4472
Comments (355)
sorted by:
108
deleted 108 points ago +115 / -7
70
Redditiscucked2 70 points ago +70 / -0

there are dozens of free yt downloader extensions...

30
zujar_man 30 points ago +31 / -1

Most of them don't allow music files

128
68
deleted 68 points ago +68 / -0
12
deleted 12 points ago +18 / -6
51
deleted 51 points ago +51 / -0
31
TrumpyOldMan 31 points ago +31 / -0

Most underrated comment of this thread. Ive been using youtube-dl for years. Nothing beats it. Its open source and free of BS

9
deleted 9 points ago +9 / -0
2
PezzShivers 2 points ago +2 / -0

What's easier than typing that? How about just typing the letters "pp" here's my post about it https://thedonald.win/p/HrOussaI/much-easier-way-to-download-yout/c/

1
deleted 1 point ago +1 / -0
1
UnidentifiedWhiteMan 1 point ago +1 / -0

there's also a gui version of it

youtube-dlG

6
NoMoreLies 6 points ago +6 / -0

YouTube-DL-GUI is even easier to use, if you don’t like command line

https://mrs0m30n3.github.io/youtube-dl-gui/

4
deleted 4 points ago +4 / -0
3
SordidPontification 3 points ago +3 / -0

I've found my kindred spirit.

Obligatory: I'm an Arch user.

(Sorry.)

2
NoMoreLies 2 points ago +2 / -0

It’s just for the people who run Windows (or are lazy Linux users like me :P)

1
Throwaway_Test 1 point ago +1 / -0

The graphical interface is not as efficient as the comand line form, obviously.....but it does allow for graphical drag-and-drop from a browser to the youtube-dl window. You can pull little video icons and thumbnails from the browser over to the youtube-dl window while you browse through the youtube site.

1
DrinkMoreWater 1 point ago +1 / -0

This is probably a stupid question but how can I use it with my phone (iPhone)?

2
NoMoreLies 2 points ago +2 / -0

Sorry, but there isn’t an iPhone version.

11
80960KA 11 points ago +11 / -0

This is what I use, even have a powershell script that uses it to fetch music and then transcode to MP3 and tag it.

4
aconcernedtroll 4 points ago +4 / -0

Mind throwing that script up in a gist for the rest of us?

7
80960KA 7 points ago +7 / -0

Sure.

I'll warn you it's something I wrote for my own use and is pretty spartan, if you want to change the MP3 coding or tag format or whatever you'll have to edit the code, and it doesn't handle playlists just single video URLs.

Requires youtube-dl, taglib-sharp.dll, and ffmpeg to be either in the same dir as the script or on the system path, if it fails it's prolly not finding one of them, edit the paths in the script as needed ;)

Usage is just script.ps1 "<some video URL>" from a powershell prompt.

https://pastebin.com/VQk04psd

3
aconcernedtroll 3 points ago +3 / -0

I'm a programmer, I'll figure it out- thanks!

2
BillionsAndBillions 2 points ago +2 / -0

You can also use youtube-dl --extract-audio --audio-format mp3 <URL>

You will need ffmpeg installed for this to work. I haven't tried this on a playlist URL yet.

2
JackLemon 2 points ago +2 / -0

Nice work.

1
M8kMdlErthGr8Again 1 point ago +1 / -0

Don't transcode it. You'll lose quality. Leave it as mp4,m4a.

1
80960KA 1 point ago +1 / -0

Well aware, but I use a shitty old MP3 player in the car and 192k MP3 is more than adequate for the quality of the system in the car. I at least can't hear artifacts.

On the hifi at home I run flacs thru an xmos decoder.

1
deleted 1 point ago +1 / -0
2
Throwaway_Test 2 points ago +2 / -0

wget has an option to let you specify a file containing a list of urls.....no loop is needed.

