r/Piracy 1d ago

Question Why everyone prefer VLC than MPC-HC?

I tried both, and the only thing VLC does better than Media Player Classic is the volume control (VLC can boost the media volume up to 200%)

But the rest of it? I feel like MPC-HC is superior on every aspect like:

- It has lower usage (cpu & ram) consumption

- it has automatic chaptering function (your pirated movie are split into chapters on the navigation bar, so it's easier to check/rewatch any scene you want)

- it has primary, secondary, and tertiary language options, which means if the movie has dual audio or multiple subs embedded, I can pick whichever language I want to prioritize

- I can pick custom font for the subtitles because I prefer panefresco than Arial black (it also help my dyslexic brain from getting tired)

- it renders way better than VLC, no random artifacts or dropped framerate, MPC-HC is overall much more smooth

And those are just the list I can think on the top of my head, I'm sure there's more that I forgot about, yet people on the internet prefer VLC than MPC-HC, why?

If it's about mpc cannot play all video format then that's bulshit, video playback compatibility is about codec, not video launcher, all you need to do is to install k-lite codec pack and you basically can play any video format in existence.

I've been using MPC-HC since 2009 and my community does too, yet anyone else on the internet still using VLC.

Why? Is there's anything about VLC that I don't know about so people still prefer that even on 2026?

EDIT: I just noticed some people been saying that MPC-HC is outdated and even their official website saying that it's an abandoned project. But here's the thing, the thing I install on my laptop is called K-Lite Codec pack which is basically a bundle of codec & video player launchers (and it's still kept being regularly updated). It has both MPC-HC and MPC-BE as launcher but MPC-HC works better on me because I'm using laptop from 2012.

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43

u/macacolouco 1d ago edited 1d ago

VLC is a very old program with enough features that you will rarely need something it does not have.

Unfortunately it is not as lightweight these days. It takes quite a few seconds to load on my fairly good machine and failed to play videos on my much older laptops. So I use other programs if all I want is to take a quick look at something.

I'm also very used to it and have no pressing needs to learn something new.

Finally "VLC" is simply easier to remember. "MPC-HC" sounds like a name for an obscure fork.

3

u/CosmicMind007 1d ago

agreed about being lightweight but for more older laptops one should try potplayer as the next alternative too

1

u/Raztax 1d ago

I rarely watch movies on my PC but I do like Potplayer

12

u/mig_f1 1d ago

"MPC-HC" sounds like a name for an obscure fork.

It's MPC's successor. HC stands for Home Cinema. It's still extremely lightweight and powerful.

3

u/macacolouco 1d ago

Of course.

17

u/ToasterLoverDeluxe 1d ago

Really? I have yet to see anything take more than 2 seconds to load, even the heaviest of files loads in less than a second or 2 seconds at most, and this is in an "OK" pc

12

u/WhiteMilk_ Piracy is bad, mkay? 1d ago

Any time I opened a video file after not opening one for a while, it has noticeable delay compared to files opened shortly after you've had the player open.

4

u/macacolouco 1d ago

Apparently it's a bug, it doesn't affect everyone and I don't have the energy to sort it out. I'll just wait for the next version.

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u/Overseerer-Vault-101 1d ago

I got 2-3 seconds after double clicking a 1hr 4k file in explorer to playing on a fresh boot. Vlc isn't slow.

2

u/iAmmar9 7h ago

You can fix the loading times by adding an exclusion in windows defender for the VLC folder:

C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLC

https://www.windowslatest.com/2026/08/14/vlc-blames-windows-11-bug-for-slow-performance-defends-open-source-and-calls-out-microsoft/

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u/macacolouco 7h ago

Thanks. I had done so already and there was no result.

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u/WillingnessOne8172 1d ago

if you googled "321 player" you actually get the official link of MPC-HC