Audio Video Package Format, Encoding Format Knowledge

Date February 1, 2017 Author Catherine Category Video Tips

(personal finishing, the content source is from network !!)

Common AVI, RMVB, MKV, ASF, WMV, MP4, 3GP, FLV and other documents can only be regarded as a package standard.

A complete video file is composed of audio and video 2 parts. H264, Xvid, etc. is the video encoding format, MP3, AAC, etc. is the audio encoding format.

For example: an Xvid video encoding files and an MP3 audio are encoded into one file according to the AVI package standard, you get a video of AVI suffix, this is our common AVI video files.

Because many kinds of video encoding files, audio encoding files are in line with AVI packaging requirements, it means that even if the AVI suffix, it may be inside the specific encoding format is different. So for some devices, some can play AVI files properly while there are some can not play.

The same situation also exists in other container formats. Even RMVB, WMV, etc. are no exception. Some technologically advanced containers can also package multiple video, audio encoding files, and even encapsulated into subtitles, such as MKV package format. MKV file can do a file including multilingual pronunciation, multi-language subtitles, suitable for different people’s needs.

For example: MKV file as long as the production time to join the Mandarin and Cantonese pronunciation of the track and the corresponding simplified, traditional subtitles, when playing, you can independently select the Mandarin or Cantonese pronunciation, and according to their need to select Simplified or Traditional subtitles, Select No subtitles. Quite convenient.

Therefore, the video conversion needs to set the essence is: A the required video encoding, B the required audio coding, C select the required container packaging. A complete set of video conversion settings include at least the above three steps.

Commonly used are Xvid, H264, MPEG1, MPEG2.

Xvid: RMVB format with almost the compression rate, versatility is very strong, especially for home DVD and portable MP4 and other devices.

H264: Compression ratio of the highest video compression format, compared with other encoding formats, the same picture quality, file size is the smallest, far more than RMVB encoding format, the computer can play, some portable video devices also support, such as Apple player. PDA / PPC and other equipment can also be used

MPEG1: In fact, VCD encoding format.

MPEG2: DVD encoding format. MPEG1 than the strong, and MPEG1, has lagged behind the encoding format, the compression rate is not high, the encoded file size, and more for the hope that the Internet to download the file into a VCD or DVD disc.

Common combinations:

Encapsulation container Video stream encoding format Audio stream encoding format

AVI: XviD MP3
AVI: Divx MP3
Matroska (suffix is MKV): Xvid MP3
Matroska (suffix is MKV): Xvid AAC
Matroska (suffix is MKV): H264 AAC
MP4: Xvid MP3
MP4: H264 AAC
3GP: H.263 AAC

In fact, many packaging containers have much less strict requirements for the combination of the audio encoding and video encoding, such as AVI can also use H264 + AAC combination, you can use in the specific experience. Especially MKV packaging containers, no matter what kind of combination can be the basic! But the general MKV is the most used H264 + AAC combination, the combination of the smallest file size, the highest clarity. So a lot of online MKV video is high-definition.

Can be seen from the table, the real focus is set on audio coding and video coding, packaging containers most of the time is only related to the final file suffix only. At least beginners can be so understanding.

Audio and video encoding format summary

1. First, audio codec format

* MPEG Audio Layer 1/2
* MPEG Audio Layer 3 (MP3)
* MPEG2 AAC
* MPEG4 AAC
* Windows Media audeo v1 / v2 / 7/8/9
* RealAudio cook / sipro (real media series)
* RealAudio AAC / AACPlus (real media series)
* QDesign Music 2 (apple series)
Is QDesign developed for high-fidelity high compression rate encoding, similar to MP3, but more advanced than MP3. Support for streaming.
* Apple MPEG-4 AAC (apple series)
* Ogg (ogg vorbis audio)
* AC3 (DVD-specific audio encoding)
* DTS (DVD-specific audio encoding)
* APE (monkey’s audio)
* AU (sun format)
* FLAC (fress lossless audio)
* M4A (mpeg-4 audio) (Apple to use the name, you can change to. Mp4)
* MP2 (mpeg audio layer2 audio)
* WMA

2. Second, video codec format

* MPEG1 (VCD)
* MPEG2 (DVD)
* MPEG4 (divx, xvid)
* MPEG4 AVC / h.264
* H.261
* H.262
* H.263
* H.263 +
* H.263 ++
* MPEG-4 v1 / v2 / v3 (Microsoft windows media series)
* Windows Media Video 7/8/9/10
* Sorenson Video 3 (for QT5, standard) (appleseries)
* RealVideo G2 (real media series)
* RealVideo 8/9/10 (real media series)
* Apple MPEG-4 (apple series)
* Apple H.264 (apple series)
* Flash video

3. audio and video file format

First of all, to distinguish between the difference between media files and encoding: file is both video and audio, including even a set of scripts, can also be called container; file among the video and audio compression algorithm is the specific encoding.

