A specific video file causing Resolve to crash everytime.

Hi everyone,

Typically I have been having no problems using Davinci Resolve (17.something), but today I seem to have made a video file it really does not like and when dragging onto the timeline or using the menu to add the clip to the timeline... it crashes everytime. Here is the mediainfo on the file;

General
Unique ID : 321222889498677660202739205458983183722 (0xF1A9473633C1B535CC915A712D20E56A)
Complete name : B:\DJI - XT-4 - Resolve Exports\K-1 Love\TV_CAM_device_20220316_134649.mkv
Format : Matroska
Format version : Version 4
File size : 2.46 GiB
Duration : 4 min 13 s
Overall bit rate : 83.3 Mb/s
Movie name : device
Writing application : Lavf59.4.101
Writing library : Lavf59.4.101
ErrorDetectionType : Per level 1

Video
ID : 1
Format : AVC
Format/Info : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile : High@L5.1
Format settings : CABAC / 1 Ref Frames
Format settings, CABAC : Yes
Format settings, Reference frames : 1 frame
Format settings, GOP : M=1, N=30
Codec ID : V_MPEG4/ISO/AVC
Duration : 4 min 13 s
Bit rate : 81.3 Mb/s
Width : 1 920 pixels
Height : 1 080 pixels
Display aspect ratio : 16:9
Frame rate mode : Constant
Frame rate : 30.068 FPS
Color space : YUV
Chroma subsampling : 4:2:0
Bit depth : 8 bits
Scan type : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame) : 1.305
Stream size : 2.40 GiB (98%)
Default : Yes
Forced : No

Audio
ID : 2
Format : MPEG Audio
Format version : Version 1
Format profile : Layer 3
Format settings : Joint stereo / MS Stereo
Codec ID : A_MPEG/L3
Codec ID/Hint : MP3
Duration : 4 min 13 s
Bit rate mode : Constant
Bit rate : 320 kb/s
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Sampling rate : 48.0 kHz
Compression mode : Lossy
Stream size : 9.68 MiB (0%)
Default : Yes
Forced : No

The resolve project settings are, timeline Resolution 1920x1080, 24fps.

The video in question that is causing the crash is from a video record feature within Potplayer.

My next idea was to try and maybe convert this pesky file that is causing the crash to some other format that perhaps Resolve will have less of an issue with. I'm not sure how to do that however, from within resolve? Or something like Handbrake?

Any advice would be welcome. Thanks.

BB

Well, the only weird thing I can see is the 30.068 FPS frame rate. But at least it's constant.
MKV is a pretty recent addition to DR. Try to re-wrap (not convert) it to .MOV with Shutter Encoder (free). That's a fast process and completely lossless. Might help.

Well, the only weird thing I can see is the 30.068 FPS frame rate. But at least it's constant.
MKV is a pretty recent addition to DR. Try to re-wrap (not convert) it to .MOV with Shutter Encoder (free). That's a fast process and completely lossless. Might help.

I have not changed the wrap yet (mkv>mov), Win 11 was not happy about installing Shutter Encoder (I might have to try Handbrake instead), but... tried making another couple of potplayer videos with diffferent containers and fps. For example a 24fps .AVI (h.264).

The video file plays back fine upon completion but yet I am still having the same issue with these files in resolve, it causes a nasty crash when trying to add into timeline and sometimes won't even import into media.

Weird.

I'll have to try handbrake or something, whatever potplayer is doing during its video recorder feature (Alt+C) is not at all to the liking of Resolve I guess

Hmm, but HandBrake is re-encoding and that will cost time and quality.
What's the problem with Shutter Encoder? Of course, you could also use ffmpeg's command line.

Hmm, but HandBrake is re-encoding and that will cost time and quality.
What's the problem with Shutter Encoder? Of course, you could also use ffmpeg's command line.

Under Win 11 it is being somewhat blocked, informing me its unsafe software to install etc. These days I do tend to err on the side of caution.

I am not familiar with ffmpegs command line but will look into it.

Whatever is going on it is not a particular file per se but all the files being recorded from Potplayer.

If you can post a sample that crashes your machine to a cloud service, I can try re-wrapping and post it back. MacOS Monterey is not refusing Shutter Encoder, even with Apple's security obsession.
Other than the container, it could still be a general incompatibility, but I see nothing so unusual in the MediaInfo.

If you can post a sample that crashes your machine to a cloud service, I can try re-wrapping and post it back. MacOS Monterey is not refusing Shutter Encoder, even with Apple's security obsession.
Other than the container, it could still be a general incompatibility, but I see nothing so unusual in the MediaInfo.

Sure, here's two samples that are fairly small file size that cause the crash;

https://1drv.ms/u/s!AokJS98l4LvigfI08uK ... A?e=ZtOiAt

https://1drv.ms/v/s!AokJS98l4LvigfIzou2 ... A?e=RMkiWX

One is pretty much a smaller version of the original one that caused the crash, the other a change to .avi and 24fps, still same issue.

I might try a fresh new project, see if somehow my resolve project itself is corrupted.

FWIW, if you're wondering what these files are and what i'm doing, the intended resolve video is a tutorial of sorts for camera. I connect my camera to PC via HDMI and Video Capture USB dongle thing, then use Potplayer to Open>Webcam or other device and then basically use potplayers own video recording capability to record what I'm doing/demonstrating.
I've done this in the past only I did not realise Potplayer had a direct record feature so instead used OBS to screen capture potplayer (and that worked fine), example here on my channel;

So if all else fails I'll just default back to using OBS.

