Issues playing 4K MKV files with HEVC/H.265 codec in VLC media player


If you are having issues playing HEVC/H.265 encoded 4K MKV movies in VLC media player, you may have interest in this post. It displays a workaround to transcode 4K MKV with HEVC/H.265 codec for viewing through VLC player smoothly.

Image pixilated playing HEVC 4K MKV in VLC player
“Hi guys, I have been a happy user of VLC media player for several years. It plays almost everything I throw at it. Recently, I’ve downloaded a 4K MKV movie with HEVC (aka H.265) codec, which VLC could open, but I got pixilated image as below. I have updated to the most recent version of VLC, but the problem still exists. Any solutions to solve this? Please help. Thanks.”
issues playing HEVC/H.265 encoded 4K MKV in VLC

To be able to play 4K MKV files encoded with H.265/HEVC with VLC player, we would recommend converting them to a format that is well compatible with VLC first, such as H.264 MP4, a widely-accepted video format, which VLC will recognize and play well. Here’s how.

How to prepare 4K MKV with HEVC/H.265 codec for playback in VLC player?

HD Video Converter is a great application to convert video files, available for Windows and Mac computers.
transcode 4K MKV with HEVC/H.265 codec for VLCbest H.265/HEVC Converter for VLC
Note that the Mac version of this converter is not able to handle HEVC/H.265 videos, to convert HEVC/H.265 files for VLC on a Mac machine, please try this HEVC/H.265 Converter for Mac.

Follow these steps:
Step 1: Start up HD Video Converter as the best H.265/HEVC Converter for VLC player. When its main interface pops up, click ‘Add File’ to load your video files. You can load multiple files at a time. To join the imported video files into one, simply tick off the checkbox before ‘Merge into one file’.
prepare 4K MKV with HEVC/H.265 codec for playback in VLC

Step 2: Select H.264 MP4 as output format
Form ‘Profile’ list, choose ‘HD Video’ > ‘HD H.264/MPEG-4 AVC Video (*.mp4)’ as output format.
prepare 4K MKV with HEVC/H.265 codec for playback in VLC
Important: If you’ve loaded a number of video clips to do batch conversion, please do remember ticking off ‘Apply to All’ option before you start.

Step 3: Custom video and audio settings
If necessary, you can click ‘Settings’ button and go to ‘Profiles Settings’ panel to modify video and audio settings like video encoder, resolution, video bit rate, frame rate, aspect ratio, audio encoder, sample rate, audio bit rate, and audio channels. 3D settings are also available.

Step 4: Start 4K H.265/HEVC MKV to VLC conversion
When ready, click ‘Convert’ to start format conversion. As soon as the conversion is complete, you can click ‘Open Folder’ button to get the exported H.264 MP4 files for playback with VLC player fluently.

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