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How to Fix Audio Video Sync Problems on Windows and Mac

Wondershare Recoverit Authors

Jan 15, 2024 • Filed to: Photo/Video/Audio Solutions • Proven solutions

Q: How do I permanently sync audio and video in VLC?

audio vide sync intro

"There are some issues with a few videos of my last vacation as I can't play them properly in VLC. I can only see the video, and the audio starts after a while, which creates syncing issues between audio and video."

This is a query posted by a VLC player user who has encounter audio-video syncing issues with some files. Well, the chances are that you might also face a similar issue and would like to repair a corrupt MP4 file. Since the problem can happen due to a corrupt video, media player, or any other issue, you should look for a handful of ways to fix audio-video sync permanently. In this guide, I will let you know about every possible way to fix audio in the video.

Part 1: What Causes Audio to Be out of Sync?

Audio-to-video synchronization is a vital part of any media content. It makes sure that the audio component in the file would be synced with the video for seamless playback. To do audio-video repair, you can first learn why the problem arises in the first place.

  • The timestamp in the file for audio and video might be different.
  • The file might be affected during processing or encoding.
  • The video could have been corrupted, damaging its audio component.
  • The metadata of the video file might be damaged.
  • Any third-party tool or video player could have caused the syncing issue.
  • There might be some delay in your system or the attached audio component.
  • An input lag could have happened in the video while playing.
  • There might be some issues with the recording device.
  • Any other video, media player, system, or human error can also cause this problem.

Ideally, there could be different scenarios for the audio-video syncing issues:

  • You might encounter the problem while streaming a video on YouTube, Netflix, Hulu, or any other related service.
  • A video player (like VLC or Windows Media Player) might encounter the problem while playing the video.
  • You can also get this situation while watching a video on the recording device. Mostly, it happens due to a problem with the recording device.
  • If you have downloaded a video from the internet, then the problem can happen if the metadata or the video's timestamp has been tampered with.
  • It can happen in two situations – either the video component of the file can be ahead, or the audio component can be leading ahead.

audio video sync cases


Part 2: Best Solutions to Fix Audio Video Sync Errors

As you can see, the audio-to-video sync issues can happen in different scenarios. For instance, a while back, I realized that my GoPro video only plays audio, and the video would start after a few seconds. This made me research a few solutions to fix audio video sync issues permanently. Following are some of the foolproof solutions to repair a corrupt MP4 file of various audio-video sync issues:

Fix 1: Use a Professional Video Repair Tool

If you are looking for a quick solution to fix audio video sync permanently, try a reliable Wondershare Repairit Video Repair tool. The DIY application can fix all kinds of issues related to a video like a corrupt file, missing meta component, blurry videos, out of sync audio/video, and more. It features two different repairing modes, quick and advanced. For the advanced repairing, you need to upload a sample video of the same format as the corrupt video.

The application runs on both Mac and Windows and supports every leading video format like MOV, MP4, FLC, AVI, and more. To learn how to fix delayed audio on a video using Wondershare Repairit, follow these steps:

Step 1: Load the video(s) to repair.

Whenever you wish to repair a corrupt MP4 file, launch the Wondershare Repairit Video Repair application. You can click the Add button or "Add video and start repairing" area to add the videos you wish to repair. You can add multiple videos as well to repair them at the same time.

load the video

Step 2: Repair the corrupt videos.

Once the malfunctioning videos are added to the application, click on the "Repair" button to start the process. Kindly be patient and wait for a few minutes for the application to complete the repairing process.

repair the corrupt videos

Step 3: Preview and save the repaired videos.

When the repairing operation is completed, you will be notified by the application. You can now preview any video files and save the repaired videos to any appropriate location on your computer.

save the repaired videos

Step 4: Perform an advanced repair (optional).

In case if the quick repairing process is not able to fix the issue, then you can perform a more sophisticated operation. Just click on the "Advanced Repair" option in this case and add a sample video. A sample video should have the same format as the corrupted video (and must be shot on the same device). While advanced repair will take more time, the results would also be better.

perform an advanced repair

Fix 2: Keep Videos Synchronized using Windows Media Player.

If you use a Windows Media Player to watch videos, then you can also use its native feature to fix audio in video issues. The media player would try to sync any timestamp difference between audio and video on its own. If there is a minor issue with your file, then Windows Media Player would be able to do the audio-video repair in this case.

1. To begin with, launch the Windows Media Player application on your system, load the malfunctioning video, and go to the Organize tab on the top.

2. From here, go to the Organizer > Options feature to open a pop-up window for Media Player Options.

fix audio video sync on media player

3. Visit the "Performance" tab from here, which is usually the last tab in the window. Now, you can first enable the buffer for a few seconds (1-10) so that the player would first buffer the network videos before playing.

