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brew

Install a52dec with Homebrew, apk, apt, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, zypper

Library for decoding ATSC A/52 streams (AKA 'AC-3'). Version 0.8.0 via Homebrew; verified from local package data.

Install commandSecurity notes

install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install a52dec

local Homebrew formula metadata

MacPortsverified · 94%
sudo port install a52dec

MacPorts ports tree · audio/a52dec/Portfile · source: api.github.com

Linux

Alpine Linux apkverified · 92%
sudo apk add a52dec

Alpine Linux edge package indexes · a52dec · source: dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org

Debian aptverified · 92%
sudo apt install liba52-0.7.4

Debian stable package indexes · liba52-0.7.4 · source: deb.debian.org

Fedora dnfverified · 92%
sudo dnf install a52dec

Fedora Rawhide package metadata · a52dec · source: dl.fedoraproject.org

Nixverified · 92%
nix profile install nixpkgs#a52dec

nixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/a5/a52dec/package.nix · source: api.github.com

Arch Linux pacmanverified · 92%
sudo pacman -S a52dec

Arch Linux sync databases · a52dec · source: geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com

openSUSE zypperverified · 92%
sudo zypper install a52dec

openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · a52dec · source: download.opensuse.org

overview

Package summary

Library for decoding ATSC A/52 streams (AKA 'AC-3')

Commands and aliases

  • a52dec
  • extract_a52

history

Project history and usage

a52dec is the command-line test decoder and distribution package for liba52, a C library for decoding ATSC A/52 audio streams, also known as AC-3.

Project history

The project started publicly as ac3dec in 1999 and evolved into a52dec/liba52 in 2001. The official ChangeLog records the first public ac3dec release in June 1999, the 0.7.0 liba52-era release in August 2001, and the 0.7.4 release in July 2002.

The project then had a very long quiet period after the 2004 0.7.5 development snapshot. In 2022, Adelie Linux imported the historically available SourceForge code into Git, declared the Adelie GitLab URL canonical for source control and issue tracking, and took over maintenance while trying to minimize churn.

Adoption history

The README names xine, VideoLAN, MPlayer, FFmpeg, drip, and GStreamer as projects that used liba52, which explains why distributions kept shipping a small standalone a52dec package long after upstream development slowed.

How it is used

The a52dec program decodes ATSC A/52 files and can demultiplex MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 program streams. Typical use is running a52dec against an AC-3/A52 file, with options for multiplexed streams, output layer selection, optimization control, and dynamic range compression.

Why package nerds care

a52dec is interesting to package maintainers because it is a classic codec-library package with a tiny CLI, old CVS-era history, GPL licensing, dormant upstream years, and a later distribution-led maintenance handoff.

Timeline

  • 1999: First public ac3dec release.
  • 2001: a52dec/liba52 0.7.0 release introduces a new library interface and major speedups.
  • 2002: a52dec 0.7.4 release marks liba52 as fully reentrant.
  • 2004: a52dec 0.7.5 development snapshot adds fixed-point support and other improvements.
  • 2022: a52dec 0.8.0 imports historical SourceForge code into Git and updates the maintenance situation.

Related projects

  • Related users and peers include xine, VideoLAN/VLC, MPlayer, FFmpeg, GStreamer, and other media playback or transcoding projects that needed AC-3/A52 decoding.

security posture

Risk level: blue

broad file, network, media, or database tool signal.

Risk classifier

blue risk · medium confidence · tool

Why

  • broad file, network, media, or database tool signal

Signals

  • text:stream

Install behavior

  • No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
  • Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 12 platform targets.

Recommended review

Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.

executables

Installed executables

CommandKindExposureNote
a52deccliglobal executable
extract_a52cliglobal executable

freshness

Version and freshness

These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.

