Fixed! There Was An Error Decompressing Audio or Video

Why Can’t Import Files into Premiere Pro

The error “There was an error decompressing audio or video” shows up when you add video or audio files to Premiere Pro. Why file import failure occurs in Premiere Pro?

Here are some possible reasons.

Unsupported video or audio codec

If your video or audio codec is not supported or incorrect, you may get an error like video or audio import failure in Premiere Pro.

Corrupted media cache files

Media cache helps your media files and projects run smoothly. But corrupted media cache files could result in problems such as “Premiere Pro crashes”, “video playback lag” and “there was an error decompressing audio or video”.

How to Fix “There Was an Error Decompressing Audio or Video”

To fix the file import failure error, you can try the following solutions.

Solution 1. Change Audio or Video Format

If you can’t import MP3 or MP4 files into Premiere Pro, you should use a video converter like MiniTool Video Converter. It’s a free yet powerful video converter that can convert video or audio to any popular format. It can batch convert video or audio files and fix the video or audio codec not supported error.

MiniTool Video Converter also can be used to record computer screens and download YouTube videos.

Here’s how to change the file format.

Step 1. Download and install MiniTool Video Converter.

MiniTool MovieMakerClick to Download100%Clean & Safe

Step 2. Open MiniTool Video Converter and import the video or audio file by clicking on Add Files.

Step 3. You can click the diagonal icon and go to the Video or Audio tab. Then choose a popular format and the desired quality. If your video format is MP4, you can keep the original format and MiniTool will fix the unsupported codec error.

Step 4. Click the Convert button to change the file format. Once done, click on Converted and you can find the converted file.

Solution 2. Rename the File Extension

Can’t import MP3 files to Premiere Pro? You can fix it without using any conversion tool.

Follow the steps below:

Step 1. Find the MP3 file on your computer.

Step 2. At the top menu bar, click on View and check the File name extension box in the Show/hide tab.

Step 3. Right-click the MP3 file and choose Rename from the pop-up menu. Then change the .mp3 file extension to .wav.

Step 4. Click Yes to confirm the operation.

Solution 3. Clear Premiere Pro Cache

Clearing Premiere Pro cache is another solution to fix the error “there was an error decompressing audio or video”.

Take the steps to clear media cache files.

Step 1. Launch Premiere Pro and Navigate to Edit > Preferences > Media Cache.

Step 2. Click the Delete button next to Remove Media Cache Files.

Step 3. Then choose to delete unused media cache files or delete all media cache files.

Step 4. Click OK.

Solution 4. Reinstall Premiere Pro

Reinstall the Adobe Premiere Pro software and see if the error has been fixed.

Also read: Top 6 Adobe Premiere Alternatives You Must Try

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Conclusion

Try the above methods to fix the error “there was an error decompressing audio or video”. If you have other solutions, please share them in the comments section!