AAC - Advanced Audio Coding

AAC stands for "Advanced Audio Coding". This audio format is used in High Definition Transport Streams in Asia, in QuickTime (iTunes) and in MPEG-4 ISO formats. Currently, the best implementation of an AAC decoder is by the CoreCodec group.

AAC files can come internal to Audio/Video formats such as AVI/OGM/Matrsoka/QuickTime, or as a standalone Audio file (AAC/M4A). For internal playback, all you need is the AAC Decoder filter. For stand-alone playback, you will also need the AAC Parser filter.

To play iTunes ".M4A" files, you may need to use a 3rd party tool to remove the DRM encryption, something that is not entirely legal and won't be linked to on this site, sorry.

If the AAC files come in an MPEG-4 format ("MP4" extension), you will also need to install the 3ivx MPEG-4 splitter which comes with the 3ivx decoding pack. You will also need to configure the 3ivx splitter (through the filter's property page) to enable "Allow Unsupported Decoders".

Support for 6-Channel AAC may not work with the CoreCodec AAC Decoder listed below, in such cases, you may need to use the FFDShow filter as an AAC decoder.

Download CoreCodec AAC Decoder v1.0b9:
Mirror 1, Mirror 2.
MD5: 4ECB705862F9117ADB76D001CEB32CA1

Download AAC Parser:
Mirror 1, Mirror 2.
MD5: E8B7D93435565E984178E2CC65592F6B