Codec Support

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Codec Types

• Video Codecs: Handle video compression and decompression
• Audio Codecs: Process audio data encoding and decoding
• Subtitle Codecs: Manage subtitle format conversion and rendering

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Codec Properties

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Major Video Codec Families

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MPEG Family

• MPEG-1 Video (mpeg1video) - Classic MPEG-1 video compression
• MPEG-2 Video (mpeg2video) - Broadcast-quality video with field support
• MPEG-4 Part 2 (mpeg4) - Advanced video compression with B-frames
• H.261 (h261) - Early ITU video codec
• H.263 (h263) - Improved ITU codec with variants (H.263+, H.263i)
• H.264/AVC (h264) - Modern high-efficiency video codec
• H.265/HEVC (hevc) - Next-generation high-efficiency codec

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Modern Codecs

• VP8/VP9 (vp8, vp9) - Google’s open video codecs
• AV1 (av1) - Royalty-free next-gen codec
• VVC (vvc) - Versatile Video Codec (H.266)

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Professional Codecs

• ProRes (prores) - Apple’s professional video codec
• DNxHD/DNxHR (dnxhd) - Avid’s professional codec
• JPEG 2000 (jpeg2000) - High-quality still and motion codec
• FFV1 (ffv1) - Lossless video archival codec

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Legacy & Specialized

• Microsoft Codecs: WMV1, WMV2, WMV3, MSMPEG4v1/v2/v3
• RealVideo: RV10, RV20, RV30, RV40, RV60
• Animation: Cinepak, QTRLE, Animation, GIF
• Screen Capture: Flash Screen Video, ScreenPresso

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Major Audio Codec Families

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Lossy Audio

• AAC (aac) - Advanced Audio Coding, standard for modern audio
• MP3 (mp3) - MPEG-1/2 Layer III audio
• MP2 (mp2) - MPEG-1 Layer II audio
• Opus (opus) - Modern low-latency audio codec
• Vorbis (vorbis) - Open-source lossy audio codec

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Lossless Audio

• FLAC (flac) - Free Lossless Audio Codec
• ALAC (alac) - Apple Lossless Audio Codec
• WavPack (wavpack) - Hybrid lossless/lossy codec
• TTA (tta) - True Audio lossless codec

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Professional Audio

• PCM (various) - Uncompressed pulse-code modulation
• DTS (dts) - Digital Theater Systems
• AC-3/E-AC-3 (ac3, eac3) - Dolby Digital audio
• TrueHD (truehd) - Dolby TrueHD lossless
• MLP (mlp) - Meridian Lossless Packing

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Speech & Telephony

• AMR-NB/WB (amrnb, amrwb) - Adaptive Multi-Rate
• Speex (speex) - Speech compression
• G.723.1 (g723_1) - ITU telephony codec
• G.729 (g729) - ITU low-bitrate codec
• ILBC (ilbc) - Internet Low Bitrate Codec

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PCM Variants

• Signed/unsigned integers: 8, 16, 24, 32, 64-bit
• Floating point: 16, 24, 32, 64-bit
• Both big-endian and little-endian byte order
• Planar and interleaved formats
• Special formats: A-law, μ-law, Blu-ray, DVD

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ADPCM Family

• Gaming: 4XM, ADX, AFC, AGM, DTK, PSX, Xbox
• Multimedia: IMA WAV, MS, Yamaha, Creative ADPCM
• Proprietary: EA, Westwood, Microsoft variants

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Subtitle Codecs

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Text-Based

• ASS/SSA (ass, ssa) - Advanced SubStation Alpha
• SRT (srt) - SubRip text format
• WebVTT (webvtt) - Web Video Text Tracks
• MOVText (mov_text) - MP4 timed text
• TTML (ttml) - Timed Text Markup Language

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Bitmap-Based

• DVD Subtitles (dvdsub) - MPEG-2 DVD bitmap subtitles
• DVB Subtitles (dvbsub) - Digital Video Broadcasting subtitles
• XSUB (xsub) - DivX XSUB format

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Hardware Acceleration Support

• QSV: Intel Quick Sync Video
• NVENC/NVDEC: NVIDIA GPU encoding/decoding
• VideoToolbox: Apple hardware acceleration
• V4L2 M2M: Video4Linux2 memory-to-memory
• MediaCodec: Android hardware codecs
• AMF: AMD Advanced Media Framework
• RKMPP: Rockchip Media Process Platform

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Checking Available Codecs

# List all codecs
ffmpeg -codecs

# List all encoders
ffmpeg -encoders

# List all decoders
ffmpeg -decoders

# Get detailed information about a specific codec
ffmpeg -h encoder=libx264
ffmpeg -h decoder=h264

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Codec Selection

# Video codec
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -c:v libx264 output.mp4

# Audio codec
ffmpeg -i input.wav -c:a aac output.m4a

# Multiple streams
ffmpeg -i input.mkv -c:v libx265 -c:a opus output.mkv

# Copy codec (no re-encoding)
ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -c copy output.mp4

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See Also

• Encoders - Available video and audio encoders
• Decoders - Available video and audio decoders
• Formats - Container format support