Premiere Pro 25 / 24 – Audio importing as a file without wave waveform, empty playback on macOS m1

[Ioannis5EEA]

Hi everyone,

I’m having a serious issue with Premiere Pro.

• Version: Premiere Pro 25.5 (also tested with 24.x)

• System: macOS 15 (Tahoe) on MacBook Pro M1

Problem:
When I import any audio file (m4a, mp3, even wav):

• No waveform is generated (looks empty)

• Playback doesn’t work (timeline and source monitor are silent)

• It’s as if the file is completely empty

What I’ve tried:

• Deleted media cache and preferences

• Tested different formats (m4a, mp3, wav)

• Converted audio to WAV 48kHz/16bit

• Reset Audio Hardware in preferences

• Reinstalled Premiere Pro (both v25 and v24)

Still no luck – audio files show up but act like blank/empty clips.

Question:

• Is this a known issue with Premiere Pro 25 / 24 on macOS 15 (Tahoe)?

• Any workaround or fix available?

[jamieclarke]

Hi @Ioannis5EEA -   Thanks for submitting your bug report. We need a few more details to try to help with the issue.

Are these new projects or upgraded projects?

In Settings > Audio Do you have "Generate waveforms automatically during import" checked in the settings?

If you highlight the media in your project panel and then navigate to the clip menu and select "Generate Audio Waveform" does that help?

Do you have your media cache settings set to custom?

Sorry for the frustration.

[Ioannis5EEA]

i just update my mac os to latest os and download premiere pro i haven't
done any changes in settings

[jamieclarke]

Hi @Ioannis5EEA - 

Are these new projects or upgraded projects?

In Settings > Audio Do you have "Generate waveforms automatically during import" checked in the settings?

If you highlight the media in your project panel and then navigate to the clip menu and select "Generate Audio Waveform" does that help?

Can you try and hold down "SHIFT" while launching Premiere and check the boxes
"Reset app preferences" (Backup Preferences first)
"Clear media cache files"
"Reset plugin loading cache"
"Disable third-party plugins (one-time only)"

[Ioannis5EEA]

when i press shift + the app doesn't show any options to select.i upload some setting screenshots may this helps you to solve the bad issue.it bothers me a lot.premiere aslo activate the microphone.

[Pixelkiller]

@jamieclarke I had a similar behaviour with Premiere Pro 25.5.0.13 under MacOS 13.5 Ventura on a M2 Studio Max. All waveforms across several codecs and formats had disappeared in any given project. Deleting Media Cache (.pek) files wouldn't do the job but a restart with SHIFT held immediately fixed the problem, thanks!