How to Use VLC Media Player: Complete Guide with All Tricks
Why VLC Is the Go-To Media Player
VLC Media Player (free, open source) is the world’s most used media player for good reason: it plays virtually any video and audio format (MP4, MKV, AVI, MOV, WMV, FLAC, MP3, WAV…) without needing additional codecs. Also plays DVDs, Blu-rays, internet streams, and webcams.
Playback and Basic Controls
- Space: pause/play
- F: fullscreen
- ← / →: seek back/forward 10 seconds
- Alt + ← / →: seek back/forward 1 minute
- ] / [: increase/decrease playback speed (0.5x to 4x)
- Mouse scroll: adjust volume
Subtitles: How to Add and Sync Them
To add subtitles: Subtitle → Add Subtitle File and select the SRT or ASS file. If subtitles are ahead or behind:
- H: delay subtitles by 50ms
- G: advance subtitles by 50ms
Streaming: Playing Videos from the Internet
VLC can play streams directly. Go to Media → Open Network Stream and paste any stream URL (m3u8, rtsp, rtmp, http). You can watch free IPTV by pasting an M3U URL.
Converting Videos with VLC
Few people know VLC can convert videos between formats. Go to Media → Convert/Save, add the source file, select the destination profile (MP4, WebM, MP3…) and output path. Not as powerful as FFmpeg, but for basic conversions it avoids installing additional software.
Advanced Tricks
- Video snapshots: Video → Take Snapshot (saves a frame as PNG)
- Equalizer: Tools → Effects and Filters → Audio → Equalizer
- Loop video: Playback → Repeat to loop a video indefinitely
- Bookmarks: save positions in long videos
Why doesn’t VLC play audio from a video?
Check that VLC volume is at 100% (not just system volume). If still no audio, go to Tools → Preferences → Audio and verify the output module is correct.
Can VLC play Blu-rays?
Yes, but you need Blu-ray decryption keys (libaacs and libbdplus libraries). VLC itself doesn’t include the keys for legal reasons.
How do I trim a video with VLC?
In View menu → Advanced Controls, enable recording controls. Navigate to the start point and press the record button (red circle), navigate to the end point and stop. The trimmed video is saved to your videos folder.
Conclusion
VLC is the Swiss Army knife of multimedia. Install it from videolan.org and you’ll have a player that never gives you compatibility problems.
