smrs-errors
This document is a database of every Smoothie* error I have found while browsing CTT's support forum.
*Smoothie-RS only - this does NOT include errors for the old, deprecated, python version
Written by @gemstorm
THE MOST IMPORTANT ERROR (CRASH WITHOUT ERROR MESSAGE)
Smoothie instantly closes if it encounters an error and you won't have enough time to see any sort of debugging message. This is "fixed" by the --tui argument.
Don't worry, you don't have to actually use the CLI to fix this, you can A) launch Smoothie using
launch.cmd, or B) add--tuito your shortcut's arguments.
Now instead of crashing, Smoothie will show you an error message, and you can actually start debugging!
Types of Error Messages
Smoothie has 2 kinds of error messages, which I've named "crashes" and "errors":
Crashes
Crashes create a window with the title Smoothie crashed! and some basic troubleshooting information. Very few errors actually cause this, generally crashes show when certain files aren't being parsed properly or if certain dependencies are missing.
Errors
Errors show in the same command prompt window that Smoothie runs in. Most errors fall under this category.
Table of contents
There are SO MANY ERRORS! For your own sanity, use ctrl+f and search for unique terms in the error message.
- I can't find my error!!
Crashes
- C1 ffmpeg.exe is not installed/in PATH
- C2 Recipe: Failed to parse "\u{feff}[XYZ]"
- C3 No valid videos were passed to Smoothie
- C4 [filename] not found, expected: [filepath]
Errors
Crashes
C1 ffmpeg.exe is not installed/in PATH

Issue:
- Smoothie uses a program called FFmpeg for a lot of things, and it needs to be in the PATH environment variable for Smoothie to find it.
Solution:
- Install FFmpeg and add it to PATH. I'd recommend following CTT's documentation.
Notes:
- N/A
Alt names (for ctrl+f):
- ffmpeg.exe not installed, ffmpeg.exe is not in path, ffmpeg.exe not in path, ffmpeg is not installed, ffmpeg not installed, ffmpeg is not in path, ensure ffmpeg is installed, ffmpeg not in path.
C2 Recipe: Failed to parse "\u{feff}[XYZ]"

Issue:
- Your config file(s) (
recipe.ini/encoding_presets.ini) were saved with encoding settings that Smoothie can't parse.
Solution:
- Save your configs with UTF-8 encoding.
Notes:
- Tutorials:
- If you can't find documentation for your text editor, I'd recommend switching to VSCode or Notepad++ and following the tutorials linked above.
Alt names:
- Recipe: Failed to parse "\u{feff}[interpolation]", Recipe: Failed to parse "\u{feff}[MACROS]".
C3 No valid videos were passed to Smoothie

Issue:
- You either A) aren't passing valid video to Smoothie (unsupported encoding or corrupted), or B) ffmpeg is not installed properly.
Solution:
- A: Ensure you're properly passing a video to Smoothie, and make sure it's not corrupted and in a supported codec.
- B: Install FFmpeg and add it to PATH, I'd recommend following CTT's documentation.
Notes:
- Smoothie should support most codecs, so make sure your shortcut is configured properly with input commands.
Alt names:
- N/A
C4 [filename] not found, expected: [filepath]

Issue:
- A certain file that comes with Smoothie is not present.
Solution:
- Reinstall Smoothie, something may have gone wrong while unzipping/downloading
Notes:
- N/A
Alt names:
- jamba.vpy not found, expected:
Errors
E1 Unrecognized option: 'stats_period'

Issue:
- Old versions of FFmpeg don't support the
stats_periodoption
Solution(s):
- (Recommended solution) Update FFmpeg. If you don't know where FFmpeg is installed, simply running
where ffmpegin a command prompt will give you the path. If it shows<scoop_folder>\shims\ffmpeg.exe, then you installed FFmpeg with Scoop (you can update it by runningscoop update ffmpeg). - (If you don't wan't to update FFmpeg) In
recipe.inianddefaults.ini: Remove-stats_period 0.15from theffmpeg optionsunder[miscellaneous].
Notes:
- N/A
Alt names:
- Unrecognized option: 'stats_period'. Error splitting the argument list
E2 No path between colorspaces

Issue:
- Unknown what the exact cause is.
Solution:
- Possible ways of solving (that I've seen work):
- Use different color settings in OBS/recording software, sRGB has worked for some people.
- (this does cause slight color changes after rendering).
- You could also reencode existing clips using various programs.
- Disable
[pre-interp].- This is the main cause of the issue, RIFE (pre-interp's model) doesn't like the colors (or something like that).
- Disable
[lut].- Still not sure why this worked once...
- Use different color settings in OBS/recording software, sRGB has worked for some people.
Notes:
- Currently being tracked @ /smoothie-rs/issues/36, you may find something there that fixes it for you.
Alt names:
- Resize error 3074: no path between colorspaces (2/2/2 => 0/2/2). May need to specify additional colorspace parameters.
E2 SVSuper: Clip must be YV12

Issue:
- SVPFlow (the
[interpolation]category's algorithm) doesn't support the current color format.
Solution:
- Record in NV12 color format / reencode to NV12
Notes:
- N/A
Alt names:
- Python exception: SVSuper: Clip must be YV12, vapoursynth.Error: SVSuper: Clip must be YV12
- Video track is unseekable https://discord.com/channels/774315187183288411/1121287665749340170
- NotADirectoryError() https://discord.com/channels/774315187183288411/1106959205627347046
- Cannot load nvcuda.dll
- RIFE: failed to create GPU instance https://discord.com/channels/774315187183288411/1094996295082586292
E3 The index does not match the source file
<no image>
Issue:
- For an undetermined reason, Smoothie bugs with certain filenames. Due to the error message, I'm assuming this happens when a filename is reused for multiple videos.
Solution:
- Rename the input video.
Alt names:
- vapoursynth.Error: Source The index does not match the source file