Windows 10: Playing music from MP3 via Windows Media Player

I have Windows 10 on laptop and Sony MP3 player old. Music on there will not play now via Windows Media Player. It shows albums / tracks etc but will not play. I need to edit MP3 music to bring up to date.

:)

 

Windows Media Player is not in Default apps list in Windows 10

I know, this question was asked many times, but there is still no answer that can actually solve the problem. There are steps to get the WMP in Windows Optional Features, install it if missing, etc. - I did all that, and now WMP runs and plays media files. However, there is no way in Windows 10 to set it as a Default App to play media file types.

• Go to "Default apps" > "Music Player" > "Choose Default" - WMP is not there.
  
• "Choose default apps by file type" > ".mp3" > "Choose a default" - WMP is not there.
  
• "Set Defaults by app" > Windows Media Player is here! > select "Manage" > find ".mp3" > "Choose a default" - the only choice is "Look for an app in the Microsoft Store".
  

After a long time spent searching I found this article: How to make any program the default on Windows 10 - gHacks Tech News

Apparently after 1803 you are supposed to use hackers tools to set the Microsoft's own Windows Media Player as default. I used FileTypesMan as was suggested in the article, but when I try to change assignments for .mp3 files, I get "Error 5: Access is denied" from the tool. Also, if I right-click on an .mp3 file and select "Open with..." it still suggests me to go to Microsoft Store, open with Notepad, Paint, Word, but not Windows Media Player.

What is the proper way to make WMP the default media player, so it shows up in the Default apps list?

 

Can't play mp3 music




Or just change the default to Windows Media Player

 

playing MP3 player on laptop

You didn't mention which model MP3 player you had so don't know if it will even work via USB. Generally speaking, the advantage of using USB vs audio input is the ability to use whatever Windows media player you like for playback of music from your MP3 player. The advantage of using audio input is NO DRIVERS REQUIRED, your laptop is essentially just a pair of external speakers for your MP3 player. You can use Windows' Audio control panel to adjust the levels to your liking.

Some MP3 players don't have a USB mass storage mode, only MTP (media transfer mode) and therefore won't let you play music directly from the player itself, requiring Windows Media Player or in some cases, the manufacturer's provided software to transfer the music files from the MP3 player to your laptop before they can be played.