file has an unsupported compression type - mp4 H.264

Report · Jul 30, 2022

Hello! I know that this question has been asked before, but I can't seem to find a way to solve my issue because I don't understand every single thing people mention in help pages. So my problem is that I get "the file has an unsupported compression type" error message whenever I try to import an mp4 file. I'm not sure why this is happening, because I always do the same thing (download videos from Youtube to use in my project), and about a month ago this error message has popped up. And well, I have no idea what to do about it. I tried to clean caches, update my windows and drivers, I even unstalled Premiere Pro, but nothing seems to help.

People recommended to check information about the mp4 file, so I attached a picture of that as well. If anything seems weird, please let me know, because I'm not sure what to look for. mp3 files are fine, but all mp4 files just won't import. Editing videos is just a hobby for me, but I want Premiere to work obviously. Thank you in advance!

Report · Jul 30, 2022

Maybe this could be helpful? This is log file from the time that the error occurred.

Report · Jul 30, 2022

The files downloaded from YT might be your issue.

Convert and try again.

Report · Jul 30, 2022

How many times do I have to try? I have this problem with all mp4 files and I already tried multiple websites.

I also tried to import it to the media encoder. And it also gives an error of not accepting the mp4 file.

Report · Jul 30, 2022

Did you read my post? Convert clips to something Premiere will accept. Try Handbrake or Shutter Encoder.

Report · Jul 30, 2022

I tried to convert it to h.264 and AVI files, but they don't work. Which type of file do you recommend to try out?

Report · Jul 30, 2022

H.264 would be fine. Which converter?

Report · Jul 30, 2022

I'm not sure which converter I picked, I've tried so many by now. But the H264 had no audio.

I have found a solution, but it's not ideal. I use Handbrake now to convert the mp4 file to m4v, and Premiere accepts it now. I'm looking for a website that lets me download a Youtube video from url to m4v, but I don't think that exists. Or it'd be great to just download any other type of file from a Youtube url. Because now I have to do more steps than I was used to. I'm wondering if Youtube changed something that makes it harder to download videos.

@Ann Bens wrote:
H.264 would be fine. Which converter?