Convert M1V to ALAC — Free Online Converter
Convert MPEG-1 Video (.m1v) to Apple Lossless Audio Codec (.alac) online for free. Fast, secure video conversion with no watermarks or registration....
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How to Convert
Upload your .m1v file by dragging it into the upload area or clicking to browse.
Choose your output settings. The default settings work great for most files.
Click Convert and download your .m4a file when it's ready.
About M1V to ALAC Conversion
M1V (MPEG-1 Video) is a raw video elementary stream format containing only MPEG-1 encoded video frames — no container structure, no audio, and no synchronization data. It was produced by MPEG-1 demuxers separating video from audio in VCD and early digital video workflows. ALAC (Apple Lossless Audio Codec) is Apple's lossless compressed audio format, reducing file sizes by 40-50% compared to raw PCM while preserving bit-perfect audio quality.
This conversion only produces output when the .m1v file contains non-standard embedded audio. Genuine M1V elementary streams have no audio content, making ALAC extraction impossible without an external audio source.
Why Convert M1V to ALAC?
When audio does exist in a non-standard M1V file, converting to ALAC produces a lossless copy that integrates seamlessly with Apple's ecosystem — iTunes, Apple Music, iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, and HomePod all support ALAC natively. Unlike AIFF or WAV, ALAC compresses the audio by 40-50%, saving storage while maintaining bit-perfect quality.
ALAC is the ideal archival format within the Apple ecosystem. The lossless nature means the audio can later be transcoded to any lossy format (AAC, MP3) without double-compression artifacts, preserving maximum flexibility for future use.
Common Use Cases
- Archiving recoverable audio from non-standard M1V files in Apple's lossless ecosystem
- Extracting embedded audio for integration into iTunes or Apple Music libraries
- Preserving VCD-era audio losslessly for future re-encoding to any target format
- Converting recovered audio from misnamed program streams for iPhone/iPad playback
- Building a lossless Apple-compatible archive from legacy MPEG-1 content
How It Works
FFmpeg probes the M1V file for audio streams. If found, it decodes the MPEG-1 Layer 2 audio to PCM and re-encodes using the ALAC codec, wrapping the output in an M4A (MPEG-4 Audio) container. ALAC achieves approximately 50-60% of the original PCM file size while maintaining bit-perfect decoded output. Sample rate and channel layout are preserved from the source. The conversion fails immediately if no audio stream exists in the M1V file.
Quality & Performance
ALAC is mathematically lossless — decoded ALAC is bit-for-bit identical to the PCM intermediate. However, the quality ceiling is set by the original MPEG-1 Layer 2 encoding. If the source MP2 was encoded at 192 kbps, the ALAC output preserves exactly that level of quality, not the original pre-encoding audio. The benefit is that no further degradation occurs through the ALAC encode/decode cycle.
Device Compatibility
| Device | M1V | ALAC |
|---|---|---|
| Windows PC | Partial | Partial |
| macOS | Partial | Native |
| iPhone/iPad | Partial | Native |
| Android | Partial | Partial |
| Linux | Partial | Partial |
| Web Browser | No | No |
Recommended Settings by Platform
YouTube
Resolution: 1920x1080
Bitrate: 8-12 Mbps
H.264 recommended for fast processing
Resolution: 1080x1080
Bitrate: 3.5 Mbps
Square or 9:16 for Reels
TikTok
Resolution: 1080x1920
Bitrate: 4 Mbps
9:16 vertical, under 60s ideal
Twitter/X
Resolution: 1280x720
Bitrate: 5 Mbps
Under 140s, 512MB max
Resolution: 960x540
Bitrate: 2 Mbps
16MB limit for standard, 64MB for document
Discord
Resolution: 1280x720
Bitrate: 4 Mbps
8MB free, 50MB Nitro
Tips for Best Results
- 1Probe the M1V file with FFprobe before attempting conversion — save time by confirming audio exists
- 2ALAC in M4A container is the native format for Apple devices — no additional apps needed for playback
- 3If the source audio is mono speech, ALAC still provides lossless archival but consider AAC for smaller file sizes
- 4Keep the ALAC archive as a master copy — transcode to AAC or MP3 from ALAC for distribution to avoid double-lossy artifacts
- 5Check whether the companion .mpg file exists — extracting audio from the full program stream is more reliable
M1V to ALAC conversion provides lossless Apple ecosystem archival for any audio that can be recovered from non-standard M1V files, though standard video-only M1V files produce no output.