Can't import any type of video

Cubase
#1

I’ve tried in Cubase 10 and gone back and tried 9.5 and I can’t open any types of video at all. If I try to import nothing happens. It’s as if I haven’t done anything. If I drag and drop it has the circle with a line through it and If I create a video track and try drop onto that exactly the same. I even tried to just extract audio from video import and again nothing.

I’m running Win10 and all the videos will play in win10 if I just double click them so my PC looks to have the codecs to play them all. I’ve tried MOV AVI and MPG.

#2

Hi,

What video codec do you use? Is it a Cubase supported codec?

#3

Hi

I haven’t actually added any codecs. It’s just what windows has. Should I be specifically getting codecs? I remember using this a few years ago and it just working.

The manual is very vague

#4

FYI – here is the list of supported codecs in Cubase. Keep in mind that Cubase does NOT use the codecs from the OS… it has its own new engine now, as of Cubase 9.0.30 and later:

https://helpcenter.steinberg.de/hc/en-us/articles/115000808250-Video-support-in-Nuendo-Cubase-and-Dorico

#5

I read that earlier but it doesn’t mention how to get a codec and then import it into Cubase. So it mentions ProRes which is apple. If I search for this I get to QuickTime. I download this but still it doesn’t work in Cubase. What specifically do I need and how does Cubase use it?

#6

I think I see what you mean. Forget about QuickTime. It is no longer needed. In fact, if you are on Windows, you should NOT have it installed. It is a security risk now. So I suggest you uninstall QuickTime and be done with it, unless you are willing to live with the security risks. There are NO extra codec files to download or install for the new video engine inside Cubase (except Avid DNxHD which requires a license purchase from Steinberg). So the codecs that are needed to play back the supported video files inside Cubase are already built into the Cubase video engine, WITHOUT worrying about QuickTime. All you need to do is load a video into Cubase that is already encoded in a supported codec. In the case of ProRes, the file must be in a MOV container file (which it probably already is).

File > Import > Video File

Select the file and you will be good to go IF the file is supported. If Cubase won’t load it up, then there might be a file issue or some other issue going on, or it is not encoded in a supported codec. You’ll have to troubleshoot the file itself and find out exactly what container and codec was used when the file was created. It must be encoded in a format that Cubase can play back. That link I mentioned above lists the supported containers and codecs.

If you are having more trouble, then you need to use some sort of tool to confirm what your source file is… and/or re-encode it into a different codec that is supported. There are some other threads in the forum that deal with that situation.

Hope this helps a little.

#7

I found that some .mov files won’t load, but the same video in MP4 will it seems.

#8

ok thanks. So the files I’m trying to look at are all recorded on my iPhone. I’ll see if I can convert one to MP4 and see if that loads

#9

If you have iOS 11 or higher, then the videos that your iPhone records are most likely in HEVC codec (aka H265), which is NOT supported by the Steinberg video engine. It’s another “gift” that Apple has quickly forced on users, once again throwing a wrench into the workflow of many people with little notice. HEVC has not been natively supported by many third-party tools until more recently… and Steinberg will NOT likely support it for a while IMO. iPhones used to record natively in H264, which WAS supported. So unless the files have already been transcoded (re-encoded) into H264, depending on how you have exported them, then you will have to manually re-encode them into H264, either as an H264 MOV file or a H264 MP4 file. Hope that helps!

Once you wrap your mind around the various issues of codecs, which can be a big pain in the neck, you’ll get the hang of this, and you’ll know when you need to re-encode something. Bottom line is that for the Steinberg video engine you need to confirm that the file you are using has been encoded in a codec that is supported.

Again, for easy reference for those just reading:

https://helpcenter.steinberg.de/hc/en-us/articles/115000808250-Video-support-in-Nuendo-Cubase-and-Dorico

#10

Exactly. MOV is just a container. The codec inside the MOV file could be one of many. Steinberg will only play back MOV files that contain a codec it recognizes, which is a small subset of all the available codecs.

Like I mentioned to mkok, if your MOV file came from a recent iPhone, then it most likely is encoded in HEVC/H265, which is NOT currently supported by Steinberg. So then you would indeed have to re-encode it into something else, such as MP4/H264 or MOV/H264 in order for it to work in Cubase.

#11

Thanks guys. It really is pain. I did a conversion to what I thought was H264 but it still wouldn’t load. Will try something different in VLC. It was the top option of MP3 inside MP4 H264. Will have to try until I find one that works. Very poor implementation to the point it’s almost useless.

#12

Out of curiosity (and this is not about Cubase), if I get rid of QuickTime on my computer, what happens when I want to play the video types that QT used to run for me? Windows Media Player (I’m on Windows 7) has a limited vocabulary.

#13

Has anyone used vlc to convert video and if so what settings did you use so cubase recognises the format? I’m going by the help table but still seem to be struggling to get in a format from my iPhone to one cubase will open. Cheers

#14

Right… unless there is some really compelling reason for you to keep QuickTime on your Windows machine, and you are willing to accept the risk factors (which are actually more serious than some people want to admit to themselves!), then I’d suggest you seriously consider removing QT from your Windows machine. There are several options for other media players out there for general playback, etc. Personally, I use VLC media player 3 – http://www.videolan.org/ – it supports an excellent number of codecs and doesn’t mess around with your computer in my experience. It can also be used by Reaper, BTW, in case you ever try that DAW out. (Not that I’m suggesting you try Reaper at all… I’m personally not a fan, but I’m just mentioning it as a point of reference that VLC is solid enough to be used as the actual video engine for another DAW.)

#15

I don’t use VLC for video conversion – wish I could help you with personal experience on that issue. I use Adobe Premiere Pro CC or Adobe Media Encoder CC for conversions. I used to use Vegas Pro for conversions. And for someone who might be willing to experiment, DaVinci Resolve 15 has a free version that might help you out, but that’s probably also overkill for this task. I know there are numerous smaller utilities out there that will do something similar for conversion purposes. I just can’t personally vouch for them so I’ll defer to other folks’ experience on good third-party conversion tools besides Adobe or full-featured video editing programs.

#16

Thanks. So vlc looks to be out. Anyone know of a simple feee converter for video files so I can get my iPhone videos into Cubase?

#17

Come to think of it, I remember seeing something mentioned over in the Nuendo forum:

https://www.steinberg.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=275&t=118970&start=25

Here’s the link:

https://audiospot.audio/audiospot-creativetools

I’ve never used it, but some Nuendo users seem to like it.

#18

Thanks I’ll take a look

#19

Well that worked :blush: must look at throttling back the cpu useage though as it runs all my cores at full 100% and gets very warm. I’m happy for it to take longer and run a bit cooler.

So now I can get the videos into cubase and process the audio. I take it since a Cubase strips the audio from the video I can’t save it back into the video and will have to use another program to re-combine them? Think it’s time to read the manual again now I can get the videos working in cubase.

Cheers for the link. Nice and simple just as I asked :+1:

#20

Glad to hear that worked! Haven’t had a chance to check it out myself, but seems like a great utility. Cheers!