General Info for Codecs and Players

[vincent_10_27]

Having problems with playing different of media files? If so, here is a step by step guide to get your media working.

Codec means en(CO)der & (DEC)oder / (CO)mpressor & (DEC)ompressor

Contents:
1. Codec Packs
2. Media Players
3. Audio Codecs
4. Video Codecs
5. Containers


1. Codec Packs
--------------
-Codec Packs are the most succesful way of making any media playable to your player. Codec Packs simply means that all necessary and most commonly used codecs are put together in a single package so the user will have less time in installing different codecs and the user won't have the trouble of figuring out whether he installs the right or wrong codecs he needs.

Currently there are 2 adaptable codec packs for anime medias. Meaning, these 2 codec packs are the most popular ones among any other codecs. I will list down the codecs packs that i have tried in order of the most successful to the least.

A.) CCCP - Combined Community Codec Pack
url: Combined Community Codec Pack

-This codec pack is the one that i have the most success in attempt of playing an anime. But note that my trials were not limited to anime only. I also tried lots of different audio and video files. I recommend getting this as this has the best default configuration for your media needs. It means that after installation, you wont be needing much necessary adjustment to the preferences. So it'll save the trouble of tweaking the wrong settings. This codec pack is also a project of anime fans and the the project is a result from recent troubles in playing anime. Lots of fansub group recommend this codec pack for your anime medias.

A quick note for installation:
The CCCP offers a nice tool, called the CCCP insurgent(which can be downloaded over at CCCP's website), to determine whether your computer has installed other external codecs/filters/splitters. Make sure that you use this tool first before installing the CCCP. Uninstall any codecs/filters Pack. This will prevent the problem in overlapping/prioritizing which codec must be used. And make sure that after you uninstall and reinstall a codec, dont ever forget to RESTART.

B.) K-Lite Codec Pack
url: Free-Codecs.com : Download K-Lite Codec Pack 3.20 FULL, K-Lite Codec Pack 3.20 STANDARD, K-Lite Codec Pack 3.20 BASIC : K-Lite Codec Pack is a collection of codecs and related tools

-This codec is complete in every sense. I recommend this as an alternative if you are having troubles with the CCCP. I say that this pack is complete because it has real alternative included plus a quicktime alternative. Meaning you can play your .rm and .mov files with installing quicktime player and real player. overall i have no problems with this codec pack as well, but some necessary adjustments are needed for a better playback, which will depend on your computer.

There are three versions of the K-Lite Codec Pack: Basic, Standard and Full.
• K-Lite Codec Pack Basic contains only the most essential things. It contains everything you need to be able to play the most popular and widespread formats. It is small enough to fit on a single floppy. Also great for including on your movie CDs.
• K-Lite Codec Pack Standard contains everything you need to play all the commonly used formats. This package should be enough for the average user.
• K-Lite Codec Pack Full contains even more codecs. It also has encoding support for the various formats. This package is for power users and people who do their own encodings.

C.) XP Codec Pack
url: Download XP Codec Pack 2.0.7.1 - XP Codec Pack is one of the most complete codec pack

-Not much to say about this codec pack since this is not quite popular among the two, but this pack is a good choice as an alternative to the other two. XP codec pack doesnt have any adware on it and it has the content mentioned below:
* AC3Filter 1.01a RC5
* AVI Splitter 1.0.0.7
* CDXA Reader 1.0.0.1
* CoreAAC (AAC DirectShow Decoder) 1.2.0
* CoreFlac Decoder 0.4
* FFDShow MPEG-4 Video Decoder 2004.10.12
* GPL MPEG-1/2 Decoder 0.1.2.0
* Matroska Splitter 1.0.2.9
* Media Player Classic 6.4.9.0 rev. 609
* OggSplitter/CoreVorbis 1.1.0.79
* RadLight APE Filter 1.0.0.4
* RadLight MPC Filter 1.0.0.4
* RadLight OFR Filter 1.0.0.4
* RealMedia Splitter 1.0.1.1
* RadLight TTA Filter 1.0.0.2
* The Codec Detective 2.0
* VSFilter (DirectVobSub) 2.37

2. Popular Media Players(in no particular order)
---------------------------------------------

A.) VLC Media Player
url: VLC media player - Overview
-a cross platform player that has a built in libavcodec. No necessary external codecs required in playing media using this player. The downside of this player is that you wont be able to play any other codecs aside from the ones featured in VLC Player. Another thing, you cannot use external codecs with this player. A list of playable medias can be located from the main site.

