need help importing MKV files into Tmpgenc Xpress 4 under Win7 x64 please

[BilboFett]

Hi! I need some help please getting *.MKV files to import into Tmpgenc Xpress 4 under win7 x64.

The error I am getting is "could not open the video part of the file. Only the audio part can be opened".

You can see the Haali media splitter blinking a few times on the systray trying to load/interpret the MKV file for Tmpgenc, but it just keeps blinking, and then Tmpgenc gives me that error.

I'm not sure how I did it on XP, but eventually, after installing tons of codec packs (mainly CCCP, K-Lite and XP Codecs package) and fiddling with settings (I have no idea what worked), tmpgenc under WinXP eventually was able to fully open .MKV files, loading the video as x264 (or was it h264) and the audio as whatever. It seemed I hit on the right combination to get tmpgenc to talk to directshow to know how to properly read and interpret mkv files.

I also remember that whenever I would load an MKV file into Tmpgenc Xpress there would always be *2* instances of Haali running in the systray (one for video, one for audio??). Sometimes when Tmpgenc Xpress was applying filters to process the video during a preview or encoding, *4* instances of Haali would show up in the systray.

Under Win7 X64 only one-instance of Haali is showing when I try to load MKVs into Tmpgenc Xpress 4.

--begin backstory--: Tmpgenc xpress 4 is my preferred and most loved video conversion program. I also use it to touch up vids. I streamlined the process by loading the MKV into Tmpgenc, processing, saving as whatever (sometimes uncompressed avi for further manipulation), possibly loading it into Adobe Premiere, etc. And then saving my final edited/remixed/whatever avi from Premiere or virtualdub.
I know, alot of hassle, but tmpgenc was what made converting MKV's to AVis so fast and easy. Even if I used other programs, I would always invoke Tmpgenc for the final conversion.
--end backstory--

I don't understand how h264 works natively under Win7, and how that would be in harmony or conflict with the various codecs packages I might need to load in order to get directshow or whatever to properly import MKV into tmpgenc.

After installing the Win7 codecs package from shark007, the x64 add-on for that, and the k-lite mega, and x64 addition, tmpgenc was at least now recognizing x264 video files, and ac3 files. But now when I try to load the .x264 video-only file, it just freezes and crashes tmpgenc xpress, which is what it used to do when I was running it on XP, until some lucky combo got everything working.

Sorry for the gigantic post but I wanted to give you every possible bit of information to get the best help possible. Any ideas anyone? Any tricks/cheats/workarounds?

Sorry, going back to Xp is not an acceptable solution. I really hope I don't have to run a 32bit virtual machine of win7 under this 64bit one. It just seems to me that I don't have everything configured correctly to allow directshow/core-windows decoding of MKV streams to talk to tmpgenc. Tmpgenc seems to be very submissive to whatever your global windows codec settings are configured to.

Thanks for listening and being patient through all that.

Please help if you can

[guns1inger]

You can run a virtual XP environment seamlessly under windows 7 without having to run a second windows 7 install. Just download the W7 Virtual PC and XP image (free download from MS) and go.

That said, you have installed so many codec packs (even 1 is bad news) that who knows that might be going on.

[pietpuk123]

I managed to do it by first installing the codecpacks from http://shark007.net/win7codecs.html and in the settings application choose the SWAP-tab and swapping the lot to ffdshow and on other tabs I chose haali.
Then I downloaded the DirectShow Filter Tweak Tool from http://www.codecguide.com/windows7_preferred_filter_tweaker.htm and chose ffdshow where I could

I am sure there are more efficient ways, but it worked for me.

[Riptides99]

Got it working perfectly by installing Win7DSFilterTweaker and setting Divx as the default H.264/AVC decoder.

Edited to add: After doing a few conversions using the fix above I'm getting the dreaded few seconds of Divx logo on my finished videos regardless of telling Divx not to show a logo. So it's not "working perfectly" but it is working without having to mess with installing various codec packs.

[jimcgr]

Just want to add my experience as I think it will help people looking to open MKV (both vc-1 and h.264) files in TMPGEnc 4.0 Xpress. I'm using windows 7.

After reading this thread I uninstalled ffdshow and haali that I had previously installed then I installed Shark007. I launched Shark's application settings using "right-click" and "run as admin". Under the h.264 tab, on the right part, I changed "use Ms Codec" to "Use FFDshow's codec". Click exit button to apply. Make sure to restart TMPGenc if it was already running.

Finally I can open those MKV files ( mainly the h.264 were the problem ) with tmpgenc

thanks!

[taozhong]

......I launched Shark's application settings using "right-click" and "run as admin". Under the h.264 tab, on the right part, I changed "use Ms Codec" to "Use FFDshow's codec". Click exit button to apply. Make sure to restart TMPGenc if it was already running......

It seems working great on my Windows 7 x64. At least I am converting a MKV movie in my TMPGEnc now. Thanks!

[likwid8]

Just wanted to say thanks, worked like a treat.