MAUD to VOC Converter

MAUD is an audio file format developed by MacroSystem for the Commodore Amiga platform, introduced in the early 1990s as part of their digital video and audio production tools. Built on the Amiga IFF (Interchange File Format) chunk architecture, MAUD files organize data into clearly delineated chunks — MHDR for the header, MDAT for sample data, and optional annotation chunks for metadata. The format supports mono and stereo layouts with bit depths of 8 or 16 bits and sample rates up to 48 kHz, which represented professional-grade specifications on Amiga hardware. Both signed linear PCM and A-law/mu-law encodings are available, offering a choice between fidelity and file size. MAUD saw primary use in the Amiga video production community, where MacroSystem Retina and VLab Motion boards demanded synchronized audio that the standard 8SVX format could not deliver. Conversion support exists today through SoX and libsndfile, ensuring vintage Amiga productions remain recoverable. Three distinct advantages stand out: clean IFF-based structure that any chunk-aware parser can navigate, 16-bit stereo capability ahead of typical Amiga audio, and lightweight overhead that left maximum CPU headroom for video rendering.

VOC (Creative Voice) is a digital audio container developed by Creative Technology and introduced alongside the original Sound Blaster card in 1989. It served as the native audio format for the Sound Blaster family during the DOS era, when Creative's hardware dominated PC audio. VOC files are block-based: each file consists of typed data blocks that can carry 8-bit unsigned PCM, 4-bit and 2.6-bit Creative ADPCM, 16-bit signed PCM, as well as A-law and mu-law encoded audio. This block structure also supports silence intervals, repeat loops, and marker points, giving game developers fine-grained control over sound playback. A notable advantage was hardware-level decoding — Sound Blaster cards could play VOC data directly via DMA transfer, freeing the CPU for other tasks in an era when processor cycles were precious. The format saw extensive use in DOS games from id Software, Sierra, and LucasArts. With the rise of Windows and the WAV format, VOC gradually fell out of mainstream use, yet it remains important for retro gaming preservation and for anyone working with vintage PC audio archives.