Everywhere in this forum I read people rubbishing WMP. Apart from the fact that I find nothing wrong with it, which other programs should I be using? I have Real player on my PC but I’m not too impressed with it.
@katymac wrote:
Everywhere in this forum I read people rubbishing WMP. Apart from the fact that I find nothing wrong with it, which other programs should I be using? I have Real player on my PC but I’m not too impressed with it.
WMP11 is fine once you tell it who’s boss…turn off all the auto-this and that. Once a user learns these things, it’s a reasonable easy thing to use. I roll with a combination of drag and drop, WMP11, and MediaMonkey…with my Fuze and Clip in MSC mode. Between these methods I can do almost anything I need to do with my Sansas. MediaMonkey is useful to me for podcast catching , and that it supports more audio formats than WMP does, but if I wipe one of my Sansas memories’ and completely refresh their contents, as I do from time to time, WMP is easier for the “mass sync”…just drag stuff over to the sync list on the right, and it tells you how much room is there. I’m simplifying a little bit, there are little nitpicky things I could point out with any of my 3 methods, but that’s why I use them all. :wink:
Probably the 2 most common non-WMP’s you’ll see mentioned are the aforementioned MediaMonkey, and WinAmp. And who knows, maybe if I’d tried that before MediaMonkey, I’d use that instead. But for now, I’m content with where I’m at. If you are cool with WMP11, don’t feel compelled to switch just because a bunch of faceless posters says so:stuck_out_tongue:…look over everything thoroughly before you switch, or you could always use more than one, like I do(and drag&drop is great!). It can get a little confusing , keeping your music library straight, if it’s spread out amongst too many places, so don’t make more work for yourself than you have to. Good luck!
Thanks for that. I mainly use my fuze for ripped cd’s so for now I’ll probably stay where I am, at least until I start hitting the problems the others are struggling with. I’m going to check your suggestions out, though. Cheers!
I have no MAJOR issues with WMP, other than it is not user-friendly at all, and it doesn’t offer anything to the party that other programs can do better and easier. Personally, I have never found a compelling reason to use WMP with my fuze at all.
My interest with the fuze is with music, not with video of any kind, so my software needs are minimal. I primarily rip from my existing CD collection or from LPs that I have digitally restored. Ripping can easily be handled by programs like dbPowerAmp or FreeRip. Any file tagging issues can corrected by the free mp3tag, if necessary.
These are just a sampling of the multitude of software options out there, if you are not happy with WMP. I swear, if WMP would go away and never return, half of the problems on this board would be eliminated…
A good percentage of the animosity towards WiMP may be rooted in the fragility of the MTP pipeline and user frustration with establishing a connection.
As a solution, many simply opt to go MSC and stay in that mode. It works well until you run into any DRM / subscription media, for which that MTP system is needed.
I run both modes for various tasks, but for music, I stay with WiMP 11 and MTP. Once the system is properly configured, it works pretty well.
Bob :smileyvery-happy:
I’ve never had a major issue with WMP, but it doesn’t mean it is my preferred software solution with the fuze either. I’m definitely not a WMP basher, but for me, I find other programs more elegant and simple in their design and function. Meaning, I wouldn’t use WMP when there are plenty of worthy alternatives available.
I just use Windows Explorer to get music onto my Fuze. I rip CDs with CDex, and check tags with MP3tag prior to putting them on the Fuze. This way each program only has to do one thing, and it lessens the odds of something breaking. They’re programs that are all good at what they do.
More recently I’ve been using a less common (but free) program for ripping - Quintessential Player 4.51. It can rip to MP3 using the LAME encoder (the best there is), or to Ogg Vorbis.
My music collection is very dynamic (stuff being added and deleted all the time), so I never cared for the whole notion of piling all my music into a “library”, and I’d rather drag-and-drop than sync. This works extremly well for me, but may not for everyone else.
