The VideoLAN Forums

I am facing an issue with VLC Media Player where an unwanted image appears in the player section whenever I play an audio file. When VLC is idle, the default interface and cone icon display correctly. However, as soon as I play any audio, the image replaces the default visualization or background.

I have tried uninstalling VLC, deleting all preferences, and reinstalling, but the problem persists. It seems like this image is somehow embedded or linked to the audio playback.

Has anyone experienced this issue or know how to fix it? I would like to restore the default background or visualization when playing audio.

OS: Windows 11 Home 24H2
VLC: Version 3.0.21 Windows 64bit

Delete the images cache folder: %appdata%\VLC\art

Delete the images cache folder: %appdata%\VLC\art

I deleted this folder, but the unwanted image still appears.

Then I guess it must be downloaded from the internet.

Menu Tools -> Preferences -> Interface -> disable Allow Metadata Network Access at the bottom.
Then clear the images cache folder: %appdata%\VLC\art
Save, exit and restart VLC for the changes to take effect.

Then I guess it must be downloaded from the internet.

Menu Tools -> Preferences -> Interface -> disable Allow Metadata Network Access at the bottom.
Then clear the images cache folder: %appdata%\VLC\art
Save, exit and restart VLC for the changes to take effect.

I disabled "Allow metadata network access" and saved the preferences. Then, I permanently deleted "%appdata%\VLC\art". However, the unwanted image still appears.

Are you sure that the unwanted image is not embedded in the audio file as a cover image tag?
When you play another audio file in a different folder, can you see the same picture or not?

Are you sure that the unwanted image is not embedded in the audio file as a cover image tag?
When you play another audio file in a different folder, can you see the same picture or not?

I played another audio file in the same folder (Downloads), but the same unwanted image appeared. However, when I moved that audio file to another folder and played it, the image was gone. It looks like the Downloads folder is causing this, so what should I do?

There may be a hidden image file in the Downloads folder. Open the Folder Options and select 'Show hidden files' and unselect 'Hide protected files'.



The image can be named such as cover, album art, front, etc.

Yep, there must be a pic named front.*, cover.*, folder.* or disc.* which is located in the same folder as the audio files.