How to open Matroska video file. How to open a MKV file on Windows

How to open mkv format is a very popular question among users and therefore I decided to answer it in a separate article. Since the mkv file is a video file, you need to use players to see what is in this file. Some players refuse to open this file, so it is possible that your player, which you have been using for a long time, cannot open this file.

Note: If you use popular video players, you won’t have any difficulties with new video files. Before you start installing anything, it is better to read the article to the end. Most likely, you already have everything installed or need to make settings. Below is a video from which you will learn how to convert MKV format.

This format can be viewed in different players, but you need to configure the codecs so that everything is played back. We will be looking at players to try each, because if you have an old computer, then this format may slow down on your computer, usually with delayed sound.

Note: if you already have any player installed and your computer is not old, then go below.

Players

I would like to note that I did not rate the players because I would not like to impose my opinion. Choose the one you like and install. I will do a short review of players so that you don’t think about the question - how to open mkv.

The first video player that we will consider in this article is KMPlayer, which was developed by guys from Korea. Most users believe that there is no better program and there never will be. But as practice confirms, sometimes exceptions happen 😉 . I used this player, so feel free to install it if you like it.

Number two we have is GOM Player. I have used this player very little, so I can’t say anything about this player. You can install it on your computer and evaluate the player yourself.

An honorable third place in our list is occupied by Light Alloy, which means light alloy. This program feels great on a weak “office” computer. Sometimes when viewing a large video file, the player may feel unwell.

At the beginning of the article I said that you don’t need to install anything! Here's why: you can open mkv in the standard player that comes with Windows. This is exactly what I will talk about in the next chapter of this article.

To play a video on a computer or laptop, you don’t need a very sophisticated player. I have 3-4 players installed on my PC and laptop, but I usually use Media Player Classic, which comes with codecs.

Codecs and built-in player

So, above I looked at several players so that you don’t have a question about how to watch mkv. If you have problems opening the mkv file in any player, then let's configure/install codecs. Now we will install the K-Lite Codec Pack - codecs that have a simple player for reading different video formats.

If you are not familiar with the concept of codecs and have no idea what function they perform in Windows, then read the article on the blog: “”. This information is required reading for users who have just begun to master the computer. Also in this article I told you how you can install codecs; if you do everything according to the instructions, then you will no longer have the question of how to open a mkv file on your computer.

First, download the codecs and install them. To do this, go to the developers website. Then go down a little and in the “Full” line, click “Download Full” on the right.

To download codecs, you can use different mirrors where these codecs are located.

For example, I'll select the first mirror. On the page that opens, click “Click Here To Download”.

After downloading, open the codec installation file. Click Next.

In the next window, leave everything as default and click “Next”.

In the next window you will be asked to select a profile; for a regular user you don’t need to change anything, just click “Next”.

By checking the box in the next window, data about codecs will not be added. There is no point in changing anything, so we click “Next”.

So, now we go down to the bottom of the page and uncheck the box so that the developers’ site does not open after installation.

In the next window you can specify additional information about the “Decoding Method”; if you are confused, then leave it as is, and in the future you can change these settings if you need it.

Note: if you have an old computer that slows down when playing videos, then you might want to consider this setting. If the computer has normal characteristics, then this is not necessary. This is what the developers say!

At this stage, you select the player that will be associated with the video files.

Click “Install” and the installation of codecs will begin.

After installing the codecs, now you will not have problems opening this file. By the way, you can also use VLC player. It is really a very good player and if you have problems opening files, for example mov, then this program will cope with such files in no time. You may ask why you need to install another player, because there is no difference, since the codecs are the same! But no!

This player has built-in codecs! That is, even if your computer does not have codecs, you can view video files through it. We used this player to open video files when I worked in television. So be sure to install it and you will have a choice, if your codecs do not open some video file, then you can open it through VLC.

A small conclusion. You don't need to install many players! You just need to install the one you like best and that’s it. It's all about codecs. If codecs are not installed on your computer or laptop, then you will have problems opening video files. If your computer or laptop has weak characteristics, but you need to watch a video file with the mkv extension, then install several players and it is possible that the video will not freeze while watching.