[Dwaine Maggart]

The MKV file works fine here, with Resolve 17.4.5, both free and Studio versions, on a Windows 11 PC.

The AVI file is not seen by Resolve at all. It doesn't appear in the Media Storage area, and you can't drag and drop it in.

So seems like an issue with your system. If you'd like to provide the info below, that could shed light on the issue.

Restart Resolve after a crash, then load or start a new project.

In the Resolve Help menu, select "Create Diagnostics Log on Desktop"

This will place a Resolve log file named similar to this on your Windows desktop: DaVinci-Resolve-logs-20181228_140434.zip (You may not see the .zip extension if your system is set to hide known extensions).

Then open Windows System Information and do a File - Save (Not a File Export), which will generate a .NFO file.

Place both those files on a file sharing site and provide links to the files here.

Second that. Both your original .MKV and a re-wrapped .MOV are opening just fine here in DR.

Confirmed MKV causes insta crash when added to timeline, 17.4.5, Win10
Rewraped MP4 version does not cause crash.

Currently 2 people have crash, 2 people don't. Can we get a new user to tie break?

Confirmed MKV causes insta crash when added to timeline, 17.4.5, Win10
Rewraped MP4 version does not cause crash.

Currently 2 people have crash, 2 people don't. Can we get a new user to tie break?

Good to know I'm not alone.

How did you rewrap? That Shutter Encoder thing? Should I just man up and override the Win 11 health warnings against it?

The MKV file works fine here, with Resolve 17.4.5, both free and Studio versions, on a Windows 11 PC.

The AVI file is not seen by Resolve at all. It doesn't appear in the Media Storage area, and you can't drag and drop it in.

So seems like an issue with your system. If you'd like to provide the info below, that could shed light on the issue.

Restart Resolve after a crash, then load or start a new project.

In the Resolve Help menu, select "Create Diagnostics Log on Desktop"

This will place a Resolve log file named similar to this on your Windows desktop: DaVinci-Resolve-logs-20181228_140434.zip (You may not see the .zip extension if your system is set to hide known extensions).

Then open Windows System Information and do a File - Save (Not a File Export), which will generate a .NFO file.

Place both those files on a file sharing site and provide links to the files here.

Done (I think);

https://1drv.ms/u/s!AokJS98l4LvigfI14l3 ... Q?e=v1NWcG

https://1drv.ms/u/s!AokJS98l4LvigfI2Vbh ... Q?e=1JLLH7

I tried importing the small sample mkv file that is currently on my onedrive previously listed in this thread and it crashed (after the fact of running the resolve diagnostic thing), I hope that works.

It might be important to note that depending on the crash I am not given a crash report, its a complete exit of application, however restarting the application is not possible as some files I think of resolve are still active and its refusing to load up until those things are closed down properly (and I cbf to look in task manager and work out which executables are resolve etc). Also sometimes the resolve crash locks up Explorer so that I need to do a restart of Explorer (or indeed entire PC restart) to... 'resolve' the problem... *badum tssh!

(I'll see myself out).

MKV is a bad format for post in general (to me at least). It's really a container that can hold an AVI-codec or an H.264-codec file... and those are bad for post as well. Convert them to a simpler format like DNxHR SQ, and I bet they'll do OK. Make sure you use a constant framerate for the conversion.

+ 1 marc's comments.

i always transcode 'non-edit' video files (mkv, mobile, and other non-standard formats) to dnxhd / hr. don't have the time or hair left to try and figure out why some file or other is causing a problem.

+ 1 marc's comments.

i always transcode 'non-edit' video files (mkv, mobile, and other non-standard formats) to dnxhd / hr. don't have the time or hair left to try and figure out why some file or other is causing a problem.

Can you do that within resolve or third party? If so what program? My issue is it crashed even on importing to media and not always when trying to drag to timeline even.

Sorry, I'm a bit noob at all this stuff.

Confirmed MKV causes insta crash when added to timeline, 17.4.5, Win10
Rewraped MP4 version does not cause crash.

Currently 2 people have crash, 2 people don't. Can we get a new user to tie break?

Good to know I'm not alone.

How did you rewrap? That Shutter Encoder thing? Should I just man up and override the Win 11 health warnings against it?

Yes I used Shutter Encoder, chose rewrap, output mp4. My anti virus did not detect anything. I have turned off 1 of the windows security features because it kept warning me about perfectly normal github software. Think it's more tuned towards commercial software

MKV is a bad format for post in general (to me at least). It's really a container that can hold an AVI-codec or an H.264-codec file... and those are bad for post as well. Convert them to a simpler format like DNxHR SQ, and I bet they'll do OK. Make sure you use a constant framerate for the conversion.

That's just plain non-sense. If you hate MKV that's fine. But everything you say about it is technically plain wrong. It's the most advanced container there is and in no way limited to consumer/delivery codecs. Nor has it anything particular to do with VFR other that it supports it like virtually any other container from the last 30 years.

Using MKV for recording is a good choice as contrary to crap containers like mov and mp4 it does not corrupt files in case of failures.

I think it's just the fact that MKV support is relatively new in DR. Why else would it work in the other containers without transcoding? And then, I'd suggest using MOV instead of MP4, since its TC support is better.

Ok I'd like to report that I have manned up and installed Shutter Encoder despite Win 11 Defender moaning about it. Ran the program, rewrapped as originally suggested to a .mov file and then imported that fine into the program and can drag to the timeline no problemo. So at least that is a quick workaround.

Thanks for the help everyone, much appreciated and special thanks to Uli Plank.