@MrDeagle

Hi.

Have you downloaded any other programs that could have additional video or audio codec packs in them such as players?

Also it is better to directly load images onto the webpage using the up arrow in blue in these text boxes please. It's visually quicker and we don't have to worry about being taken to unknown sites.

Thank you.

Ray.

Hello,

Nothing has been downloaded, simply turned on the computer and started using the program and it started with the error at the end of edit. I have also restarted the computer a couple of times to no effect.

Also I've changed the imgur link to the actual picture.

@MrDeagle

Hi and welcome to the forum

We need more information:

1. Computer specification, Program full name, variant ie Basic, Plus or Premium and version number as found under Help about - see this topic for more details of what is required.
    
2. Which export preset are you using and did you change any of the settings?

John EB
Forum Moderator

Hello,

My computer specs are

and I am using the most upto date verison of Premium.

I use the Mpeg-4 export setting and the videos now export as .m2ts where as before they used to come out as .mp4

Hello

Reference the above

Although going off of what you said, I didn't notice that it was user defined. I have chnaged it to "MP4 FullHD 1920x1080 59.94p and it has happily started exporting and also exporting much faster than it was before. Hopefully this was the fix and it was more user error than system error

@MrDeagle

Hi.

Glad to hear that.

Changing base settings can cause problems if you don't understand what the changes do to the file output.

Hopefully it's sorted for you.

Ray.

@MrDeagle

Hi

Slightly off topic (OT) however, I do see that you are exporting to your Desktop - this is not good practice and can cause issues, similarly if your source media is also on the desktop or in a folder on the desktop, you can have issues, especially if Windows decides to update and on the rare occasion resets the desktop, or, in a slightly more common case does a system rollback if it detects an issue on start up, you will lose any files that were saved on the desktop.

Any documents/files/pictures/video etc should be stored within the Documents folder, this is a protected folder which Windows should not touch under any circumstances.

John EB

@MrDeagle

Hi.

Glad to hear that.

Changing base settings can cause problems if you don't understand what the changes do to the file output.

Hopefully it's sorted for you.

Ray.

Thanks for your help Ray, do feel a bit daft it being a user error than a system one. but at least it was a quick fix

@MrDeagle

Hi

Slightly off topic (OT) however, I do see that you are exporting to your Desktop - this is not good practice and can cause issues, similarly if your source media is also on the desktop or in a folder on the desktop, you can have issues, especially if Windows decides to update and on the rare occasion resets the desktop, or, in a slightly more common case does a system rollback if it detects an issue on start up, you will lose any files that were saved on the desktop.

Any documents/files/pictures/video etc should be stored within the Documents folder, this is a protected folder which Windows should not touch under any circumstances.

John EB

Thanks John, admittedly I use this computer for video editing and then put the video on a external hard drive to then transfer to my main PC. But I was unaware of keeping files on the desktop, thanks for making me aware as I thought it was fine, definitely need to move some files around, thanks again.

@MrDeagle ...I use the Mpeg-4 export setting and the videos now export as .m2ts where as before they used to come out as .mp4...

The Export list naming is a bit illogical: "AVCHD Transport Stream" should also be titled "M2TS".

Greetings,
I have been getting the same error message ("An error has occurred during export with an external audio codec") intermittently and inconstantly when attempting to export video files to .mpg .  I am typically working with one ~55-min mp4 as the source video file and cutting it into several shorter individual videos that I want to export as individual mpg files. During the work session some of the short vids encode with no problem.  But every third or fourth time, I get the  audio error.  No changes are made in the encoding setup parameters between video encodings, nothing unusual about one short videos over the others except the duration.  The next day when starting over, an encoding that failed the day before will go through, but then another will trigger the error.  VERY FRUSTRATING!   
In the "MPEG export" setup I start with the "Standard DVD NTSC" preset, but change ONLY the following parameters from the preset default values:
-Interlace to  "Progressive"
-Advance Parameters:
    Average bit rate (kBit/sec) to "9343"  (I want to eventually produce a  HiQ 1-hr DVD)
    Maximum bit rate (kBit/sec) to "9650"
I have been using the MAGIX 2021 Plus for only a few weeks, and this problem just started a few days ago.  No new programs have been installed on my PC since well before I installed this new MAGIX version (have long been using MAGIX Pro 17 Plus prior to this upgrade without experiencing this error.)  
Any suggestions?
Thanks.

