Convert WTV to AAC — Free Online Converter
Convert Windows TV (.wtv) to Advanced Audio Coding (.aac) online for free. Fast, secure video conversion with no watermarks or registration....
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Works Everywhere
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How to Convert
Upload your .wtv 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 .aac file when it's ready.
About WTV to AAC Conversion
WTV (Windows TV) files recorded by Windows Media Center contain broadcast audio tracks — typically AC3 (Dolby Digital) at 192-384 kbps for standard definition or AAC-LC at 128-256 kbps for some digital broadcasts. The WTV container also stores EPG metadata such as program title, channel, and recording timestamps. AAC (Advanced Audio Coding) is the modern standard for efficient lossy audio, offering superior quality to MP3 at equivalent bitrates with native playback on every smartphone, tablet, and computer.
Windows Media Center, which created WTV files, was discontinued after Windows 10. The format's NTFS-like internal structure and proprietary metadata make it incompatible with virtually all modern audio and media software outside the defunct Media Center ecosystem.
Why Convert WTV to AAC?
Extracting audio from WTV recordings to AAC preserves the audio content of television broadcasts — including concerts, musical performances, talk shows, and radio simulcasts — in a universally playable format. WTV files are inaccessible on macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android, making audio extraction the only way to salvage audio content from these recordings.
AAC efficiently preserves broadcast audio quality. At 192 kbps stereo, AAC is perceptually transparent for most broadcast audio sources, producing compact files from multi-gigabyte WTV recordings. This is particularly valuable for extracting audio from live concert broadcasts, radio recordings, and spoken-word programs.
Common Use Cases
- Extracting audio from recorded TV concerts and musical performances for personal listening
- Pulling talk show and interview audio from WTV recordings for podcast-style consumption on mobile
- Archiving radio simulcast recordings from Windows Media Center in a portable audio format
- Creating audio-only versions of recorded TV lectures and educational programming
- Reclaiming disk space by extracting just the audio from large WTV recordings when video is unnecessary
How It Works
FFmpeg reads the WTV container and extracts the audio stream — AC3 (Dolby Digital) for most over-the-air and cable recordings, or AAC for some digital broadcast sources. If the source is already AAC, the stream can be copied without re-encoding (-c:a copy) for zero quality loss. AC3 sources are decoded and re-encoded to AAC-LC at the specified bitrate (128-320 kbps). Multi-channel 5.1 AC3 is downmixed to stereo unless surround output is requested. EPG metadata is discarded.
Quality & Performance
Broadcast audio in WTV files is decent quality — AC3 at 192-384 kbps or AAC at 128-256 kbps. Converting AC3 to AAC at 192-256 kbps preserves perceived quality for stereo content. If the original broadcast was already AAC, stream copying avoids any generational loss. The main quality consideration is the 5.1-to-stereo downmix for surround sound broadcasts, which can slightly alter the spatial balance.
Device Compatibility
| Device | WTV | AAC |
|---|---|---|
| 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
- 1Use stream copy mode (-c:a copy) when the WTV source already contains AAC audio for instant, lossless extraction
- 2Choose 192 kbps AAC for broadcast content — higher bitrates offer diminishing returns for typical TV audio quality
- 3Trim to specific timestamps to extract just the program audio, excluding commercial break segments
- 4Downmix 5.1 surround to stereo for compatibility with earbuds and most mobile playback scenarios
- 5Check the source audio codec before converting — WTV files may contain AC3, AAC, or occasionally MPEG-1 Layer 2 audio depending on the broadcast source
WTV to AAC extraction rescues broadcast audio from obsolete Windows Media Center recordings, producing compact and universally playable audio files from TV concerts, talk shows, and radio recordings.