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AVI to QuickTime! Help

D

Dirty Harry

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 8, 2004
76
0
Valencia, SPAIN
I have an AVI that QT won´t open, nor Window Media Player for Mac, nor Real Player, NOR Discreet Cleaner. I can open it through Window Media Player for Windows, but not with WMP for Mac. Not with Adobe Premiere for windows either... (using VPC for the PC stuff). I have been trying to convert it to MOV so I can work with it, no luck. I think its an mpeg for a VCD saved with an AVI extension. I need to extract the audio track for some editing (when it´s done I don´t need to do another AVI, I could do the MPG for VCD I need straight ahead from my Mac...) Please, how could I open this???
I guess this must have been discussed before...
 
Thanks for the help, but still in trouble! I am unable to change the name of the document, though it is not blocked in the information menu and I have privileges to write... As for DivX Doctor, it does not recognise this AVI. WMP por windows will open it however... Maybe I need the right utility to use from windowze.
 
If you can, on a PC that plays the file ok, run this tool GSpot http://www.headbands.com/gspot/
It is a general purpose video information tool, and should help you identify exactly which codec was used for both video and sound, the screenshots on the website go on about divx alot, but it should be able to analyze any avi file.

It sounds like, if the video is like MPEG but it is an avi, that it was captured from a TV tuner card, probably using a codec like MJPEG, or possibly a propriotry codec made by the tv card manufacturer. either way Gspot should help you identify what codecs are used, and you will then have to either obtain the codecs for your mac, or use your PC to convert the file into something that the mac will understand.

Good luck, i know this subject can be a headache, I find it one of the (few) areas that PCs are better than macs.
 
Dirty Harry said:
I have an AVI that QT won´t open, nor Window Media Player for Mac, nor Real Player, NOR Discreet Cleaner. I can open it through Window Media Player for Windows, but not with WMP for Mac. Not with Adobe Premiere for windows either... (using VPC for the PC stuff). I have been trying to convert it to MOV so I can work with it, no luck. I think its an mpeg for a VCD saved with an AVI extension. I need to extract the audio track for some editing (when it´s done I don´t need to do another AVI, I could do the MPG for VCD I need straight ahead from my Mac...) Please, how could I open this???
I guess this must have been discussed before...
Click to expand...
For future reference:
Download and install the DivX and 3ivx Quicktime codecs. You don't necessarily have to convert files to MOV if you have the proper codecs for the files that you are working with.
 
After waisting most of the day downloading and installing all sorts of plugins and stuff, both for PC (Virtual PC I am using) and Mac, messing my hard drive, I finally found a program for PC (http://www.eo-video.com/) wich converts to AVI and MPEG from whatever, and adjusting the settings; it's not exactly what I was looking for (AVI to QT), but at least now the QuickTime player is able to read the converted files and I can do the editing with Final Cut... Thanks!
 
Did you try this lovely shareware program?

Streamclip

I found it on versiontracker.com

The download file is called:

MPEG_Streamclip_1.0.2.dmg

This converted mpeg to quicktime for me.
 
Streamclip didn´t work either, thanks anyway. I am still using tools from the PC world to do the job in VPC. Sad. Apple is focusing on video and audio, but it seems that for conversion stuff PCs are easier.
 
is there a reason you need to use qt to open .avi? you will lose quality with conversion; a better environment for this filetype would be to use a player live VLC like someone suggested earlier.

not a big deal, vlc is a very good program.
 
VLC WILL open this .avi on my Mac, that's something! But now, how do I convert it to have it editable in Final Cut?
Still using a windowze app for the conversion ("TMPEG ENC 2.5" wich I found better and faster than previous "EO video" thing).
Isn´it great after all that I am still using my Mac, thanks to Virtual PC that is handling the conversion nicely? :rolleyes:
 
If VLC will play an "AVI" (that probably isn't) file, but QT Player gives you an error when you try to open the file (not just a blank movie, but an error and refuses to open it at all, even to try and play sound, try this: Open in in VLC and do a get info.

If the get info says something about "Ogg Comment", then your problem is it's not actually an AVI--it's a mislabeled .ogm (Ogg Media Container) file. It's a non-proprietary file container format (like .avi and .mov) that usually uses Ogg Vorbis audio and either DivX or XviD video. VLC knows how to play .ogm files, but QT Player (nor WMP or Real on the Mac) doesn't at this point.

I've seen a lot of these files around recently, and they really annoy me--I assume Windows users have changed the extension to .avi to get it to automatically open for them, but it's just stupid since that's not what it is.

As for converting them, I think ffmpeg can handle it, but I'm not sure.
 
I couldn´t change the extension in my mac (AVI to MPG)... but didn´t think of doing it on the PC. I did and now QT Player can play it with no conversion! I still have needed the PC tools however to extract the audio, though it could have been done on the Mac with this app: "bbDEMUX", thanks to the info by King Cobra and this great post: http://www.funmac.com/showpost.php?p=73765&postcount=5 :eek:
However, I think QT reads but won´t make an MPEG1 so I still have to loose one generation recompressing audio and video in Cleaner to get back an MPEG1 with the new audio (I need MPEG1 for Video CD). Any idea to avoid this?
 
Makosuke said:
If VLC will play an "AVI" (that probably isn't) file, but QT Player gives you an error when you try to open the file (not just a blank movie, but an error and refuses to open it at all, even to try and play sound, try this: Open in in VLC and do a get info.

If the get info says something about "Ogg Comment", then your problem is it's not actually an AVI--it's a mislabeled .ogm (Ogg Media Container) file. It's a non-proprietary file container format (like .avi and .mov) that usually uses Ogg Vorbis audio and either DivX or XviD video. VLC knows how to play .ogm files, but QT Player (nor WMP or Real on the Mac) doesn't at this point.

I've seen a lot of these files around recently, and they really annoy me--I assume Windows users have changed the extension to .avi to get it to automatically open for them, but it's just stupid since that's not what it is.

As for converting them, I think ffmpeg can handle it, but I'm not sure.
Click to expand...
Actually QuickTime can. Just Google the Ogg Vorbis QuickTime codec and install it. It's beta but it works.
 
Just realized that the Compressor 1.2 update is supposed to export MPEG1 now (I have 1.0), wich would be nice to do straight from FCP. Still trying to get a copy.
 
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