AU to TAR.GZ Converter
Processing entirely on your device — large files may take a moment.
TAR.GZ is what open-source projects and Linux servers expect to receive. If your files are still in AU format, this page is the shortcut: AU is the µ-law audio format of old Unix systems and Java applets — tiny mono files from another era.
iLoveConverter processes everything locally on your computer, which makes it private and fast: no upload wait, no server storage, no limits. Add as many files as you like — batch conversion is built in.
How AU compares to TAR.GZ
| AU | TAR.GZ | |
|---|---|---|
| Compression | µ-law or PCM | gzip (DEFLATE) |
| Best for | Old system sounds and recordings | Source releases and backups |
How to convert AU to TAR.GZ
- 1
Select your files
Select your AU file — it never leaves your device.
- 2
Convert instantly
The engine packs the file, byte for byte, into a TAR.GZ container — no re-encoding, no quality change.
- 3
Download results
Download the finished TAR.GZ archive.
About the AU format
AU is Sun Microsystems' audio format from the Unix workstation age: a small header followed by µ-law (or PCM) samples. Java's applet era shipped it everywhere, and old Unix sound tooling still emits it.
Modern players increasingly skip it. Converting AU to WAV preserves the samples bit-for-bit while moving the file into universal territory — the standard rescue path for system sounds and old recordings.
+Strengths
- ✓Simple, lossless sample storage
- ✓Native to old Unix/Java tooling
!Limitations
- −µ-law flavor sounds dated and mono
- −Dropped by modern players
About the TAR.GZ format
TAR.GZ is the classic Unix distribution shape: a TAR bundle squeezed through gzip (DEFLATE-based). Every Linux package of source code, every Apache tarball, every data-science dataset arrives this way. Decompression is a pipeline — untar the gzip stream — and the format is understood everywhere Unix ideas went.
gzip compresses the whole archive as one stream, which keeps ratio decent for text-heavy trees but means reaching file #400 requires decompressing the previous 399. Modern alternatives (zstd) are faster at similar ratios, yet tar.gz remains the safest common denominator.
+Strengths
- ✓Universally understood on Unix-like systems
- ✓Good ratio for text and source trees
- ✓Preserves Unix permissions via TAR
!Limitations
- −Single stream — no random access
- −Slower than modern zstd
- −Two-step format (tar + gzip)
Why convert AU to TAR.GZ?
There is a concrete reason this conversion exists: µ-law flavor sounds dated and mono TAR.GZ sidesteps that — Universally understood on Unix-like systems If that is your situation, the tool above settles it in seconds, entirely on your device.
Frequently asked questions
Is this AU to TAR.GZ converter really free?
Yes — completely free, with no sign-up, no watermark and no daily conversion limits. The site is supported by advertising.
Are my files uploaded to a server?
No. The conversion runs entirely inside your browser using WebAssembly, so your files never leave your device — that is what makes it instant and private.
Does it work on Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android?
Yes. Anything with a modern browser works: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS. No software installation is required.
Is there a file size limit for AU to TAR.GZ?
The only limit is your device's memory, since nothing is uploaded. Files up to a few hundred megabytes work fine on a modern desktop browser; very large files simply take a little longer.
Can I convert a whole folder of AU files?
You can select many files at once and they are processed in a single batch. Output files land in one ZIP download when there is more than one result.
Will converting AU to TAR.GZ reduce audio quality?
If TAR.GZ is lossless, the output contains everything the AU file contains — no further loss is added. If TAR.GZ is lossy, one recompression pass is unavoidable; the quality slider controls how much. Loss that already happened in the source file can never be undone by converting.