MainConcept FFmpeg Plugin Portfolio Adds xHE-AAC Encoder and Support for Linux on ARM with AVC & HEVC

MainConcept FFmpeg Plugins 2.0 Now Available for Processing of Multimedia Files

Aachen, Germany; San Diego, California – October 14, 2021 – MainConcept^®, the leading provider of codec and streaming technologies, today announced that version 2 of their FFmpeg plugin portfolio is available. FFmpeg, an open-source software solution, is used for processing multimedia files in broadcast, streaming, surveillance, gaming, medical and other verticals.

This update features the general release of the MainConcept xHE-AAC Plugin for FFmpeg, which enables the use of Fraunhofer’s industry-leading xHE-AAC software encoder natively in FFmpeg. MainConcept and Fraunhofer collaborated to make this next-generation audio plugin available to a broader audience.

“FFmpeg-based ingest and encoding frameworks are commonly used by our service provider customers worldwide. Making our production-grade xHE-AAC Encoder broadly accessible and easy to integrate into those existing workflows was our goal,” said Marc Gayer, Head of Business Department & Deputy Division Director Audio and Media Technologies at Fraunhofer IIS. “This has now been achieved thanks to our long-term partner MainConcept and their new xHE-AAC Encoder Plugin for FFmpeg.”

Thoroughly tested through the MainConcept Beta Program, the new plugin supports:

• xHE-AAC and legacy LC AAC, HE-AAC v1 and HE- AAC v2 audio formats
• On-demand (file-to-file) xHE-AAC encoding workflows
• On-demand (file-to-file) and live for legacy AAC encoding workflows
• Best-in-class audio featuring bitrates of 12-500 kb/s for stereo
• Seamless audio bitrate switching for MPEG-DASH and Apple HLS
• Mandatory loudness and dynamic range control
• Use with the MainConcept Video Encoder Plugins for FFmpeg and FFmpeg built-in video encoders

You can learn more by watching our on-demand webinar, xHE-AAC: Next-Generation Audio Advancements with Fraunhofer and MainConcept or reading this blog post.

The new release’s other notable enhancement is support for Linux on ARM CPUs for the complete portfolio of FFmpeg plugins. “MainConcept FFmpeg plugins have been supported on Windows and Linux since their launch in 2020,” said Thomas Kramer, VP Strategy & Business Development. “However, with the introduction and rapid adoption of ARM architecture, we are now adding this cost-efficient encoding option for those who need the quality, performance and reliability that is baked into each MainConcept product.”

The ARM versions of MainConcept Plugins for FFmpeg running on Ubuntu and CentOS are ideal for Raspberry Pi and select AWS server instances, the latter of which showed a 20% cost saving as well as a 60% performance gain during initial testing when compared to x86-based instances.

Integrating seamlessly into a new or existing FFmpeg environment or service, the MainConcept Plugins for FFmpeg make it simple to create video and audio workflows. With advanced features such as Hybrid GPU acceleration (HEVC), hardware encoding powered by Intel and NVIDIA and ready-to-use presets for professional production camera formats like Sony XAVC and Panasonic AVC Ultra, the MainConcept Plugins use the same industry-leading codecs found in the MainConcept SDKs.

The MainConcept Plugins for FFmpeg are free to evaluate. For non-commercial use, the FFmpeg plugins can be purchased online. For commercial use, contact the MainConcept Sales team.