I have the exact same problem whether it is cd, MP3, AVI, etc. It happens in any software MP3 player. I've even reinstalled Windows to try and solve the problem which is happening on TWO computers. I installed my software one item at a time until i FINALLY found the culprit. It started happening immediately after I installed PC-CILLIN. So there you have it. I disabled real-time protection and I'm still having this problem, so it looks like I might be looking for an alternative. Which is really bad news because I do NOT like Norton OR Mcafee. Seems AV software causes as many problems as they prevent nowadays...