.DFF File Extension

A DFF file contains a three-dimensional model saved in the RenderWare binary stream format. It is used in 3D games that utilize the RenderWare 3 graphics engine, such as the Grand Theft Auto 3 (GTA3) series. DFF files typically store models for humans and vehicles, such as cars, buses, and boats.

You will most likely only encounter DFF files if you are a GTA3 gamer looking to modify the appearance of players and vehicles in the game.

DFF files are organized into multiple sections that describe the geometry and materials that compose the model. Sections in the DFF file include texture, reflection material, model skins, the behavior of breakable objects, and specular lighting material.

NOTE: While DFF files store models for GTA3 games, textures are saved in .TXD archives and animations are stored in .ANM animation files.

You can open DFF files with Zanoza ZModeler (Windows) to alter RenderWare models. You can also open DFF files with Blender, but you must also have the DragonFF plugin installed.

A DFF file may also be an audio file saved in the Direct Stream Digital (DSD) format, which Sony and Phillips created for use with Super Audio CDs (SACDs). It contains a song that was previously stored on an SACD or downloaded from a digital music marketplace. DFF files contain high-quality audio that can consist of up to six channels.

Sony and Phillips developed the Super Audio CD optical disc format to replace typical audio CDs. Notably, the audio tracks that SACDs contain have a higher bitrate than normal CD audio and can contain more audio channels (up to six). This makes SACD audio higher quality than typical CD audio.

These SACD audio files are saved in the Direct Stream Digital format and typically use the .dff file extension. Typically, SACD users will never directly encounter DFF files. However, users who have ripped audio from an SACD or downloaded an .ISO image that contains a copy of an SACD might encounter DFF files and want to play the audio they contain.

Technical information

The audio that DFF files contain is sampled at 2.8224 MHz and encoded using 1-bit sigma-delta modulation. Each SACD can typically contain up to 110 minutes of DSD audio, split among multiple DFF files.

You can open a DFF file and play the audio it contains with VideoLAN VLC media player (multiplatform) or Foobar2000 (Windows). When using Foobar2000, you'll likely have to install a SACD plug-in, such as Super Audio CD Decoder, to play your DFF file.

You can use VideoLAN VLC media player to convert the audio a DFF file contains to the following formats:

• .MP3 - MP3 Audio
• .OGG - Ogg Vorbis Audio
• .FLAC - Free Lossless Audio Codec
• .WAV - WAVE Audio