?
Typical examples of the kind of file which gives problems are those ending "xvid.xor.[VTV].avi". Those ending, for example, in "xvid-lol.avi" are common examples of those files which work fine.

Apologies if there is too much or not enough info in some places, but I want to try and be as specific as possible without giving what may be giving unnecessary detail to try and isolate the problem and get it sorted ASAP; been going on too long now! Anyone out there experienced something *very* similar and know exactly *why* it may be happening, cos I can't figure it out!

If you need me to provide more info about whatever aspect, just reply and let me know what you need to know and I'll get it up here! *Really* gotta find a solution to this issue ASAP now...

Thanks,



i.

[anonymez]

I want to avoid "general" suggestions, as I've tried them all over the momths. I want to hear from someone who's experienced something *very* similar and knows exactly *why* it's happening

an example of how not to get help.

however it's your first post and i'm in a good mood:

probably ac3 audio. download & install the acm codec http://fcchandler.home.comcast.net/AC3ACM

to be sure, open the file in something like mediainfo

[ivanlc]

[quote=anonymez;465947]an example of how not to get help.

Hi. anonymez. Thanks for the reply.

I apologise for the phrasing in my original post (and I have now modified it accordingly ), but it's just that I've seen and had -ve experiences when there's been ambiguity in forum posts previously.


I installed the ACM codec as you suggested, restarted and selected the codec in VirtualDub, however the same message comes up. This is what I don't get. Whatever codecs I've tried, nothing changes. I can't believe I'm the only person whose ever run into this issue - which is why I wondered if anyone (with more experience in this area than myself) had seen it before and what they did about it.

Mediainfo gives me the info in the first attached .jpg file. As with GSpot and afreeCodecVT, it says I need a 128kbps, stereo MPEG III codec - of which there are a few installed (the second attach show those installed) so I have a few to choose from when I want to process my audio. This is why I'm confused!

Is there anything else which you think may be the cause of the problem?

Thanks,

i.

[anonymez]

it's mp3 audio, sounds like your mp3 acm decoder is screwed. try installing fraunhofer's mp3 decoder-- updating windows media player should do the trick too

[ivanlc]

it's mp3 audio, sounds like your mp3 acm decoder is screwed. try installing fraunhofer's mp3 decoder-- updating windows media player should do the trick too

Hi again anonymez. Just tried uninstalling the fraunhofer decoder - which removed the MPEG Layer III encoder options - and then ran and installed the fraunhofer codec again, which didn't re-add the MP3 encoding options. So I ran the the k-lite codec pack, which re-installed a second MPEG Layer III entry, but this time with all the options which had been removed previously. So there are now two MPEG Layer III entries; one with bitrate selections and one with none. Nothing's stopped working, though, so this is fine.

Made no difference to Vdub though; still get the message. What I realised though was the the available codecs displayed in Vdub are all for encoding; not decoding which is apparently what Vdub has the issue with as it says it can't decode the original audio in order to re-encode it again. I can see no way of selecting a decoding method in Vdub, which, if you'll excuse my ignorance, I assume because it just uses the most appropriate codec which is installed - which apparently, despite the various mp3 codecs installed - still isn't available.

What do you think would be the next thing to try now?

[anonymez]

virtualdub uses vfw for video, acm for audio. IIRC windows comes with fraunhofer acm codec, which should allow your file to be opened in vdub. installing a codec pack can screws things up and is usually the cause of such problems.

several paths you can take:

1. update windows media player if you haven't already done so

2. clean install of windows, this time avoiding codec packs.

3. demux streams with say avi-mux gui and process audio/video separately

3. use something else to encode that doesn't rely on vfw/acm, say avidemux

[ivanlc]

virtualdub uses vfw for video, acm for audio. IIRC windows comes with fraunhofer acm codec, which should allow your file to be opened in vdub. installing a codec pack can screws things up and is usually the cause of such problems.

several paths you can take:

1. update windows media player if you haven't already done so

2. clean install of windows, this time avoiding codec packs.

3. demux streams with say avi-mux gui and process audio/video separately

3. use something else to encode that doesn't rely on vfw/acm, say avidemux

Hi.

Thanks for the info. Sorry it's taken me a few days to reply. I'll investigate the various things you've suggested when time allows - though I do update Windows weekly, so no doubt I'll at least have the latest WMP updates.



i.

[phxmike]

sollution

Hi.

Thanks for the info. Sorry it's taken me a few days to reply. I'll investigate the various things you've suggested when time allows - though I do update Windows weekly, so no doubt I'll at least have the latest WMP updates.



i.

I think i may suggest a simplier way. I had the same problem. I had a movie in Divx format but the audio was in Windows Media Audio V2 instead of AC3. I wrote this movie to a DVD and tried to play it on my DVD payer as usual. There was no sound. I was suprised first but then i have realised the difference between this and the other movies is the audio codec.
I have tried to convert it with virtualdub it sayed the same error message. I tried to extract the audio in WAV in several ways and then tried to replay it with Winamp. It also did not work. However normal playback on the PC with a dvix player worked perfectly.
If you have experienced the same then this should help:

http://nimo.titanesk.com/modules/freecontent/index.php?id=1

Download Nimo codec from here. Choose Build 8. Install it and choose to install only the audio codecs (all of them!!). During the install you may experience an error message saying a file has been failed to acces. Do not bother yourself click on ignore (probably two or more times) and finish the install.
When you have finished for some reason which i dont really understand
the virtualdub converts it perfectly and the winamp can play the WAV file also. After this i was able to convert the movie audio into AC3 (however at the very end there was an error message which i just ignored), i wrote it and put it in the DVD player. It works perfectly. Hope that this could help you.

Best luck,

Mike

[anonymez]

welcome to the forum, phxmike

I had the same problem

a little different. a better solution (ie one that avoids codec packs, which was the likely culprit for ivanlc's problem) would be to install divx 3.11a; comes with divx audio which IIRC is a hacked wma v2.

[phxmike]

reply

welcome to the forum, phxmike



a little different. a better solution (ie one that avoids codec packs, which was the likely culprit for ivanlc's problem) would be to install divx 3.11a; comes with divx audio which IIRC is a hacked wma v2.

But if you avoid codecpacks then newly coded divx movies ( like my favourite stargate series) won't work. I understand that installing the old divx routine ( i have used them so long...) could solve the problem but i would emerge some others surely. My intention was to solve the original problem without causing much damage.

Btw, thanks for the warm welcome however i am not one of the great forum writers

Mike

[anonymez]

But if you avoid codecpacks then newly coded divx movies

uninstall codec packs, download & install ffdshow from http://www.x264.nl

not often do new encoder versions break decoder compatibility

[phxmike]

uninstall codec packs, download & install ffdshow from http://www.x264.nl

not often do new encoder versions break decoder compatibility

Thanks. I'm already using that one and ffdshow was the only codecpack on my PC... still i had to do what i have done.

Thanks for all the advise but time to sleep now. It is 3 am here



Mike

[celtic_druid]

The audio (according to the above screen shots) is already 128k. Just what bitrate were you planning on re-encoding to? Because it would need to be lower in order to save space and even if you went as low as 64k you probably wouldn't save much space, but would lose a lot of audio quality. My advice would be to leave the audio be.