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What exactly is a codec?

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What exactly is a codec?

Codec

Today there are about three dozen common digital audio formats. Why you need to create so many types of sound files to store one type of content and how to manage all this, you will learn from this material.

Codecs

Surely many users prefer to use their home computer not only as a workhorse, but also as a multimedia center, where they can watch movies or family photos, as well as listen to their favorite music. Although compact digital players or mobile phones are certainly more suitable for listening to musical compositions, but unlike them, a computer can not only play music.

No matter how big the built-in memory of your music player is, it will most likely be difficult to store your entire music library on it. Plus, you can create, edit, organize, and search for music with your PC. Also, don’t forget that there are around three dozen common digital audio formats today, and most players are far from omnivorous and can only play a few of them.

So why do you need to create so many music formats to store one type of content? The fact is that, in the vast majority of cases, the sound is stored in “compressed” form, since one minute of uncompressed composition occupies about 10 MB on the hard disk. On the one hand, this seems not to be much, but on the other, if you are a music lover and your collection consists of several hundred or even thousands of songs, then it is clear that the sound must be compressed to reduce the space it occupies in electronic media.

Various special algorithms are used to compress music files, which subsequently determine the structure and presentation of the audio data, or so-called digital audio file formats. All audio formats can be divided into three groups: uncompressed audio formats, lossless compression, and lossy compression.

No compression
One of the most widespread formats related to this type is the well-known WAV. The sound of files with this extension is stored without compression or changes. It is true that much more space is required to store uncompressed files and therefore WAV is more widely used only in professional audio and video applications, where the sound should not have a loss of quality before processing. Keeping ordinary musical compositions in this form is unwarranted waste.

To play WAV files, you do not need any special software, as all media players understand this format, including the standard Windows Media audio player built into the Windows system.

Another format used to store uncompressed audio that is worth mentioning is Apple’s development called AIFF (Audio Interchange File Format). As you may have guessed, it is most commonly used on Macintosh computers running Mac OS X.

Lossless compression (lossless)
Lossless compression algorithms for audio files work on the principle of conventional file cabinets. They do not provide the highest level of compression (40 to 60%), while they have virtually no effect on sound quality. It is also worth noting that in this case, the encrypted data can be fully restored to its original form. Therefore, the use of lossless compression is most often used in cases where it is important to preserve the identity of the compressed data with respect to the original.

The most popular audio formats in this group are FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec), APE (Monkey’s Audio), WMA (Windows Media Lossless), and ALAC (Apple Lossless Audio Codec). Each has its own pros and cons. For example, the APE codec offers slightly better compression gains, while FLAC is more common. In general, all true music lovers store their music collections in lossless formats, since they do not remove any data from the audio stream and files created with these codecs can be listened to even on high-quality stereos.

To play lossless compressed formats, as a rule, third-party players (except WMA) are used, such as MPlayer, foobar, AIMP, Winamp, VLC and others, since all the necessary codecs are already built into them. Another option is to separately install an additional codec pack (for example, K-Lite), after which you can listen to files in lossless format from almost any audio player.

Lossy compression
This is the most popular group of algorithms that provides the maximum audio compression ratio (up to 10 times or more). However, unlike previous formats, the audio file loses quality.

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What are video codecs and audio codecs?

What are video codecs and audio codecs?

Video Codecs

Almost any computer user periodically listens to music on it, which is stored electronically. There are many formats for storing music, each of them was developed for specific tasks:

Video Codec

Bit rate is the amount of information used during encoding for 1 second playback. The higher it is, the less the distortion and the sound matches the original as much as possible.
Lossless – Lossless audio encoding. By converting to lossless formats and vice versa, we get exactly the same sound.
Lossy: compression formats designed for the fact that a person simply cannot physically hear certain frequencies that are skipped during conversion. At the same time, it can significantly save the amount of disk space.

Audio CD
The format that ushered in the era of digital sound after the transition from vinyl records. It was adopted as a standard in 1979 by Philips and Sony. In the audio CD format, music can be physically stored only on optical media; when recording to a hard disk, the audio track must be converted.

