WTV to NIST Converter

Convert WTV video audio to NIST — free and online

Drop files here. 1 GB maximum file size or Sign Up
to
Facebook Amazon Microsoft Tesla Nestle Walmart L'Oreal

No Software Needed

Extract NIST audio from WTV video entirely in your browser. Works on any device — phone, tablet, laptop, or desktop.

Batch Processing

Upload and convert multiple files in one session. The converter handles each file individually and delivers all results together.

Simple Workflow

Upload, pick a format, and convert — three steps to your result. The interface is clean and intuitive for everyone.

How to convert WTV to NIST

1

Select files from Computer, Google Drive, Dropbox, URL or by dragging it on the page.

2

Choose nist or any other format you need as a result (more than 200 formats supported)

3

Let the file convert and you can download your nist file right afterwards

About formats

WTV (Windows Recorded TV Show) is a digital video recording format developed by Microsoft and introduced in July 2008 with the Windows Media Center TV Pack for Windows Vista. The format was designed to replace the earlier DVR-MS recording format used by Windows Media Center, offering a more capable container for recording live television broadcasts. WTV files store video in MPEG-2 or H.264 encoding alongside multiple audio tracks in AC-3 or MPEG audio format, along with closed caption data, electronic program guide metadata, and copy protection flags. The container uses an internal directory structure that supports time-shifting features, allowing Windows Media Center to record content while simultaneously enabling playback from the beginning of the recording. A rich metadata framework preserves detailed program information from the electronic program guide (EPG), including show title, episode description, genre, ratings, and original air date, making it easy to organize and browse recorded content. The format supports both standard definition and high definition recordings from digital cable, over-the-air ATSC, and ClearQAM tuner sources. WTV files are natively accessible through Windows Media Center and can be converted to the simpler DVR-MS format using built-in Windows tools. While Windows Media Center was discontinued after Windows 7 (with limited support in Windows 8), WTV files remain in personal media archives and can be processed by third-party video tools.
Developer: Microsoft
Initial release: July 16, 2008
NIST SPHERE (SPeech HEader REsources) is a specialized audio file format created by the National Institute of Standards and Technology for speech research, particularly projects funded by DARPA. The format wraps raw audio samples with a structured ASCII header encoding metadata such as sample rate, channel count, encoding type, speaker demographics, and transcription annotations — making it ideal for distributing speech corpora. NIST files typically store uncompressed PCM or mu-law audio at telephone-quality sample rates (8 kHz or 16 kHz), though the container is flexible enough to hold various encodings. A key advantage is the rich self-documenting header that lets researchers embed detailed corpus metadata directly in the file, eliminating sidecar files. SPHERE has also become the de facto standard for major speech databases like TIMIT, Switchboard, and the Fisher corpus, ensuring broad recognition across academic and government labs. The open specification and availability of command-line tools (sphere, h_strip, w_decode) make it straightforward to convert, inspect, and process these files programmatically in speech processing pipelines.
Initial release: 1990

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the benefit of converting WTV to NIST?

Extracting audio from a WTV recording into NIST lets you save the soundtrack of a TV show for offline listening on any device.

How do I open an NIST file?

NIST tools, HTK, and speech research platforms handle NIST SPHERE audio data.

Is registration necessary?

No. Basic conversions work without an account. Signing up is optional and provides access to extended features and larger uploads.

Will the audio quality match the original?

You can set the output bitrate to match or exceed the original audio quality. Higher settings preserve more detail from the WTV source.

How fast is the audio extraction?

Audio extraction is quicker than full video conversion since only the sound track is processed. Most files are done within seconds.

Can I choose the audio bitrate?

Yes. Adjust the bitrate, sample rate, and channel count before converting to get the NIST quality that suits your listening needs.