The new player doesn't crash like version 8, and looks a little fancy compared with its predecessor. The first thing I tried was encode WMA 9 VBR (variable bit rate) & CBR (constant bit rate) to see how it compares with version 8. I used the Rod Stewart CD for this. Below 128kbps CBR or VBR, it still appears to have the same artifacts (metallic) as version 8. MP3 (encoded with lame) & especially OGG still sounds better at 128kbps compared with 128kbps WMA9. If you playback MP3, use Winamp or get better MP3 codecs for Media player as I was told by several mates that the MP3 codecs supplied with Media Player are bad quality; probably to make WMA sound supperior. I haven't tried its video yet. I'm still wondering how Microsoft managed to spend $500 million on Media player 9.