Due to the highest sound quality and the ability to play on any player, the format is still very popular, even though it is quite old.

Flac
Perhaps the most common format for storing lossless music. Compared to other lossless audio compression codecs, flac developed by xiph.org is completely free and offers the smallest output file size.

MP3
The most popular music format accepted as an unofficial standard for any playback device. Its popularity is based on the fact that because it cuts frequencies inaudible to the ear with practically the same sound quality, an mp3 file is 30% of the original lossless file.

The first audio track in mp3 format appeared in 1994. One of the reasons for its popularity is the ability to store a variety of additional information on audio file tags and the convenience of organizing a music library.

Ogg
A new lossy format that was launched in 2002 as a free alternative to paid formats. Unlike its predecessors, mp3 in particular, it allows the possibility of multi-channel encoding and multi-channel audio storage. It is most used in video games.

The term “audio” today means everything that is somehow connected with sound. This is processing, playing, mixing and simply listening to audio recordings. Few people know that during their existence all popular audio formats have undergone significant changes, sometimes for the better and sometimes even for the worse.

The problem is that when the creators tried to improve the recording quality by using the new format, the size of the result increased significantly. Reducing the size of the final file resulted in a significant loss of quality. But this was not always the case.

The first mention of computer sound is associated with the creation of several primitive video games. Then the sound was played back using the speaker of the system. As the software developers of that time did not try, they failed to achieve the level of quality that would be compatible with tape and reel recorders. This is what got many developers thinking about how to change the audio format to make the sound more natural and natural. It is this problem that has led to the current competition in the audio market. As a result, the formats used strongly affect the quality of the reproduced material and the configuration of the basic playback parameters.

WAV format

The first full quality of audio formats is associated with this particular format. The WAV extension designation was derived from the English word “wave”, which means wave in Russian. It was this format that became the first audio format to be processed with computer programs at a highly professional level. Files with a WAV extension had the following characteristics:

– depth of sound;
– sampling frequency;
– bit rate, etc.

This format was even compatible with the sound that could be obtained after processing an audio CD with an equalizer and other tools. However, the file size in this case was completely unwarranted. For example, the most common 3 minute long track could be up to 50 megabytes long.

Everything you need to know about video codecs, containers, and compression.

Explaining the difference between codecs and containers is relatively simple, but the difficult part is trying to understand each format. The lines begin to blur when you realize that the most common codecs are not exclusive and can use various compression technologies to get the job done. The blurred line is almost invisible when you start talking about formats like MPEG-4, which can be classified as container and codec, but it is a complicated classification that is better to leave for another time.

So how is the difference between dozens of codec and container options taught? Don’t do it.There are only a handful of technologies used for online video, and most of your effort will be devoted to understanding how they work, as well as understanding the trade-offs you face in deciding what to use. .

You can spend weeks studying technologies that are only used for a relatively small number of applications. Therefore, we will focus our attention on the technologies that you will use for most video encoding and playback needs.

What is a codec?

A codec, or encoder / decoder, is an encoding tool that processes video and stores it in a sequence of bytes. Codecs use algorithms to effectively reduce the size of the audio or video file and then unzip it when necessary. There are dozens of different types of codecs, and each uses different technology to encode and reduce your video file for the intended application.

Depending on the codec, this encoding occurs in two ways: Lossy or lossless compression How does file compression work? How does file compression work? One can argue that file compression is at the heart of how the modern Web works, as it allows us to share files that would otherwise take a long time to transfer. but how does it work? See more information.

Lossy compression

When looking for manageable file sizes, lossy compression is the most viable method available. Although it certainly loses quality in audio, video or both, compression is a necessary evil (currently) in a world dominated by the need to share and store what would otherwise be equivalent to impractical file sizes. Your average Blu-ray, for example, can top 40 gigabytes, and that kind of storage space would not only be expensive, but would make digital downloads and purchases inconvenient, if not a waste of time. The key when using lossy compression is to set the highest quality compression format for its intended use, so that it follows the fine line between quality loss and file size.

