File Extension Search

.ac3 File Extension

Developer: Dolby laboratories
File type: Codec File
You're here because you have a file that has a file extension ending in .ac3. Files with the file extension .ac3 can only be launched by certain applications. It's possible that .ac3 files are data files rather than documents or media, which means they're not meant to be viewed at all.

what is a .ac3 file?

The AC3 file extension is a data file format associated to Dolby Digital, audio compression technology. AC3 is also known as Audio Codec 3. AC3 files and Dolby Digital were developed by Dolby Laboratories. These files contain audio files made of six channels of audio format. Six channel surround or 5.1 surround sound consists of left, center, right, left surround, right surround and the low-frequency effects. They are used for audio format for DVDs, Blu-ray, cinema theaters, and game consoles. Key features include subwoofer output and downmixing functions. The first Dolby Digital technology was introduced and used with the movie Batman Returns in 1992. For Laserdisc edition, it was first released in 1995 for the movie Clear and Present Danger. Files in AC3 format can be opened with MPlayer in Mac OS and Microsoft Windows-based platforms. Other versions of this technology include Dolby Digital EX, Dolby Digital Surround EX, Dolby Digital Live, Dolby Digital Plus, and Dolby TrueHD.

how to open a .ac3 file?

Launch a .ac3 file, or any other file on your PC, by double-clicking it. If your file associations are set up correctly, the application that's meant to open your .ac3 file will open it. It's possible you may need to download or purchase the correct application. It's also possible that you have the correct application on your PC, but .ac3 files aren't yet associated with it. In this case, when you try to open a .ac3 file, you can tell Windows which application is the correct one for that file. From then on, opening a  .ac3 file will open the correct application. Click here to fix .ac3 file association errors

applications that open a .ac3 file

Apple QuickTime Player

Apple QuickTime Player

Apple QuickTime Player is a multimedia player software that handles a variety of files of different formats from digital photos to panoramic images, audios to videos as well as interactivity. This multimedia player program is available for Mac OS X computers as well as later versions of Windows computers. This software product by Apple has Software Development Kits or SDKs which is available to the public as long as subscribed with the Apple Developer Connection or ADC. It has QuickTime framework, which is compatible with other free player applications, that provide several functions. These include the encoding of audios and videos, transcoding of those same files, decoding with the option to send a decoded stream to graphics subsystem or audio subsystem, and a component plugin architecture to support other codecs (third party like DivX). The latest version of this software is QuickTime Player 7 which is downloadable for free for Mac and Windows computers.
Microsoft Windows Media Player

Microsoft Windows Media Player

Windows Media Player Playlist (WPL) is a computer file format that keeps multimedia playlists for video and audio collections. It is an owned file format utilized in Microsoft Windows Media Player versions 9 to 12. The fundamentals of WPL files are represented in XML format. These .WPL files can be accessed and utilized by the Nullsoft Winamp Media Player 5.6 application version as well as the Roxio Creator 2012 program. WPL files are also known as Windows Media Player playlist files, which are indicated by the Microsoft Windows Media Player or the other media players with support for WPL files as reference data when users open these playlist files and begin to access the content stored in it. The top-level aspect specifies that the file's elements go after the Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language (SMIL) structure. The information contained in these WPL files are directory locations to the video files and audio content chose by the creator of the .WPL file, this enables the media player application to quickly and easily find and play the video and audio content from their directory locations.
Nullsoft Winamp Media Player 5.6

Nullsoft Winamp Media Player 5.6

Winamp Media Player 5.6 is a popular media player for Windows. This player was developed by Nullsoft and it allows users to play multimedia content such as audio and video. The software not only provides users with all the tools they need to organize their audio and video files but it also allows them to burn and rip CDs and even sync files from mobile devices. Winamp also features a playlist editor that allows users to create and manage their song lists as well as its media library effectively organizes all the audio and video files so that they can be located in one location. This software also has visualization features wherein animated graphics can be displayed along with the music being played. This media player also comes with a customizable user interface wherein users can change skins, as well as it supports not only a large number of file formats but it also supports a lot of user-developed plug ins.
CyberLink PowerDVD 12

CyberLink PowerDVD 12

CyberLink Power DVD 12 is a multimedia player that can play all media matters such as music, photos, movies and videos. This software can convert the Blu-ray format movies to High definition movies and 3 dimensional movies. The user may also enhance the videos for a more professional look, and enjoy the photos with an improve quality. The software has provided an "Instant scale" to make the files viewable without playing it. The user may also preview the photos inside a folder without opening the folders by using the "Instant View tool". CyberLink Power DVD 12 Runs on Window XP (SP3), Window Vista and Windows 7. The processor would be Pentium 4 3.2 GHz or higher, A VGA card (NVIDIA GeForce GTX 400 or higher/ AMD Radeon HD 6000 or higher) and 330 MB for the Hard Drive. An Internet connection is also required for the initial activation of the software.
MPlayer

MPlayer

The MPlayer software is a free media player application, and this program is usually categorized as freeware. However, the MPlayer application is actually an open source program, which means its source code (the foundation of its software) can be edited, improved or enhanced by anyone. The MPlayer program is also supported by major operating systems like Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OS X and various Linux as well as UNIX distributions. OS/2, AmigaOS, Syllable, AROS Research OS and MorphOS are also implemented with support for the MPlayer application. This program can even work on Microsoft DOS (Disk Operating System) with the use of the HX DOS Extender (Microsoft Windows version only). The MPlayer software has also been ported to several devices with the use of third-party community plug-ins, including one for Amazon Kindle. The MPlayer program looks a little like the VLC Media Player application and has inherited the latter's ability to play any type of media content known to most users, and even save streamed media content to a file on the local machine. MPlayer also supports a companion application called mEncoder, which is primarily used for streaming content input and for transcoding it to several output formats, with a few additional video transformation processes implemented into its operations.

a word of warning

Be careful not to rename the extension on .ac3 files, or any other files. This will not change the file type. Only special conversion software can change a file from one file type to another.

what is a file extension?

A file extension is the set of three or four characters at the end of a filename; in this case, .ac3. File extensions tell you what type of file it is, and tell Windows what programs can open it. Windows often associates a default program to each file extension, so that when you double-click the file, the program launches automatically. When that program is no longer on your PC, you can sometimes get an error when you try to open the associated file.
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