Extract text from Game models and data (ECH)
To convert ECH Game models to another format, you need GIMP or other Game software.
To convert other file formats to the "Character Model File" file type, you need software like GIMP or a similar tool.
The .ECH file extension is notorious for serving multiple, entirely unrelated purposes, which creates massive confusion for users. Most commonly, it functions as a proprietary 3D Game Character Model or appearance data file used in video games like Dragon's Dogma, Echo of Soul, EVE Online, and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. In these games, the file stores customized 3D geometry, facial slider parameters, and embedded textures. In completely different industrial contexts, an .ECH file can be an XML-based HMI Project Screen file generated by EasyBuilder Pro for manufacturing touch-screens, or an encrypted Echo Sounder Voyage Log generated by Danelec Marine VDR systems.
The main disadvantage of the .ECH format is its highly proprietary and fragmented nature. It is heavily locked down. If you are a game modder, you cannot natively import an .ECH file into Blender because the binary mesh data is compiled exclusively for a specific game engine. Similarly, industrial and marine .ECH files are often encrypted or compiled to prevent tampering. You are entirely dependent on the original manufacturer's software, or you must rely on community-made extraction scripts and tools like GIMP with DDS plugins to break the gaming files apart.
When converting, the goal depends entirely on the file's origin. Game modders should look to extract the internal data into standard OBJ or FBX 3D models, and PNG or DDS texture files. For marine logs and HMI data, the ideal target is typically XML, CSV, or PDF for compliance reporting and data analysis. Be aware that during game mesh extraction, complex engine-specific rigging and physics data is usually lost forever.
Because an .ECH file has no universal standard, standard online converters will fail to process it. They treat all files with the same extension identically, leading to instant errors. However, convert.guru takes a different approach. Just drag and drop your file to identify the format, view it, and convert it when possible. Our system analyzes the file's hex signature to determine if it is a 3D model, an XML configuration, or an encrypted log. If our analysis detects a supported underlying or embedded format, viewing or conversion may still be possible.
Convert.Guru analyzes your ECH file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted EBM, XCF, GPL and SCM files.
If you want to convert ECH file to MP3, WAV, AAC, FLAC, OGG, WMA, M4A, AIFF, OPUS, ALAC, APE or WV, you can use GIMP or similar software from the "Game Character & Model Storage" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert MIDI, AAC, TTA, AU, WV, DTS, MID, FLAC, RA, MP3, PCM or WAV files to ECH, try GIMP or another comparable tool in the "Game Character & Model Storage" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our ECH converter.