How to Split and Upload Long Tracks to YouTube Music Without Losing Quality

How to Split and Upload Long Tracks to YouTube Music Without Losing Quality

When uploading music to platforms like YouTube Music, it’s essential to meet their file size limitations and ensure your files are properly tagged with metadata.

I recently ran into this challenge while trying to upload a collection of long 2- and 4-hour tracks to YouTube Music.

These tracks couldn’t be uploaded because they exceeded the file size limit (around 300MB). This is when I turned to FFmpeg to chop them down into manageable parts.

It worked perfectly, and now I have these rare works backed up in more than one place.

In this guide, I’ll show you how I did it, so you can do the same with your long tracks.

Table of Contents

1. Installing FFmpeg and Setting Up the Command Prompt
2. File Size Limitation for YouTube Music
3. Chopping Audio Files with FFmpeg
   - Step 1: Check the Duration of Your Audio File
   - Step 2: Chop the Audio File in Half
4. Adding Metadata to Your Files
   Step 1: Adding Metadata to Part 1
   Step 2: Adding Metadata to Part 2
5. Uploading to YouTube Music
6. Image: File Sizes Under 300MB
7. Personal Note on Album Artwork
8. Conclusion

Installing FFmpeg and Setting Up the Command Prompt

To use FFmpeg from any command prompt, you first need to install it and set it up in your system’s PATH. This will allow you to run FFmpeg commands without specifying the full path to the FFmpeg executable.

Step 1: Download FFmpeg

1. Go to the FFmpeg official download page.
2. Choose the appropriate version for your operating system (Windows, macOS, Linux).

• Windows: Download a static build from FFmpeg.org or gyan.dev.
• macOS: You can use Homebrew by running brew install ffmpeg in the terminal, or manually download it.
• Linux: FFmpeg is available in most package managers. For Ubuntu/Debian, use the command sudo apt install ffmpeg.

Step 2: Add FFmpeg to Your System’s PATH (Windows)

1. Extract the downloaded FFmpeg zip file to a folder, e.g., C:\ffmpeg.
2. Locate the bin folder inside the extracted folder (e.g., C:\ffmpeg\bin).
3. Copy the path to the bin folder (e.g., C:\ffmpeg\bin).
4. Open the Start Menu, search for Environment Variables, and click on Edit the system environment variables.
5. Click on Environment Variables at the bottom of the System Properties window.
6. In the System variables section, find the Path variable and click Edit.
7. In the Edit Environment Variable window, click New and paste the copied path (C:\ffmpeg\bin).
8. Click OK to save the changes.

Step 3: Verify the Installation

1. Open a new Command Prompt (important to open a new one so it picks up the updated PATH).
2. Type the following command:

ffmpeg -version

If FFmpeg is installed correctly, you should see version information displayed in the terminal.

Now, you can run FFmpeg from any command prompt on your system!

1. File Size Limitation for YouTube Music

YouTube Music has a file size limit for uploaded tracks, typically around 300MB. Depending on your track’s bitrate and length, it’s important to manage the file size by chopping longer tracks into smaller parts, ensuring they fit within this restriction while maintaining high quality.

2. Chopping Audio Files with FFmpeg

We will use FFmpeg, a powerful open-source tool, to cut our long audio files into smaller sections. Here’s how you can do it.

Step 1: Check the Duration of Your Audio File

First, you need to find out how long your file is to determine where to split it. Run this command to get the file’s duration:

ffmpeg -i "your_audio_file.mp3

FFmpeg will output the file details, including the duration (e.g., 01:59:59 for a 2-hour track).

Step 2: Chop the Audio File in Half

Once you know the duration, you can split the file into manageable parts. For example, if your audio file is 2 hours long, you can split it at the 1-hour mark.

To extract the first half of the file (first hour), use this command:

ffmpeg -i "your_audio_file.mp3" -ss 00:00:00 -t 01:00:00 -acodec copy "your_audio_file_part1.mp3"

This will create a file called your_audio_file_part1.mp3 that is exactly 1 hour long.

For the second half (the remaining hour), use this command:

ffmpeg -i "your_audio_file.mp3" -ss 01:00:00 -t 01:00:00 -acodec copy "your_audio_file_part2.mp3"

This will create a second file called your_audio_file_part2.mp3.

3. Adding Metadata to Your Files

To make your tracks more organized and professional when uploaded to YouTube Music, you can add metadata such as the artist name, track title, and album name. Here’s how to do that with FFmpeg:

Step 1: Adding Metadata to Part 1

After you’ve split the file, you can add metadata to the first part like this:

ffmpeg -i "your_audio_file_part1.mp3" -acodec copy -metadata artist="Artist Name" -metadata title="Track Title" -metadata album="Album Name" "your_audio_file_part1_with_metadata.mp3"

In this command, replace:

• "Artist Name" with the name of the artist (e.g., "East Forest").
• "Track Title" with the track name (e.g., "Full Moon").
• "Album Name" with the album name (e.g., "Journey Space Library Volume 0").

Step 2: Adding Metadata to Part 2

Now, add metadata to the second part of the audio file using the same method:

ffmpeg -i "your_audio_file_part2.mp3" -acodec copy -metadata artist="Artist Name" -metadata title="Track Title" -metadata album="Album Name" "your_audio_file_part2_with_metadata.mp3"

4. Uploading to YouTube Music

Once you’ve chopped your audio file and added metadata, you can upload the newly created files to YouTube Music. Here are some tips to ensure your tracks look great on the platform:

• Use a descriptive file name that includes track details, like "ArtistName_TrackTitle_Part1.mp3".
• Make sure your metadata is correct, as it will help users find your music and understand the track order, artist, and album information.

5. Image: File Sizes Under 300MB

Here’s an example image showing how the chopped files are now all under 300MB, making them YouTube Music-ready. This step helps you verify that the file sizes meet the platform’s requirements.

Note: You can generate the image by checking the file sizes of each chopped part using your file manager or running this command in the terminal:

ls -lh "your_audio_file_part1_with_metadata.mp3"
ls -lh "your_audio_file_part2_with_metadata.mp3"

A screenshot showing the file sizes under 300MB.

Personal Note on Album Artwork

I realized after uploading my music that the album artwork was of surprisingly low quality — just 320x320 pixels. It wasn’t until I used KandiSuperRes Flash on Hugging Face that I noticed something interesting. This tool not only enhanced the clarity of the artwork, but it actually created a better file at a smaller file size, which is typically the opposite of what you expect from upscaling tools. It’s kind of backwards, but in this case, it worked out perfectly. The result was a sharper, more professional-looking album cover that didn’t bloat the file size, making it even easier to upload and manage in my personal collection.

It’s a nice reminder that sometimes the right tools can deliver unexpected, yet welcome, results.

Conclusion:

By using FFmpeg, you can efficiently split large audio files into smaller, manageable pieces that comply with YouTube Music’s file size limitations. Adding metadata ensures your tracks show up with the right information, enhancing your presence on the platform. With these simple steps, you can prepare your music for uploading to YouTube Music and other platforms, making your music both professional and easy to discover.

Have you ever encountered file size issues while uploading music to platforms like YouTube Music? Share your experience and let us know how you handle large audio files and metadata tagging in the comments below!