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Have sound but no picture when playing videos in Media Player and Movie Maker

Anonymous
2012-04-16T07:34:07+00:00

I cannot get video to play in Windows Media Player or in Windows Movie Maker. I get sound, but no picture. They work fine when I use VLC, but I need to use the movie maker to edit some video. I have Vista. Any suggestions?

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Music, photos, and video

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  1. Anonymous
    2012-04-16T20:44:49+00:00

    ​Hi,

    1. What exactly happens when the issue occurs? Do you receive any error message?
    2. Was it working fine before?
    3. What is the file format of the files that you are trying to play?

    Generally, this issue should be fixed by installing the video codec. I suggest you to try re-installing the video codec and check.

    Reference:

    http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-vista/Codecs-frequently-asked-questions

    Also check the file format which you are trying to play whether it is supported by WMP11 or not.

    Information about the Multimedia file types that Windows Media Player supports

    What kinds of video files can I play in Windows Media Player?

    You may also try reducing the hardware acceleration:

    a. Click Start.

    b. Click Control Panel, click Appearance and Personalization, click Personalization, click Display Settings, and then click Advanced Settings.

    c. Click the Troubleshoot tab, and then click Change Settings.

    Note: Change Settings will be disabled if the graphics card drivers do not support disabling hardware acceleration.

    d. Move the Hardware Acceleration slider until it is one notch to the right of None. This is the basic acceleration setting.

    e. Click OK twice, and then close the window.

    Let us know if it helps!

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  1. Anonymous
    2012-04-17T03:57:46+00:00

    AVI? That is the problem...there are many, many

    types of .avi files and most of them are problematic

    in Movie Maker.

    Converting to the .WMV format before importing into

    Movie Maker may be the best solution.

    There are many converters available on the net...some

    free...some retail.

    The following freeware converter is just an example:

    (FWIW...it's always a good idea to create a System

    Restore point before installing software or updates)

    Format Factory (freeware)

    http://www.videohelp.com/tools/Format_Factory

    (the 'direct link' is fastest download)

    (the file you want to download is : >FFSetup295.zip<)

    (FWIW...when installing...you may want to uncheck

    'all' the boxes on the final screens)

    (Windows XP / Vista / 7)

    First you will need to unzip the file or just open the

    folder and drag >FFSetup295.exe< out of the folder

    and drop it on your desktop. Left click it to install.

    Next...after downloading and installing Format

    Factory...you may want to open the program and

    left click the 'Option' button on the toolbar and

    select an 'Output Folder' / Apply / OK.

    (this is where you will find your files after they

    are converted)

    Drag/drop your video clips onto the main screen...

    Select 'All to WMV' / OK...

    Click...Start...on the toolbar...

    That should do it...

    Good luck...

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  2. Anonymous
    2012-04-17T00:38:53+00:00

    They are avi.

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  3. Anonymous
    2012-04-17T00:38:11+00:00

    Hi, thanks for responding! The videos are just in standard avi format. The screen stays black but the sound plays. I get no error message. I have never used the movie maker before but I have had problems with media player for a while. I was hoping it would tell me if the codec was missing and lead me to the place to download it but it never did. How do I determine which one it needs?

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  4. Anonymous
    2012-04-16T21:12:32+00:00

    What is the format (extension) of the video clips?

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