Some users asked me how to open a mkv file, now I think it has become clear that the main thing is the installed codecs on your system.

Enjoy watching!

If your player or TV does not read MKV files, then you can do the conversion:

Problems with opening certain files are quite common among PC users, and the mkv format is no exception. If a movie with such an extension does not play on your computer, do not despair, but just read this article to the end, and you will know how to open mkv on your computer.

We use third-party software

The simplest solution to the problem is to install one of the popular players that can easily play movies with the mkv extension. We will consider the following options:

VLC media player;
The KMPlayer;
Media Player Classic.

These programs 100% support video in the “mkv” format. They differ in interface and set of capabilities.

VLC media player

The developer claims that VLC media player has been downloaded more than 500 million times, which competitors cannot boast of. This software reliably reproduces almost all types of audio and video, including mkv. The laconic interface, devoid of annoying elements, and ease of use make it one of the best in its segment.

VLC is available for Windows, MacOS, and even Android. It can always be downloaded for free from the official website - http://www.videolan.org/vlc/

The installation is standard and should not cause any difficulties. After its completion, mkv files should be associated with the player, turning into a branded “cap”.

If this is the case, then just double-click on such a movie and enjoy watching it. If for some reason the association does not occur, then right-click on the file and select “Open with...”.

In the “Select Program” window, find our VLC and double-click on it. Also pay attention to the checkbox, if present, all such files will be subsequently played through this player.

Actually, the result is obtained - the film is played.

KMPlayer

Another representative of the elite among computer players is KMPlayer. This product from Korean developers features an elegant interface that is difficult to get confused in. The player is equipped with all the necessary codecs and will easily open the “mkv” video. It can be downloaded for free on the official website - http://www.kmplayer.com/

The installation is standard and has no tricks. After it, video files will be associated with KMPlayer. Files with the mkv extension should look like this:

If this does not happen, then we look for the desired program in the “Program Selection” window, as in the previous case.

Now you can safely watch our video.

Media Player Classic

Free, feature-rich and easy to use player. Like its brothers listed above, Media Player Classic plays both mkv files and other video formats. This software puts minimal load on the system and has extensive functionality that will be useful when watching movies.

After downloading from the official website (http://mediaplayerclassic.ru/) and quick installation, just open our file through Media Player Classic. This can be done by selecting a program, as we did in previous cases. By the way, another simple way to open the desired file through a specific program is to drag it onto the shortcut of that very program.

And again, our film is played without brakes or any whims.

Installing codecs

This method is good if you do not want to install new software products, but prefer to use the familiar Windows Media Player. On the website matroska.org you need to download the full CCCP codec package, which will allow you to use all the features of mkv in the future.

Double click to launch the downloaded file. In the installation wizard, leave all the checkboxes in place and boldly click “Next”.

Now we simply play our movie through Windows Media.

Convert to another format

You don't like other players and don't want to tinker with codecs? Then it’s worth considering the option of converting a file with the mkv extension to another popular format that is supported by a standard player, for example, avi. For these purposes we will use free Format Factory software - http://format-factory.net/

In the program window, click on the “AVI” button.

In the window that opens, click on the “Add file” button and select our movie with the mkv extension. You can also select the path to save the converted file.

Click "Ok".

All that remains is to start the conversion with the “Start” button. Remember that the entire process can take a long time.

As a result, you will be able to find the video in the final folder in a different format that is recognized by the standard player.

If you want to properly burn a movie to a disc for viewing on a player, then study ours.

Running out of space on your hard drive? Get rid of unnecessary files correctly –

Conclusion

Most users simply install one of the popular players to open mkv files. Others may prefer to install codecs so that the standard Windows player plays movies in a specified format. And those who prefer to convert “mkv” to another format must be patient, because this takes a lot of time. Be that as it may, one thing is clear - playing a file with the mkv extension is not too much of a problem.

