Top MP3 Downloaders and Converters
MP3 Format
The most common compressed audio file format we are used to is the MP3. The MP3 algorithm development started in 1987, with a joint cooperation of Fraunhofer IIS-A and the University of Erlangen. It represented an easy-to-encode-and-decode digital music format. MP3, or MPEG Audio Layer III, is one method for compressing audio files.
MP3 was developed so that music files could be compressed and the file size became smaller. The quality of compression is so high that you won't distinguish the results of MP3 at the 160-224 kbps range from the original materials in most of the cases. MP3 files are also easy to decode, which made online streaming easier. Using the MP3 compression system reduces the number of bytes in a song, while retaining sound that is near CD-quality.
Although MP3 is perhaps the most well-known file format, there are other file formats that can be played on MP3 players like:
WMA - Windows Media Audio
WAV - Waveform Audio
MIDI - Music Instrument Digital Interface.
AAC - Advanced Audio Coding
ASF - Advanced Streaming Format
VQF - Vector Quantization Format
Ogg Vorbis - A free, open and un-patented music format
ADPCM - Adaptive Differential Pulse Code Modulation
ATRAC - Sony's Adaptive Transform Acoustic Coding 3
MP3 Alternatives
MP3 is a relatively old format, but it's still widely popular, however there are several alternatives to the MP3 format
AAC
AAC or Advanced Audio Coding is considered the successor of the MP3 format. AAC supports a wide range of channels (up to 48 channels) and sampling rates (from 8 kHz to 96 kHz).
FLAC
FLAC provides much better sound quality than MP3 or AAC, but at the price of a bigger file size. The main advantage with this file system is that the file size could be reduced up to 70 per cent without any loss of musical quality.
Vorbis (OGG)
Ogg Vorbis is a fully open general-purpose compressed audio format for mid to high quality audio and music at fixed and variable bitrates up to 128 kbps/channel. The OGG format is now supported by almost all of the major audio players, both software and hardware.
Advantages:
High compression rates
An ISO standard, part of MPEG specs
high availability of decoders
low CPU requirements for playback
Extremely popular
supports multichannel
Disadvantages:
Lower performance than modern codecs
No multichannel implementations
Unusable for high definition audio
Top MP3 Converters
Converting Online videos from youtube and other popular sites into MP3 has become a trend. Many videos are being downloaded, so that we can listen to them offline and anytime we want.
Any Audio Converter can convert audio between MP3, WMA, WAVE, AAC, M4A and OGG formats as well as convert other unprotected audio formats. It can convert files to MP3s and other audio and video formats.
MP2MP3 free converter is an absolutely free application that extracts audio tracks from video files without loss of sound quality or convert them to MP3, AAC, AC3, WMA, FLAC, OGG or WAV format.
iSkysoft HD Video Converter is the most used software in the market. It consists of all the essential features needed for converting any video format into MP3 file format.
YouMP3 Converter is a YouTube to MP3 converter that works online. To use it, you just copy a YouTube URL to the clipboard and the tool will immediately offer to download the video for you.
You2MP3 converter lets you take any video and turn it into an MP3 file so you can listen to it any where you want. It also supports some editing features. Users can easily trim, crop, flip, adjust volume and so on.
Video 2 MP3 is very good at downloading videos from YouTube as well as saving them in MP3 format in case you don't want the video. Supported Audio File Formats: WAV, MP3, WMA, M4A, OGG, AVI, FLAC, AAC, AU, AIF, WMA and more.
Free MP3 WMA OGG Converter is an ideal all-in-one tool to convert batches of audio files for audio CD burning and music player enjoyment. The converter also supports other formats like AVI, MPG, FLV, WMV, MOV and more video formats to convert to MP3, WMA, WAV, OGG, FLAC.
2MP3 is another video converter that is filled to the brim with features. It is an ideal tool for video or audio conversions.
Convert2mp3 will download and convert for free your favorite videos from YouTube, Dailymotion and Clipfish to MP3, MP4 and other formats
YouTube MP3 Converter is an online tool which allows you to download music from YouTube in MP3 format. It will give a perfect video to MP3 conversion.
Video2MP3 converts your Videos directly to any device supported format such as iPad Pro, iPhone X, Android and many other devices. It supports output formats such as 3G2, 3GP, FLV, MOP and other format supported by Android and iOS devices such as MP3.
MP3 Juice is a tool that offers an easy way to download music from YouTube and other popular sites and convert them to MP3. You can also search for the video using its title and then convert it to MP3 using this tool.
MP3 Video Download is a video downloader that you can use to download videos from YouTube, as well as many other video streaming sites. It takes the clips you want to watch and allows you to access them offline from sites including YouTube, Facebook, Vimeo and many more video hosting sites.