Old voice recordings and music are all in WMA format from a Windows Media era. My phone and car will not play them. How do I convert WMA to something universal like MP3 in bulk?
Unable to play WMA files on phone or DVD player
Solved File Viewers
RK
Rachel Kim March 14, 2019
2 replies
4,760 views
Reviewed by moderators
WMA is a Microsoft format that most modern devices dropped. Convert to MP3 for universal playback.
1
Free and reliable: VLC does batch convert. Media, Convert/Save, add all files, pick MP3 profile, run. Handles hundreds of files.
2
Prefer a dedicated tool: any audio converter with batch mode does WMA to MP3. Set the bitrate to 192 or 256 kbps so voice and music both stay clean.
3
DRM protected WMA from an old store will refuse to convert. Only unprotected files convert freely, which is nearly always the case for your own recordings.
VLC batch converted the whole folder to MP3. Plays everywhere now including the car. Solved.