Multimedia Glossary

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AAC
AAC stands for either MPEG2 Advanced Audio Coding or MPEG4 Advanced Audio Coding.
The MPEG2 audio-encoding standard of the format is not backward-compatible with MPEG1 audio. MPEG2 AAC can produce better audio quality than MP3 using less physical space for the files. MPEG4 AAC can produce better quality and smaller files than MPEG2 AAC. AAC is the audio file format used by Apple in their popular iTunes Music Store. Files may appear on your system with the ".M4A" filename extension.
AC3
AC3 file, a Dolby Digital audio file, can be found as the standard audio track on Digital Versatile Discs (DVD) and High Definition Television (HDTV). This coder has been designed to take maximum advantage of human auditory masking in that it divides the audio spectrum of each channel into narrow frequency bands of different sizes optimized with respect to the frequency selectivity of human hearing. This makes it possible to sharply filter coding noise so that it is forced to stay very close in frequency to the frequency components of the audio signal being coded. By reducing or eliminating coding noise wherever there are no audio signals to mask it, the sound quality of the original signal can be subjectively preserved.
AIFF
AIFF stands for Audio Interchange File Format.
Apple Computer developed this audio file format to store high-quality audio and musical instrument information.
FLAC
FLAC stands for Free Lossless Audio Codec.
by encoding audio files with FLAC, the quality is exactly the same as the original audio file's quality is. This is exactly unlike the audio formats such as MP3 and WMA work -- these audio formats are called "lossy" and that means that when the original audio is encoded into the lossy audio format, some of the audio data is lost forever and can't be brought back by any means.
M4A
The audio file format used by Apple in their popular iTunes Music Store often appears on your system with the ".M4A" filename extension. M4A can produce better audio quality than MP3 using less physical space for the files. View The best M4A to MP3 Converter.
M4P
M4P format is "protected AAC". It is a format of purchased music that can be listened to only through the iTunes softer or an iPod.
MIDI
MIDI stands for Musical Instrument Digital Interface.
A MIDI file doesn't contain actual audio data, but rather contains commands that let MIDI-capable synthesizers re-create a specific musical passage. The MIDI protocol has been used for years as a way for electronic musical instruments (like digital keyboards and sequencers) to communicate with each other.
Computer sound cards typically feature the ability to interpret MIDI files into music. Since they don't actually contain the music itself, but rather the commands used to re-create music, MIDI files are a lot smaller than audio files like MP3s, WMAs, or WAVs. MIDI files are small and manageable enough that it's not uncommon to find them embedded in web pages, adding a sonic element to the surfing experience. MIDI files usually appear with the ".MID" filename extension.
MP2
MP2 stands for MPEG Audio Layer II or MPEG2 Audio, which used on VCDs, SVCDs and can be used DVDs. View MP2 to MP3 Converter.
MP3
MP3 stands for MPEG1 (or MPEG2) Audio Layer III. Too often people refer MP3 as MPEG3, which is incorrect, because such format doesn't even exist.
MP3 is a popular compression format used for audio files on computers and portable devices. It is a method to store good quality audio into small files by using psychoacoustics in order to get rid of the data from the audio that most of the humans can't hear.
MP3's bitrates vary from 8kbps to 320kbps. A typical MP3 file encoded at 128kbps is near CD quality. MP3 audio is increasingly being used in video production coupled with various MPEG4 video codecs like divx. View CD to MP3 Ripper, DVD to MP3 Ripper, and MP3 WAV Converter.