# Windows Media Player won't play Windows Media Audio

**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-media-player-wont-play-windows-media-audio/350327
**Category:** The BBQ Pit
**Created:** [March 29, 2006, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-media-player-wont-play-windows-media-audio/350327 "2006-03-29T00:46:48Z")
**Posts on this page:** 4
**Page:** 1

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### Author: ![js\_africanus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/87869e/32.png) [@js\_africanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/js_africanus)
#### Post date: [March 29, 2006, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-media-player-wont-play-windows-media-audio/350327/1 "2006-03-29T00:46:48Z")

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The complaint is obvious.

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### Author: ![5\_time\_champ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/278dde/32.png) [@5\_time\_champ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5_time_champ)
#### Post date: [March 29, 2006, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-media-player-wont-play-windows-media-audio/350327/2 "2006-03-29T00:48:27Z")

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It’s not a bug, it’s a feature.

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### Author: ![lurkernomore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@lurkernomore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lurkernomore)
#### Post date: [March 29, 2006, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-media-player-wont-play-windows-media-audio/350327/3 "2006-03-29T15:39:29Z")

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JS,  
Check your version. Some media stuff will only run on the newer versions. People with, say, ME systems have old players that won’t play new stuff, and they can’t get the newest releases, IIRC

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### Author: ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)
#### Post date: [March 29, 2006, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-media-player-wont-play-windows-media-audio/350327/4 "2006-03-29T16:20:51Z")

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Ditch that piece of shit media player.

Get yourself [Media Player Classic](http://sourceforge.net/projects/guliverkli/). It does basically everything WMP can do, only it’s a much smaller install, uses far fewer system resources, doesn’t try to connect to the internet all the time for updates, etc., and has never given me any trouble whatsoever.

Add the following:

[ffdshow](http://sourceforge.net/projects/ffdshow)  
[RealAlternative](http://www.free-codecs.com/download/Real_Alternative.htm)  
[QuicktimeAlternative](http://www.free-codecs.com/download/QuickTime_Alternative.htm)

and Media Player Classic will play basically any video file you can possibly think of, including .rm and .mov. It’s an absolute gem, in my opinion.