Lossless compression

Lossless compression works much the same as a ZIP or RAR archive, because after compressing and decompressing, the archive is essentially the same. By using smart algorithms, the file does not lose a lot of quality, but it is not an efficient way to store large files because there is not much compression that actually occurs. Also, streaming large video files online uses a lot of bandwidth (although H.265 encoding can change that) to make it a viable compression option.

Unless you work in the film or video editing industry, you are unlikely to share video files in a lossless format (if you do). To put this in perspective, even a 4K TV does not contain the resolution necessary to display a movie shot on a modern camera and is delivered without compression. In fact, it’s not even close (yet). While 4k video is beautiful, 8 Ultra HD videos to watch on your new 4K TV [things to see] 8 Ultra HD videos to watch on your new 4K TV [things to see] We have tracked high and low and found some 4K videos that take full advantage of the ridiculous amount of pixels at your disposal, for free. Read more, it is not the size of an uncompressed video format.

Although a Blu-ray movie is less than 50 gigabytes (if required on disc), the first downloadable 4K movie (available to consumers – trailer below) is 160 gigabytes! The uncompressed 1080p video is mind-blowing 410 gigabytes per hour, and that doesn’t include the audio file, which can add an additional 7 gigabytes per hour, depending on how it was recorded.

Video codecs

In photography, the choice of the recording codec is quite limited: we usually fluctuate between the JPG format and the Raw format. In video, the choice is slightly wider: MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPG-4, H264, H265, RAW, ProRes, ProRes Raw, Motion jpeg, etc.

So what are these codecs for, what uses are they designed for, and which ones should you choose?

Códecs

CONTAINERS AND CODECS are NOT the same!

Digital videos are contained in files. These files are called “containers”. The extension of these files often makes it possible to determine their type. The most common containers are MP4, MOV, AVI and MXF. The MXF container is generally used in professional camera series from manufacturers such as Sony or Panasonic.

These containers are “boxes” or “folders” that consist of several elements: video track, sound tracks, time code or subtitles. The purpose of the container is to synchronize all the elements it contains.

Therefore, you cannot know the codec of a video from the file extension: for example, an .avi file and a .mov file could use the same codec to encode the video track.

WHAT IS A CODEC?

A codec is a mathematical procedure consisting of algorithms used to encode and decode the image (codec). It helps define how sensor information is stored and the strategy for compressing and decompressing images.

The size of a one minute 4K video file is about 50 GB. Therefore, it is easy to understand the main advantage of using a codec: compression. For the same minute of 4K recording, for example, using the H264 codec reduces the file size by a factor of about 27, or a final size of about 1.8 GB.

The more “codec” a codec is, the more complex the decoding will be and it will require a powerful machine to accomplish this task. At the same time, the higher the compression, the greater the loss of information that can make post-production difficult.

To achieve this optimization, most codecs use spatial compression: each image is compressed independently of the other images; This is known as an “intra” codec. For more compression, more complex codecs add temporary compression: we’re talking LONG GOP (GOP for “Group of Pictures” or “Long Group of Pictures”); Codecs of this type record only one full image per x images (often 12) and retain only what has changed between these images.

What are the most used video formats?

Choosing audio and video codecs and containers affects video quality and file size. Here we show you how to find the format that best suits your needs.

Decades and decades of developments in the audiovisual field have led to a result that, in some way, can be considered curious. While in other sectors, continuous development has led to a very marked standardization (think of the .doc or .pdf format), in multimedia the situation is at least compound.

An example is the world of audio formats, animated by strong “competition” and a multitude of available options. It is no less than that of video formats, in fact. In this case, in fact, we have to deal with a division between codecs and containers (we will see in a moment what they are and what function they perform) that ends up complicating things even more. Therefore, in case you want to convert a movie, you have to be careful to choose the correct codec and the correct video format, to avoid creating files that are too large or simply unreadable. In short, the error is just around the corner.

