Despite the limitless assortment of modern gadgets, there is still the need to convert multimedia files from one format to another. To optimize this resource-intensive process, we’ve prepared some effective tips for you. Stick to our recommendations to speed up conversion and enjoy top-quality output files.
TIP #1 – CHOOSING THE RIGHT FILE CONVERTER
There are hundreds of file converting solutions. They seem to offer the same services and work according to the same principle. However, it is not so, and there are a couple of nuances that you should be aware of. Here are some of the requirements for the program:
- The software should provide a high speed of work in the conversion process (keep in mind that the processing time may sometimes depend on the technical equipment the program is run on).
- The program must support all popular formats; otherwise, you will have to look for another converter very soon.
- The converter should work correctly without affecting the integrity of the files (without errors, lags, or other defects).
This is the minimum set of requirements that even online services offer. However, such converters employ external servers, which means that the formatting speed will be rather slow, and there is a risk that the output file will be of low quality.
Besides that, online converters do not allow the uploading of large files. If you want to change the format of a video that is more than 200 megabytes, then you should look for an alternative solution. For example, for all users serious about converting multimedia files and looking for a VHS to digital converter, the powerful Movavi video converting software will come in handy. Those who want to adjust and edit the output file should take a closer look at Movavi Video Suite – a solution that is packed with tons of tools and features.
TIP #2 – VIDEO FORMATS
It is necessary to select programs keeping in mind the video formats that they support, be it HD, 4K, AVI, MP4, or any other. All modern users are perfectly familiar with the listed types of formats. So what’s the problem? It may happen that the video is too large, of poor quality, or does not play on a specific device, so you will need to understand each format in order to be able to resolve the issue.
If you are processing video for viewing on a smartphone, then we recommend that you select the MP4 format. If you are preparing a video for viewing on a home theater system, then it is best to export the video to AVI or MKV; both formats can give the best result even at the medium settings of a media player. Since MKV is less common than AVI you may need the MKV Player for Mac lists in particular.
The 4K, HD, and SD abbreviations refer to the size of the displayed video. Thus, the HD (high definition) format works well for a mobile phone but doesn’t perform so well for a TV. It is better to give preference to 4K in case the TV supports a resolution above 1080p. Some of the modern file converters can automatically recognize the device connected to the computer. For example, the Freemake converter can offer optimal video settings when you connect to your Android smartphone via a USB cable.
TIP #3 – NO LOSS OF VIDEO QUALITY
There are programs, such as Movavi and FFMPEG, that really do their job flawlessly: a video is quickly and efficiently converted to the required format, and you can enjoy watching it right away. But it may also happen the other way around when the output file quality is so poor that it does nothing but irritate you. In order not to reduce the quality, you should set the settings before initiating file conversion – use the FLAC or M2TS codecs to preserve video quality at max.
TIP #4 – CHOICE OF CODEC AND PRESETS
With Any Video Converter, the conversion time is highly dependent on the choice of codec that you will compress the video with. The thing is that when compressing even the same file with different codecs, the time to process the file can be completely different. The most popular video codecs today are Divx, Xvid, H.264, etc. It is difficult to say which of the codecs will suit you best; we would recommend trying them all.
Another important point is that if you are going to play the processed video on old equipment (for example, on a DVD player), you may have problems with accessing an MP4 file; it will simply not load. In this case, it is better to convert the video to MPEG-2. Luckily, most modern converters have presets (i.e., pre-configured settings for popular conversion options), so the program will make all the necessary configurations on the back-end side.
TIP #5 – OPTIMIZE THE CPU LOAD
If you do not want to wait a couple of hours to have a video converted to a target format, then you need to check the CPU load. For this, open the task manager and see which processes and programs are loading the system. Some software and games can create a high load on the CPU, disk, RAM, thus, reducing the conversion performance.
It is recommended to close all “unnecessary” applications to free up all available PC resources for the video encoding process. Besides that, you can also pay attention to the application priority and change it in the task manager view. As a result, the conversion process will significantly speed up.
TIP #6 – CHECK IF SYSTEM “ECONOMY” MODE IS ON
As a rule, this tip applies to laptops and tablets. Often, to save energy, their system is set to an “Economy” mode of operation in the power supply settings (Control Panel \ Hardware and Sound \ Power Supply). To speed up the file conversion process, you should better set the “High performance” or “Balanced” mode. By the way, if you have a modern Intel Core i-3, i-5, i-7 CPU, check if you have Turbo Boost technology enabled. This technology allows the CPU to increase its operating speed under load significantly.
FINAL SAY!
You can significantly optimize a file converting process if you know some of its key nuances. By choosing the right converter, output format, and configuration settings, you will greatly boost file conversion. Stick to the above file and video conversion, and you will get the most out of using modern converting programs.