B.) BSplayer
url: Media player, video player, multimedia player, divx player, free player - BS.Player.com
- This player requires external codecs if your media is not playable with the built in set of codecs that comes with BSPlayer. The downside is this player comes with an Adware package that if you remove, you wont be able to use the player.

C.) MPlayer
url: Entering MPlayer homepage
- Mplayer so far is the best player for me, however it is an open source player that requires to run a command line to boot. There's an available GUI for MPlayer, however, it is not regularly updated. It is also a cross-platform player and uses built in codecs. If you dont know how to run a command line, get a GUI.

D.) Media Player Classic
url: SourceForge.net: guliverkli
-same as BSPlayer that requires external codecs for further media playback. However this player doesn't come with adwares.

E.) Zoom Player
url: Inmatrix.com
-another great player that has a wide set of built-in codecs and can be used with external codecs as well.

F.) KMPlayer
url: KMPlayer
-A player good for playing HD/BD DVD rips.

[vincent_10_27]

Here are the most commonly used codecs by many anime medias.

3.) Audio
---------
-you might be wondering why to put the audio. It's because some files/containers require a different audio codec so that you will be able to hear the sound and voice from the anime.

Compressed Audio Data
Audio compression is necessary to lower the total file size. Eventhough audio files have lower sizes than videos, compressing the audio is better than lowering the stream quality just to minimize the file size.

-Real Audio Lossless(*.rm) -Audio data used for most Real Media Files. If you have Real Player Installed, you wont need to worry in finding a good codec for this. If you dont like the Real Player and just want the Real Codec itself. Get the Real Alternative.
Real Media Player: http://www.real.com/
Real Alternative(no player included): Free-Codecs.com :: Download Real Alternative 1.52 : Real Alternative will allow you to play RealMedia files without having to install RealPlayer/RealOne Player
Both has different advantages. Mainly that the Real Alternative doesn't come with a player hence you can play real audio in other players. While the Real Player streams the real audio at a better rate and when a new real audio codec is released, updates are easily attained.

-Windows Media Audio 9 Lossless/WMA(*.wma) -Audio data copyrighted by Microsoft for use with Windows. Usually, as common as it is, you wont have to worry finding a codec for the audio file(especially if you own a windows os). But for those people still having trouble, try getting a standalone player from one of the few mentioned above. All of those players has a built in *.wma decoder so you can playback Windows Media Files.

-Advanced Audio Coding/Apple Audio Codec(*.aac) - designed as an improved-performance codec relative to Mpeg Layer 3. AAC is promoted to be the successor of mp3. These are also the audio files that can played in an iPod. Quicktime Player or Quicktime Alternative are the solution for making this AAC to life.
Quicktime Player: Apple - QuickTime - Download
Quicktime Alternative: Free-Codecs.com : QuickTime Alternative 1.81 : QuickTime Alternative will allow you to play QuickTime files (.mov, .qt and other extensions) without having to install the official QuickTime Player.

-Vorbis(*.ogg) - most commonly used in conjunction with the Ogg container and is then called Ogg Vorbis. A compressed audio type as well. Decoder can be acquired here: Free-Codecs.com :: Download Vorbis Ogg ACM Codec 1.0 : Vorbis Ogg ACM Codec is a new audio compression format

-MPEG-1 Audio Layer 3/MP3(*.mp3) - i doubt if anyone here doesnt now this file type. All right, for a brief detail, mp3 is an audio data with better compression rate but not lowering the quality. To get a codec for this simply go here: Free-Codecs.com :: Download Fraunhofer MPEG Layer-3 Audio Decoder : Fraunhofer MPEG Layer-3 Audio Decoder enables playback of files encoded in the ever so popular MP3 music file format

-Dolby Digital(AC3) - usually this audio compression comes with some containers. Meaning this AC3 is not a standalone audio file itself. Though, I dont know whether or not a standalone AC3 file exists. This file is copyrighted by Dolby Digital to play surround sounds. For playback you need the AC3 filter. And you can get one here: Free-Codecs.com :: Download AC3 Filter 1.45 : AC3 Filter is a DirectShow filter for AC3 decoding

-Digital Theater System(DTS) - an audio compression similar to AC3 that play surround audio through multiple channels. Usually you wont need a codec for this audio data since it can be mostly found in DVD videos. And most DVD-players has built in DTS decoder. And to get a DTS working, you need to transport it through S/PDIF.

