Resurrection: Winamp receives its first update in 4 years

Winamp is (again) back. Four years after a first aborted return, the audio playback software has just received a new update … which does not bring much at first sight.

Not easy to return to the front of the stage for the stars of the 2000s. Winamp, the famous audio playback software born in 1997 has just received its first update in four years. Version 5.9 has been discreetly formalized via a post on the brand’s forum.

A time that those under 20 cannot know

To be more precise, it is build 9999 of version 5.9 RC1 which has just been released. The RC1 code means it is the first version Release Candidate, i.e. the last stage of development before the release of a stable version of the software. The build number, on the other hand, makes it possible to keep traceability of the compilation of the source code. But beyond these technical considerations, the release of a new version of Winamp is surprising because, since its return from the dead in 2018, the software had not given any sign of life.

Because, yes, the history of Winamp is somewhat chaotic. Star program of the new millennium, the software has gradually fallen into disuse with the rise of iTunes, Spotify and others. In 2014, it passed under the Belgian flag when the company Radionomy bought the well-known brand. At the end of 2018, a 5.8 version, which revives the historic brand, is released and Radionomy promises to adapt Winamp to the era of audio streaming, even claiming that a 6.0 version will arrive in 2019 on all mobile platforms.

Except that since… almost nothing. In November 2021, the site is rebranded and promises to keep the community updated on what’s to come. 9 months later, after a development that we easily imagine chaotic, version 5.9 has therefore seen the light of day. But we cannot say that this is the announced revolution. The development team recognizes this.

Still some bugs to fix

“For the general public, the changes may not appear significant” indicates a maintainer, but this version 5.9 is “the product of 4 years of work” interrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic, specifies the same source. The biggest change is indeed almost invisible for the lay user since the bulk of the work consisted in migrating the code from Visual Studio 2009 to Visual Studio 2019, the Microsoft’s platform that’s supposed to help with software development. This technical leap should allow for more flexibility in Winamp development in the future.”The bulk of the work is done, we can now focus on developing new features“says the press release from the brand.

If you want to test this version 5.9, just go to the dedicated forum topic. Be aware that, since version 5.9 is not officially marked as “stable”, you may encounter bugs during use. Some antiviruses even see the executable as a security threat.

No doubt all of this will be fixed by the release of the final version which we hope will be released before 2026.