AIFF → WAV
AIFF to WAV converter
AIFF and WAV both store uncompressed PCM; they differ in byte order and header layout. Converting between them changes the packaging, not a single audio sample.
…or drag files and folders here. Add as many as you like — everything is processed on this device.
.aif .aifc .aiff .caf .flac .wav .wave
In one paragraph
AIFF is what Apple software bounces to and WAV is what everything else expects. The two formats are functionally equivalent — AIFF stores samples big-endian in IFF chunks, WAV stores them little-endian in RIFF chunks — but plenty of Windows software, hardware samplers and embedded players read only one of them.
Because both are uncompressed, this conversion is lossless in the strictest sense: the sample values are identical, merely byte-swapped and re-headed. Sonic Batch also handles the compressed AIFF-C variants that make Chrome and Firefox give up.
Does this change the audio quality?
Bit-exact when the bit depth and sample rate match the source, because both formats hold the same PCM. Reducing 24-bit to 16-bit is a genuine change and is reported per file.
- Keep the output bit depth equal to the source to stay bit-exact.
- AIFF markers, loop points and instrument chunks have no WAV equivalent and are dropped.
- AIFF-C files with compressed payloads are decoded rather than rewrapped, so they take slightly longer.
A worked example
Moving a Logic bounce folder to a Windows-based studio
- Drop the AIFF bounces in and check the reported bit depth per file.
- Set the bit depth control to match — usually 24 for a mix bounce.
- Leave the sample rate on “Same as source”.
- Convert all and download the ZIP; the manifest confirms each file stayed bit-exact.
Mirror the source, always
There is no reason to change anything in this conversion. Set the bit depth and sample rate to match the AIFF and you get a perfect copy in a different wrapper. If you find yourself downconverting here, do it deliberately at the end of a workflow rather than in the middle of one.
Supported formats, limits and browser notes
Sonic Batch decodes with the browser when it can (faster, no engine download) and falls back to the self-hosted WebAssembly engine when it cannot. Every combination below works in every listed browser; the column only tells you which decoder does the work.
| Input | What it is | Chrome | Firefox | Safari | iOS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AIFF | Apple’s uncompressed PCM format — the WAV equivalent for Logic and Pro Tools. | Partial | Partial | Native | Native |
| WAV | Raw PCM samples with a small header. Perfect fidelity, roughly 10 MB per stereo minute. | Native | Native | Native | Native |
| CAF | Apple container used by older iOS Voice Memos. Usually holds ALAC, IMA4 or raw PCM. | Engine | Engine | Partial | Partial |
| FLAC | Lossless compression, typically 50–60% of WAV size, bit-identical when decoded. | Native | Native | Native | Native |
| Output | Encoder | Bitrates / depth | Sample rates | Tags |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WAV | pcm_s16le | 16, 24, 32-bit | 8–96 kHz | Yes |
- Max per file
- 400.0 MB
- Max per queue
- 4.00 GB
- Max duration
- 4:00:00
- Max archive
- 1.50 GB
These are enforced ceilings, checked before any decoding starts, not measured maximums — a file over the limit is rejected rather than allowed to exhaust the tab’s memory. Real-world capacity is lower on older phones, which is why the scheduler runs one file at a time on iOS and Safari.
Where your audio goes
Nowhere. Your file is read from disk into this browser tab with the File API, decoded and encoded by code running in that same tab, and handed back to you as a download. It is never transmitted.
That is a structural property of the application, not a policy promise: there are no API routes, no server actions and no third-party processing services in this project, so there is nothing capable of receiving a file. The page’s Content-Security-Policy also restricts connections to this origin, and the automated test suite includes a browser test that fails if any network request during import, preview, conversion or download carries media bytes.
The trade-off, stated plainly:results live in your tab’s memory until you download them. Closing or reloading the page discards them. There is nothing on a server to recover, because nothing was ever put there.
Troubleshooting
Chrome cannot preview my .aif file.
Chrome fails on AIFF-C and some 32-bit float AIFFs. The engine handles them, so conversion works even without a preview.
The WAV is the same size as the AIFF.
That is correct — both are uncompressed. Only the header differs, by a few dozen bytes.
My loop markers are gone.
WAV has no standard equivalent for AIFF instrument and marker chunks. The audio is intact; the metadata is not representable.
Frequently asked questions
Is AIFF to WAV lossless?
Yes. Both formats store the same uncompressed PCM. Matching bit depth and sample rate gives a bit-exact copy.
Which format is better?
Neither, technically. WAV has broader software support; AIFF is more common in Apple production workflows.
Can I compress it losslessly instead?
Yes — FLAC stores the same samples at about half the size and is supported by most modern software.
Does the byte order matter to me?
Not once the file is written correctly. It matters only to the software reading the raw bytes, which is exactly why the conversion is needed.