Thanks for your reply.
However, I must add that if it's not MC, then why do all my other audio players work perfectly, whether it's iTunes, SqueezeCenter, Microsoft Media Player etc etc. The only one that doesn't work and skips or the music completely hangs is MC.
Anyway, thanks also for the link. I've been having a long read through it but still haven't found a solution. I'll keep at it though, as MC certainly has the best cataloging interface around, and I still wish to use this as my main player.
I'd like to add that I'm using AVG V8 Free Anti Virus if anyone knows if this is related to the skipping problems and a solution I'd appreciate the help.