Export multichannel mp4/h.264 with Adobe Premiere Pro CC

Report · Jan 16, 2015

Dear community,

we currently test the Adobe Premiere Pro CC trial (German) on a Windows 7 Professional PC.

However, we are not succentful in exporting a multichannel mp4/H.264 clip.

We haven't found an answer on our issue so far, so I hope that this question was not answered several times before in this forum.

If we chosse the H.264 exporter, we cannot select a multichannel audio export (only mono, stereo, 5.1).

In contrary, if we select the Quicktime exporter, we are able to export our sequence with a 4 channel audio master with 4 mono tracks, but we can only export it with a DVCPro Codec in a mov container.

If we try to select a HD H.264 preset we get an error alert stating that the preset contains a not compatible video codec.

What are we doing wrong?

Thanks for every suggestion.

Thanks in advance

André

Report · Jan 16, 2015

If I choose Quicktime-H264 with uncompressed audio I get the following options.

Report · Jan 16, 2015

Thanks for your immediate reply, Richard.

This is correct. We do get the multichannel audio export possibility within the Dropdownlist of the Quicktime exporter.

But we do not want to export the clip uncompressed into a mov file.

Instead we try to select a H.264 Video codec which currently raises an alert popup as described above. Does this also happen in your case?

André

Report · Jan 16, 2015

Just a couple of observations. You have a 24p preset but I can see a 25 frame rate box checked, also the pixel size is non standard for 720p.The uncompressed box I checked is only for the audio the video is H264, I have tried various alternatives with my export and I can't get your error report. I'm on V8.0.1 I see you're on a later version, not sure if that makes a difference.

Report · Jan 19, 2015

Thanks for your thoughts, Richard.

Your are right, we currentky use the Adobe Premiere Creative Cloud version.

We managed it to solve at least the error message. It was caused because Quicktime was not installed together with the Adobe Premiere Pro / AME setup on our computer.

After we installed Quicktime 7 manually, we can select a Quicktime/H.264 preset without any problems within the exporter settings.

However, the Quicktime/H.264 export dialog seems to only allow a mono or stereo audio export. No multichannel-audio export.

This possibility is only displayed in Richards case, if we select the Quicktime exporter and an Uncompressed Video or DV preset.

Our question to the Adobe developer guys is the reason behind this limition? Other video authoring prograns can export a mp4 with H.264 Codec with multichannel AAC without any problems.

How can we do this with Adobe Premiere Pro (not necessarily via Quicktime)?

André

Report · Jan 19, 2015

If you are Premiere Pro CC and Richard is on CC 2014, there were new multichannel options for Quicktime exports in the 2014 release (probably the October 8.1 - Richard's, or December 8.2 release)

Is that the limitation you refer to with reference to your prior 2014 version?

Report · Jan 19, 2015

Thanks for your feedback, dummergold.

We are actually using a Premiere Pro CC 2014 version as you can see within the screenshots. The help page states Build 8.2.0 (65), Version 2014.2. Quicktime Version is 7.7.6 (1680.95.31).

The limitation in our program version is that we cannot export a multichannel audio H.264 file - neither with the native H.264 exporter nor with the Quicktime exporter. It's only possible to select a mono or stereo audio option although we use a four channel audio master in our project sequence. It only works if we select another video codec such as DV-AVI or an MXF container.

Or is this behavior by design that Premiere Pro sees a H.264 file merely as an end-user distribution file format where a multichannel-audio support is unneccessary so that we have to use mxf as a production format? Nevertheless, AAC in combination with a H.264 video file in an mp4 container should support multichannel audio exports.

André

Report · Jan 20, 2015

My browser only shows Richard's pictures. I used to be able to see yours through this browser. I did load your screen shots in with another browser.

What if you choose 'custom' in the preset field? That should give you the multichannel output option. Attached photo.

Report · Jan 27, 2015

What if you choose 'custom' in the preset field? That should give you the multichannel output option

Unfortunately only if I select a DV Codec there. We need a H.264/AAC target video codec. AAC within an mp4 isom container should also be capable of containing more than two audio channels.

Nevertheless, we found another solution for us, not Premiere Pro related.

Thanks for all your suggestions.

Report · Jan 23, 2016

I am seeing very similar and would like to find a solution. I would like to export H.264 at a highresolution with 4 channels of audio, as per milkvr spec

When choosing h.264 under the 'format' dropdown, I can get the resolution desired, set from the sequence: 3840x1080. however audio has no options to set the multichannel output. If I change the 'format' dropdown to quicktime, I can set the codec to H.264 and set the audio to the 4 channels, however the resolution is capped at 2000x2000.

version is 9.1

Report · Mar 20, 2016

Hi! Did you find a solution for this in the meantime? I am trying to export a 4-channel MP4 for MilkVR as well and can't find a way to export multichannel audio.

Report · May 04, 2016

Hi Andre,

Just curious what your solution was?