page generated2026-07-08
manager version0.8.0
manager updated
local dataok
upstreamnot checked
latest detectednot detected

https://git.adelielinux.org/community/a52dec/

install metadata

Package metadata

Package keybrew:a52dec
Version0.8.0
Package managerHomebrew
Package manager pagehttps://formulae.brew.sh/formula/a52dec
Homepagehttps://git.adelielinux.org/community/a52dec/
Repositoryhttps://git.adelielinux.org/community/a52dec
Upstream docshttps://git.adelielinux.org/community/a52dec
LicenseGPL-2.0-or-later
Source archivehttps://distfiles.adelielinux.org/source/a52dec/a52dec-0.8.0.tar.gz
Bottleavailable (on arm64_big_sur, arm64_linux, arm64_monterey, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, arm64_ventura, big_sur, monterey, sonoma, ventura, x86_64_linux)
Homebrew post-installnot defined
Servicenone declared

registry facts

Source database details

Source DatabaseHomebrew formula API
Taphomebrew/core
Full Namea52dec
Version Scheme0
Revision0
Bottle Stable Root URLhttps://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core
Deprecatedno
Disabledno
Keg Onlyno
URL Keys
  • stable

source database matches

Other package-manager records

Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.

Debian apt95%

liba52-0.7.4 0.7.4-20+b3

library for decoding ATSC A/52 streams

http://liba52.sourceforge.net/

sudo apt install liba52-0.7.4
  • Section: libs
  • Architecture: amd64
  • Source Package: a52dec
  • 1 dependencies
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
Debian stable package indexes · deb.debian.org · Debian stable package indexes: liba52-0.7.4 from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz
Debian apt95%

liba52-0.7.4-dev 0.7.4-20+b3

library for decoding ATSC A/52 streams (development)

http://liba52.sourceforge.net/

sudo apt install liba52-0.7.4-dev
  • Section: libdevel
  • Architecture: amd64
  • Source Package: a52dec
  • 2 dependencies
  • 3 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
Debian stable package indexes · deb.debian.org · Debian stable package indexes: liba52-0.7.4-dev from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz
Nix95%

a52dec

nix profile install nixpkgs#a52dec
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
nixpkgs package indexes · api.github.com · nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/a5/a52dec/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1
Ubuntu apt95%

liba52-0.7.4 0.7.4-20build1

library for decoding ATSC A/52 streams

http://liba52.sourceforge.net/

sudo apt install liba52-0.7.4
  • Section: universe/libs
  • Architecture: amd64
  • Source Package: a52dec
  • 1 dependencies
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes · archive.ubuntu.com · Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: liba52-0.7.4 from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz
Ubuntu apt95%

liba52-0.7.4-dev 0.7.4-20build1

library for decoding ATSC A/52 streams (development)

http://liba52.sourceforge.net/

sudo apt install liba52-0.7.4-dev
  • Section: universe/libdevel
  • Architecture: amd64
  • Source Package: a52dec
  • 2 dependencies
  • 3 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes · archive.ubuntu.com · Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: liba52-0.7.4-dev from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz
apk95%

a52dec 0.8.0-r11

A free library for decoding ATSC A/52 streams.

https://liba52.sourceforge.net/

sudo apk add a52dec
  • License: GPL-2.0-or-later
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: a52dec
  • 1 dependencies
  • 1 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
Alpine Linux edge package indexes · dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org · Alpine Linux edge package indexes: a52dec from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz
apk95%

a52dec-dev 0.8.0-r11

A free library for decoding ATSC A/52 streams. (development files)

https://liba52.sourceforge.net/

sudo apk add a52dec-dev
  • License: GPL-2.0-or-later
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: a52dec
  • 1 dependencies
  • 1 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
Alpine Linux edge package indexes · dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org · Alpine Linux edge package indexes: a52dec-dev from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz
apk95%

a52dec-doc 0.8.0-r11

A free library for decoding ATSC A/52 streams. (documentation)

https://liba52.sourceforge.net/

sudo apk add a52dec-doc
  • License: GPL-2.0-or-later
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: a52dec
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
Alpine Linux edge package indexes · dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org · Alpine Linux edge package indexes: a52dec-doc from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz
apk95%

a52dec-static 0.8.0-r11

A free library for decoding ATSC A/52 streams. (static library)

https://liba52.sourceforge.net/

sudo apk add a52dec-static
  • License: GPL-2.0-or-later
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: a52dec
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
Alpine Linux edge package indexes · dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org · Alpine Linux edge package indexes: a52dec-static from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz
dnf95%

a52dec 0.7.4-53.fc44

Small test program for liba52

http://liba52.sourceforge.net

sudo dnf install a52dec
  • License: GPL-2.0-only
  • Category: Unspecified
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: a52dec
  • 5 dependencies
  • 1 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
Fedora Rawhide package metadata · dl.fedoraproject.org · Fedora Rawhide package metadata: a52dec from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst
dnf95%

