HEVC to MTS Converter

Convert HEVC to MTS: What This Tutorial Covers

A .hevc file is a raw H.265 video bitstream — the bare compressed stream an encoder or DVR writes out, with no container, no timing index, and no audio, which is why most players refuse to open it directly. MTS is the AVCHD transport-stream container Sony and Panasonic created in 2006 for consumer HD camcorders, and it carries H.264 video, not H.265. This tutorial walks through turning that unplayable bare stream into a file AVCHD-era editors and transport-stream pipelines can actually read — and is honest about the two catches: the conversion re-encodes H.265 down to the older H.264, and no audio appears because the source never had any.

How to Convert HEVC to MTS

1. Upload Your HEVC File: Drag and drop your .hevc file onto the page or click "+ Add Files" to browse from your computer. You can queue several raw H.265 streams and process them with the same settings.
2. Pick a Quality Preset: Open Advanced Options. Under "File Compression" keep the "Preset" on "Very High (Recommended)" for a near-source result, or switch to "Specific file size" to target an exact size in MB — useful because H.264 output is larger than the H.265 source at matched quality.
3. Set Resolution and Trim (Optional): Use the "Video resolution" presets or "Width x Height" to downscale (AVCHD tops out at 1920×1080, so 4K sources should be reduced); under "Show All Options" the "Video Codec" defaults to H.264, the codec AVCHD actually uses. Use the "Trim" section's "Time Range" to cut to just the segment you need.
4. Convert and Download: Click "Convert" and download your MTS. No sign-up, no watermark.

Walk-through: The H.265 to H.264 Re-encode

MTS is an AVCHD container, and AVCHD was written in 2006 around H.264 (AVC) — it has no provision for H.265. So this is not a rewrap that keeps your existing stream; the converter decodes the H.265 frames and re-encodes them to H.264 inside an MPEG-2 transport stream. Two consequences follow directly from that, and both are one-way:

• Quality can only hold or drop, never improve. H.264 is a generation older and less efficient than H.265, so re-encoding to it adds a second lossy pass on top of whatever compression the H.265 stream already applied. There is no setting that recovers detail — the best you can do is keep the "Preset" high so the loss stays invisible.
• The file gets bigger at the same visual quality. Because H.264 needs more bits than H.265 for an equivalent picture, the MTS is typically larger than the .hevc it came from. Industry comparisons put H.265 at roughly half the bitrate of H.264 for the same quality, so expect the output to grow accordingly. 1

A few patterns cover most needs:

• If you want near-source quality for editing or archival, leave "Preset" on "Very High" and accept the larger file.
• If a downstream device caps bitrate (AVCHD 1.0 peaks at 24 Mbit/s, AVCHD 2.0 Progressive at 28 Mbit/s), use "Specific file size" or a lower preset to stay under the limit. 2
• If your source is 4K, set a 1920×1080 resolution preset first — AVCHD has no 4K mode and an over-spec stream may be rejected by camcorder-era tools.

There is no audio step here because a raw .hevc elementary stream carries none — HEVC is a video-only codec. The MTS will be silent; lay a music or narration track over it in your editor if you need sound.

Common Errors and How to Fix Them

• "The MTS has no sound" — Expected. The source .hevc is video-only, so there is nothing to put on an audio track. Real camcorder MTS files carry AC-3 or LPCM audio recorded alongside the picture; a bare H.265 stream has neither.
• "The output is bigger than my HEVC file" — Also expected, and unavoidable for this target. AVCHD mandates H.264, which is less efficient than H.265, so matching the quality costs more bits. Drop the preset or set a "Specific file size" to claw it back, or keep the H.265 efficiency with HEVC to MP4 instead.
• "My 4K stream looks downscaled or won't import" — AVCHD is an HD-only spec capped at 1920×1080. Set a 1080p resolution preset before converting; there is no AVCHD path that preserves 4K.
• "VLC plays it but my editor won't import it" — Some AVCHD software expects the camcorder's folder layout, not a loose file (see below), even when the stream itself is valid.

When This Doesn't Work — and What to Use Instead

For almost everyone, MTS is the wrong target for an .hevc stream. If you just want the clip to play and stay efficient, HEVC to MP4 is the standard wrap — it can keep the H.265 stream inside an MP4 (no quality loss) or re-encode to H.264 only if you ask, and MP4 plays natively almost everywhere while MTS does not. Reach for MTS only when an AVCHD-based camcorder or editing workflow specifically requires that container. Note too that some software expects the camcorder's PRIVATE/AVCHD/BDMV/STREAM/ folder structure rather than a loose .mts file; for that disc-and-camcorder path, HEVC to AVCHD targets the same stream with the folder workflow in mind, and the disc-side extension is HEVC to M2TS.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is converting HEVC to MTS a lossless rewrap or a re-encode?

A re-encode. MTS is an AVCHD container, and AVCHD only carries H.264 — there is no way to keep the original H.265 stream and stay within the spec. The converter decodes the H.265 frames and re-encodes them to H.264, which means a second lossy pass and a larger file at the same visual quality. If you want a true container change that preserves the H.265 stream byte-for-byte, HEVC to MP4 can keep the codec intact; MTS cannot.

Which video codec does the MTS output use?

H.264 (AVC). MTS is the AVCHD transport-stream container, which by design carries H.264 video, so this converter defaults to it — the same codec real Sony, Panasonic, and JVC camcorder MTS files use. Under "Show All Options" you can switch the "Video Codec" to other formats the container accepts, such as MPEG-2, MPEG-4, or DivX, but H.264 is the most compatible with AVCHD-era gear.

Why is the converted MTS larger than the original HEVC file?

Because H.264 is roughly half as efficient as H.265 at the same visible quality, so it needs more bits to encode the same picture. 1 AVCHD locks output to H.264, so there is no way to keep the smaller H.265 stream and stay compliant. To reduce the size, lower the "Preset" or set a "Specific file size" — at the cost of some quality — or output to HEVC to MP4 if you don't actually need the AVCHD container.

Why doesn't the MTS have any audio?

Because a raw .hevc file is a video-only elementary stream — it carries no audio track for the converter to copy or transcode. HEVC is purely a video codec. Camcorder MTS files include AC-3 or LPCM audio because the camera recorded sound alongside the picture, but there is no equivalent source in a bare H.265 stream. If you need sound, add it in your editor after conversion.

My HEVC source is 4K — can the MTS keep that resolution?

No. AVCHD is an HD-only specification that caps at 1920×1080 (with 1440×1080 for interlaced); it predates 4K consumer recording and has no mode for it. 2 Set a 1080p resolution preset before converting so the output matches the spec — an over-spec stream can be rejected by camcorder-era software. To keep 4K, use HEVC to MP4 or HEVC to MKV instead, both of which handle 4K.

How are my files handled, and how long are they kept?

In our testing, re-encoding a short 1080p H.265 clip to H.264 MTS at the "Very High" preset produced a noticeably larger file than the source, which is the expected cost of dropping to the older codec. Your file is uploaded over an encrypted connection, decoded and re-encoded into MTS on our servers, and deleted automatically a few hours after conversion — no sign-up, no watermark, never shared or made public.