Once Perfect Handbrake Videos now Pixelated

[BW007]

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone else has had this same issue... three years ago, I used Handbrake to copy all my DVDs to my MacBook Pro (and many onto an external NAS). All of these videos played without any problems. It seems one of the macOS updates caused an issue, because now ALL the .m4v files are pixelated. It could not be a Handbrake/libdvdcss issue becasuse they played fine long after they were converted using Handbrake. I used Homebrew to reinstall libdvdcss under macOS Catalina and I can use Handbrake perfectly fine on DVDs, but I can not figure out how to fix the old rips. I have tried using Handbrake on them again, but the output is just as pixelated and Handbrake doesn't even output the full video.

Any suggestions or thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

 

[HDFan]

because now ALL the .m4v files are pixelated.

What app are you using to play them? What happens if you play them on other devices - TV, iPhone, iPad ... ?

 

[BW007]

I have tried almost every app I could find... Quicktime, VLC, Elmedia Player, Switch. They will not play properly on any of my iDevices (AppleTV, iPad, iPhone). The issue effected almost all of the .m4v files, but not all (probably 60% of all the dvds I had handbrake-d). I can't see any different in 'Get Info' on the files that still play properly vs the files that are now pixelated.

 

[HDFan]

It seems one of the macOS updates caused an issue, because now ALL the .m4v files are pixelated.

If they don't play well on your IOS devices it greatly reduces the likelihood that it was a MacOS update issue. Do the files still show the original creation and modified dates? Do you have a way to put some on a USB stick and try to play them on another ecosystem device, such as Windows? Do you have a TV with a USB port you could try?

 

[Plutonius]

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone else has had this same issue... three years ago, I used Handbrake to copy all my DVDs to my MacBook Pro (and many onto an external NAS). All of these videos played without any problems. It seems one of the macOS updates caused an issue, because now ALL the .m4v files are pixelated. It could not be a Handbrake/libdvdcss issue becasuse they played fine long after they were converted using Handbrake. I used Homebrew to reinstall libdvdcss under macOS Catalina and I can use Handbrake perfectly fine on DVDs, but I can not figure out how to fix the old rips. I have tried using Handbrake on them again, but the output is just as pixelated and Handbrake doesn't even output the full video.

Any suggestions or thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

It sounds like a libdvdcss issue for Handbrake.

I'm not sure what Homebrew is but I would manually check the libdvdcss location and verify that you have the 64 bit libdvdcss.

 

[Ritsuka]

HandBrake 1.3 can load only signed libraries. HomeBrew libdvdcss is not signed.

 

[HDFan]

It sounds like a libdvdcss issue for Handbrake.

Since libdvdcss is used to create the rip, if there was an libdvdcss problem the original ripped copy would have been flawed. Since libdvdcss isn't involved in post play as the conversion is done i wouldn't see it as an obvious cause as the initial rips played without error.


I'm feeling that you are writing to files. Did you write to optical disks as well? If so what kind of disks were you writing to? Do some disks made at the same time fail and IF others not? Any difference in the manufacturers or disk types that could supply some clues?

 

[BW007]

If they don't play well on your IOS devices it greatly reduces the likelihood that it was a MacOS update issue. Do the files still show the original creation and modified dates? Do you have a way to put some on a USB stick and try to play them on another ecosystem device, such as Windows? Do you have a TV with a USB port you could try?

They do not play on my iOS devices either. Thanks for the advice. I will put some on a USB and find a windows machine.
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Since libdvdcss is used to create the rip, if there was an libdvdcss problem the original ripped copy would have been flawed. Since libdvdcss isn't involved in post play as the conversion is done i wouldn't see it as an obvious cause as the initial rips played without error.


I'm feeling that you are writing to files. Did you write to optical disks as well? If so what kind of disks were you writing to? Do some disks made at the same time fail and IF others not? Any difference in the manufacturers or disk types that could supply some clues?

All of the files played perfectly after they were ripped from their original DVD source. It was only much later (2-3 years) that the issues arose. Good to know that libdvdcss is not involved in post play. I was not sure, which is why I installed them again under 10.15 Catalina. If it were all the files, I might assume a corrupt external drive, but even though most were affected, some .m4v files play fine. I am not sure if it could be a codec that was on my MacBook at the time and no longer worked on a new macOS?
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HandBrake 1.3 can load only signed libraries. HomeBrew libdvdcss is not signed.

I followed instructions on how to get around this (I think). I installed Xcode, then Homebrew, then installed libdvdcss my user lib folder. My issue is not with newly ripped dvds, it is with previously ripped DVD .m4v files that were working and are now not either not playing or heavily pixelated. Thanks for any help.

 

[ColdCase]

I think I've heard awhile ago that some videos that played well via QT7, did not via more recent QT and iOS players. If I recall correctly, there were batch processes developed to convert tons of video to be more compatible (used more common specs). If you have an older computer around that still runs QT7, you may want to give that a try. I think it had something to do with codecs being stripped out of the players/OS support. I have some camera video that FCP converts as there are plans to strip more formats from Catalina+support . I would have thought VLC would handle it, but perhaps not if it depends on OS supplied stuff.. .

You may have to load an older OS with support for those video files, and convert them to something your modern OS understands.... or there are probably shops that specialize in convertions.

 

[BW007]

Update. I appreciate all the advice/suggestions so far. After installing multiple video players, converters, codecs, etc... with no success, I guess the files are a lost cause. I did use the Scoop app to display detailed info on each .m4v and all the videos that play had a 'Writing Application' of Handbrake 1.*.* (ex 1.0.7) or greater, the videos that DO NOT play properly have a 'Writing Application' of Handbrake 0.*.* (ex 0.9.5) or 'Writing Application' of CoreMediaAuthoring 700. Does anyone know if older Handbrake versions used a codec the later Handbrake versions did not? Again, thanks for any advice.

 

[ColdCase]

Handbrake and other apps are basically gui over the built in OS so called Codecs, with optimized settings. I think you need to install an older OS or find a Mac thats running an OS of the vitage the videos were created, with a more complete set. No guarantees but if you find a computer that can play them then you could possibly convert the videos to something more common I always have old OSs around just for these kinds of things. Doesn’t always work, but it has saved my bacon a couple times.

 

[HDFan]

What encoding does something like MediaInfo show? Is there a codec difference between those that play and those that do not?

Do they also not play in Windows (which tends to support legacy stuff longer than MacOS)?