Uncompressed Audio Data
Audio files that aren't decreased in sizes, thus, maintaining a pure raw quality.

-Waveform audio format/WAV(*.wav) - This also has a compressed version but the decoder will work on both. WAV is a Microsoft and IBM audio file format standard for storing audio on PCs. It can also be streamed in some containers if the encoders feels like doing so. Codecs can be acquired in all Players.


4.) Video
---------
-the core of playing anime. Please try understand as much as possible what every codecs need to be decoded. If you don't then, you'll be having a big trouble in your playback.

-H.264/MPEG-4 AVC(*.mp4) -is a digital video codec standard which is noted for achieving very high data compression. To decode you can use the FFdshow. get it right here: Free-Codecs.com : Download FFDShow MPEG-4 Video Decoder 2007-06-12, FFDShow MPEG-4 Video Decoder 2007-06-12 MMX and FFDShow MPEG-4 Video Decoder 2007-05-31 SSE : FFDSHOW is a DirectShow decoding filter

-MPEG-1(*.mpg/*.mpeg) -commonly used for VCD's.All standalone players mentioned above have the necessary codecs for playback of this file.

-MPEG-1 Layer 2/MPEG-2(*.mpg/*.mpeg) -yes it has the same extension as the MPEG. This file is now used for DVD videos. And same as MPEG-1, this video file can be played in all players mentioned above without the worry of installing a codec.

-MPEG-1 Layer 4/MPEG-4(*.mp4) -a standard used primarily to compress audio and video (AV) digital data. Sometimes this is encoded as a container. A successor to MPEG-2 but has a better compression options. For codecs, use the FFdshow : Free-Codecs.com : Download FFDShow MPEG-4 Video Decoder 2007-06-12, FFDShow MPEG-4 Video Decoder 2007-06-12 MMX and FFDShow MPEG-4 Video Decoder 2007-05-31 SSE : FFDSHOW is a DirectShow decoding filter

-RealVideo(*.rm/*.rmvb) -copyrighted format by RealNetworks. Real Videos are usually packed together with Real Audio to form .rm container. For decoding, get:
Real Media Player: http://www.real.com/
Real Alternative(no player included): Free-Codecs.com :: Download Real Alternative 1.52 : Real Alternative will allow you to play RealMedia files without having to install RealPlayer/RealOne Player

-Theora(*.ogm) -the video usually paired with OGG Vorbis to contain .ogm's. Not a very popular video codec. For playback, Free-Codecs.com :: Download Ogg DirectShow Filters 0.9.9.6 : With Ogg DirectShow Filters you can watch and if you want to, create, .ogm wrapped videos.


-DivX(*.divx) - the video format known as "MP3 of Videos". Divx uses lossy MPEG-4 Part 2 compression. It is a common codec nowadays. Became popular because of its ability to compress lengthy video into small file size while not losing much quality. Codec: DivX Codec - Free Codec Download - Compress Video Files - Video Compression Software

-XviD(free Character code, usually compressed in *.avi) - a free and open source MPEG-4 video codec. XviD was created by a group of volunteer programmers after the OpenDivX source was closed. This is the very rival of DivX. For codec : Free-Codecs.com :: Download Koepi's XviD Codec 1.1.2 : XviD is a video codec just like DivX. (this is Koepi's release)

[prh99]

5.) Container formats
--------------------

-Advanced Systems Format(*.asf )
is a propertary patented container format by Microsoft. It can support most video
codecs like WMA, WMV, MPEG4 etc with the exception of H.264. The easiest
why to play these files is to just use Windows Media Player.