Differences between containers and codecs

Before analyzing the situation and seeing what are the most used video formats, it is necessary to clarify some fundamental concepts: first, what is the difference between the codec and the container. If in the audio world, the codec used to digitize the audio track matches the “final” file format, in the video, on the other hand, the codecs used are different from the file format that the video file will assume at the end of the digitization process. The reason is soon explained and lies in the multimedia nature of a video.

A movie, in fact, contains video and audio data: the conversion or playback software must be able to analyze both multimedia streams, and therefore will need different algorithms that work in one or another type of data stream. Codecs do exactly this: as the name, code, and decoding of data (audio and video) are made from movies, so you can convert them to another video format or play them back with a media player. Even with regard to containers, it is enough to resort to the literal meaning of the word: these are files that contain both the video and audio sequences within them and “make them available” to codecs for reading and playback.

What are the most used codecs?

A codec, as mentioned, is in charge of compressing and decompressing the video files and determines how they are played on the screen of the PC or smart TV. Each operating system provides the user with dozens and dozens of different codecs, each useful for encoding and decoding a specific type of file, even if a new one can be installed by downloading special software or packages from the web. Among the most used codecs we find the FFmpeg, Divx, Xvid, H.264 and its evolution H.265, VP9 and VP 10 (also known as the name of the Google codec).

-Divx and Xvid. As the name also suggests, these are two “mirror” codecs, created in the late 20th and early 21st centuries to meet the initial demand for online multimedia content. Since bandwidth and browsing speed were very limited, these are codecs that can guarantee good video quality even at high levels of image compression. In this way, it was possible to obtain files of contained dimensions even with very long movies (such as full movies)

-264 and H.265. Created by the Motion Picture Expert Group, they can be considered as industry standards. Among the most popular and used in all areas (you can find H.264 encoded movies on Blu-ray discs, for example, but also movies downloaded from the network) thanks to its versatility and ability to guarantee an excellent quality ratio / File size. The H.265 codec, in particular, can guarantee, with the same quality, a compression factor twice as high as that of its predecessor: files “treated” with this codec will therefore weigh half compared to their counterparts processed with H.264 codec

-VP9 and VP10. Also known as “Google Codec”, they are the codecs used by the giant Moutnain View to compress and decompress the movies uploaded to YouTube. These are algorithms optimized for online video playback, capable of offering excellent resolution and high quality even with small files. The VP10 in particular is the all’H.265 answer and is designed for resolutions up to 4K
Mpeg-H.

Video codecs and possible failures

Numerous queries that you make to us as readers are caused by one of those incompatibilities in something that should be as simple as being able to put a file in a pendrive and that later (for whatever astral reason) it cannot be reproduced due to a failure or due to other. And this, dear reader, is almost always given by the codecs.

So with the intention of explaining and the desire to give you simple solutions, we elaborate this article where you can know what they are, how to detect them, how to convert them easily and by which way it is better to insert it to our precious Smart TV. But, let us start at the beginning.

But what is that about codecs?

The first thing to distinguish is what a codec and what a container. Sometimes they are confused and it is essential to define them to identify them and get to the point when we are presented with any incompatibility in any file that we want to reproduce.

Surely you sound files with formats as famous as .mpg, .avi, .mov, .divx, .mkv … Well, all these are containers of content both in the form of audio and video tracks so that later when playing them play all at once, in tune and with sufficient quality. That’s where the codec comes in.

A codec is simply a program that creates a particular file with encryption. Hence its name … to encode and decode these files in a language or code that improves image and sound quality or reduces the file size for a better transfer over the network of networks.

So to sum up, one issue is the type of file format or extension that we have in front of us and a very different one, how it has been encoded, in what language, that our TV will then be able to interpret and reproduce correctly.

And it is that before a problem of reproduction of file the first thing that we have to know is with what type of codec it has been codified. To do this in a very simple way we can find out with a simple video player on our PC.

How to know the compatibility of Smart TV

Knowing what codec or container our “smart” television can play is critical to know what type of video file to download and that it doesn’t trouble us later when playing it with the smart TV model we have at home. But this information is not always at hand as we expect. There are brands that do not include this information in detail on their website or in the manual.