The iconic Winamp media player is back from the dead
The new version looks just like you remember, but it’s running on a much more modern code base.
Participants in the MP3 revolution remember Winamp fondly. The independent media player and library, initially released in the late 1990s, was the go-to choice for anyone who didn’t care for more heavily marketed options like itunes or Windows Media Player. The license to Winamp was passed around a bit ( fave.co/3jsxyfe) before landing at its current owner. The last stable release was way back in 2013, but the new Winamp 5.999 is now available as a release candidate after four years of new development.
Download and install the new version from the official Winamp forum ( fave. co/3qo13ya; spotted by Bleeping Computer, fave.co/3zrqukl), and you might just feel yourself transported back in time to 2001. The player still feels like an oldfashioned media library manager, and yes, still launches with a shock jock–style declaration of “It really whips the llama’s ass!”
Changes to the program are almost entirely under the hood, with a code base update from Visual Studio 2008 to VS2019. Unfortunately that means you’ll need Windows 7 or later to run it.
Time hasn’t been kind to the plucky little player. When I loaded it up on my Windows 11 desktop, the strict segmentation of the tools seemed like something that belongs in a museum. The tool’s iconic but antiquated “skins” mean icons and menus look absolutely tiny on my 1440p monitor…but then again, my eyes aren’t as good as they were when I was ripping CDS by the dozen in a musty dorm room.
“The groundwork has now been laid,” say the developers, “and now we can concentrate more on features.” The transition to modern systems hasn’t been seamless: A long list of known issues is included in the blog post, and there’s no indication of when version 5.9.0 will arrive. Once a final version of that release is done, the developers will begin adding native support for more advanced audio formats, replacing outdated tools like Gracenote, and “tons more.”