FFMPEG never completes converting m4a to mp3

[shaunpond]

As far as I can tell this was introduced with the update to File Converter 2.2. When converting m4a to mp3, the process never completes.

To Reproduce
Steps to reproduce the behavior:

1. Go to explorer, right-click on m4a file, choose convert to mp3

Expected behaviour
That the conversion would complete, the UI would show the conversion as complete

Screenshots and Logs

• The Diagnostics folder of the session that encountered the issue.
  ffmpeg log - pasted here because it's held open by ffmpeg

Friday, April 3, 2026 5:39:32 PM

Convert file D:\radio\Drama_on_4_-The_Scrooge_Identity_m002tbkx_original.m4a to D:\radio\Drama_on_4-The_Scrooge_Identity_m002tbkx_original.mp3.
Execute command: C:\Program Files\File Converter\ffmpeg.exe -n -progress pipe:1 -i "D:\radio\Drama_on_4-The_Scrooge_Identity_m002tbkx_original.m4a" -codec:a libmp3lame -q:a 2 -id3v2_version 3 -write_id3v1 1 "D:\radio\Drama_on_4-_The_Scrooge_Identity_m002tbkx_original.mp3".

ffmpeg output: ffmpeg version 8.0.1-essentials_build-www.gyan.dev Copyright (c) 2000-2025 the FFmpeg developers
ffmpeg output: built with gcc 15.2.0 (Rev8, Built by MSYS2 project)
ffmpeg output: configuration: --enable-gpl --enable-version3 --enable-static --disable-w32threads --disable-autodetect --enable-fontconfig --enable-iconv --enable-gnutls --enable-libxml2 --enable-gmp --enable-bzlib --enable-lzma --enable-zlib --enable-libsrt --enable-libssh --enable-libzmq --enable-avisynth --enable-sdl2 --enable-libwebp --enable-libx264 --enable-libx265 --enable-libxvid --enable-libaom --enable-libopenjpeg --enable-libvpx --enable-mediafoundation --enable-libass --enable-libfreetype --enable-libfribidi --enable-libharfbuzz --enable-libvidstab --enable-libvmaf --enable-libzimg --enable-amf --enable-cuda-llvm --enable-cuvid --enable-dxva2 --enable-d3d11va --enable-d3d12va --enable-ffnvcodec --enable-libvpl --enable-nvdec --enable-nvenc --enable-vaapi --enable-openal --enable-libgme --enable-libopenmpt --enable-libopencore-amrwb --enable-libmp3lame --enable-libtheora --enable-libvo-amrwbenc --enable-libgsm --enable-libopencore-amrnb --enable-libopus --enable-libspeex --enable-libvorbis --enable-librubberband
ffmpeg output: libavutil 60. 8.100 / 60. 8.100
ffmpeg output: libavcodec 62. 11.100 / 62. 11.100
ffmpeg output: libavformat 62. 3.100 / 62. 3.100
ffmpeg output: libavdevice 62. 1.100 / 62. 1.100
ffmpeg output: libavfilter 11. 4.100 / 11. 4.100
ffmpeg output: libswscale 9. 1.100 / 9. 1.100
ffmpeg output: libswresample 6. 1.100 / 6. 1.100
ffmpeg output: [mov,mp4,m4a,3gp,3g2,mj2 @ 000001b2ea8f4080] stream 0, timescale not set
ffmpeg output: Input #0, mov,mp4,m4a,3gp,3g2,mj2, from 'D:\radio\Drama_on_4_-The_Scrooge_Identity_m002tbkx_original.m4a':
ffmpeg output: Metadata:
ffmpeg output: major_brand : M4A
ffmpeg output: minor_version : 512
ffmpeg output: compatible_brands: M4A isomiso2
ffmpeg output: media_type : 1
ffmpeg output: copyright : 2026 BBC (programme data only)
ffmpeg output: title : The Scrooge Identity
ffmpeg output: artist : BBC Radio 4
ffmpeg output: album_artist : BBC Radio
ffmpeg output: album : Drama on 4
ffmpeg output: grouping : Drama
ffmpeg output: composer : BBC Sounds
ffmpeg output: genre : Drama
ffmpeg output: comment : A failed cartoonist turns bomb-maker in a real-life game of cat and mouse.
ffmpeg output: date : 2026-03-31T14:15:00+01:00
ffmpeg output: lyrics : Hamburg, 1992. A pipe-bomb goes off in a department store at one in the morning, and a ransom note arrives shortly after, demanding a million marks and signed "Uncle Scrooge". The police are baffled. The press are delighted. And a nation starts rooting fo
