Encoding Audio 16K Mono

[ZonePage]

I'm very new to RealAudio encoding. A web site from which I am able to download some clips has the clips encoded at 16K mono. The files have a .ra extension. They were encoded in 2001. What tools are available to encode at that rate? I purchased RealPlayer Plus, but the smallest size files that it will record are 32K stereo. Is a codec available to allow RealPlayer Plus to record at 16K mono? I tried RealProducer Basic, but it did not have the option to convert to 16K mono, or at least that I could find.

According to Real's online documentation, a .ra file is a RealAudio file recorded using RealPlayer (presumably, Plus.) Has RealPlayer been changed to eliminate the 16K mono option? My guess is that these files were recorded with RealPlayer rather than converted, but I am guessing. (They are voice presentations, and some of them have dead air for several minutes at the end, as if the person doing the transfer left the record function running after the source material ended.)

I purchased a program that converts to .ra files, but the resulting files are not as small as the files on this web site. The files on the web site are 16K/16K whereas the files written by this utility are 16K/22K, whatever all that means.

[Sirber]

With RealAnime I can encode down to 5kbps IIRC.

[ZonePage]

With RealAnime I can encode down to 5kbps IIRC.
What is "RealAnime"?

[Sirber]

Good question :)

It's a Graphical User Interface to Helix Producer. More infos here:

http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=82042

[Sirber]

about Real GUI, cook voice stop at 32kbps. cook music goes lower.

[ZonePage]

I just installed RealAnime, but I cannot figure out how to convert an audio only file. (As an aside, I'm not happy about the number of programs that this package installed on my computer.) When I try to convert a 44Khz 16 bit mono wave file using the codecs above, it says "input file type not supported" and errors out.

[karl_lillevold]

Here are all the audio codecs that are supported by the latest Helix Producer:
https://producerapps.helixcommunity.org/cmdproducer/docs/AudienceFile.htm#Audio_Codec_Tables

You are probably looking for this codec:
16 Kbps Music - RealAudio cook 2 22.05 kHz RealPlayer G2

The simplest method would be to use the Helix Producer cmd line tool, and encode your WAV files directly using this. You would have to create an audience file that looks something like:


<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<audience xmlns="http://ns.real.com/tools/audience.2.0" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://ns.real.com/tools/audience.2.0 http://ns.real.com/tools/audience.2.0.xsd">
<avgBitrate type="uint">16000</avgBitrate>
<maxBitrate type="uint">16000</maxBitrate>
<streams>
<stream xsi:type="audioStream">
<pluginName type="string">rn-audiocodec-realaudio</pluginName>
<codecName type="string">cook</codecName>
<codecFlavor type="uint">2</codecFlavor>
<encodingComplexity type="string">high</encodingComplexity>
<streamContext type="bag">
<presentationType type="string">audio-only</presentationType>
<audioMode type="string">music</audioMode>
</streamContext>
</stream>
</streams>
</audience>

Save this as myaudience.rpad.
Then simply encode your audio files like this:
producer -i input.wav -ad myaudience.rpad
or you can use a folder as input, and producer will encode all files in that folder:
producer -i <folder_with_wav_files> -ad myaudience.rpad

RealAnime installs the producer cmd line tool, but you can also download the zip from here: https://helixcommunity.org/beula/download/

A little complicated to get started with perhaps, but easy once you get the hang of it :)

[ZonePage]

Thanks, Karl, but the original question was how to encode 16K/16K rather than 16K/22.05K. Is that option no longer available? I have been trying to reach the guy who did the encoding originally, but he's a big shot and does not have time to return an email.

Thanks for your suggestions. They're way over my head for now!

Edit: 16 Kbps Voice - RealAudio sipr 3 16 kHz RealPlayer 5 looks like the one I want. What would I need to use it? Sorry to be such a newbie.

[Sirber]

As an aside, I'm not happy about the number of programs that this package installed on my computer.RealAnime install all it's file in it's own folder. They are needed for the normal operation of RealAnime.
When I try to convert a 44Khz 16 bit mono wave file using the codecs above, it says "input file type not supported" and errors out.Hum... I guess I will need to add support for WAV.16 Kbps Voice - RealAudio sipr 3 16 kHz RealPlayer 5 looks like the one I want. What would I need to use it? Sorry to be such a newbie.SPIR is a voice tuned codec, not ment for music.

[karl_lillevold]

OK. you are right. I did not understand your notation for sampling rate.

In the audience above, replace codecName cook with sipr, and codecFlavor 2 with 3 :)

However, since you already have RealProducer Basic, if you use the audience "16k Substream for 28k dial-up" and specify that you want want Audio mode "Voice", you should also get this codec.

[ZonePage]

However, since you already have RealProducer Basic, if you use the audience "16k Substream for 28k dial-up" and specify that you want want Audio mode "Voice", you should also get this codec.I will try this later tonight. In the past, I have not been able to get the same small file sizes that the web site has. Also RP Basic writes audio only files as .rm. The files on the web site are .ra. Does that make any difference in file size?

[karl_lillevold]

If the same codec is used, and the source is the same length, you should get the same or very similar file sizes.

You can rename your .rm to .ra. It makes no difference.

[karl_lillevold]

Oh, make sure you select only one audience. Otherwise you would be encoding SureStream (multi-stream) files meant for streaming, but the locally stored filesize is much bigger.

[Sirber]

if (strExt = '.mp3') Or (strExt = '.ac3')
Or (strExt = '.wav') Or (strExt = '.aac') then
What was the filename?