Each music-capable hardware device that you've got will have its own sound capabilities and storage capacity, and so having an optimized set of music files on it will enable you to get the best out of your hardware. For example, having high quality lossless audio files on a cheap 1Gb MP3 player will not make good use of its storage capacity -- the sound capabilities of the device will also probably not be good enough to warrant such high quality music files.
However, listening to the same high quality music files through top-notch computer speakers, or a stellar home stereo system, will give you an optimized music listening experience. This article will show you how to configure Windows Media Player so you can store the same song in your music library at different bitrates -- this will then enable you to choose the right set of music files for different hardware devices.
Here's How:
On the main Windows Media Player screen click the Tools menu tab and choose Options.
Click the Rip Music tab to view Window Media Player's rip options.
In the Rip Music to This Location section, click the File Name button.
On the File Name Options screen, enable the Bit Rate option by clicking the check box next to it. Click OK to save your selections. This will enable you to see what bitrate a file has been encoded with simply by looking at its file name -- you will also now be able to store multiple copies of the same song.
What You Need
- Windows Media Player 11 or higher
- Audio CDs