@mark-houston

Hi

You might be setting too high bitrate for the video considering the DVD standard should not exceed 10,000kbps and you need to add the audio bitrate on to that.

What type of audio is selected in the Advanced audio settings? if it is AC3 5.1 then that will add 448kbps. Even with stereo AC-3 will add 384kbps and this puts things too close to the standard limit and may explain the fact the failure seems random as some clips depending on their content may need / use more overall bits for the video.

Peter

@mark-houston

. . . . Average bit rate (kBit/sec) to "9343"  (I want to eventually produce a  HiQ 1-hr DVD) . . . .

In addition to @Scenestealer comment, increasing the bitrate to too high a level can also produce unplayable discs.

Are you intending to create the DVD or Blu-Ray disc from with Movie Edit Pro (MEP) 2021 (Magix is the company not the program name), or use other software to create the DVD?

If MEP is there a reason for exporting to mpg file?

If using other software to create the DVD what software are you using?

John EB

Thanks to both Peter & John for the responses. From your inputs and some tinkering on my own, I believe the issue is likely related to increasing the video bit-rate while trying to encode in MEP 2021 Pro. Over past several years I have encoded hundreds of very similar videos to mpg, for eventual compiling into DVDs, using MEP 17 Plus at the 9,340 kBit/sec rate, without encountering the audio codec error. I guess I will just have to accept the lower bit rate encoding or go back to using MEP 17 Plus. I find that I prefer the MEP 17 encoding parameters setup because it displays much more information on the resulting encoded video, while MEP 2021 provides no information at all. Also seems that MEP 17 provides more flexibility and capability in the encoding process based on this example. So far I'm not convinced that the $63 upgrade was worth it for me. Thanks again for your quick inputs.

Mark.

@mark-houston

I find that I prefer the MEP 17 encoding parameters setup because it displays much more information on the resulting encoded video, while MEP 2021 provides no information at all.

Can you clarify what you mean here please - where do you see this information after it is encoded?

Also seems that MEP 17 provides more flexibility and capability in the encoding process based on this example.

MEP17 used the older Main Concept encoder for MPEG2 encoding and it did give you more parameters to adjust prior to export, but the problem was that 99% of users would not understand the consequences of changing a lot of those parameters so there is more chance to make it worse rather than better. I am guessing but I think Magix may have dumbed down the advanced options when they went to the Intel (default) encoder, and is the reason the prompt seen at the top of this topic appears telling you to restore defaults, which resets all the preset export template settings.

You can still activate the Main Concept MPEG2 encoder for free in MEP2021 by opening the recording function with the red button and choosing Record to HDV which brings up a window asking if you would like to download the codec.

You can also download the MPEG4 Main Concept encoder for free, if a previous early version of MEP that had it is on your system, from the Install additional content window.

Peter

Peter,

The MEP17 encoded video information display that I referenced is shown in the "Summary" table on the

File >> "Export Movie" > "Video as mpeg" >> "Advanced" >> "General Settings" tab. I used the values shown to adjust my video encoding bitrate based on the DVD time capacity I wished to create.

Although I consider myself an 'intermediate skill level' (at best) MEP user, I would agree with you that it appears that the MEP2020/21 versions have 'simplified' the encoding setup parameters. Frankly, I never changed 90% of the default settings in MEP17, but it was a learning experience to see behind the scenes of the process.

Thanks for the pointers to the MPEG2 and MPEG4 Main Concept encoders. I think I have the MPEG4 encoder installed, as it was needed to work with mp4 files. Unsure if I would install the MC MPEG2 encoder for working in MEP2021 for fear of creating some kind of new conflict error. CHEERS!

Mark

@mark-houston

Hi

As @Scenestealer has said the 'dumbing down' ie restricting what you can actually change is a good thing - in the old version and MainConcept encoder dialogs there are a lot of parameters available which should not be touched - they are already optimised for best quality, compatability with players within the allowed DVD standard, therefore there is no need to adjust the bitrate settings.

. . . . adjust my video encoding bitrate based on the DVD time capacity I wished to create . . . .

If you use the built in disc creation direct from the timeline you will get better quality, exporting and re-importing leads to loss of quality as the video is compressed, decompressed when re-imported and compressed again when burning to disc - each compression throws away data losing quality.

