This article covers downloading and installing additional resources that allow your computer to work with a wide variety of video file types.  For an overview of what problems these might solve, and an explanation of why codecs are so important, please see the section below titled 'Background Information - Why do I need these??

Download and Installation Instructions

PLEASE REVIEW THIS ARTICLE IN ITS ENTIRETY BEFORE DOWNLOADING AND INSTALLING THE FILE. FOLLOW THESE INSTRUCTIONS FULLY AND CAREFULLY TO ENSURE PROPER FUNCTIONALITY WITH MEDIASHOUT.

Download and "Save" the K-Lite Mega Codec Pack. Once you click the link the file will start downloading automatically. Then carefully follow the instructions below to install it.  

After downloading this codec pack, you will need to install and configure it for optimal video/DVD playback in MediaShout.  The installer will ask you to close Internet Explorer if you are using it, so we have included a link to a PDF version of these instructions so you can print it or leave it open and refer to it during installation. Keep in mind, there will be 2 pages. Be sure to follow all instructions on both pages.

NOTE:  If you are using MediaShout from within a limited or standard user account in Windows, it is possible that some codecs will not work correctly unless this codec pack is installed from the user account in question.  To do that, change the type of account to an administrator account, install K-Lite, then change the account back to a limited account.
 

Here are the installation instructions:

1.   Double-click on the file you downloaded to run it, choose 'Advanced' installation when prompted, and click Next one more time.

2.   Choose Profile #8 from the drop-down list of options at the top of the Select Components page (Very important step... do not miss this one!).

3.   Scroll down the list, find MPEG-2, DVD and select ffdshow (libmpeg2), then click 'Next' at the bottom of the screen.

4.   Continue the installation using the default settings on all other pages by clicking 'Next' on each page until the button changes to 'Install' on the last page.

5a. If you are using Win XP or Vista, Click 'Install', then 'Finish, and skip ahead to step 12.

5b. If you are running Windows 7 or 8, you MUST continue to the next step or nothing you have done will have any effect.

6.   Check the the box by 'Run Win7DSFilterTweaker tool' on the last page of the installer, and then click 'Finish'.
      (You can go to Start > All Programs > K-Lite Codec Pack > Tools > Win7DSFilterTweaker if you hit 'Finish' already).

7.   Select 'Preferred decoders' on the window that appears.

8.   Find the H.264 setting and change it to ffdshow.  (Only the 32 bit settings are needed for MediaShout)

9.   Find the MP4V setting and change it to ffdshow.

10. Find the MPEG2 setting and change it to ffdshow.

11. Click the 'Apply & Close' button, then click 'Exit'.

12. Follow the instructions below and check or adjust the Settings for MP4 and MOV files.

Settings for MP4 and MOV

Sometimes users experience an error in MediaShout when using Quicktime (MOV, MP4, H.264, etc.) video files.  We have been working to improve that situation in version 4, and since build 186 we have been including a module that will allow Quicktime to process these files.  If you haven't yet, please download and install the latest update to version 4 and make sure that Quicktime is installed on your computer.  You may need to reboot your computer for Quicktime to be available in MediaShout.

If you install the K-Lite pack after installing a build of MediaShout higher than b186, the K-Lite installer may change the settings that are needed for the MediaLooks QT plugin to work correctly.  To check or correct this, follow these steps:

1.  Open the Codec Tweak Tool (Start > All Programs > K-Lite Codec Pack > Tools > Codec Tweak Tool).

2.  Click the button for 'Manage source filters'.

3.  Make sure that 'MediaLooks QT Source' is selected for both MP4 and MOV.

4.  Click 'Apply & Close' and then 'Exit'.  You are now finished!

In the past, we have recommended that some customers might need to install the Quicktime Alternative.  With the inclusion of the MediaLooks QT module we no longer believe that this will be necessary.  If you have Quicktime Alternative installed, and you are experiencing difficulty with Quicktime files, please uninstall it and see if that resolves the issue.

Background Information - Why do I need these??

Codecs are a common cause of several problems or errors in MediaShout.  They are the components that allow a computer to decode or encode video and audio files.  Codecs for many of the most common audio and video formats are included with Windows, but which ones -- and the capabilities of those codecs -- varies depending on which version of Windows you have, what software was bundled with your computer, and a number of other circumstances.  The most common issues caused by codecs are:

• No sound when playing a DVD cue
• An error such as "The file C:\Documents... can't be loaded" when attempting to play a video or sound cue

Sometimes the problem is not that there is no codec for the type of file, but that the codec that is installed is not capable of processing the file using the components of Windows that MediaShout calls upon -- most notably DirectX 9.  This can cause confusion because in these situations the file can be played by a player (or other software) that is not utilizing the more advanced functions of DirectX, but the codec will not support the functions that MediaShout needs.  In some cases another piece of software may have installed a competing or incompatible codec, and Windows is attempting to use the wrong codec when playing the file in MediaShout.

There are a couple of easy things to check to help determine if you need to install additional codecs:

• If you can see video when playing a DVD cue, but cannot hear any audio, first check your audio control panel and mixer in Windows to be sure that the correct hardware is selected and that it isn't muted or turned down.  Can you hear any other audio/sounds from your computer?  If you can hear other sounds, but not the DVD, then you very likely need a more advanced codec.
• Check the type of file that you are trying to play.  If the file is a Windows Media Format (WMV, WMA, etc.) or MPG (most common MPG files are MPEG-1 files), then the problem is likely to be elsewhere.  (Windows Media Player versions above 9 need to be installed for MediaShout to work correctly, so make sure your installation of WMP is up to date.)  If your file is not one of these file types, you will likely benefit from installing additional codecs. 

It is possible to cause more problems by having too many codecs installed.  Therefore, we recommend that you use the default codecs that are already installed in Windows from the factory first.  If you do run into codec issues, then we recommend only installing this package of codecs (this is a free download) using the instructions provided.

For additional information, see this Microsoft Codec FAQ page.

NOTE:  MediaComplete is not affiliated with K-Lite or Apple/QuickTime and does not provide technical support for their products or services.