PC with MP3 Priority

Changes For A Computer With MP3 Music As A Priority:
Build a computer like My Super PC and you will find that enjoying MP3 music is a task it handles with ease!Many of the major computer hardware components used to build My Super PC are actually well in excess of what you need to enjoy MP3 formatted music. A less expensive, less powerful processor will do the job just fine and save you money. If MP3 music is the primary consideration then you may also want to save a little more money by going with a value video card such ATI All-In-Wonder 9600 XT 128MB. In addition, the amount of RAM can easily be scaled back to a total of 256MB.

You will definitely want to include the CD-RW drive so you can burn your own CD's. My "sweet spot" recommendation for a top-rated CD-RW drive with burn-proof technology.

As with the changes for a gaming computer, the speakers are another component you will want to consider carefully. As with the gaming computer, I gladly stick with the speakers I have in My Super PC that I recommend at Build A Computer Like My Super PC - Cost To Build A Computer - Sound Card And Speakers, which sound terrifc and take up very little space, but you may be more of an afficianado than I am.

And if your computer is dedicated almost entirely to MP3 music then you could consider a smaller hard drive, say 40GB. That's assuming you're willing to offload your computer contents to CD's that you burn on your CD-RW drive. But even if you plan to keep them on your hard drive, a 40GB hard drive will hold a lot of MP3 music. Depending on the bit rate of the MP3 song and the length of the song, many MP3 songs can be stored in under 8 megabytes, so a 40GB hard drive could hold over 4,000 MP3 songs.

The bitrate of the MP3 file is an important consideration. A bitrate of 160 is "CD quality" and should be sufficient in most cases. However many other bitrates, both higher and lower, are commonly used. The other most common bit rates are 128, 192, and 320, although practically any bitrate is possible. Unfortunately, you can't just use a super big bitrate like 320 without careful consideration since the higher the bitrate, the bigger the file. A song stored in an MP3 file using a 320 bitrate is twice as big as a song stored in an MP3 file using a 160 bitrate. A 4 minute song at the 160 bit rate requires a 5 megabyte file, so the same song at the 320 bitrate requires a 10 megabyte file. A typical album at the 160 bit rate requires an 80 megabyte file, so the same album at the 320 bitrate requires a 160 megabyte file. The best idea is to retrieve copies of a sample MP3 file at the different bitrates and play them on your computer or audio system, then decide which bitrate is best for you. Then let that and the number of songs you think you might accumulate help you decide how much hard drive space you will need.

Computer MP3 Player - Windows Media Player:
You'll need a MP3 player to play music stored in MP3 files on your computer. Such programs are more often referred to as media players since they typically handle more than just MP3 files.

Perhaps the most well-know MP3 player is Microsoft's Windows Media 7 Player, which is available as a free download from the Microsoft Windows Media Player download site.

However, Winamp is a popular alternative and it's the one I chose. Winamp is also a free download. It can be retrieved from the Nullsoft Winamp site, which also includes many related items that may be of interest, such as skins, plug-ins and forums. While some may like Winamp better simply because it's not made by Microsoft, I don't fall into that crowd. I just want the product that suits me better and I don't play favorites. The reasons I like Winamp are summarized well in this Winamp review by The Sonic Spot, namely that Winamp is easy to use and easy on system resources. Some Napster alternative file swapping services may prefer one MP3 player over another. For example, WinMX works best with Winamp.

To rip and burn your own CD's you'll need a more feature rich media player than Winamp. There are a number of good choices available, but the overall best and winner of PC Magazine's Editor's Choice award three years running is MusicMatch Jukebox. MusicMatch Jukebox is free and includes features such as ripping and burning CD's. However MusicMatch Jukebox Plus is an inexpensive upgrade and well worth it. An excellent comparison of all the top Windows media players, including their free and upgrade versions, is given in this Windows Media Player Roundup Review by PC Magazine.