7
PhD_in_everything 7 points ago +7 / -0

Here's a graphical user interface for it: https://mrs0m30n3.github.io/youtube-dl-gui/

4
Core2029 4 points ago +4 / -0

^^^This is what you want. Works like a charm. Autoupdates. Bulletproof for a few years now.

1
deleted 1 point ago +1 / -0
4
deleted 4 points ago +4 / -0
4
AccipiterQ 4 points ago +4 / -0

how do you actually run it?

6
deleted 6 points ago +6 / -0
2
Amaroq64 2 points ago +2 / -0

Command line. And you need python installed on your computer.

Go to the directory you want to save the file to, and just

>py youtube-dl -F [pasted youtube url]

That'll show you the various formats the video can download in.

Then,

>py youtube-dl -f 22 [youtube url]

(The best format is usually 22, but if it's not, just replace 22 with whichever you want.)

5
CmonPeopleGetReal 5 points ago +5 / -0

just change the path from youtube.com/watch?v=XxXxXxXx to youtubepp.com/watch?v=XxXxXxXx

1
deleted 1 point ago +1 / -0
2
2
ppalgansaek 2 points ago +2 / -0

Thanks. My usual download sites have been getting virusy lately.

2
FreeJack2020 2 points ago +2 / -0

I use mp3fy for audio rips off YT, of unlimited length. Mainly audiobooks and music albums.

1
deleted 1 point ago +1 / -0
5
MikePlacid 5 points ago +5 / -0

I am using Parallels on Mac. They have Parallels Toolbox thrown in for free. The Toolbox has a video download utility, that just adds a Download button to the browser.

I think this download utility alone is worth the price of Parallels - it “just works”. On every video site I’ve encountered so far.

2
DonLe-mon 2 points ago +2 / -0

I also use 4K. They have a free version that works perfectly fine for everyday use. The paid version just removes adds which are unobtrusive anyway and unlocks pro features.

Overall it's a really solid app. I'm highly satisfied with my free edition, would recommend!

1
Jimmy_Russler 1 point ago +1 / -0

None of them work on the Brave browser because Gulag blocks all extensions that download YouTube videos from the playstore. OP is a legend for showing us this neat trick

1
deleted 1 point ago +1 / -0
11
InTheArmsOfThePepe 11 points ago +11 / -0

^ This

Rocking the free version and the ~30 per day has been more than enough.

I particularly like that it allows audio rips as well, for those times when the video is not that important and/or I'd rather keep the file size small.


EDIT: Link

5
deleted 5 points ago +5 / -0
2
Cledus 2 points ago +2 / -0

I've never dl'd videos, but I dl songs all the time. Usually live recordings of songs I like.

1
InTheArmsOfThePepe 1 point ago +1 / -0

Yeah, I regularly download lectures/podcasts/etc, use Vegas to convert them to MONO 24k, then listen to them at 2.5x speed to save time.

4
PhD_in_everything 4 points ago +4 / -0

Check out this: https://mrs0m30n3.github.io/youtube-dl-gui/

It's a (free) graphical frontend for the very well known youtube-dl.Also allows you to extract audio files from youtube videos. (also works for other tubes and videohub you might know:)

1
InTheArmsOfThePepe 1 point ago +1 / -0

Excellent, thank you u/PhD_in_everything!

5
Lol_Garrus 5 points ago +5 / -0

I use 4k downloader as well. you beat me to it!

5
deleted 5 points ago +5 / -0
3
TampaMAGA 3 points ago +3 / -0

Can someone tell me what this does? Not in the loop

1
InterloperKO 1 point ago +1 / -0

One of many techniques to save a youtube video

2
TampaMAGA 2 points ago +2 / -0

Thank you

62
sir_rockness 62 points ago +65 / -3

Brother... download Ubuntu to a VM, install onion router and youtube-dl

youtube-dl <url to YT video>

MONEY

41
rma92 41 points ago +41 / -0

Youtube-dl also exists on Windows and MacOS.

