“Audio and Video out of Sync – Hi, I just started using Handbrake to change the video files from .mkv to .mp4 so I can play them on my tv. but now some of them have the audio and the video out of sync. The original video is good (.mkv files), but when I change the format, the new video is out of sync with the audio. I have tried setting it with "constant framerate" like many people recommended, but it doesn’t solve the problem. The problem happens just as the video starts, the audio kicks in like 1 or 2 seconds before the video and it is like that until the end. Thanks a lot for your help.”

As an open-source, cross-platform and free video encoder tool, HandBrake should not be stranger to movie fans. It helps encode DVD, video and even Blu-ray movies to MP4 or MKV files for various media players and devices. With 3rd-party disc decryption like libdvdcss, HandBrake could even handle encrypted Blu-ray and DVD movies. However, many users have reported video and audio out of sync issue after they use HandBrake to encode DVD, video and Blu-ray movie files. Actually, HandBrake video and audio out of sync issue is commonly seen for various reasons. If you are suffering from the HandBrake video and audio out of sync issue, here we list some possible reasons and corresponding solutions on how to fix audio and video out of sync problem with HandBrake encoding.

Part 1: Possible Reasons that Cause Handbrake Out of Sync Problem

Firstly, we might need to figure out the possible reasons that cause video and audio out of sync problem by using HandBrake. There are quite a few different causes, as listed below.

1. The decoder/media player issue.

The media players such as Windows Media Player, VLC and QuickTime player sometimes have a hiccup. Take QuickTime for instance. It may have timescale issues when bringing MPEG source into Avid or Final Cut Pro, which may make audio go out of sync with video. You could then try other media players to see if the problem still exists, like VLC, KMPlayer, Free Blu-ray Player, etc.

2. Encoding video with intense features.

If you are working on a slow computer with low configuration but encoding video with high refs, CABAC Entropy coding, 8*8 transform, Pyramidal B-Frames, etc., your audio and video will be synced in a wrong way.

3. Out-of-date computer hardware.

Some old computers with out-of-date hardware will easily result in "HandBrake video and audio out of sync" issue. The intensive use of CPU can lead your system go abnormal. So, the processes like video encoding, editing or downloading will not go smooth. This is where the audio/video out of sync happens.

4. Encoding issue

When you are encoding an MPEG-2 content, be selective in the codecs. For the older ASP codecs like DivX and Xvid, and the previous AVI container, you are not suggested to choose them as they are usually considered as the crime culprit of audio/video sync issues.

5. Original video issue

Make sure the original video files are normally played back on other media players. the video and audio sync issue of your original video file will influence the result.

6. Framerate problem

HandBrake designates "Variable Framerate" as default setting when you encode video or rip DVDs. In fact, it may probably cause HandBrake video and audio out of sync issue. Select certain "Constant Framerate" to fix HandBrake video and audio out of sync issue. a

There might be other reasons that cause HandBrake video and audio out of sync issue as well. You could freely leave your thought in the comment part here, and we would try to find a solution for it.

Part 2: How to Solve Handbrake Video and Audio Out of Sync Issue