MPEG to AAC Converter
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Supports: MPG, MPEG
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Need help?Extract the Audio from an MPEG as AAC
An .mpg or .mpeg program stream carries video and audio multiplexed together — usually MPEG-1/2 Layer II, sometimes AC-3 in a private stream. This page throws away the video and re-encodes the audio track as AAC, the codec defined in ISO/IEC 13818-7 and extended in ISO/IEC 14496-3, which delivers better sound than MP3 at the same bitrate. The result is a raw .aac file: no video, no chapters, no artwork — just the soundtrack.
How to Convert MPEG to AAC
- Upload Your MPEG File: Drag the
.mpgor.mpegfile onto the page or click "Add Files". It is uploaded over an encrypted connection, converted on our servers, and deleted automatically after a few hours — no sign-up, no watermark. - Set the Bitrate under File Compression: Use Variable Bitrate to pick a quality band, or Constant Bitrate to pick a fixed rate from the 8–384 kbit/s list, which opens on 128 kbps. The page loads on the Quality Preset mode, which is the hands-off option and has nothing pre-selected in its dropdown — see the table below.
- Adjust Audio Channel, Audio Sample Rate and Trim (Optional): Both dropdowns open on ORIGINAL, which keeps whatever the MPEG carried. Trim opens on Unchanged; switch it to Time Range to export a section.
- Convert and Download: Click Convert and download the
.aacfile.
Which Rate Control to Use
| Mode | What it does | Use it when |
|---|---|---|
| Variable Bitrate | Five quality bands — 20k-32k, 32k-40k, 48k-56k, 64k-72k and 96k-112k — letting the encoder spend bits where the audio needs them | Default choice: best quality for the size on music and mixed content |
| Constant Bitrate | A fixed rate from a 17-step list, 8 kbit/s to 384 kbit/s, preselected at 128 kbps | Streaming, or anywhere a predictable rate matters more than efficiency |
| Custom Bitrate | A number you type, in bps, Kbps or Mbps; the field opens at 128 Kbps | You need an exact rate that isn't on the dropdown |
| Specific file size | Works backwards from a byte budget you type | Hard upload caps and fixed-capacity media |
| Quality Preset | The automatic mode the page loads on; nothing is pre-selected in its dropdown, so an untouched preset leaves the decision to the server's own default | The hands-off option and the least predictable one — move to Variable or Constant Bitrate when the rate matters |
What's Inside Your MPEG, and What You Get
| Typical MPEG program stream | AAC output | |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | ISO/IEC 13818-1 container | ISO/IEC 13818-7 / 14496-3 audio |
| Audio codec | MPEG-1/2 Layer II (MP2), sometimes AC-3 | AAC-LC |
| Video | Present — MPEG-2 (H.262) | None; the video is discarded |
| Sample rates | Commonly 32, 44.1 or 48 kHz | 8 kHz to 96 kHz supported by the format |
| Channels | Mono or stereo, occasionally 5.1 in AC-3 | Mono or stereo here; ORIGINAL keeps the source layout |
| Typical audio bitrate | 192–384 kbit/s for MP2 | 96–256 kbit/s for equivalent perceived quality |
| File extension | .mpg / .mpeg |
.aac (raw ADTS stream) |
Frequently Asked Questions
Which control on this page actually sets the bitrate?
Constant Bitrate (or Custom Bitrate, if you want a value that isn't on the list). The Quality Preset dropdown displays "Highest" when the page loads, but nothing is pre-selected there — if you never touch it, the server falls back to its own default rather than the value you can see. The presets are also the least predictable control here, which is why the steps above send you to Variable Bitrate or Constant Bitrate instead: those are the ones to name explicitly when you want to trade quality against size, and you can confirm the result in your player's file-info panel.
Will converting to AAC make the audio sound better than the MPEG did?
No. The audio inside an MPEG program stream is already lossy — usually MPEG Layer II — and this conversion decodes it and re-encodes it into a second lossy format. That is a generation loss, however small. AAC is the more efficient codec, so it holds up better at a given bitrate, but it cannot restore anything the original MP2 encoder discarded. Convert for compatibility and file size, not for fidelity.
What bitrate should I choose?
For speech, dialogue and podcasts, Constant Bitrate at 96–128 kbps is generous. For music from a DVD or broadcast capture, 160–192 kbps CBR or the 96k-112k Variable Bitrate band is the usual sweet spot. Going above 256 kbps rarely helps, because the ceiling is the MP2 or AC-3 audio you started from, not the AAC encoder. If a file-size cap is what actually matters, use Specific file size and let the encoder work backwards.
Is the output a raw .aac file, and what plays it?
Yes — the download is a bare AAC bitstream in ADTS framing rather than an MP4-family container. VLC, foobar2000, ffmpeg-based tools and most Android players handle it directly. Some music libraries, notably iTunes and the Apple Music app, prefer AAC wrapped in an MP4 container; if that is where the audio is going, use MPEG to M4A instead, which is the same codec in the container those apps expect.
Does the video come along with the audio?
No. This is an extraction: the MPEG-2 video track is discarded and only the soundtrack is encoded. If you wanted a smaller video rather than an audio file, use MPEG to MP4, which keeps both tracks and re-encodes the video to H.264.
Which sample rate should I pick?
Leave Audio Sample Rate on ORIGINAL unless something downstream insists otherwise. MPEG program streams commonly carry 48 kHz audio from DVD and broadcast, or 44.1 kHz from CD-sourced material, and resampling adds work without adding quality. The dropdown also offers 8000, 12000, 16000, 24000, 44100 and 48000 Hz if a target device is fussy — dropping to 24 kHz or below is only sensible for speech.
Can I extract just one section instead of the whole file?
Yes. Open Trim, switch from Unchanged to Time Range, and enter a start time and duration either in seconds or as HH:MM:SS.sss. Doing it here is faster than converting everything and cutting afterwards. Note that the standalone Audio Cutter rejects video files, so to trim before conversion you would use the Video Cutter on the MPEG itself.
Why do .mpg and .mpeg uploads behave identically?
Because they are the same thing. Both extensions name an MPEG program stream as defined in ISO/IEC 13818-1 (or ISO/IEC 11172-1 for MPEG-1 material); the three-letter form is a leftover from DOS-era filename limits. This page accepts both and the audio extraction path is identical.
What happens to my file after the conversion?
The MPEG is uploaded over an encrypted connection, decoded on our servers, and both it and the finished .aac are deleted automatically after a few hours. Nothing is published, shared or indexed, and no account is needed. For multi-gigabyte program streams the practical limit is upload time rather than anything in the converter.