MPA File Extension
Have a problem opening a .MPA file? We collect information about file formats and can explain what MPA files are. Additionally we recommend software suitable for opening or converting such files.
Have a problem opening a .MPA file? We collect information about file formats and can explain what MPA files are. Additionally we recommend software suitable for opening or converting such files.
The .mpa filename extension represents the MPEG-1/MPEG-2 Layer II Audio File (.mpa, .mp2) file type, with reference to the MPEG-1 Layer II format or its backwards compatible extension MPEG-2 Layer II. MPEG-1 Layer II is a lossy audio compression method derived from the earlier MUSICAM audio codec and adopted as an international standard (ISO/IEC 11172-3). It is also part of several standards such as DVD-Video, DAB/DVB (Digital Audio/Video Broadcasting), and others.
The .mpa file is a compressed digital audio file. It contains MPEG-1 Layer II or MPEG-2 Layer II audio data (e.g., stereo, 48 kHz, constant bit-rate, 192-kbps), additionally encoded in the Audio Data Transport Stream (ADTS) format. The standard extension for such audio files is .mp2, although .mpa is also quite often used, especially for movie soundtracks. Sometimes wrongly assigned to MPEG video files, the .mpa extension is strictly audio-only ("audio/mpeg" and "audio/MPA" MIME types).
Such .mpa files can be opened and played by all software and hardware players that support MPEG-1/MPEG-2 Layer II. Besides, MPA or MP2 soundtracks can be used with sound editors and movie authoring tools.