ffmpeg output: :
ffmpeg output: : A cat-and-mouse thriller based on an extraordinary true story, about a lone eccentric who seems to be running his criminal campaign straight from the pages of a Donald Duck comic book, and the police team who realise the only way to catch him is to make h
ffmpeg output: :
ffmpeg output: : Warm, witty and surprisingly tender, it might just be unlike any true-crime story you've heard before. Based on real events with imagined scenes.
ffmpeg output: :
ffmpeg output: : Narrator . . . . . Clare Corbett
ffmpeg output: : Funke . . . . . Blake Harrison
ffmpeg output: : Daleki . . . . . Ben Crowe
ffmpeg output: : Brockmann . . . . . Amaka Okafor
ffmpeg output: : Springborn . . . . . John Macmillan
ffmpeg output: : Blashke . . . . . Sam Swann
ffmpeg output: : Weber . . . . . Sam Dale
ffmpeg output: :
ffmpeg output: : Writer: Simon Scardifield
ffmpeg output: :
ffmpeg output: : Sound design: Sharon Hughes
ffmpeg output: : Technical producers: Keith Graham & Jenni Burnett
ffmpeg output: : Casting Manager: Alex Curran
ffmpeg output: : Production co-ordinator: Luke MacGregor
ffmpeg output: : Director: Sasha Yevtushenko
ffmpeg output: :
ffmpeg output: : PLAY: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002tbkx
ffmpeg output: :
ffmpeg output: : INFO: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002tbkx
ffmpeg output: Duration: 00:43:45.30, start: 0.000000, bitrate: 323 kb/s
ffmpeg output: Stream #0:00x1: Audio: aac (LC) (mp4a / 0x6134706D), 48000 Hz, stereo, fltp, 319 kb/s (default)
ffmpeg output: Metadata:
ffmpeg output: handler_name : SoundHandler
ffmpeg output: vendor_id : [0][0][0][0]
ffmpeg output: Stream #0:1[0x0]: Video: mjpeg (Baseline), yuvj420p(pc, bt470bg/unknown/unknown), 1920x1080 [SAR 72:72 DAR 16:9], 90k tbr, 90k tbn (attached pic)
ffmpeg output: Stream mapping:
ffmpeg output: Stream #0:1 -> #0:0 (mjpeg (native) -> png (native))
ffmpeg output: Stream #0:0 -> #0:1 (aac (native) -> mp3 (libmp3lame))
ffmpeg output: Press [q] to stop, [?] for help
ffmpeg output: [swscaler @ 000001b2eb26a000] deprecated pixel format used, make sure you did set range correctly
ffmpeg output: Output #0, mp3, to 'D:\radio\Drama_on_4-_The_Scrooge_Identity_m002tbkx_original.mp3':
ffmpeg output: Metadata:
ffmpeg output: major_brand : M4A
ffmpeg output: minor_version : 512
ffmpeg output: compatible_brands: M4A isomiso2
ffmpeg output: media_type : 1
ffmpeg output: TCOP : 2026 BBC (programme data only)
ffmpeg output: TIT2 : The Scrooge Identity
ffmpeg output: TPE1 : BBC Radio 4
ffmpeg output: TPE2 : BBC Radio
ffmpeg output: TALB : Drama on 4
ffmpeg output: grouping : Drama
ffmpeg output: TCOM : BBC Sounds
ffmpeg output: TCON : Drama
ffmpeg output: comment : A failed cartoonist turns bomb-maker in a real-life game of cat and mouse.
ffmpeg output: TYER : 2026
ffmpeg output: USLT : Hamburg, 1992. A pipe-bomb goes off in a department store at one in the morning, and a ransom note arrives shortly after, demanding a million marks and signed "Uncle Scrooge". The police are baffled. The press are delighted. And a nation starts rooting fo
ffmpeg output: :
ffmpeg output: : A cat-and-mouse thriller based on an extraordinary true story, about a lone eccentric who seems to be running his criminal campaign straight from the pages of a Donald Duck comic book, and the police team who realise the only way to catch him is to make h
ffmpeg output: :