33
permissible_missile 33 points ago +33 / -0

Yes. youtube-dl is the way. It also works on a few other websites, too: https://github.com/ytdl-org/youtube-dl/blob/master/docs/supportedsites.md

:)

17
ethan123 17 points ago +17 / -0

Just a few

2
PhD_in_everything 2 points ago +2 / -0

Love how half of them are porn websites.

4
Scroon 4 points ago +4 / -0

The human sex drive is probably responsible for at least half of our accomplishments as a civilization. :)

3
chris82tk 3 points ago +3 / -0

Yeah and porn is currently ruining that...

1
Scroon 1 point ago +1 / -0

Huh...and that makes 100% sense.

3
MAGANatsFan 3 points ago +3 / -0

Much more than half. It is the reason men work hard and try to be a success. Everything flows from that love family children. We build governments then to protect our families. It all starts with desire for sex.

1
GarudaOne 1 point ago +1 / -0

I'm more surprised it works with so many Chinese video sites.

1
rn10950 1 point ago +1 / -0

Because they're all the same in all but name, it probably doesn't take as much reverse engineering to add new sites.

1
slim2 1 point ago +1 / -0

Good thing it works at Ebaumsworld

4
SpritzingFox 4 points ago +4 / -0

There's been a few GUI programs for it that come and go... For example and those that would want or would check open source, here's one that is still going and seems to work fine: https://github.com/Bluegrams/Vividl

3
DONT_reply_with_THIS 3 points ago +3 / -0

Is Ubuntu the only Linux OS you recommend? I am going to start dual booting, one to game(Windows 10), other to browse the internet(Linux).

4
deleted 4 points ago +4 / -0
3
anikom15 3 points ago +3 / -0

Debian is better.

2
thanksobama 2 points ago +2 / -0

gentoo, fight me /s

1
anikom15 1 point ago +1 / -0

Gentoo is excellent.

1
thanksobama 1 point ago +1 / -0

Not saying it isn't. Just joking that x distro blah blah.

2
deleted 2 points ago +2 / -0
2
rn10950 2 points ago +2 / -0

It depends what you want to use it for. If you want the cutting-edge software that may (at limited times) be somewhat unstable and granular control over everything, Arch is the distro for you (Manjaro is based on Arch and is much easier for beginners). If you want rock-solid stability and ease of use, with the trade-off of slightly older software, go with Debian. Ubuntu is the most commercialized distro, so the commercial support and larger user base are its strong points.

There is another major choice in selecting a Linux distro that many people don't talk about or even consider. Unlike Windows and MacOS, there are many "desktop environments" (DEs) available for Linux and most major distros support most of the major DEs. A default Ubuntu installation comes with Gnome, but there are other options such as KDE, XFCE, and Trinity, as well as plain window managers such as i3 and openbox. There are even ways to set up your linux OS to look and work exactly like Windows and Mac OS. For example, here is a screenshot of the Windows clone I have been working on for a while as a Windows XP replacement (not a big fan of the newer Windows OSes, especially not now with all the spying). You can install most DEs on most distros, but it will make it easier if you try most DEs out with live ISOs and select which DE best suits your preferences, and then select a distro with that DE as a default.

2
NoMoreLies 2 points ago +2 / -0

I recommend Manjaro. I’ve got it on my computer and it works great! Linux Mint is also good for beginners.

9
MaxineWaters4Prez 9 points ago +9 / -0

I'm over the age of 40 and I understood some of those words.

17
80960KA 17 points ago +17 / -0

I'm also over 40 and Linux was way way harder when I was 16 than it is now...

6
MaxineWaters4Prez 6 points ago +6 / -0

I thought Ubuntu was the name of the drug that treated moderate to severe plaque psoriasis.

5
GitmObama 5 points ago +5 / -0

I thought it was an African country. 🤔

3
OnlyAmerica 3 points ago +3 / -0

That's Wakangzda or "We-Gangsta" in a certain American dialect.

