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Audio and video content can consume a lot of bandwidth when streaming or create large files. By compressing the content, it can be broadcast over common Internet bandwidths or saved to a Windows Media file of a reasonable size. You can compress content by applying compression algorithms to the data, taking into account the desired output quality and available bandwidth. Before the content is played, it is decompressed by using decompression algorithms. These compression and decompression algorithms are called codecs. The following table provides more detailed information about the codecs available in Windows Media Encoder.
Codec | Description |
Windows Media Audio Professional 9 | Enables a full surround sound experience on computers with installed multichannel audio cards and Windows XP. Also enables dynamic range control (by using Windows Media File Editor and Windows Media Player). Delivers audio content in Windows Media Format for playback on consumer devices such as DVD players and set-top boxes. Intelligently folds 6 channels into 2 (stereo) or 1 (mono), depending on the speaker configuration of the playback device. Provides for lossless encoding. Intended for data rates of 128 Kbps and above. |
Windows Media Audio Standard 9 | Provides unmatched audio quality for Internet narrowband streaming and high-fidelity downloadable music. Supports VBR encoding. Fully compatible with earlier versions of Windows Media Player. |
Windows Media Audio Voice 9 | Offers superior quality for audio content with a voice emphasis. Intended for playback at data rates below 20 Kbps. |
Windows Media Video 9 | Enhances video quality for broadband Internet users and delivers near-DVD quality video at 400 Kbps. Enables sharper quality playback of interlaced content on televisions and set-top boxes. |
Windows Media Video 8.1 | Supports a wide variety of network bandwidths. Deinterlaces interlaced content before encoding. |
Windows Media Video 7 | Enables users of Windows Media Player 7 to view encoded video content without first having to download the latest codecs. Best choice when the encoding computer cannot support the performance requirements of the newer Windows Media Video codecs. |
Windows Media Screen 9 | Provides improved handling of shaded images, screen motion, and scrolling for screen captures. Supports one-pass CBR and VBR encoding with no frame dropping. This codec is fully optimized for both streaming and download scenarios. |
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