Video file not supported

[takammed]

So I have a video file with MKV format but it can't be played on my Samsung LED TV despite the fact that MKV is definitely supported on the TV. I have several other video files with MKV format and even bigger size but they're all able to play. So what is the problem?

[Baldrick]

A mkv could contain different kind of video and audio codecs, etc and your tv does NOT support all such features.

So post the details from your mkv. Use mediainfo, open mkv, view->text.


It could for example be a mkv with compressed headers, then must you use mkvmergegui, under file->options select disable header compression by default, open your mkv, output a new mkv that might work better.

Or if the audio is not supported then use popcorn mkv audio converter.

Or if the video is not supported then reconvert with vidcoder or handbrake.

[takammed]

If I reconvert the video would the quality change? Like becoming 720p or lower quality instead of 1080? Because from my limited knowledge when one converts a video from one format, for example MKV to AVI or MP4, the quality would lessen. I want to preserve the video's original quality. I used mediainfo and this is what I've got:

THe one that can be played on TV:

Video
ID : 1
Format : AVC
Format/Info : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile : High@L4.1
Format settings, CABAC : Yes
Format settings, ReFrames : 4 frames
Codec ID : V_MPEG4/ISO/AVC
Duration : 2h 26mn
Bit rate : 11.3 Mbps
Width : 1 920 pixels
Height : 800 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 2.40:1
Frame rate mode : Constant
Frame rate : 23.976 fps
Color space : YUV
Chroma subsampling : 4:2:0
Bit depth : 8 bits
Scan type : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.306
Stream size : 11.2 GiB (75%)
Writing library : x264 core 98 r1649 c54c47d
Encoding settings : cabac=1 / ref=4 / deblock=1:-3:-3 / analyse=0x3:0x113 / me=umh / subme=9 / psy=1 / psy_rd=1.10:0.00 / mixed_ref=1 / me_range=32 / chroma_me=1 / trellis=2 / 8x8dct=1 / cqm=0 / deadzone=21,11 / fast_pskip=0 / chroma_qp_offset=-4 / threads=6 / sliced_threads=0 / nr=0 / decimate=0 / interlaced=0 / constrained_intra=0 / bframes=6 / b_pyramid=2 / b_adapt=2 / b_bias=0 / direct=3 / weightb=1 / weightp=2 / keyint=250 / keyint_min=25 / scenecut=40 / intra_refresh=0 / rc_lookahead=48 / rc=2pass / mbtree=1 / bitrate=11257 / ratetol=1.0 / qcomp=0.60 / qpmin=10 / qpmax=51 / qpstep=4 / cplxblur=20.0 / qblur=0.5 / ip_ratio=1.40 / aq=1:0.80
Language : English
Default : Yes
Forced : No



The one that can't be played:

Video
ID : 1
Format : AVC
Format/Info : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile : High@L4.1
Format settings, CABAC : Yes
Format settings, ReFrames : 6 frames
Codec ID : V_MPEG4/ISO/AVC
Duration : 2h 6mn
Bit rate : 12.0 Mbps
Width : 1 916 pixels
Height : 1 078 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 16:9
Frame rate mode : Constant
Frame rate : 23.976 fps
Color space : YUV
Chroma subsampling : 4:2:0
Bit depth : 8 bits
Scan type : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 0.242
Stream size : 10.4 GiB (87%)
Writing library : x264 core 105 r1732 2b04482
Encoding settings : cabac=1 / ref=6 / deblock=1:-3:-3 / analyse=0x3:0x113 / me=tesa / subme=10 / psy=1 / psy_rd=0.90:0.00 / mixed_ref=1 / me_range=16 / chroma_me=1 / trellis=2 / 8x8dct=1 / cqm=0 / deadzone=21,11 / fast_pskip=0 / chroma_qp_offset=-2 / threads=12 / sliced_threads=0 / nr=0 / decimate=0 / interlaced=0 / constrained_intra=0 / bframes=11 / b_pyramid=2 / b_adapt=2 / b_bias=0 / direct=3 / weightb=1 / open_gop=0 / weightp=2 / keyint=250 / keyint_min=23 / scenecut=40 / intra_refresh=0 / rc=2pass / mbtree=0 / bitrate=12000 / ratetol=1.0 / qcomp=0.60 / qpmin=10 / qpmax=51 / qpstep=4 / cplxblur=20.0 / qblur=0.5 / ip_ratio=1.40 / pb_ratio=1.30 / aq=1:0.90
Language : Japanese
Default : Yes
Forced : No

[Baldrick]

You shouldn't notice too much quality loss if you don't use too low bitrate or low quality settings. You can keep it at 1080p if your samsung supports it.

[takammed]

Could you take a look at the info I added in my previous post and see what's wrong with it?

[jman98]

The 6 reference frames in the video that won't play is very likely the problem. You will need to re-encode so that this value is NOT any greater than 4. Then your file should play.

And please understand that while consumers like you think "My TV will play ANYTHING" the reality as you have found out is that TV media players are VERY VERY fussy about what they will play, much more so than dedicated media players like the Western Digital and other similar models.

[takammed]

Thank you, I'll try that. So either vidcoder or handbrake will be able to do the job?