3
deleted 3 points ago +3 / -0
3
80960KA 3 points ago +3 / -0

Yeah I just roll a debian-like on my service hosts these days cuz I'm lazy and I know debianish better than anything else. Haven't made a linux from scratch image or compiled a custom kernel in probably 10 or 15 years lol

2
SordidPontification 2 points ago +2 / -0

I just realized that I'm probably committing some sort of heresy, but I occasionally run Debian containers on my servers running Arch.

or compiled a custom kernel in probably 10 or 15 years lol

Same. Well. Sorta.

I originally came from Gentoo. But that was 8 years ago.

Though, I have had to compile kernels recently due to NFS issues that cropped up due to namespaces + cgroups + IPv6 since there was a kernel bug causing panics. Fixed in 5.8 though.

4
sir_rockness 4 points ago +4 / -0

I am over the age of 40 too Pede ; )

3
sunnyingreenfield 3 points ago +3 / -0

kids

2
Averon 2 points ago +2 / -0

I'm exactly 40, so I've already lived a third of my life.

3
deleted 3 points ago +3 / -0
5
kung-flu-fighting 5 points ago +5 / -0

install it on WSL

1
RedditIsAsshoe69420 1 point ago +1 / -0

You don't even need WSL. They have Windows builds since years

https://thedonald.win/p/HrOscdF6/x/c/199O1o7PdJ

4
deleted 4 points ago +4 / -0
4
sir_rockness 4 points ago +4 / -0

Cygwin is total garbage... but yeah its handy

3
deleted 3 points ago +3 / -0
1
RedditIsAsshoe69420 1 point ago +1 / -0

You don't need a Linux VM or TOR. youtube-dl works totally fine on Windows.

https://chocolatey.org/packages/youtube-dl (best way - adds it to your PATH so you don't need to use it in the same folder as the youtube-dlexe)

https://github.com/ytdl-org/youtube-dl/releases/tag/2020.09.20 (manual, download .exe and use it)

32
Kosecant 32 points ago +32 / -0

This is good to know (VLC is an awesome program in general)

If your looking for a slightly easier method, checkout JDownloader. you can paste a link to a video into it, and it will crawl the webpage and present you with the available media to download.

21
chlorophyll [S] 21 points ago +21 / -0

I figured VLC is trustworthy enough - most people already have it and the solution is this easy without questionable websites that do it for you.

6
Perhelion 6 points ago +6 / -0

OP, I COULD JUST KISS YOU!!!

Thank you!!! <3 :)

6
deleted 6 points ago +6 / -0
3
deleted 3 points ago +3 / -0
11
Isolated_Patriot 11 points ago +11 / -0

Yes most other methods are from risky to bloatware. The VLC method is certainly the safest for mass recommendation, while also being highly likely people already have it installed.

3
zujar_man 3 points ago +3 / -0

I think there is a length limit. Anything over an hour doesn't load.

2
deleted 2 points ago +2 / -0
1
Throwaway_Test 1 point ago +1 / -0

Ah, yes, the awesome fury of JDownloader. I used to use it with Tumblr. I won't say which tumblrs I used it with. But it would bring down 30 gigs an hour.

26
Wheredidiputit 26 points ago +26 / -0

Why would I want to do this?

53
chlorophyll [S] 53 points ago +53 / -0

Because then you have a copy of videos that might get removed - also you can use it for video editing.

18
bothloveocean 18 points ago +18 / -0

That makes sense. Thanks!

28
deleted 28 points ago +28 / -0
13
deleted 13 points ago +13 / -0
8
Kentastic 8 points ago +8 / -0

Probably for archival purposes. When YouTube decides to scrub videos off of its site.

5
journalist 5 points ago +5 / -0

yes, please explain the reasoning?