Thanks,

Zach

Report · May 04, 2016

I think the only solution is to output as quicktime, and convert to MP4 via Handbrake (or similar), which worked for me - this process retained the multiple audio tracks and channels.

Report · May 04, 2016

Hmmm... I just gave that a shot and it didn't quite work.

I'm not sure why though, everything looked good in handbrake but I when I checked the file afterwards I could see that it had all 4 audio streams but they all got summed to the Center channel output.

Regardless, thanks for the help!

Report · May 04, 2016

Yeah, I guess it all depends what you're using to view/play. My video is going on an Android app - so the developer can select the individual tracks via script.

Report · Aug 10, 2016

what settings did you use within handbrake to retain the multiple channel audio?

Report · Apr 21, 2016

I have run into the same problem - I need to export an MP4 with multiple voiceover audio channels (different languages for each channel, which an Android app will then choose).

I have managed to get the quicktime exported with 4 audio channels, but MP4 does not offer multichannel.

Does anybody have a workaround with a third party vid conveter which will get the quicktime to an MP4 and preserve the discrete audio channels?

Report · Oct 21, 2016

Sorry - looks like I'm not getting email notifications from community pages any more! Even THIS is getting buggy! Did you get sorted?

Report · Nov 14, 2016

Guys finally found a solution.

I managed to have two tracks each stereo without down mixing using ffmpeg. Actually iFFmpeg GUI for macOS.

You just have to add a audio track and thats it. If you have previously exported multitrack QuickTime you can choose streams for each corresponding audio track.

Report · Apr 14, 2017

HI All, Just wanted to chime in here Andre thank you for the post and I am glad you found a solution, just kinda wish you could share it with the rest of us....

After exhaustively reading the post and not getting any good answers, I got answers but always I was referred to purchase some type pf software or be a programmer and try to write script...We don't have time for all that we are under a deadline and Kudos to those who can, you're very smart.

I needed to deliver a file in H.264 with AAC Audio multichannel as a mp4. As you know PPro cannot export H.264 files with Multichannel AAC audio as an .mp4, the only options are stereo, 5.1 or mono...

So you have to export a file as H.264 QT with uncompressed audio to get all the channels.

Okay here we go, you have a multi channel output lets just say 4 channels In PPro prep your file the best way you know how. when you are ready to export make sure to check VIDEO CODEC to H.264 your format can be Quicktme it won't matter for the conversion, just make sure your Video Codec is H.264 in the Audio tab assign your channels, again Im not going to explain this part.

once you export your file you should have a H.264 QT movie with however many channels in this case 4 Channels.

Open the file with Handbrake which is free, FREE no limited trial or other BS. once the file is open check the preset tab it should say MP4 File

check the video tab and the picture tabs to make sure al is okey dokey, open the audio tab and select tracks tab and import all tracks voila the tracks all appear in this case 4 now you do have to change sone settings to the right of each track, codec which should be set to AAC, mixdown set to mono, sample rate 48, bitrate whatever is required in my case 256.

thats it drop it into the queue and start exporting. once it finishes if all was done right you should have a H.264 multichannel file with a MP4 extension.

to verify use either MPEGstream clip or MediaInfo which is also free to verify the file codec is H.264 and the format is a MP4.

Hope this helps...

Report · Feb 20, 2020

there is no option for H264 video codec when Quicktime is your format choice.

Report · May 21, 2020

The Adobe company still didn't solve this problem??? 😮

5 years have passed!!!!!!!

It's a shame!!
As they said on their website: "

"Any camera. Any format. Any platform."

😄 😄 😄
In this time, when by mobile phone recorded videos playing day by day in the broadcast media, the adobe still didn't recognise their weekest point(s).

No worries!

You should just use another video editing program... 😉

Report · Nov 20, 2020

It´s really a shame. I also need to export C300 mkII footage with 4 audiochannels in h264. No chance with Premiere.

Handbreak does the job.

Report · Jun 21, 2021

Multi-channel H264 was a result of legacy QuickTime, which Apple deprecated back in 2013 in favor of AV Foundation Frameworks. QuickTime as s system driver for time-based media going away sidelinesd a lot of workflows.

As far as the MP4 wrapper goes, it only supports Mono, Stereo, or 5.1 (not multi-channel).

That said, maybe the Premiere Pro team could come up with a way to support H264 via AV Foundation Frameworks (Mac Only) or some other method that allows for going out-of-spec for MP4 or working around it via MOV. That request needs to go here: https://adobe-video.uservoice.com

In the meantime, someone who needs multi-channel H264 can export to multi-channel QuickTime ProRes and then convert that to H264 in the Finder via "Encode Selected Videos". But again, Mac only.

As far as broadcast television playing video recorded on mobile devices goes, that's only user-supplied content and it's been converted for air, most likely edited as an Avid Media Composer file (that is, Avid DNxHD mxf) prior to broadcast.

Report · Jun 21, 2021

This is possible now in Adobe Premiere. In the Audio Tab, just select MPEG and click on the Stereo Button. Then chhose Dual Channel from the drop down menu.