How can I rip MP3 files at high-quality data rates in Windows Media Player (WMP) 8?

A. WMP 8 includes a built-in, high-quality Windows Media Audio (WMA) ripper but includes only a low-quality MP3 ripper that stores audio at 56Kbps. To enable high-quality MP3 ripping, perform the following steps (you don't need to perform these steps if you've purchased third-party MP3 ripping software):

1. Start a registry editor (e.g., regedit.exe).
2. Navigate to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MediaPlayer\Settings\MP3Encoding subkey.
3. Create or modify the following DWORD values:
   • LowRate - 64000 (decimal)
   • MediumRate - 128000 (decimal)
   • MediumHighRate - 192000 (decimal)
   • HighRate - 320000 (decimal)
4. Close the registry editor.
5. Log off and log back on for the change to take effect.

A complete list of available data-quality speeds is

• 320Kbps DWORD:0004e200
• 256Kbps DWORD:0003e800
• 224Kbps DWORD:00036b00
• 192Kbps DWORD:0002ee00
• 160Kbps DWORD:00027100
• 128Kbps DWORD:0001f400
• 112Kbps DWORD:0001b580
• 64Kbps DWORD:0000fa00
• 56Kbps DWORD:0000dac0