9
BigIronBigIron 9 points ago +9 / -0

journalist yes, please explain the reasoning?

Quick question, can you link me to Alex Jones' YouTube Channel?

16
TruthVelocity 16 points ago +18 / -2

This is great stuff. Thanks, pede!

15
based_leaf 15 points ago +15 / -0

youtube-dl is better and free https://github.com/ytdl-org/youtube-dl/releases

11
luketheuke 11 points ago +11 / -0

Is there a way to download a whole channel or playlist?

18
permissible_missile 18 points ago +18 / -0

youtube-dl <URL of YouTube channel/playlist>

youtube-dl is badass

6
MaxineWaters4Prez 6 points ago +6 / -0

I'm going to need many more terabytes

-3
permissible_missile -3 points ago +2 / -5

Just remember even though Google is ass cancer you should be a good netizen and probably throttle your download speed a bit if you are going to crawl a lot

8
wehavetogoback 8 points ago +8 / -0
  1. fuck google

  2. you won't make any difference at all compared to the millions of people constantly watching 4k 60fps youtube videos 24/7.

2
chris82tk 2 points ago +2 / -0

LMAO good netizen, google can eat a fat dick

-5
deleted -5 points ago +1 / -6
5
chartmerchant 5 points ago +5 / -0

Because for some reason you need to care about google's bandwidth bill. "good netizen" is bullshit.

The idea behind it is TCP (which http is built on) is an intentionally dumb protocol. It counts the number of received receipts that come from the other side and will just keep sending packets faster and faster until somewhere along the path of the internet a tube gets clogged (a router is allowed in the spec to just start dropping packets if there's too many packets for it to process and pass on). So once TCP starts missing read receipts it will slow transmission rate to where it last knew every packet was making it all the way through. And then it just starts ramping up again. And the cycle repeats.

Theoretically, if there were no caps or limits a download from a server to your computer could completely fill up the whole processing stack of every router between you two. But no one actually does do that, everyone implements qos and evenly distributes packet throughput for every packet stream they currently handle (this is part 1 of 2 things that make up real net neutrality).

There's 2 ways to fix this. 1) in a capitalistic system everyone makes money on packets transitting the internet, so they should use that money to reinvest in their business and upgrade the interconnects and routers and lines. 2) artificially limit the connection speed so that no individual connection is swamping the internet.

-4
deleted -4 points ago +1 / -5
1
permissible_missile 1 point ago +1 / -0

I guess it depends on how fat your pipe is really. It's just good etiquette. You can download quite a bit at a steady 10 Mbps, drinking up bandwidth is bad manners and likely to get you justifiably blocked for network abuse anyway.

-2
deleted -2 points ago +3 / -5
1
permissible_missile 1 point ago +1 / -0

I have fiber...

5
chlorophyll [S] 5 points ago +5 / -0

You would have to do this for each video.

3
123breadman 3 points ago +3 / -0

Have you ever had issues OP? I know sometimes the video just refuses to download and play using other methods.

3
chlorophyll [S] 3 points ago +3 / -0

Not yet! Maybe youtube will do something to prevent this in the future though. I don't know how well it works for very long videos.

5
EvanGRogers 5 points ago +5 / -0

Yes. Hard work and determination.

4
Kentastic 4 points ago +4 / -0

JDownloader will grab entire playlists. It should grab channels too but I’ve never tried it for that.

1
deleted 1 point ago +2 / -1
5
geocitiesuser 5 points ago +5 / -0

I just want to say "WOW".

I've been screen ripping for a decade. Had no idea you could this.

4
ZacPetkanas 4 points ago +4 / -0

Name checks out

5
g00se2k 5 points ago +5 / -0

Started with step 7. Dick stuck in permanent patriotic erection. Please advise.

3
BeerMan 3 points ago +3 / -0

Sounds like you need a doctor. Can I interest you in a helicopter ride to Walter Reed Medical Center?

