# Extracting sound from .mov files **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 29, 2007, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extracting-sound-from-mov-files/389940 "2007-01-29T06:32:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ArrMatey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/arrmatey/32/3522_2.png) [@ArrMatey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ArrMatey)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2007, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extracting-sound-from-mov-files/389940/1 "2007-01-29T06:32:48Z")
Name says it all. Is there a way for us non-QT-pro-users to extract the audio from a .mov file? I’ve looked at tucows, and everything I can download there has this wonderful unique feature- I download, I install, I set-up for extraction, and suddenly… “Oh, by the way, we’ll only extract 16 seconds of audio unless you send us thirty bucks.” Lord, there’s gotta be a better way. Anyone out there able to help me out? ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2007, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extracting-sound-from-mov-files/389940/2 "2007-01-29T07:13:25Z")
What you’re looking for is an app that “demuxes” or “de-multiplexes” the quicktime file, that is, separate the audio and video without further compression. You may find a free one, but Quicktime is notoriously quirky and probably requires a reasonably serious piece of software to do it. 3ivX D4 Media Splitter does, and costs just $US6.95 [here](http://store.3ivx.com/3ivxStore/). Probably the best you’re going to get. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2007, 8:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extracting-sound-from-mov-files/389940/3 "2007-01-29T08:34:59Z")
[RAD Video Tools](http://www.radgametools.com/bnkdown.htm) (free) allows you to convert a QT movie to another format, including AVI, from which you could use any number of video tools ([VirtualDubMod](http://virtualdubmod.sourceforge.net/) being one of my favourites) to demux/extract the audio stream. ---
**Author:** ![ArrMatey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/arrmatey/32/3522_2.png) [@ArrMatey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ArrMatey)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2007, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extracting-sound-from-mov-files/389940/4 "2007-01-29T18:12:19Z")
Mange, I’ve downloaded the files you suggested, and I’m having a devil of a time getting them to do what I’d like them to do. Any chance you could give me a step-by-step? I’m finding the online help for them not very… Helpful. ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2007, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extracting-sound-from-mov-files/389940/5 "2007-01-29T18:44:31Z")
If you have audio recording software, try this: go into the Windows Mixer via the speaker icon in the systray (or alternately, go to Start | Run | type in ‘sndvol32.exe’ minus quotes). Go to Options| Properties | Adjust Properties for (check) Recording | OK, and check the box under a slider that can be named several things, usually “What You Hear” or “Sum” or “Stereo Mix”. Go back to your recording program, start it recording, and Alt/tab to the QT player, and start the .mov file playing. If your sound card will allow it (most will), the sound from the movie will be recorded as a .wav file in your recording program. Let us know if that works for you. ---
**Author:** ![ArrMatey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/arrmatey/32/3522_2.png) [@ArrMatey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ArrMatey)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2007, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extracting-sound-from-mov-files/389940/6 "2007-01-29T19:18:11Z")
Sadly, no audio-recording software that I’m aware of on my machine. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2007, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extracting-sound-from-mov-files/389940/7 "2007-01-29T19:21:55Z")
OK, go [here](http://audacity.sourceforge.net/) and get Audacity for free. Install it, and it’ll work out of the box, so to speak. ---
**Author:** ![ArrMatey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/arrmatey/32/3522_2.png) [@ArrMatey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ArrMatey)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2007, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extracting-sound-from-mov-files/389940/8 "2007-01-30T04:32:13Z")
Success! And thank you very much to everyone who offered ideas!