Buzz
Let's explore these interesting but lesser-known features on the Windows Media Player, the widely used music player on Windows.
10 Less-Known Exciting Features on Windows Media Player
1. Search for Music and Videos using AND and OR Commands
Simply type in the syntax “Song name AND artist name” to quickly and accurately find the desired song.
Alternatively, this command can be modified to search for various types of music. For example, Jazz AND Blues.
2. Explore Songs Based on Release Year
To search for songs released by year, use the syntax: “Start year..end year”.
After the search, Windows Media Player will automatically look for songs released during this period based on the information recorded in the songs.
3. Enhance Online Streaming Smoothness
For smoother web streaming, optimize the streaming process by adjusting the buffer value. When streaming videos or listening to online mp3 music, Windows Media Player stores some content in the buffer before starting playback.
Click on Tools > Options > select the Performance tab. In the Network buffering section, click the Buffer option and set the value within the range of 0-60. Setting it too high may cause playback quality to decrease due to stuttering and lag.
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4. Adjust Volume Using Shortcut Keys
Shortcut keys for adjusting volume or muting on Windows Media Player are as follows:
- Decrease Volume: F8
- Mute Sound Completely: F7
5. Boost Bass for Songs
Windows Media Player offers a feature that allows users to enhance bass more effectively when connecting their computer to external peripherals like speakers. The feature called SRS WOW Effect enables users to boost the bass level.
In the Now Playing interface, right-click and select Enhancements > SRS WOW Effect. Adjust the TruBass (bass) slider while fine-tuning the WOW effect for optimal results.
6. Preview Songs
You'll be pleasantly surprised as Windows Media Player allows you to preview the content of a song before clicking to listen in full. Simply follow these steps:
Click on Tools > Options > Library > Automatically preview songs on track title hover > Apply > OK to complete the process.
7. Customize Library Interface
To change the library interface in Windows Media Player, follow these steps:
Press Windows + R > type regedit.exe or regedit > navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER_\Software\Microsoft\MediaPlayer > continue to find LibraryBackgroundImage path and modify the default value in the range of 0-5.
8. Adjust Music and Video Playback Speed
Adjusting the playback speed of music or video in Windows Media Player allows you to create various interesting sound effects.
In the Now Playing interface, right-click and select Enhancements. In the Play Speed Settings interface, slide the bar left to right to customize the playback speed. Alternatively, set the default three levels: 0.5, 1.0, 1.4, and 2.0.
Or you can also click on the Play menu > Play Speed > Choose from three levels: Low, Fast, and Normal. Of course, you can quickly toggle between these levels using shortcut keys. Check the comprehensive list of shortcut keys in Windows Media Player for more information.
9. Adjust Color and Brightness for Videos
In the Enhancements tool, you can also directly fine-tune the light and color for videos.
Right-click on the Now Playing interface during video playback > Video Settings.
Here, you can freely adjust color saturation, brightness, and contrast by dragging the sliders.
10. Adjust Video Playback Size
By default, your video will always play at 100% frame size, but if you want to shrink or double the frame size, you can choose the video size.
Click View > Video Size > choose from three levels: 50%, 100%, and 200%.
If you want Windows Media Player to automatically resize to fit the screen, check two options: Fit video to Player on resize (adjust video to match resized player) and Fit Player to video (adjust player to match video).
After activating these two options, your video will always play in the most suitable screen mode.
Windows Media Player (WMP) is currently the default music and video player on all Windows operating systems from Windows XP to Windows 10 by Microsoft. Even if you have other media players like KMPlayer, iTunes, or Media Player Classic installed, you can easily set WMP as the default music player on Windows 8 or 8.1.
Please note that setting WMP as the default music player on Windows 8 or 8.1 allows you to open all music and video files directly from this software on your computer.