5
deleted 5 points ago +5 / -0
2
deleted 2 points ago +2 / -0
4
Aurora420 4 points ago +5 / -1

Jdownloader is nice and easy, just paste the link into the program and download.

2
ChadManspread 2 points ago +2 / -0

Yeah, I don't understand this roundabout way of doing it, and jdownloader is so much easier, just copy and paste, you can download things other than the video, and it's trustworthy. OP seems to be claiming it's not.

4
deleted 4 points ago +4 / -0
4
chlorophyll [S] 4 points ago +4 / -0

Are they all as trustworthy as VLC?

2
MaxineWaters4Prez 2 points ago +2 / -0

I thought VLC removed its canary some time ago.

2
deleted 2 points ago +2 / -0
1
flashersenpai 1 point ago +1 / -0

VLC is a music player that's been around for years. Unless it ended up like project64 or some abandonware it should be fine.

1
deleted 1 point ago +1 / -0
1
silentnoobxd 1 point ago +1 / -0

Isn't VLC owned by a Chinese company?

1
DannySaySay 1 point ago +1 / -0

What do you mean by trustworthy? They work or they don't.

What am I missing here?

2
123breadman 2 points ago +2 / -0

The ones I used to use have all been shutdown.

Streamable comes to mind though tho

4
CMDRConanAAnderson 4 points ago +4 / -0

Anyone recommend a video editor while we're at it?

1
deleted 1 point ago +1 / -0
1
NoMoreLies 1 point ago +1 / -0

Kdenlive, Openshot, Davinci Resolve are all free to download

1
Throwaway_Test 1 point ago +1 / -0

I think Lightworks finally released a version for Linux, hence free.....but I am not sure if it was ever made open source.

1
chlorophyll [S] 1 point ago +1 / -0

In the spirit of widespread use and trustworthiness... blender is an open source 3D modelling software that doubles as a powerful video editor.

4
deleted 4 points ago +4 / -0
4
deleted 4 points ago +4 / -0
3
libman 3 points ago +3 / -0

I use mpv.

Too much GUI makes you dumb.

It's more keyboard / command line oriented and Unixy.

2
Throwaway_Test 2 points ago +2 / -0

I like the convenience of a GUI for playng media, but mpv is quite snappy.....in other words, very fast.

4
deleted 4 points ago +4 / -0
3
RedditIsAsshoe69420 3 points ago +3 / -0

FYI youtube-dl works just fine on Windows!

https://chocolatey.org/packages/youtube-dl (easiest way to install it on Windows w/ PowerShell)

3
OMBOMB 3 points ago +3 / -0

Thanks, Pede!

3
horsefacestorm 3 points ago +3 / -0

Neat!

3
prawnexodus 3 points ago +3 / -0

Thank you for this!

3
Vonsey 3 points ago +3 / -0

Good to know when YouTube does damage control for the dems by erasing videos

3
deleted 3 points ago +3 / -0
3
libman 3 points ago +3 / -0

Much easier (at least for me) to use youtube-dl from the command line.

Everyone should learn a bit of Unix shell and Python scripting. In the 21st century you are functionally illiterate without it.

2
RandomUzer 2 points ago +2 / -0

Not disagreeing. It is a good skill to have. Just wrote a bunch today.

But sometimes CLI is a PITA. (just wanted to rant a bit :) ) What do you MEAN you want double hypen? Oh this prog is single. Oh this variation on this tool has a different meaning because you are a BSD unix and not linux.... Killllllll me......

3
deleted 3 points ago +3 / -0
3
deleted 3 points ago +3 / -0
3
oxygen 3 points ago +3 / -0

I have a ton of free tools I use to download YouTube videos, but this little trick is awesome. Thank you for sharing.

3
M4ster_Yoda 3 points ago +3 / -0

This is really cool, thank you!!

3
ramennov 3 points ago +3 / -0

Saved under 'Informative'!

