Reduction of data volumes of audio and visual streams of digital video is achieved by compressing information using various algorithms. To ensure the ability to play videos by any applications installed on the computer, compression and decompression algorithms are made in the form of separate modules (codecs). Therefore, often, if a video is played without sound, it is enough just to find out the audio codec and install it.
Necessary
- - Windows Media Player application included in the Windows distribution kit;
- - Free VirtualDub video editor available for download at virtualdub.org;
- - Free GSpot software available for download at gspot.headbands.com;
- is a free program MediaInfo, available for download from the mediainfo.sourceforge.net project page.
Instructions
Step 1
Find out the audio codec of your video using the Windows Media Player media playback application. This program is included in distribution packages for most versions of the Microsoft Windows operating system. Start Windows Media Player. Typically, the shortcut for this application is located in the "Entertainment" section of the "Programs" section of the "Start" menu. In the main menu of the player, select the items "File" and "Open …" or press Ctrl + O. In the dialog that appears, specify the video file. Click the "Open" button. The video starts playing. From the main menu, select File and Properties. In the dialog that appears, switch to the "File" tab. Find the "Audio Codec" column. It will contain the name of the used codec or filter.
Step 2
Get information about an audio codec with VirtualDub. In the main menu of the application, select File and Open video file … in sequence, or use the hot keys Ctrl + O. Select the video file in the displayed dialog and click the "Open" button. Click on the main menu items File and "File Information …". A dialog will open with a summary of the data streams contained in the open file. In the Audio stream controls group, find the Compression field. It will display the name of the audio codec.
Step 3
Find out the audio codec with GSpot. In its main menu, select the items File and "Open …". In the "Select file (s) to be checked.." dialog, go to the desired directory and select the target file. Click the "Open" button. Wait until the end of the process of receiving information by the application. The Codec text box of the Audio control group displays the numeric identifier and symbolic name of the audio codec.
Step 4
Get audio codec data with the free MediaInfo app. After launching it, on the Details tab, click on the field with the text. A file selection dialog will appear. Specify the analyzed video in it and click the "Open" button. After that, a report will be generated and displayed on the same tab. Scroll down to the Audio section. The Format, Format version and Format profile fields will contain basic information about the audio codec.