If you have not had to deal with such a multimedia format as .mkv until now, then before playing it on your PC, you will need to download mkv player, since it is most suitable for reproducing the above format with high quality. After all, as practice shows, not all common programs will be able to correctly open and play MKV files.

MKV Player is a simple and convenient player in Russian for playing video, which has modest technical parameters and is not at all demanding on computer resources. The developers have endowed it with a simple and concise interface, which is literally understandable on an intuitive level - all the necessary functions are activated in just a couple of mouse clicks.

You can download the Russian version of MKV Player for free from our website. Further, after successful installation, the system will automatically associate all file formats available for it (including *.mkv), which in turn can be launched with one click.

The player menu will easily help you create a convenient playlist, as well as understand the search for individual necessary materials in it. By downloading the Russian version of MKV Player for free, you can effortlessly play the desired high-quality video and look with a grin at other more primitive analogues.

Automatic installation of codecs

Not very experienced users will be pleased to know that the player itself will search for all the video files missing for playback. This naturally saves a lot of time and nerves.
MKV Player will also be useful when watching DVD videos. And more experienced users will be able to use additional program options to edit DVD menus.

Separately, it is worth noting that MKV Player can be configured for special playback of streaming video. Although most users will use only a basic set of its options, namely: normal playback, including full-screen mode, and scrolling. And yet, if necessary, the user can change the video playback speed, delay subtitles, and the like.

As you browse through content that interests you, you can share your fun and educational finds with your friends on social networks. To do this, it will be enough to take a regular screenshot using the player and post it on your page. You can also experiment with the current subtitles by making your own creative changes to them using a special program option.

Even if you don’t yet have a very powerful personal computer, you shouldn’t be afraid that downloading the MKV Player you need will make it work slower. For normal functioning of the program, only 256 MB of free RAM and a simple processor operating at a modest, by today's standards, frequency of 800 MHz will be enough.

Comparison with analogues

Of course, MKV Player has other free analogies, but for interacting with the .mkv format? this is the most correct and correct choice.

| Updated: 03-11-2014 |

This article is dedicated to the MKV format, which has already gained high popularity. Multimedia on a computer has always been one of the main capabilities of the PC. Over its era, it has generated quite a few standards, specifications, rules, formats, etc. But now another media format appears - MKV. And the question is, where else are these formats being created? Are there already so few of them? Looking at the characteristics of any media player, one’s eyes run wide from the declared extensions that this or that player understands. And here three more letters are confidently added to the long text string listing all kinds of supported formats - the MKV extension. Moreover, now the question of the ability to play MKV files is directly related to the image of the player. So what is Mkv and why is it needed?

MKV player download | MKV codec download | MKV converter free | MkV player | than to open

Introduction

MKV is a multimedia container that combines in one file: video, sound, subtitles, pictures, various service information, and most importantly, it is possible to create a media menu in the MKV container (similar to a DVD menu).

But so far the latter still has problems with implementation. But what’s even more attractive is the ability to use HD codecs: H.264, Mpeg2, VC-1, which allows you to view and transmit HD video content over the network. Moreover, MKV is convenient both for transmission in one MKV file and for the possibility of Online broadcasting, however, due to the high Internet speed required, this is also not yet widespread. In general, we can say that the MKV format has absorbed all the best from the containers available today + contains opportunities for further development. By the way, another name for this project is Matryoshka (Matroska). This name accurately reflects the essence of the MKV file - in a container - a container, since it can contain various formats. By transliteration it is also called Sailor. Next, let's look at the capabilities of this container in more detail.

After reading the following content you will learn:

What is an MKV container and why is it better than others?
How to watch MKV on a computer, which players are better to use (Mkv Player).
What are the best converters to use for working with MKV.
How to split a Mkv file into components or assemble a container.
MKV codecs.
transfer Blu-Ray movie to MKV file.
Why does MKV movie slow down on PC?

Features of MKV.

First important feature MKV- work with H.264 / AVC encoder, the compression algorithm of which allows you to efficiently encode HD video. As a result, MKV files are primarily a convenient way to watch HD video on a PC. (he was just one of the first to introduce AVC support).

