YouTube Highest Quality Downloader

Download the highest quality silent video and pure audio from YouTube, then merge into a video with sound using ffmpeg. 从YouTube下载视频的最高清无声版本和纯音频，然后使用ffmpeg合并为有声视频。

Features / 功能

• 🎬 Download highest quality silent video from YouTube (bestvideo) / 下载YouTube视频最高清无声版本
• 🎵 Download pure audio from YouTube (bestaudio) / 下载YouTube视频纯音频
• 🔧 Merge video and audio using ffmpeg / 使用ffmpeg合并视频和音频
• 🖥️ Runs independently, no dependencies on other skills / 独立运行，无需依赖其他技能

Usage / 使用方法

Quick Start

# Run the download script directly
python3 ~/clawd/skills/youtube-hq-downloader/download.py "YouTube_URL" [output_directory]

Full Workflow

# 1. Enter the skill directory
cd ~/clawd/skills/youtube-hq-downloader

# 2. Create virtual environment (first run)
python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
pip install yt-dlp

# 3. Run download and merge
python3 download.py "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxxxx"

# Or run step by step manually
./download.sh "YouTube_URL"

Manual Commands

# Activate environment
cd ~/clawd/skills/youtube-hq-downloader
source .venv/bin/activate

# Download video (highest quality, silent)
yt-dlp -f "bestvideo[ext=mp4]" "YouTube_URL" -o "%(title)s_video.%(ext)s"

# Download audio
yt-dlp -x --audio-format m4a "YouTube_URL" -o "%(title)s_audio.%(ext)s"

# Merge video and audio
ffmpeg -i "*.mp4" -i "*.m4a" -c:v copy -c:a aac -shortest "output.mp4" -y

Parameters / 参数说明

yt-dlp Video Download

• -f "bestvideo"

  : Download highest quality video format (may be WebM or MP4)
• Output template:

  %(title)s_video.%(ext)s

yt-dlp Audio Download

• -x

  : Extract audio

• --audio-format m4a

  : Output as M4A format

ffmpeg Merge

• -i "video.mp4" -i "audio.m4a"

  : Input files

• -c:v copy

  : Copy video stream, no re-encoding

• -c:a aac

  : Convert audio to AAC encoding

• -shortest

  : Use shorter duration

• -y

  : Overwrite output file

Dependencies / 依赖

• ffmpeg: Video processing tool (macOS:

  brew install ffmpeg

  )
• Python 3.8+: Runtime environment
• yt-dlp: Will be auto-installed on first run

Auto Install / 自动安装

The script will automatically detect and use system-installed yt-dlp. If not found:

# Manual install yt-dlp
pip install yt-dlp

# Or use uv
pip install uv && uv pip install yt-dlp

FAQ / 常见问题

Q: Downloaded video has no sound?

A: This is normal. Using

bestvideo

only downloads the video track. You need to download audio separately and merge.

Q: Video resolution is too low?

A: YouTube may have regional or quality restrictions on certain videos. Try other formats like

best

instead of

bestvideo

.

Q: ffmpeg error "No such file"?

A: Make sure ffmpeg is installed:

brew install ffmpeg

Q: How to specify output directory?

A: Pass the second parameter as output directory when running the script, or modify the OUTPUT_DIR variable in the script.