-Audio Video Interleave(*.avi)
Is probably one of the most common contain formats and support several codecs Full Frames (Uncompressed), Motion JPEG, Editable MPEG, ClearVideo / RealVideo, MPEG-4, XviD, DivX and others. Most player support this container format natively.

-Matroska(*.mkv | *.mka)
Is a project to develop an open source multimedia container format similar to
Apple's QuickTime, MPEG's MP4 or Microsoft's Advanced Streaming Format. It is named after the Matryoshka doll. Can support any codec. You can get the
necessary splitters from the Matroska Offical page an
alternative in the form of Haali Media Splitter.

-Quicktime(*.mov)
Is Apple's container format. It supports Quicktime video, MPEG4, and H.264 among others and several image formats. The easiest way to play it if you have a Mac or run Windows is to go get Quicktime from [ulr=http://www.apple.com]Apple.com[/url]. If you want to play it with Media Player Classic etc you can download Quicktime alternative.

-Ogg Media(*.ogm)
Fundamentally, the format is a hack of the Ogg container format, which has only been designed to support encoders endorsed by Xiph.org, the creators of Ogg. (description from Wikipedia.org) The format supports several audio and video codecs as well as chapters, subtitles, and multipule audio tracks. Haali Media Splitter and Ogg DirectShow Filters 0.9.9.6

-MPEG-4(*.mp4)
formally, ISO/IEC 14496-14:2003, is a multimedia container format standard specified as a part of MPEG-4. It is most-commonly used to store digital audio and digital video streams, especially those defined by MPEG, but also can be used to store other data such as subtitles and still images. Like most modern container formats, MPEG-4 Part 14 allows streaming over the Internet. The official filename extension for MPEG-4 Part 14 files is .mp4, thus the container format is often referred to simply as MP4.(description from Wikipedia.org). The following players support the MP4 container format
* Avidemuxiola
* iTunes
* Media Player Classic
* Mplayer
* Nero Media Player
* QuickTime Player
* RealPlayer
* VLC media player
* Winamp
* Amarok

Some players may require ffdshow.

[vincent_10_27]

6. FAQ

What is the best choice of Codec/Packs should i get for my computer media needs?
-This actually depends on user preference, some might prefer CCCP over K-lite, vice versa, or others prefer not to use codec packs at all. The best way to choose is to try each and every codec packs. If it's for the first try and you got a high success rate in playback, stick with that codec/pack for the mean time until some bugs/errors occur during your playback. Then after some errors occur try switching to other codec/packs.

What about Windows Media Player?
- Windows Media Player(WMP) can play media files with the use of external codecs, however, due to an issue that WMP will try to play media files first through it's internal codecs causes playback to crash. This is because WMP will only use external codecs if it's internal codecs cannot forcibly play the media file. WMP prioritizes it's built in codecs that external codecs and you cannot change the setting for this.

Can I use VLC + External Codecs?
- VLC cannot use external codecs. Now you might question how can VLC play media that are not on it's list of playable medias like rm/rmvb? This is because the VLC is a demuxer to begin with. VLC plays stream along stream. VLC will not care what is the file extension of the media, but will play the media in accordance to its content. Let's say for example the .rmvb(Real Media Variable Bitrate) file. As discussed above, this is a container format, not a video file. Since this file is a container format, it may contain other video files than .rm. If the .rmvb file contains a .wmv video file then VLC can possibly play the file since .wmv is listed as one of VLC's playable media.

Why is it that when playing container files, i cannot see the subtitles?
-If you are using a splitter like Haali Media Splitter you might need to select the stream via this application. VobSub does the same. You might want to check the system icon trays of these splitters and set the necessary settings by clicking them. If that fails, try selecting the stream you want through the media player you are using.

Why do I have playback crashes even if I already installed the right set of codecs/packs/players?
- A few notes to take into consideration when using other codecs:
---->Uninstall any other previous codecs/packs that conflct with the current one installed. This will remove any registry setting of the previous codec to avoid issues in prioritizing.
---->Restart your computer everytime you uninstall and install codec/packs/players. This will make sure that there are no registry settings left on your computer. Hence, also avoiding playback issues