All about 3GA Files

The 3GA file type is primarily associated with QuickTime.

3GAFile Extension 3GA
File extension: 3GA
File type:  voice recording

What is a 3GA file?

3GA files mostly belong to QuickTime by Apple. 3GA is the filename extension of audio recordings captured by voice recording programs on various platforms. 3GA format uses Adaptive Multi-Rate (AMR, AMR-WB, Extended AMR-WB, EVS, Enhanced aacPlus and AAC) audio codec, which is optimized for speech coding. The AMR codec used by 3GA format uses discontinuous transmission (DTX), voice activity detection (VAD), and comfort noise generation (CNG) technology to reduce bandwidth usage during silence periods when writing a file to disk or transmitting it over a network. The result of this compression is a smaller file size that takes up less network and system resources. This is the reason some mobile phones manufactured by Nokia, Samsung and others use 3GA as their default audio format for sending MMS messages. In some cases, 3GA files are used to store the audio stream of a 3GP (video container) file. VLC, QuickTime, and RealPlayer support 3GA format.

How do you open 3GA files?

You need a suitable software like QuickTime to open a 3GA file. Without proper software you will receive a Windows message "How do you want to open this file?" or "Windows cannot open this file" or a similar Mac/iPhone/Android alert. If you cannot open your 3GA file correctly, try to right-click or long-press the file. Then click "Open with" and choose an application. You can also display a 3GA file directly in the browser:. Just drag the file onto this browser window and drop it.

Online 3GA File Viewer

Choose your .3ga file to play

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How to convert 3GA files to MP3, WAV, OGG, FLAC, AAC, AIFF, ...

If you want to convert or edit a 3GA file, you can use our free Online 3GA File Converter (powered by Convert.Guru):
  1. To do so, click the "Choose your .3ga file to play" button above.
  2. Your 3GA file will then be displayed in the browser.
  3. Now click on "Save as..." at the top of the page.
  4. Then choose the audio format (e.g. MP3, WAV, OGG, FLAC, AAC, AIFF, ...) you want.
  5. Download the converted file.

Programs that open and convert 3GA files:

  1. QuickTime by Apple
    See the previous paragraphs to learn more about the main application. 3GA files are often referred to as QuickTime audios because this type of file is primarily created or used by this software.
  2. VLC Media Player (voice recording) by VideoLAN
    VLC is a free and open-source media player with streaming and file conversion utilities. Its use of the libavcodec library allows it to support a wide range of formats. Some of these include 3GA, 3GP, MP4 and MKV. VLC is available on Windows, MacOS, Linux and Android. This file format is classified as Audio. Related links: Wikipedia VLC media player entry, Adaptive Multi-Rate audio codec

3GA file format:

Each file has a definite file format, that is, how the stored data is arranged in the file. A file format is determined by the file extension and signature, so JPEG images have the extension .jpg and the first bytes in the file are ÿØÿ. Frequently, however, one file extension is used by different programs for different file formats, and one file format for different file extensions. Exact knowledge of the format is therefore important in order to solve problems occurring in files. In the following you will find our evaluation of the 3GA files:

3GA is not a common file extension and predominantly uses a uniform format. However, the following two file formats are common:

The remaining 5% of all 3GA files are files with no common format. If you want to find out what your 3GA file contains, drag and drop it onto this page.

Technical Data for 3GA File Extension

File classification:
Audio
Related files:
Mime type:

a 3ga voice recording is a special file format by Apple and should only be edited and saved with the appropriate software.

How to solve problems with 3GA files

  • Associate the 3GA file extension with the correct application.
  • Update your software that should actually open voice recordings. Because only the current version supports the latest 3GA file format. Search, therefore, e.g. on the Apple manufacturer website after an available QuickTime update.
  • To make sure that your 3GA file is not corrupted or virus-infected, get the file again and scan it with Google's virustotal.com.
  • Click here to open your .3GA file online - secure, fast, and no downloads needed.
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