Why does Windows media player copy to a device as if re-recording?

Factual Questions
1

Why, when there’s a perfectly good, valid mp3 file, does windows media player re-sample the file for copying to a device?

In the copy screen it asks what quality I want the destination files to be. Surely I want EXACTLY the same quality as the source files because I am COPYING them! It’s little baffling things like this that bug me all the time about Microsoft. I just want the damn files copied, with their licences, simple as that. I don’t want the possible slight loss of quality inevitably caused by doing this pointless re-sampling of the files.
WHY?

2

If you know the exact specs of the original file (say you ripped a song from a CD), try an experiment.

  1. Write-protect the original file.
  2. Use Windows Media Player to duplicate the original.
  3. Compare the two.

One should assume the byte size to be the same and possibly the CRC. Or does use of Windows Media player cause a change now that Microsoft is using DRM? Could Media Player be inserting unknown DRM technology to restrict later use of the duplicate copy. There is anecdotal evidence (cannot find cite at the moment) that this could be the case.

3

Because you can’t burn mp3s to a normal CD that you intend to play in most CD player?

4

Licenses and DRM in an MP3 file? Pishposh.

5

That’s not what I am trying to do. I am copying to a device that can play mp3s (and the other compressed formats)

6

(self edit) usual MS rant deleted

Get Music Match and be done with it. The resampling feature is an option at your control, it is not forced on you like Microsoft does it.

7

My guess is that it’s assuming the 192kbps+ quality you have for your computer, which might be hooked up to a set of good speakers or a full audio system, are not necessary on a little MP3 player with earbuds. It’s probably trying to save you room so you can get more songs onto one of those little flash cards.

Of course, if you have a hard-disk based player, it’s pretty pointless.