The Waveform Audio file format associated with the .wav filename extension was a format developed through collaboration between Microsoft and IBM. It is an extension of the RIFF and was first released in 1991. It is one of the earliest standards used for encoding audio bit streams on personal computers. It is typically used for storing uncompressed raw audio files on the Microsoft Windows platform, however it enjoys cross platform support on Macintosh and Linux and does have support for compressed audio. Because of the relatively large file sizes of uncompressed .wav files, the WAVE format in unpopular for file distribution over limited bandwidth computer networks including the internet.
The M4A file format forms part of the MP4 specification, specifically the audio stream of the Mp4 format. .m4a files are essentially audio only bit streams encoded using the audio codecs from the MPEG-4 Part 14 specification. Audio encoding can be accomplished using algorithms from the lossy family or lossless family of codecs. One of the design goals of the M4A audio format was to achieve a high level compression ratio without sacrificing audio quality. In this regard, it was intended that the format would succeed the MP3 file format. Although it has done this from a technical standpoint, the MP3 format continues to be widely used.
FreeFileConvert uses tuned encoding for WAV to M4A conversions, preserving clarity while trimming file size. Finished audio streams instantly across phones, tablets, desktops, and modern browsers without extra tweaks.
Upload WAV files from desktop, tablet, or cloud storage, queue multiple jobs, and let the converter finish autonomously. Return whenever convenient to download synchronized M4A results on any device you rely on.
Process up to 5 files sized 1000 MB per batch without splitting queues manually. Mixed-format uploads convert together, producing consistent M4A audio with dependable progress tracking.
Bit stream encoding in the WAVE file format is achieved using the linear pulse code modulation format. It has three main data blocks and one to many number of wave chunks identified as the chunk ID, chunk size, wave ID, and finally the format information and the sampled data. Data storage is based on the little endian byte order.
Typically an m4a audio stream is encoded using the lossy Advanced Audio Coding format or AAC compression format which has a minimal tradeoff of audio quality in favor for storage size. In situations where maximum quality is required, the Apple Lossless Audio Codec or ALAC can be used.
Upload your audio file in the WAV format from your device, Dropbox, or Google Drive.
Select M4A as the output format and click Convert. Adjust optional settings if needed.
Download the converted audio file. Each file stays available for up to 5 downloads.