HT201290: If QuickTime Player can't open an audio or video file

Learn about If QuickTime Player can't open an audio or video file
parkerstl
Level 1 (0 points)

Q: video does not play

I have a movie that will run on one MAC with quicktime and not on another.  The format is a .mov file with h.264.acc format and both computers are running the same software versions.

iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2012), iOS 6.1.1

Posted on Jun 16, 2013 6:58 PM

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parkerstl

Q: video does not play

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  • by Linc Davis,

    Linc Davis Linc Davis Jun 16, 2013 8:16 PM in response to parkerstl
    Level 10 (208,037 points)
    Applications
    Jun 16, 2013 8:16 PM in response to parkerstl

    You must have installed some QuickTime component that's required for the format, or else you installed something on the other computer that interferes with playback.

  • by lfitz85,

    lfitz85 lfitz85 Jun 16, 2013 11:38 PM in response to parkerstl
    Level 1 (15 points)
    Jun 16, 2013 11:38 PM in response to parkerstl

    I always like to have a couple of different ways of playing media, much the same as you should have multiple web browsers installed so that if one stops functioning, you can still get on to the internet to fix the problem with another.

     

    I have a few media players installed, my favourites are...

     

    "VLC" plays pretty much anything under the sun without requiring additional codecs or plugins.

     

    I also like "MplayerX", which has a nice clean interface, and some nice keyboard controls. It doesn't support as many files/codecs as VLC though.


    Additionally, I have "Perian" installed which gives the QuickTime player the ability to play more file formats and codecs.  This also allows Quick Look to view these files when selected in the finder (press spacebar).

     

    Hope this helps.

  • by parkerstl,

    parkerstl parkerstl Jun 18, 2013 8:40 PM in response to Linc Davis
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 18, 2013 8:40 PM in response to Linc Davis

    Does it make a difference if the .mov was in high def?  Maybe the other Mac can't play that. All macs are up to date with their software and I highly doubt QuickTime is missing anything on the other macs.

  • by lfitz85,

    lfitz85 lfitz85 Jun 18, 2013 8:54 PM in response to parkerstl
    Level 1 (15 points)
    Jun 18, 2013 8:54 PM in response to parkerstl

    Nope. QT should be able to handle HD content, even if the computer can't play it back nicely.

     

    Any files and formats that can be played in VLC, including HD content, should work on any device so long as VLC can be installed to run.  The same holds true for QT.

     

    If the computer where VLC is running is too slow for HD, you'll see stuttered playback, dropped frames, etc, etc  or maybe nothing at all.

     

    But the file should load into the player, otherwise there might be a problem with the program itself.

     

    Hope that helps...