4. Also, you can find an option for "Drop frames to keep audio and video synchronized." Enable this option and save your settings so that the media player would drop unwanted frames to keep the audio and video components in sync.

drop the unwanted frame to fix audio video sync

Fix 3: Adjust Track Synchronization using VLC Media Player.

VLC offers another popular and freely available media player for different systems that you can try to fix audio video sync permanently. You can access its Track Synchronization feature to adjust the timestamp of the audio. This will help you fix a video lag between the audio and video component in the file automatically. To learn how to fix delayed audio on a video (or vice versa) using VLC Media Player, follow these steps:

1. If you encounter any audio/video lag while playing the video, just press the J or the K keys. They are predefined hotkeys in VLC that would instantly adjust the audio lag to +/- 50 milliseconds.

2. To access customized settings, you can go to VLC Media Player's Toolbar > Tools > Track Synchronization option. Make sure that the video you wish to fix is already opened on VLC beforehand.

fix audio video sync on vlc

3. This will open a dedicated window for you to adjust the file's the audio and video effects. From here, go to the Synchronization tab and adjust the audio track synchronization.

4. If the audio is running ahead of the video, then click on the up arrow to add delay to the file. On the other hand, use the down arrow if the video component is ahead of the audio.

use down arrow to fix audio video sync

Other Common Methods to do Audio Video Repair

Apart from the above-listed solutions, you can try the following suggestions to fix audio in video issues.

  • If you have downloaded the video from an online website, consider deleting the file and downloading it again.
  • If you face the audio-video system issue while streaming a video (on Netflix or Prime), make sure you have a stable internet connection. You can also log out of your account and log-in again to access it.
  • The audio lag issue is more common with Bluetooth devices like headphones. In this case, you can remove the Bluetooth device first and connect it to your system again.
  • If you are streaming an Ultra HD or HD video, consider changing its resolution to 720p or 480p for fast streaming.
  • Apart from Windows Media Player or VLC Player, there are several other online and offline tools that you can further explore to fix audio video sync permanently.

Part 3: What Audio Problems You May Encounter in Videos

Besides the audio-video sync issue, you might encounter a few other audio-related problems in videos as well. Here are some of these common problems that you can easily fix for a better experience.

Issue 1: No Audio Component in Videos

The situation arises when a video file does not have any audio component at all. This might happen due to a missing component or a device-related issue with your system.

  • If there is no audio in the file, you might consider downloading it again or retransfer it from the source.
  • Make sure that the system is not on mute. Go to the volume icon on the taskbar and adjust the audio volumes accordingly.
  • Lastly, you need to check that all the drivers are properly installed on the system. To do this, go to Control Panel > Device Manager > Sound, Video, and Game Controllers. From here, you can reset (disable/enable) a driver or choose to update it.

fix audio drivers

Issue 2: Distorted or Missing Audio

Sometimes, users also encounter that the audio is either distorted or missing in some part of a video. You might have muted the audio while recording the video, or the file can be corrupted as well.

  • Check the video recording device settings while recording a video. For instance, when the GoPro video only plays audio, the chances are that you could have muted the audio while recording.
  • Also, check the system's audio drivers from the Device Manager and consider updating them (if they haven't been updated in a while).
  • If the video is corrupt, then you can use a professional repairing tool like Wondershare Repairit to fix audio in video issues.

Part 4: How to Prevent Audio Problems in Your Videos

If you don't want to suffer from unwanted audio problems in your videos, then consider following these suggestions.

  • Keep the audio drivers on your system up to date so that there won't be any device-related problems.
  • Try not to download videos from unknown sources or using unreliable browser plugins that might tamper with the file.
  • Do not connect unreliable USB drives or copy videos from them, as they might corrupt the media files on your system.
  • If you are moving your videos from one source to another, then try not to halt the process in between.
  • Avoid tampering with the meta content or timestamps of the video.
  • Try not to convert the video online by using any unreliable converter.
  • Avoid playing the video on a media player that you don't trust. Only use reliable tools like Windows Media Player or VLC Player.

This brings us to the end of this extensive guide on fixing delayed audio on a video (or vice versa). As you can see, we have covered every possible audio-video synchronization issue with different audio-video repair options. If you don't want to reencounter a similar issue, keep a dedicated tool like Wondershare Repairit handy. It is a highly reliable application that can easily repair corrupt MP4 files (or other video formats). You can follow its simple click-through process to fix corrupt and damaged video files on your own without any trouble.

Recoverit author

Eleanor Reed

staff Editor

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