* AVI: audio and video interactive storage, the most common audio and video containers. Support for video and audio encoding is the most

* MPG: MPEG encoded audio and video containers, with the flow characteristics. Which is divided into PS, TS, PS is mainly used for DVD storage, TS is mainly used for HDTV.

* VOB: DVD audio and video container format used (ie, video MPEG-2, AC3 or DTS with audio), multi-video multi-subtitles chapters and more.

* MP4: MPEG-4 encoded audio and video containers, based on QuickTime MOV development, with many advanced features.

* 3GP: 3GPP video format used, mainly for streaming media transmission.

* ASF: Windows Media uses audio and video containers, can be used for streaming, but also contain scripts.

* RM: RealMedia audio and video containers used for streaming.

* MOV: QuickTime audio and video containers, probably the most powerful containers, and even support virtual reality technology, Java, etc., its variants MP4, 3GP are not so powerful.

* MKV: MKV It can Windows Media Video, RealVideo, MPEG-4 and other video and audio into a file, and supports multi-audio, support chapter subtitles and so on.

* WAV: an audio container (Note: only audio), we often say that WAV is not compressed PCM encoding, in fact, WAV which can also include MP3 and other ACM compression encoding.

4. to identify the file name to identify the audio encoding format

* .aac
Audio coding: aac
* .ac3
Audio coding: ac3
* .ape
* .au
Audio encoding: pcm_s16be
* .m4a
Audio coding: mpeg4 aac
* .mp2
* .mp3
* .ogg
Audio coding: vorbis
* .wav
Audio encoding: pcm_s16le
* .flav
* .wma

Audio encoding: wma7x

5. identify the audio and video encoding format to identify the file name

1. * .MP4 (MP4 MPEG-4 video)
Video encoding: mpeg4
Audio coding: mpeg4 aac
2. * .3gp (3GPP Third Generation Partnership Project)
Video encoding: mpeg4
Audio encoding: amr_nb ((mono, 8000 Hz, Sample Depth 16 bit, bitrate 12 kbps)
3. * .3g2 (3GPP 3rd Generation Partnership Project 2)
Video encoding: mpeg4
Audio coding: mpeg4 aac
4. * .asf (ASF Advanced Stream Format)
Video encoding: msmpeg4
Audio coding: mp3
5. * .avi (AVI audio and video interlaced format)
Video encoding: mpeg4
Audio encoding: pcm_s161e
6. * .avi (divx video)
Video encoding: mpeg4
Audio coding: mp3
7. * .avi (xvid video)
Video encoding: Xvid
Audio coding: mp3
8. * .vob (DVD)
Video encoding: mpeg2 video
Audio coding: ac3
9. * .flv (flash video format)
Video encoding:
Audio coding: mp3
10. * .mp4 (iPod 320 * 240 MPEG-4 video format)
Video encoding: mpeg4
Audio coding: mpeg4 aac
11. * .mp4 (iPod video2 640 * 480 MPEG-4 video format)
Video encoding: mpeg4
Audio coding: mpeg4 aac
12. * .mov (MOV Apple Quicktime Format)
Video encoding: mpeg4_qt
Audio encoding: mpeg4 aac_qt
13. * .mpg (mpeg1 video)
Video encoding: mpeg1 video
Audio encoding: mp2
14. * .mpg (mpeg2 video)
Video encoding: mpeg2 video
Audio encoding: mp2
15. * .mp4 (mpeg4 avc video format)
Video encoding: h.264
Audio coding: mpeg4 aac
16. * .mp4 (PSP mpeg4 video)
Video encoding: Xvid
Audio coding: mpeg4 aac
17. * .mp4 (PSP AVC video format)
Video encoding: h.264
Audio coding: mpeg4 aac
18. * .rm (RM realvideo)
Video encoding: rv10
Audio coding: ac3
19. * .mpg (Super VCD)
Video encoding: mpeg2 video
Audio encoding: mp2
20. * .swf (SWF format)
Video encoding:
Audio coding: mp3
21. * .mpg (video CD format)
Video encoding: mpeg1 video
Audio encoding: mp2
22. * .vob (mpeg2 ps format)
Video encoding: mpeg2 video
Audio coding: ac3
23. * .wmv (windows video format)
Video encoding: wmv3x
Audio encoding: wma7x

Comparison between MOV and MP4

File Extension	MOV	MP4
File Type	Apple QuickTime Movie	MPEG-4 Video File
Description	Compatible with both Mac and Windows platforms; contains multiple tracks that store various types of media data; commonly uses the MPEG-4 codec for compression	Uses MPEG-4 compression, commonly used for sharing videos on the internet; use separate compression for audio and video tracks; supported by most programs and devices
Developed by	Apple	International Standard
Pros	providing better quality files, ability to enhance sound, picture quality and picture resolution	compatibility with multiple media players; providing better compression sizes; being supported by most operating systems
Cons	As MOV was designed specifically for Quick Time environment, it can suffer problems outside of that environment.	A slight loss in file quality; require you to wait for pre-buffering before viewing content, increasing the amount of time it takes to view the video as a whole
Help You Choose	For an Apple Mac user, MOV is a perfectly safe choice; you might run into problems with MOV format outside of Quick Time	MP4 has more support, run smoothly on most operating systems; commonly used for sharing video files on the Interne;

