How to join, split and create mp4, mov and 3gp files
I was asked recently if I knew a program to split or merge mp4 files on Windows systems. I used a program in the past that let me to do and since I like to share knowledge, I decided to write this article about it.
Yamb is a free program for Windows that you may use to join, split and create mp4, mov and 3gp files on Windows.
You do need the mpeg 4 converter mp4 box because Yamb uses it for the conversion process. If you do not have it installed already, make sure you download the installer version from the developer website as it includes options to install the third party programs needed for some of the program's functionality.
Note: The developer has not updated the program since 2009 which is a strong indicator that it has been abandoned. It is still working fine at the moment though. Check out Cute Video Audio Merger, Movie File Merger, or Deepnut as potential alternatives.
Yamb - split or join mp4, mov and 3gp files
Yamb is mainly a gui for Mp4 Box. If you know your way around the command line you could just work with the application and not use Yamb at all. Then again, it is a lot easier to work with Yamb than it is to use the command line, at least for most computer users.
You need to add the path to mp4 box in the settings before you proceed to use some of the options that yamb offers. You may choose the creation or editing options of the program afterward to get started.
The creation tab lets you create mp4 and 3gp files by converting other movie files to the format. Created files can be further customized by splitting the output files for instance.
More important is the editing tab which lets you split and join mp4, mov and 3gp file and convert subtitles to the right format. Joining mp4 files is as easy as splitting them. Drop the files that you want to join in the correct order into yamb and select the output file. Please note that the output file has to exist, otherwise Yamb will abort the process.
Just create a blank file with the mp4 extension and everything should work out fine. Joining mp4 files is a fast process, it took Yamb 13 seconds to join two 60 megabyte mp4 files together.
The latest Yamb beta version supports additional features that include writing or erasing tags from mp4 or 3gp files, converting subtitle formats, or extracting streams from avi, mp4, mov or ts files.
Closing Words
YAMB has not been updated since the release of the first beta version. While it works fine even on version of Windows released after the program was published, it is suggested that you select different programs if you want to split or merge mp4 files and other file formats support by Yamb.
We have listed some of them at the top under update.
For anyone finding this from Google, the correct answer for MP4 files is My MP4Box GUI.
flvmerge.exe definitely works. I’ve used it to combine dozens of multi-part files.
For what I need it for, Yamb is absolutely great because of the speed. When dealing with conversion software, splitting software etc.. I’ve come to expect it to take a very long time. In my case I’m taking Youtube video stream that I’ve converted to MP4 (free online). I take episodes of a show which is seperated into 3 parts, now I can link it as one. Cleans up the iPod quite a bit, and I don’t have to keep selecting the next part to play once the first has ended.
Simple, free, does what it advertises. Yamb is awesome.
Does not correctly join videos no matter what order you place them in. I have found no discernible pattern in which it does combine videos.
The tag editor doesn’t even save properly.
You just make a new, empty text file then rename it with the name and extension you want the output file to have. This program only needs it as a target file to overwrite.
How do I create a blank file with the mp4 extension?
Another useful program i know is ultra video joiner, which can join almost all video files (such as mp4 avi wmv etc) into bigger one. http://www.008soft.com/how-to-join/video-joiner.htm
How do you create a blank 3gp file?
My sound and video were shifted as well and I had it correctly ordered in the UI. Is there any other mp4 joiners around?
Great & easy but the index is lost after the first file.
The software is crap because:
* Can only join max of 20
* User interface is horrible
* Does not conform to correct MP4 standard
* Thus, unusable on iPod/iPhone
What more could be wrong with it?
Nowinter is right…messes up the order of all the files no matter what order I put them in in Yamb…I have them CORRECTLY ORDERED…YAMB combines them incorrectly.
It shifts the sound on mp4 split. What sounds synch’ed throughall the record, is shifted in the, say, second split
I have installed Yamb. It is very useful for me. Thank you very much for introducing a excellent software.