ffmpeg output: : Warm, witty and surprisingly tender, it might just be unlike any true-crime story you've heard before. Based on real events with imagined scenes.
ffmpeg output: :
ffmpeg output: : Narrator . . . . . Clare Corbett
ffmpeg output: : Funke . . . . . Blake Harrison
ffmpeg output: : Daleki . . . . . Ben Crowe
ffmpeg output: : Brockmann . . . . . Amaka Okafor
ffmpeg output: : Springborn . . . . . John Macmillan
ffmpeg output: : Blashke . . . . . Sam Swann
ffmpeg output: : Weber . . . . . Sam Dale
ffmpeg output: :
ffmpeg output: : Writer: Simon Scardifield
ffmpeg output: :
ffmpeg output: : Sound design: Sharon Hughes
ffmpeg output: : Technical producers: Keith Graham & Jenni Burnett
ffmpeg output: : Casting Manager: Alex Curran
ffmpeg output: : Production co-ordinator: Luke MacGregor
ffmpeg output: : Director: Sasha Yevtushenko
ffmpeg output: :
ffmpeg output: : PLAY: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002tbkx
ffmpeg output: :
ffmpeg output: : INFO: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002tbkx
ffmpeg output: TSSE : Lavf62.3.100
ffmpeg output: Stream #0:0: Video: png, rgb24(pc, gbr/unknown/unknown, progressive), 1920x1080 [SAR 1:1 DAR 16:9], q=2-31, 200 kb/s, 90k fps, 90k tbn (attached pic)
ffmpeg output: Metadata:
ffmpeg output: encoder : Lavc62.11.100 png
ffmpeg output: Stream #0:1(eng): Audio: mp3, 48000 Hz, stereo, fltp (default)
ffmpeg output: Metadata:
ffmpeg output: encoder : Lavc62.11.100 libmp3lame
ffmpeg output: handler_name : SoundHandler
ffmpeg output: vendor_id : [0][0][0][0]
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:00.51
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:01.02
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:01.53
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:02.06
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:02.57
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:03.08
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:03.60
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:04.11
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:04.63
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:05.15
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:05.66
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:06.17
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:06.70
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:07.20
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:07.72
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:08.24
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:08.75
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:09.27
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:09.78
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:10.31
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:10.82
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:11.33
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:11.85
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:12.37
ffmpeg output: frame= 0 fps=0.0 q=0.0 size= 2KiB time=N/A bitrate=N/A speed=N/A elapsed=0:00:12.88

Desktop (please complete the following information):

• OS: Windows 11 64bits

Additional context
I am running Kaspersky AV, but the problem still occurs with protection disabled

Settings.user.xml

[shaunpond]

I terminated ffmpeg and attach the logs
Diagnostics1.log

Diagnostics8.log

Diagnostics9.log

[EmilPetrakiev]

Revert to version 2.1 (HERE). For some reason version 2.2 always freezes.

[shaunpond]

Revert to version 2.1 (HERE). For some reason version 2.2 always freezes.

Thanks - I'll do that!

[shaunpond]

The workaround works fine