Comparsion between AVI and MP4

File Extension	AVI	MP4
File Type	Audio Video Interleave File	MPEG-4 Video File
Description	AVI is a video wrapper format created by Microsoft, storing video data that might be encoded with various codecs. AVI files can be played by various video players, but the player must support the codec used to encode the video data.	Developed by the Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG), MP4 is a multimedia container format standard specified as a part of MPEG-4.
Developed by	Microsoft	Moving Picture Experts Group
Pros	Flexible, works with a wide range of editing and compression programs; have support for multiple video or audio streams	MP4 is are usually compressed; compatible with more devices like iPad, iPod, iPhone, Android Phone and some tablet
Cons	Generally AVI tends to be larger than most video formats due to minimal compression features	require you to wait for pre-buffering before viewing content,
Help You Choose	AVI files can be played by various video players, but the player must support the codec used to encode the video data.	MP4 files are an open standard that everyone can use.

Comparsion between MOV and MKV

File Extension	MOV	MKV
File Type	Apple QuickTime Movie	Matroska Video File
Description	MOV is a common multimedia container file format developed by Apple that holds multiple tracks of different media data, allowing you to store and synchronize different parts of video and audio media in one file.	MKV file is an envelope format that supports several types of audio, video and subtitles screams, allowing users to store a complete movie with subtitles or CD in a single file.
Developed by	Apple	Matroska
Pros	Can hold multiple tracks of different media data; Widely-used and good compatibility; Often used for saving movies and other video files;	Supports multiple audio and subtitle tracks; Good for storing high definition (HD) videos/movies; Popular in the movie/TV show fan-subbing community;
Cons	Since each media track can be encoded by a different codec, the application to open the MOV file must be able to recognize the codec in order to play the media track(s);	Not as widely-used as MOV format; Poor compatibility when play back on mobile devices; Tends to be larger than most video formats;

Comparsion between MP4 and MKV

File Extension	MP4	MKV
File Type	MPEG-4 Video File	Matroska Video File
Description	MP4 (MPEG-4) is a standard developed by the Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG), commonly used for sharing video files on the Internet. MP4 video is compressed with MPEG-4 video encoding, while audio using AAC compression.	MKV is an open standard free container format, a file format that can hold an unlimited number of video, audio, picture or subtitle tracks inside a single file.
Developed by	Moving Picture Experts Group	Matroska
Pros	Better format compatibility than MKV; The most widely-used video format; Supported by virtually all OS, players & devices;	Better video & audio quality than MP4; Ideal format for storing HD videos; Support multiple video/audio tracks & subtitles;
Cons	The application to open the MP4 file must be able to recognize both the video and audio codec in order to play the media;	Not compatible with most mobile devices and some media players; Tends to be larger than most video formats;
Help You Choose	If you wish to play your videos/movies anywhere like iPhone 5s, iPad Air, QuickTime, etc, MP4 format should the your first and best choice to encode the video files.	If you want to wrap an HD movie, TV show, anime, etc. (which includes multi-language audio tracks and subtitles) with relatively smaller file size, you can apply the video with MKV format.

Comparsion between AVI and MKV

File Extension	AVI	MKV
File Type	Audio Video Interleave File	Matroska Video File
Description	AVI is a multimedia container format introduced by Microsoft in November 1992 as part of its Video for Windows technology. AVI files can contain both audio and video data in a file container that allows synchronous audio-with-video playback.	MKV file is an envelope for which there can be many audio, video and subtitles screams, allowing the user to store a complete movie with subtitles or CD in a single file.Learn how to play MKV files, then you can use your MKV file more conveniently.
Developed by	Microsoft	Matroska
Pros	1) Well compatible with most devices and media player; 2) AVI is the basis for the development of MKV;	1) Great video & audio quality; 2) Multi-tracks and subtitles supported;
Cons	1) Not compatible with Mac & iOS-based apps and devices; 2) Lossy compression that sacrifices quality for file size;	1) Not natively supported by most mobile devices; 2) Tends to be larger in file size;
Help You Choose	If you want a better format compatibilty and play your videos almost anywhere, AVI should be your first choice.	If video quality is what you most care about, then you should pick out MKV for it’s capable of storing high quality HD movies.

Media File Converter

If you need to convert a video and a audio to another format, you can use Pavtube Video Converter Ultimate and Pavtube iMedia Converter for Mac. They can convert MP4, AVI, MOV, MKV, FLV, TS, WMV, etc to another format with H.264, H.265, DivX, XviD codec.