hey, the header of each mp3 file contains the bitrate (as well as the mp3-tags (which unfortunately are seldom accurately used). however, why can't the client read this information and transfer it additionally to the file? so one could specify advanced searches like "i want only mp3s with bitrate between 128 and 256". don't know how to cope with vbr, but they have a range specification - maybe that's available in the same way ...