How do I permanently make foobar2000 my default audio player in Windows 8.1?

2018-03-17 21:53:46

I'm currently using 1.4 beta 9, but have observed the following issue in all versions I've used ever since I upgraded my laptop from Windows 7 to 8.1 a few months ago:

Every time I double click on an audio file in Windows Explorer, I get a dialog asking me, "How do you want to open this file?", and offering me to "Keep using foobar2000" as the first choice, under a checkbox (that is checked) to use this app for all files of the type in question (OGG, MP3, etc.). How do I make this dialog go away forever? It comes up every time I double click an audio file type I've associated with foobar2000. As far as I can recall, no other program has exhibited this behavior. This also never happened under Windows 7.

I was previously using foobar2000 in portable mode. But, in trying to fix this issue, I've since switched to using an installed version. No difference. The program already has all the defaults I want it to have in Windows' Default Programs in the Control Panel.

Is there anything I can do to fix this?

Re: How do I permanently make foobar2000 my default audio player in Windows 8.1?

Reply #1 – 2018-03-18 09:34:25

The dialog you see should only be presented if a new program registers itself as supporting the format, or some program edits the registry associations manually in the Win9x way. You don't have something like Winamp agent re-registering filetypes to itself?

I have never seen issues with the feature but you can remove current associations and start fresh by deleting the associations entirely with regedit. For example to return .ogg to unassociated state remove .ogg key from HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\FileExts.

Re: How do I permanently make foobar2000 my default audio player in Windows 8.1?

Reply #2 – 2018-03-18 15:18:08

Thank you for your reply. I'd tried messing with the registry key before to no avail. However, the bit about "registers itself" made me think there might be a related option in foobar2000's prefs that I hadn't tried. Sure enough, there is a checkbox, "Register supported file formats on startup". I checked that off, and now it seems to be working properly! No more dialog whenever I double click on a file in Windows Explorer. Now I feel a little silly that I hadn't tried that checkbox a long time ago.

Re: How do I permanently make foobar2000 my default audio player in Windows 8.1?

Reply #3 – 2018-03-18 15:52:24

I wouldn't consider upgrading from 7 to 8 as an "upgrade". 7 to 10 would be better. just my two cents.

Re: How do I permanently make foobar2000 my default audio player in Windows 8.1?

Reply #4 – 2018-03-18 16:19:16

I'd normally agree, but I'm working with a 7-year old Dell laptop that has no official support for anything beyond Windows 8. Even 8.1 is not officially supported, but I gave it a try anyway, because I had to upgrade to a bigger hard drive, and figured if I was going to reinstall my OS, why not try something newer, especially since 7 is nearing its end. I won't attempt to install 10 on here, though, because there are no Dell Windows 10 drivers for my model, and no official manufacturer Windows 10 driver for my WiFi card, which is a deal-breaker.

Re: How do I permanently make foobar2000 my default audio player in Windows 8.1?

Reply #5 – 2018-03-19 06:44:27

Go to Control Panel and look there for Default Programs. Search for foobar and choose to make it default ("set all defaults for this program" or something like this).

Re: How do I permanently make foobar2000 my default audio player in Windows 8.1?

Reply #6 – 2018-03-19 08:39:29

In the latest Win 10, the quickest way to get to it is: Settings - Apps - Default Apps - Music Player - Set to FB2K

Re: How do I permanently make foobar2000 my default audio player in Windows 8.1?

Reply #7 – 2018-03-28 09:39:39

Foobar has a link for that:
Preferences --> Shell integration --> Manage file type associations.
You could also check "Register supported file formats on startup" there.

Another approach is to run the installer again. It will keep your settings.

Offtopic:
By the way, the Windows 8 bashing in my experience comes from users who never really used it (or used it too early). Sure, it had a bad start which destroyed its image and created all the haters out there, but Win8.1 with classic shell is a big step forward from Windows 7. It's actually a disguised Win10 with its internal structure, speed and stability. I would prefer anytime!