A compact disc player or CD player is an electronic device to play audio from compact discs. CD players can be found in home stereo systems, car audio systems and personal computers, and are also available as portable devices. Some equipment that can play CDs can play other formats as well, such as DVD, CD-ROMs with audio files on them, and video CDs. DJs often use pitchable CD players that can change the playback sampling rate. Some professional CD players can play 2 songs at the same time, from the same CD. Many of them are dual (2 cd players in 1 enclosure), with a wired remote control. Examples of professional CD players are most models from Numark and Denon.

Criticisms

• CD players sometimes misread CDs, especially scratched or dirty ones, leading to click noises and delays (which is often known as a "CD skip"). If proper care is taken, in theory, a CD can be played indefinitely without any loss in audio quality, since no part of the CD player has friction that wears the disc. However, the lifetime of a CD is limited (between about 50 and 200 years, depending on the brand and model of the media).

• Many CD players are also sensitive to physical shock, which can cause the playback to stop or skip. Many players, especially portable CD players, use Electronic Skip Protection to reduce this. Not all CD players have Electronic Skip Protection. Generally, the more expensive the CD player the better quality its laser and skip protection is.

• Burning a CD can be a time consuming process, however modern high speed CD burners have alleviated this problem.

• People who have digital audio players, such as iPods, have been able to directly copy ripped or downloaded music (generally in MP3 format) to the players without the need for CDs.

• The availability of inexpensive high capacity hard drives and online downloads (such as iTunes Music Store and P2P file sharing) have enabled people to reduce the size of their CD collections, although many DJs still use bulky collections of CDs and a player for them (although some DJs have replaced their CD collections with one or more iPods or similar devices). Some people have completely switched their collections from CDs to MP3 or Ogg Vorbis, but others prefer the raw uncompressed music on a CD due to its higher quality.

See also

• CD changer
• Transport (recording)
• High-end audio

External links

• The Audio Circuit - An almost complete list of manufacturers, DIY kits, materials and parts and how do they work sections on cd-players

Consumer electronics

CD-Spieler | Cd-speler | CD-spiller | Leitor de CD | Compact disc player | CD-soitin