It is impossible to deny the fact that DVD video has already seen its day, and Blu-ray drives announced so long ago are still not on every computer and there are no queues for them. Do you really need a Blu-Ray drive when you can get a movie from a Blu-Ray disc as an MKV file with the same quality? But getting MKV movies from the Internet is not a tricky matter. The point is not even the massive illegal distribution of film products, but the fact that MKV films significantly save the user’s money. Legally, it is more convenient to legally download (buy) a 20 GB HD movie in MKV than to buy a drive and discs. There are those who prefer to watch videos on a TV screen, in which case it is better to output from the computer to the Screen. Since in the near future HD Online will still be introduced and household players will disappear.

While almost all containers now work with HD codecs, few can boast of the ability to use an unlimited number of audio streams. And this allows you to make multi-language films and different sound formats (Dolby Surraund 5.1, Stero, etc.). Naturally, the language and sound format can be switched as is done in household players.
Ability to add subtitles.
Not long ago, 3D sound support was added to other advantages.
Adding multiple videos and the ability to switch between them
The ability to create dynamic menus is promised. This allows you to add many tracks to an MKV file and switch between them through the menu. (as for example it is used in DVD video). Unfortunately, at the time of writing these lines, this function is not available. But in the future it will certainly be implemented. That's when the MKV format will really start to become very popular.
Can be broadcast online via HTTP protocol
The project is free and open source.

At the moment almost everything popular containers may contain HD video. AVI, MPG, MP4, MOV - but each is inferior to MKV in some way. (the MKV container is the only one in which you can pack Blu-ray movie with subtitles in several audio modes, i.e. the whole disc in one file).

How to open MKV format. MKV player for PC. Codecs.

Currently, many players, both household and computer, can play MKV.

MKV codecs and splitters.

For full playback you will need an MKV splitter and a set of different codecs.

Splitter- is designed to open a container, and codecs are needed to decode audio and video inside the container.

To install all popular codecs and splitters into the system (each container has its own splitter), use such popular packages as K Lite Codec Pack or Combined Community Codec Pack (CCCP). They contain everything you need to view both MKV and other formats.

You simply need these sets if the player you are using does not contain built-in codecs. There are quite a few popular players that already have built-in splitters and codecs for all formats. Some are listed below.

Media Player Classic Home Cinema

Very good and simple media player. His main hobby is reading all formats. For the MKV format, it is primarily effective because it does not overload the processor. Recommended primarily for weak computers or laptops in battery mode. Download Media Player Classic Home Cinema

KMPlayer

Very powerful and high quality player. It is also capable of playing the MKV format well without putting much strain on the processor. Can play MkV, the video of which has a high bitrate. The player has a lot of possibilities. Download KMPlayer

PowerDVD

This is not only an MKV player, but also a serious player with support for 3D video and True Theater technology. Download PowerDVD

Splash HD Player LIte

Excellent player, capable of playing MKV well. Simple interface and good quality HD video playback. Download Splash HD Player Lite

Gom Player

a good omnivorous player, but at high bitrates it will require good PC performance. Download Gom Player

*players work in all Windows. ** all are free except PowerDVD 10.

Why is MKV video slow?

If the MKV video slows down or the sound lags behind the video, then this is a clear sign of insufficient power of the playback system, you can try playing it in different players, this helps in some cases, since media players are differently able to play the MKV format.

In most cases, the cause of such “brakes” will be the AVC (H.264) codec with which the video is encoded in the MKV container. The fact is that it is very demanding on the processor, and if you view Full HD on a single-core processor, then you are guaranteed to experience slowdowns. You can solve the problem if, for example, you transcode from AVC to Mpeg2, which is quite resource-friendly. But it’s better to buy a modern computer to use HD to its full potential.

MKV Converters.

