variable bit rate decoding?

Hello,

Apologies if this is a stupid question or not suitable
for this list.

Can XMMS play variable bit-rate encoded mp3 files?

When I play certain mp3 files using xmms, the duration
displayed in the playlist keeps fluctuating, sometimes
quite drastically. Could this be because the file is
encoded using VBR?

When I play the same file using Xine, however, it shows
a fixed duration (which is somewhat different from the
approx. duration shown by XMMS). I'm just trying to
understand the difference in behaviour between the two
players.

I'm using xmms-1.2.7-1 on RH7.3. 

Thanks for any inputs,
Mandar.