Exported h.264's freeze when played back

[M-Long]

I have a clip in a sequence that was recorded on a7sII as an h.264. After I export the sequence, the playback freezes midway through this particular clip every time. It happens on every computer, every video player, and every time I try to re-export.

I've tried isolating the clip in the selection and exporting just the clip in a series of tests. Playback of the exported clip always freezes at the same point.

I've also found this only happens when I export as h.264. Other formats seem to work fine. I'd like to avoid having to export to another format and transcode back to h.264 every time I export for this project.

Is there something wrong with the clip itself? I can play back the original un-edited video file, but I can't play it once it's been put through premiere and exported as a new file.

Thanks.

[Ann Bens]

Export clip with intermediate codec.

Put that on the timeline and export sequence.

[M-Long]

UPDATE: Exporting anything to h.264 seems to be a problem. When I play back any exported mp4's in any media player, the image freezes and audio cuts out.

I've tested exporting several different file types to h.264. All have the same issues.

I've tried exporting from Media Encoder and directly from Premiere. Same problems.

When I bring one of these broken mp4s back into premiere, the clip is shortened - cuts off earlier than the section I had exported.

Exporting to an intermediate codec won't help because in the end, I'm exporting the product to h.264.

[RPL5ECB]

This probably doesn't help but we're experiencing the same issues. No matter what we do with files, exporting in h.264 results in a video that cuts out 1/3 to halfway through, every time. I've read that the 15.1 update was supposed to solve the issue but it keeps cropping up and we've definitely updated to the latest version. I'd like to know what the workaround is too.

[M-Long]

The latest updates (Premiere & Media Encoder v15.2) seemed to fix this issue for a time, but now it's back. Anyone else experiencing this? Exports always trip up on playback (any player) in the last few seconds of the duration.

[julianlll]

Same problem here. h264 never makes it to the end of the clip.

Also cant find any news on this or ways to fix it elsewhere.

[Phillip Harvey]

Did you try using Software Encoding and not Hardware Encoding?

Also, what happens if you export to an intermediate codec and then drop that into AME and make your H264 version from that? (This is a pretty common workflow anyway.) But does that H264 encode also have the issue even if it's based on a master?

[julianlll]

Software and Hardware Encoding produce the same error.

Same issue when exporting from a master (Apple ProRes) file, but it tends to happen a little later than exporting straight from the project.

[Phillip Harvey]

Quite strange! If you use the ProRes Master to create an H264 in a different software, like Handbrake, does it turn out fine? (I'm assuming this is isolated to Adobe software but that would confirm.)

[julianlll]

Handbrake cannot work with those mxf files, but VLC renders the ProRes master file perfectly as h264.

[Ann Bens]

Shutter Encoder encoding|converting video FREE PC|Mac

[julianlll]

Thanks for the recommendation.

Still would like a properly working export in AME and Premiere 😉

[julianlll · Accepted solution]

Found out something new just now. If I opt for VBR, 2pass instead of 1pass it seems to work everytime in AME and in Premiere

[default76sr7w01pprm]

THX julianlll

it works with the 2pass.

Because of this issue i was still using a very old encoder…

they havent fixed it til today.

[davez73630965]

I'm running .22 and beta .v23 of Premiere

Seems to be an issue with HLG Color Space.  The only way I could get this to export was to upgrade to the BETA version of Premiere.  Redo the colorgrade because apparently the way colorspace is handled in the beta version is much different.  Then export ProRes HQ which then generated a 1TB file for an 90-minute long edit.  This is a bit absurd and would think this would be resolved.

[travvytrav]

Holy crap, is this still not resolved yet???  ADOBE, WE CAN'T EXPORT MP4 FILES, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!  

I've gotten around it in most cases by exporting in h265 or HEVC, but that's not compatible with every application.

Getting pretty ridiculous here y'all... 

[M-Long]

Just noted the correct answer in the thread. Set encoding to 2 pass VBR.