liba52 0.7.4-53.fc44

A free ATSC A/52 stream decoder, also known as AC-3 or AC3

http://liba52.sourceforge.net

sudo dnf install liba52
  • License: GPL-2.0-only
  • Category: Unspecified
  • Architecture: i686
  • Source Package: a52dec
  • 3 dependencies
  • 3 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
Fedora Rawhide package metadata · dl.fedoraproject.org · Fedora Rawhide package metadata: liba52 from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst
dnf95%

liba52-devel 0.7.4-53.fc44

Development files for liba52

http://liba52.sourceforge.net

sudo dnf install liba52-devel
  • License: GPL-2.0-only
  • Category: Unspecified
  • Architecture: i686
  • Source Package: a52dec
  • 2 dependencies
  • 2 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
Fedora Rawhide package metadata · dl.fedoraproject.org · Fedora Rawhide package metadata: liba52-devel from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst
pacman95%

a52dec 0.8.0-3

Library for decoding ATSC A/52 (AC-3) audio streams

https://git.adelielinux.org/community/a52dec/

sudo pacman -S a52dec
  • License: GPL-2.0-or-later
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • 1 dependencies
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
Arch Linux sync databases · geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com · Arch Linux sync databases: a52dec from https://geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com/extra/os/x86_64/extra.db.tar.gz
zypper95%

a52dec 0.8.0-1.8

ATSC A/52 stream decoder library

https://git.adelielinux.org/community/a52dec/

sudo zypper install a52dec
  • License: GPL-2.0-or-later
  • Category: Unspecified
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: a52dec
  • 4 dependencies
  • 2 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · download.opensuse.org · openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: a52dec from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/be8d3611d25469107f32075a1697e69ec57a2b850b42348a658cc671ad5ec2b50760d02c3e59524d50da9a11d5be799bdaffba2e166e8ca8858512e3c0bd665d-primary.xml.zst
zypper95%

liba52-0 0.8.0-1.8

ATSC A/52 stream decoder library

https://git.adelielinux.org/community/a52dec/

sudo zypper install liba52-0
  • License: GPL-2.0-or-later
  • Category: Unspecified
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: a52dec
  • 3 dependencies
  • 4 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · download.opensuse.org · openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: liba52-0 from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/be8d3611d25469107f32075a1697e69ec57a2b850b42348a658cc671ad5ec2b50760d02c3e59524d50da9a11d5be799bdaffba2e166e8ca8858512e3c0bd665d-primary.xml.zst
zypper95%

liba52-0-32bit 0.8.0-1.8

ATSC A/52 stream decoder library

https://git.adelielinux.org/community/a52dec/

sudo zypper install liba52-0-32bit
  • License: GPL-2.0-or-later
  • Category: Unspecified
  • Architecture: x86_64
  • Source Package: a52dec
  • 3 dependencies
  • 2 provides
  • normalized package name match
  • Matched by: A52dec
openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · download.opensuse.org · openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: liba52-0-32bit from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/be8d3611d25469107f32075a1697e69ec57a2b850b42348a658cc671ad5ec2b50760d02c3e59524d50da9a11d5be799bdaffba2e166e8ca8858512e3c0bd665d-primary.xml.zst

package graph

Links come from deterministic package relationships, av.db category and tag curation, ecosystem matches, and package hub membership.

Related tools

  • scummvmPopular package that depends on this formula.

Same workflow

  • musepackShares av.db curated category or tags: audio, audio-codec, cli, codec, media.
  • speexShares av.db curated category or tags: audio, audio-codec, cli, codec, media.
  • codec2Shares av.db curated category or tags: audio, audio-codec, cli, media.
  • fdk-aacShares av.db curated category or tags: audio-codec, cli, library, media.
  • adplugShares av.db curated category or tags: audio, cli, library, media.
  • aftenShares av.db curated category or tags: ac3, audio, cli, media.

source trail

Generated from repository data

This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.

Used sources

  • Geiger risk classifier
  • Nucleus package database
  • av.db category and tag curation
  • cross-ecosystem install command graph
  • curated package history
  • external package-manager database matches
  • package relationship graph
  • package version freshness
  • package-page enrichment