Conversion is necessary if you need to change the codec, file size, or change container. Can convert as MKV to MKV by changing internal formats. For example, convert MPEG2 to AVC. Very often it is necessary to convert MKV to AVI for viewing on home players. But keep in mind that if your player is not HD. Then it will not be able to play AVI, which contains video with a resolution of 1920 by 1080. When converting HD MKV to AVI, for the latter, the converter should set the parameters corresponding to the DVD video standard. To obtain AVI HD from MKV, you can remix it in Medicoder (as for M2TS to MKV), or convert it in the same Mediacoder, specifying the necessary parameters of the latter. In order not to bother with parameters, use ready-made settings (presets) in converters for a particular device.

very serious converter. As mentioned several times above, it can repack containers while preserving the original streams. Many supported formats and codecs for conversion. Download Medicoder

Format Factory

The converter works great with MKV files. Allows you to configure the final file in a convenient form. Nice interface and a large number of formats. Download Format Factory

XMediaRecode

The converter works with a very large number of formats. Thanks to presets for many devices, the work is greatly simplified... Download XmediaRecode

Gom Player

Now it is one of the most famous players. It began to gain popularity immediately after its appearance, because it could open any format, and for strangers it downloaded everything they needed, which saved the user from installing different codecs on their own.

In its modern version it probably opens all existing formats. Has an intuitive interface, convenient list playback and flexible settings. Allows you to quickly switch between different subtitle tracks and even add your own (which used to be mandatory).

Interacts well with media container files Matroska(the name of the project within which .mkv appeared), since working with this format was considered one of the first advantages. Allows maximum use of formats effectively. It is free, although it sometimes contains advertising.

The KMPlayer

This player is popular for its interface and is often an element of intrusive offers from various sites. Has quite high stability and user-friendly interface. Is free a product that undoubtedly contributes to popularity and often contains advertising.

A distinctive feature is the ability to play a huge number of formats. Also in the screenshot you can see elements appearing in the playlist preview. It can work using direct links, and in the right hands it can also turn into an IPTV player.

MKV Player

The Matroska association (Matryoshka, not Matroska, as is often mistakenly read) not only developed a universal container, but also released special player for your formats. It's safe to say that mkv player is the first player for the format.

Main features This player is free and open source. Here we can only praise the developers. They not only made a separate player, but also gave other developers material that allowed them to set up support for the extension in other players. Without a doubt, this contributed to the popularization of mkv.

Media Player Classic

In the old days was the only one available alternative to the standard player. It often came with a separate set of codecs for playing most well-known formats. In recent years, it has lost its former popularity due to the emergence of many other unique projects. However, it is still the choice of users who simply need a player, and not some features.

Among the main features can be distinguished simplicity And stability. A huge number of unnecessary features have not been added to the player. It is created simply for video playback.

VLC Media Player

An equally popular option today, which is often distributed in the form of a “legal Trojan”, that is, it is installed along with other programs, imposing itself on the user. Despite the aggressive marketing policy, it has a number of undeniable advantages and truthful advertising.

This player really can work with many formats and even does a good job integrates in the browser (branded plugins are made to last). Is free, but sometimes contains a lot of advertising. A great feature of the player is the software audio enhancement, which allows you to squeeze a little more volume out of the speakers, which is quite unusual and interesting.

Any of these players today is free. Therefore, if the user has to pay for registration, he is simply being deceived. The developers did not even hesitate to transfer the projects to the “open-source” state, that is, their code is open for study, which is undoubtedly an advantage.

How to open Matroska video file. How to open a MKV file on Windows

Players

Codecs and built-in player

We use third-party software

VLC media player

KMPlayer

Media Player Classic

Installing codecs

Convert to another format

Conclusion

Automatic installation of codecs

Comparison with analogues

Introduction

Features of MKV.

How to open MKV format. MKV player for PC. Codecs.

MKV codecs and splitters.

Media Player Classic Home Cinema

KMPlayer

PowerDVD

Splash HD Player LIte

Gom Player

Why is MKV video slow?

MKV Converters.

Format Factory

XMediaRecode

Popular Topics:

Gom Player

The KMPlayer

MKV Player

Media Player Classic

VLC Media Player