I downloaded and installed the newest version of MySQL (5.5.29), installed the newest version of XAMP and have WordPress waiting.
XAMMP comes pre-configured with MySQL, Apache and PHP. My advice is to begin by uninstalling the stand alone version of MySQL. Then you may want to seek out one of the numerous tutorial for installing and configuring XAMMP and WordPress on Windows.
#1045 - Access denied for user 'root'@'localhost' (using password: YES)
This is a pretty common issue with phpMyAdmin on localhost installs. You may need to consult some documentation and instructions on setting up phpMyAdmin.
xampp #1045 - Access denied for user 'root'@'localhost' (using password: YES)