Substance 3D Sampler 5.x – Application Fails to Launch After Clean Install (Vulkan Error)

[Utku92]

Hello Adobe Support,

I have been experiencing a persistent issue with Substance 3D Sampler 5.x on my system, and after extensive troubleshooting with NVIDIA support, the issue still remains unresolved.

Problem Summary:

• Sampler 5.x works correctly right after a clean Windows installation.

• After 1–2 weeks of use, the application suddenly fails to launch.

• Version 4.5.2 works without any issues.

• Event Viewer consistently shows errors related to vulkan-1.dll during the crash.

• The issue only affects Adobe applications (Sampler and Designer). All other games and applications using Vulkan run without any problems.

Steps Already Taken:

1. Multiple clean driver installations (both Studio and Game Ready drivers, using DDU and NVIDIA Cleanup Tool).

2. Tested on both Windows 10 and Windows 11 – same issue occurs.

3. Performed multiple full OS reinstalls (4+ times) and confirmed the same pattern:

   • Works after a fresh install → fails to launch after some time.

4. Tried with offline local Microsoft account (not cloud-linked).

5. Disabled/removed third-party software (antivirus, VPN, AdGuard, etc.).

6. Performed SFC /scannow, DISM, clean boot – no effect.

7. Confirmed this is not hardware-related, as the problem only affects Adobe Sampler 5.x.

Additional Notes:

• NVIDIA engineers analyzed the case and suggested that this is most likely an application-level issue in Adobe Substance 3D Sampler’s Vulkan implementation.

• Other users have reported similar crashes in Adobe forums, but there is no confirmed fix yet.

• I have attached the Event Viewer logs (.evtx) that consistently show the Vulkan runtime failure.

Request:
Could you please investigate whether there is a known compatibility issue between Adobe Substance 3D Sampler 5.x and NVIDIA Vulkan drivers? If so, is there a fix or workaround available?

At the moment, the only solution is to revert back to version 4.5.2, which is not affected.

Thank you for your support,
Utku Göğüş

[Utku92]

Isn't there anyone who can help? 

[Guillaume_Substance3D]

Hello,

Sorry to read you have this issue.

It seems you have a lot of third parties running in background.

First, I need the log from Substance Sampler Help/Export Log

[Guillaume_Substance3D]

Hello,

Sorry to read you have this issue.

It seems you have a lot of third parties running in background.

First, I need the log from Substance Sampler Help/Export Log

[Utku92]

Hello,

Version 5.1.1 won’t launch — can I revert to 4.5.6 and submit it that way?

[Guillaume_Substance3D]

Yes please. It will provide some hardware and driver version I need to start my diagnostic.

[Guillaume_Substance3D]

If you see the splash screen of 5.1.1 you can find the log file in your Appdata.

C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Adobe\Adobe Substance 3D Sampler

[Utku92]

The 5.1.1 file location was empty, so I extracted the log file from version 4.5.2.

[Utku92]

I couldn’t attach the txt file to the site.

[Utku92]

https://limewire.com/d/oQWW7#yGN0qxMrIV

[Utku92]

I uploaded it to the site, but the edit section isn’t visible. Unfortunately, it’s not available for version 5.1.1.

[Guillaume_Substance3D]

You're currently using the Game Ready Driver. Have you tried switching to the Studio Driver?

I’ve previously seen a similar issue caused by third-party video recording software. Specifically OBS Studio hooking into the system. The problem was resolved after an update.

My guess is that we need to identify which software is hooking into the Vulkan library on your machine. Substance Sampler either works out of the box or doesn’t work at all. I’ve never seen it stop functioning with the same driver after a period of time.

Since you've switched between different versions, please clean the Substance Sampler AppData folder located at: 

C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\Adobe Substance 3D Sampler

Confirmed this is not hardware-related, as the problem only affects Adobe Sampler 5.x.

Additional Notes:

• NVIDIA engineers analyzed the case and suggested that this is most likely an application-level issue in Adobe Substance 3D Sampler’s Vulkan implementation.

By @Utku92

It seems you have reach nVIDIA engineers, can you provide me there contact?

Other users have reported similar crashes in Adobe forums, but there is no confirmed fix yet.

By @Utku92

I need links of those cases please. Similar does not mean identical.

Problem Summary:

• The issue only affects Adobe applications (Sampler and Designer). All other games and applications using Vulkan run without any problems.

...

Steps Already Taken:

7. Confirmed this is not hardware-related, as the problem only affects Adobe Sampler 5.x.

By @Utku92

Only Sampler or other software are affected? If other software are affected I'm pretty confident that SAmpler is not the cause of this issue.

Thanks

Guillaume

[Utku92]

Yes, I’ve also tried the Studio Driver, but the result didn’t change. I even installed the Vulkan SDK, but the outcome was the same. I had already cleaned the folder and even did a fresh installation, but it still doesn’t work.

After a clean installation and format, version 5.1.1 worked for a while — all my programs were installed and running fine. However, after about a week, it stopped launching.

Yes, I contacted the NVIDIA support team — they couldn’t solve the problem and redirected me to you, stating that the issue originates from your side.

In Adobe Designer, the problem occurs in the render section; it crashes when changing the object.

I can send the NVIDIA support page related to the issue as a PDF, since it seems sharing the site link isn’t allowed.

[Guillaume_Substance3D]

In VulkanSDK\...\Bin is vkcube.exe run properly?

[Utku92]

Yes, it’s working — a fast-spinning cube appeared.

[Utku92]

Adobe 3d sampler Wont open | NVIDIA

[Guillaume_Substance3D · Accepted solution]

• Are you using OBS Studio?
• What kind of screen recording software are installed?
• What kind of software with screen overlay are you using?

This is very important to diagnose this first.

On my side I can continue to try to help you, but the issue is not related to Substance Sampler, another app is hooking your Vulkan lib.

[Utku92]

I’m not using any screen recording application. Windows 11 only has the Snipping Tool. Is there no way to resolve this issue?

[Guillaume_Substance3D]

The problem is, it works properly, and after some time it is not working. That makes me crazy 😉 , and make your case hard to solve.

I have see some of your crash report for Designer. And everything is point to the screen recorder/overly issue.

[Utku92]

It’s a problem that no one has been able to solve :D. I’ve probably talked to six different people from the Nvidia support team, but we didn’t get any results. I also have Bitdefender Total Security, but I don’t think it’s a virus. I have no idea which program or running software could be causing this.

[Utku92]

New log file :

https://limewire.com/d/fWq1e#rYjyRE4VQk

[Guillaume_Substance3D]

Thanks, I will check with developpers.

[Utku92]

Hello,

Thank you very much for your help and effort. With the log file and assistance from ChatGPT, I was able to resolve the issue. The FPS Monitor application in my Steam library was assigning a value to the Vulkan location in the Registry. After deleting that entry, the problem was fixed. Thank you again, and I wish you all the best in your work.

Bilgisayar\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Khronos\Vulkan\ImplicitLayers

[Guillaume_Substance3D]

Nice.

So I guessed right, it was an overlay app.

Glad to see you solved your issue.

Have a nice day.