Creating a disc direct from the timeline ie skipping the exporting as MPG - if you set the bitrate too high the burning process will warn you that the disc capacity will be exceeded and allow you to or automatically adjust the bitrate to fit.

You have not clarified if you are making DVD or Blu-Ray discs.

John EB

@mark-houston

. . . . adjust my video encoding bitrate based on the DVD time capacity I wished to create . . . .

This confuses me because you appear to be pushing the bitrate limit too much in order to get maximum quality but with this statement you appear to be prepared to lower the bit rate to make some of your encodes fit the DVD, so why not just lower your average and maximum to 9000 average and max 9300kbps and see if you don't get the error? From experience I believe you would not detect the difference in quality.

Unsure if I would install the MC MPEG2 encoder for working in MEP2021 for fear of creating some kind of new conflict error.

I believe your fear is unfounded - in my 17 years of using many versions of MEP and monitoring this forum I have never come across any conflict, nor could I think of any circumstance that might cause one. You can choose at anytime which encoder / codec to use by selecting it in the Program settings. If the MC encoder worked in MEP17 then it should work fine in MEP2021.

Peter

I don't wish to take up more of anyone's time or attention on this forum thread since my original inquiry has been answered, and the discussion is sort of drifting into other topics on the efficiency of working within the MEP programs.
Just to close the loop with John, I am creating ordinary NTSC DVDs.  I've never encountered a problem playing a DVD produced with the higher than 'standard' bitrate videos, as long as the finished product did not exceed ~97% capacity of the disk (% as determined by the DVD burning program I use, ImageBurn).

I stated using MEP17 in 2013 and over the years I have developed 'work around' procedures due to problems I encountered with the program functioning, perhaps caused by deficiencies with my PCs or maybe due to the MEP program installation becoming faulty, despite repeated reinstallation. These bugs became more acute as I started working higher quality MP4 source vids. One of the bugs that came on was that MEP did not recognize my DVD burner (missing or corrupt .dll files) so I began to use MEP to edit source vids, create export mpg (DVD) files, setup chapter markers in the individual videos, and create the DVD menu. I then copied the exported mpgs to a "DVD Image" Folder, renamed the copied files with the DVD syntax (VTS_01_1.VOB, VTS_02_1.VOB, etc), then used MEP to compile the DVD to the DVD Image folder, ONLY creating menu and chapter files while using the VTS_**_1.VOBs (the renamed mpgs) files in the folder (that way no additional manipulation, encoding or compression of the original exported mpg files occurs).  Then I renamed the DVD Image folder to "VIDEO_TS" and used ImageBurn to create the DVD disk.  Worked every time with excellent results.

As I mentioned in my original post, I had only been working with MEP2021 for a week or so when I hit the "external audio codec" error, which pretty much stopped my progress in trying to complete the entire process, including burning the DVD, within MEP. Now that I understand the cause of the error, I hope to find that MEP2021 will provide a more efficient path than the procedure described above, to achieve the desired results.  So again, many thanks for sharing of your expertise.  Happy & Safe Holidays to all.
Mark H

@mark-houston

Hi Mark

. . . . I stated using MEP17 in 2013 and over the years I have developed 'work around' procedures due to problems I encountered with the program functioning, perhaps caused by deficiencies with my PCs or maybe due to the MEP program installation becoming faulty, despite repeated reinstallation. These bugs became more acute as I started working higher quality MP4 source vids. One of the bugs that came on was that MEP did not recognize my DVD burner (missing or corrupt .dll files) . . . .

AFAICS you have never asked in the forum about issues with MEP 17 - just re-installing does not fix issues unless you remove everything that is left behind, similarly the burner not being recognised was a well known issue with a fix available.

If you are on Windows 10, MEP 17 would not run properly as it is not compatible, similarly for MEP 2021 the minimum supported Windows version is 8, if you are on Windows 7 there may be issues.

John EB

Yep, I was running MEP17 for many months in Windows 10, under Windows 8 'compatibility mode'. Worked, but a couple new glitches turned up that required more workarounds. That's why I finally decided to make the jump to (64-bit) MEP2021 program. Don't think I will find much use in all the 'new' editing and output features it offers, just hoping for more stable functionality in the Win10 universe. Mark H

Hi Mark

Thanks for confirming, personally I find MEP 2021 to be very stable after a few minor glitches one of which was not reading the instructions from Magix correctly for a small issue I had 😕.

Happy editing.

John EB