3
iNightmare 3 points ago +3 / -0

I use internet download manager is this better method better and legal? And does it make Internet download manager obsolete?

2
chlorophyll [S] 2 points ago +2 / -0

I made this because then people only have to place their trust in VLC (something that lots of us already have) rather than taking recommendations for a lot of lesser-known products.

3
iNightmare 3 points ago +3 / -0

Ok thank you so much. I will be using this future from now on. Didn't even know it existed till i saw it in this site. Tnx fren

2
cccpneveragain 2 points ago +2 / -0

Wow thanks, I want to try this! I've gotten weird about archiving things but I thought I needed a third party tool for YouTube, none of which have I had any luck with

2
NoMoreIncumbents 2 points ago +2 / -0

Remember when VLC was in the Vault 7 Wikileaks release? It turned out the CIA could “Allegedly” deliver a media file which had a surveillance payload. It wasn't ever made clear if this required a special bugged VLC or if the main VLC was in fact the bugged one.

Be careful what you download.

2
silentnoobxd 2 points ago +2 / -0

And now use this power to make alternative sites great

2
JohnPRyan 2 points ago +2 / -0

ClipGrab is a good tool for Mac users.

2
Sparkywalnutz 2 points ago +2 / -0

Agreed but I use ClipGrab on a PC.

2
JohnPRyan 2 points ago +2 / -0

Oh cool, I didn’t realize it was multi platform.

2
AngryWriter 2 points ago +2 / -0

Used the 'save' function for the first time, nice info.

2
BeerMan 2 points ago +2 / -0

77777777 🐸

2
AngularAU 2 points ago +2 / -0

Thanks for sharing this!

2
deleted 2 points ago +2 / -0
1
deleted 1 point ago +1 / -0
2
Juzeza 2 points ago +2 / -0

What's the context? What video is everyone downloading?

2
chlorophyll [S] 2 points ago +2 / -0

Video that might get deleted or video you might want to edit.

2
LionTed 2 points ago +2 / -0

Very useful, thanks pede

2
deleted 2 points ago +2 / -0
2
BananaWizard 2 points ago +2 / -0

Or just use a youtube downloader off a search engine. Just duckduckgo youtube downloader.

2
Dialectic 2 points ago +2 / -0

To the bat cave!

2
madamaw 2 points ago +2 / -0

Nice

2
BirdIRMC 2 points ago +2 / -0

How do you take a sample of a video that; lets say, several hours long, or being live streamed for a clip or a bit that you want to use vs. saving the entire video?

1
chlorophyll [S] 1 point ago +1 / -0

I think you can do something with "Media -> Stream" to save what's currently playing to a file but I've not experimented with that yet. Normally I would have the entire file and crop what I need.

2
deleted 2 points ago +2 / -0
2
supermansundies 2 points ago +2 / -0

youtube-dl works fine

1
Doth 1 point ago +1 / -0

Youtube-dl works amazingly well but on some video sites they use a javascript function to assemble the video URL on the back-end, making it very hard to find the video URL yourself, since the one in the browser window is not the actual video URL. I haven't figured out a solution yet.

2
JackLemon 2 points ago +2 / -0

VLC doesn't always work. The latest version doesn't save anything for me and many others have reported this bug.

I use youtube-dl to download most streams including YouTube

2
deleted 2 points ago +2 / -0
2
TerryWriste 2 points ago +2 / -0

https://www.y2mate.com/

You can also and an extension which will get you a download button under each youtube video, you can then download video and music files, for free.

1
Emperorvoid 1 point ago +1 / -0

Or use 4K Video Downloader. https://www.4kdownload.com/products/product-videodownloader. Free version allows for taking videos and downloading them as MP4, or as MP3. Paid, or ahem Yaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrr me matey, allows for downloading entire playlists or channels into either one. Way easier program than VLC. Just simply drag and drop the link, or even the picture of a video when looking at front page or search results.