Convert M4A file to text
The file name extension M4A, or also M4A Audio or M4A file, is a compressed file of the MPEG-4 container format. In contrast to the MP4 formatwhich stores both audio and video content, an M4A file is an audio-only file.
The format gained great notoriety when Apple started using it in 2007 as a Standard format for the files in iTunes to use it. Advanced Audio Codec (AAC) and the Apple Lossless Audio Codec (ALAC) were used to differentiate the M4A file from other MPEG-4 files.
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Is my file in M4A format?
You can easily identify an M4A file as follows: Right-click on the file in question, then select the menu item "Properties" and check the item "File type". There you will find the information about the format in brackets. For an M4A file it says "(.m4a)".
Advantages of M4A
M4A is also known as the successor to the widely used MP3 format because it can compress the same bit rate at a smaller file size. This Compression takes place with an M4A file without loss of quality. instead. In addition, M4A audio files can be processed and transmitted flexibly, as there is no digital copy protection (DRM).
Disadvantages of M4A
The problem with an M4A file is that there are Often difficulties with compatibility on non-Apple devices. exists. In the meantime, however, there are numerous programmes that can also play an M4A file on a Windows PC without any problems. One of these is, for example, the free VLC player. You can download it here: https://www.vlc.de/
The VLC player is compatible with almost all file formats and offers numerous other functions in addition to the pure playback of the M4A file. In our free eBook, we introduce you to the most useful of these and show you, among other things, how to set global hotkeys for the transcription of an M4A file. You can download the eBook here.
Convert M4A file
Should there be Problems with playing M4A files exist, we recommend the Conversion to another format such as MP3. For this purpose, M4A files can be converted in a few steps with the Audacity programme, which is also free of charge. In addition, Audacity also offers numerous other useful functions in relation to M4A files, such as: Open M4A file, Share M4A files, Cut M4A files and Edit M4A files.
You can also find more information and tips on how Audacity works in our free eBook.
Transcription of M4A files
The conversion of an M4A file into text (transcription) is basically just as easy with us as with any other audioor video formatsuch as the conversion of MP3 to text also. For audio M4A files we offer all our regular transcription options:
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Further questions and answers
A m4a fileM4A file is a compressed audio file of the MPEG-4 container format. Unlike the MP4 format, which stores both audio and video content, an M4A file is an audio-only file.
The format became well known when Apple began using it as the standard format for audio files on all Apple devices in 2007. An m4a file is characterised by the fact that, with a good Audio quality file size with a good audio quality.
A m4a file is an audio file that can be converted with many often free tools into any other Audio formate.g. mp3 or wav.
A m4a file can be converted into text using Speech recognition to convert it into text.
However, acceptable quality is currently only achieved with speech recognition when only one speaker speaks very clearly without accent, dialect and background noise.
With several speakers (e.g. interviews), good quality is only possible with the aid of a manual Transcription possible. If you don't want to do this yourself, you can use a professional Transcription service such as abtipper.de.
