Need Just the Audio from Your WMV Video?
You have a WMV video file but only need the audio-maybe it's a recorded lecture, a podcast with a video component, or music from a concert recording. Instead of keeping the entire video file, you can extract just the audio track and save it as WMA.
WMV and WMA are both Microsoft formats, and most WMV files already use WMA for their audio encoding. This means extraction is often lossless-you get the exact same audio quality without any degradation from re-encoding.
How to Convert WMV to WMA
- Upload your WMV file - Drag and drop your Windows Media Video or browse to select it
- Choose WMA as output - The audio track will be extracted in Windows Media Audio format
- Download your WMA file - Get your audio file ready for playback on any Windows device
The entire process takes just seconds for most files. In our testing, a 100MB WMV video converts to WMA in under 15 seconds, with the resulting audio file typically being 90% smaller than the original video.
Why Stay in the Windows Media Family?
When you convert WMV to WMA, you're keeping your audio in Microsoft's native format. This has several advantages:
- No quality loss - If your WMV uses WMA audio (most do), extraction is essentially copying the audio stream without re-encoding
- Perfect Windows compatibility - WMA plays natively on every Windows PC without additional software
- Windows Media Player integration - Full metadata support, album art, and playlist functionality
- Smaller files than WAV - WMA compression keeps file sizes manageable while maintaining quality
- DRM compatibility - WMA handles Windows Digital Rights Management if your content requires it
In our testing, WMA files extracted from WMV maintain bit-for-bit identical audio when the source already uses WMA encoding. This isn't possible when converting to formats like MP3, which always requires re-encoding.
Technical Comparison: WMV vs WMA
Both formats come from Microsoft's Windows Media framework, but they serve different purposes:
| Feature | WMV (Video) | WMA (Audio) |
|---|---|---|
| Content Type | Video with audio track | Audio only |
| Typical File Size | 50MB - 2GB per hour | 4MB - 15MB per hour |
| Standard Bitrate | 1-8 Mbps (video) | 64-192 kbps |
| Container Format | ASF (Advanced Systems Format) | ASF (Advanced Systems Format) |
| Primary Use | Video playback and streaming | Music and audio content |
The key insight: both formats use the same ASF container. When a WMV file contains WMA-encoded audio, extraction simply means removing the video stream and keeping the audio intact.
Common Use Cases
Lecture and Training Recordings
Many corporate training videos and recorded lectures are distributed as WMV files. If the visual component isn't essential-like a professor's talking head-extracting just the audio lets you listen during commutes or while exercising. The WMA format keeps file sizes small enough for mobile devices.
Podcast Video Shows
Video podcasts often work just as well as audio. Extract the WMA track to add episodes to your regular podcast app without the bandwidth demands of streaming video.
Music from Concert or Live Recordings
Home recordings or concert videos captured as WMV can have their audio extracted for your music library. WMA provides better compression than WAV while maintaining near-CD quality.
Voice Memos and Dictation
If you've recorded video notes but only need the audio for transcription or reference, WMV to WMA conversion strips out the unnecessary video data. In our testing, this typically reduces file size by 85-95%.
Quality Settings and What to Expect
WMA supports several quality tiers that you might encounter in your extracted audio:
- WMA Standard (64-192 kbps) - CD-quality audio at 44.1kHz/16-bit, suitable for music and general use
- WMA Pro (up to 768 kbps) - High-resolution audio up to 96kHz/24-bit, supports 5.1 and 7.1 surround
- WMA Lossless - Bit-perfect compression like FLAC, larger files but zero quality loss
- WMA Voice (up to 20 kbps) - Optimized for speech recordings, very small files
The quality of your output WMA depends entirely on the source WMV. If the original video has low-bitrate audio, the extracted WMA will sound identical-you can't improve audio quality through conversion, only preserve it.
When to Choose a Different Format
While WMA is excellent for Windows users, it's not always the best choice:
- For iPhones/iTunes - Convert to WMV to M4A instead, as Apple devices don't natively support WMA
- For universal compatibility - WMV to MP3 works on every device and platform imaginable
- For audio editing - WMV to WAV gives you uncompressed audio for professional editing software
- For open-source systems - WMV to OGG is the preferred format on Linux and for some gaming applications
Stick with WMA when you know your audio will primarily be played on Windows systems, or when you need the smallest possible file size without switching to a lossy re-encode.
Batch Conversion for Multiple Files
Have a collection of WMV files from a training series or lecture course? Upload them all at once and convert the entire batch to WMA. This is particularly useful when archiving video content where you want to keep the audio but reclaim the storage space used by video data.
In our testing with 20 lecture videos totaling 4.2GB, batch extraction to WMA completed in under 3 minutes, producing audio files totaling just 380MB-a 91% reduction in storage requirements.
Works in Any Browser
Our WMV to WMA converter runs entirely in your browser:
- Windows 10, Windows 11, and older versions
- Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and other modern browsers
- Mac and Linux systems (for creating WMA files to share with Windows users)
- Tablets and mobile devices
No software to install, no plugins required, no account needed. Just upload, convert, and download your WMA audio.