Are CD players dead

Devilboy, that's a good point. I'm not sure how sales of CD players are going (as opposed to CDs). However, there sure are lots of CD players still in production. I'm sure sales are not what they once were, but I would think they are still selling plenty of units, otherwise we would expect to see the supply dwindle more than it has.

I remember when CDs first came out. The sound was atrousious, but it didn't matter to the Manufacturer's.
Everyone jumped on the bandwagon, and dumped their LPs.
It was only after a decade of listening to CDs with 10 or
12 bit resolution did anyone notice something amiss with
the Music. The formula was very simple, there was nothing to compete against CD, LPs were on their way out, so why
should manufacturer's waste profits to improve the sound of
CD? Now we understand the term, "Redbook CD Standard".
Same thing will happen to Computer Audio if it is the ONLY
Format available. A Monopoly of Products/Formats will only
lead to cheaper manufacturing, and less Sound Quality. A
decade later people will find something amiss with their
Computer Audio Music, and regress back to CD, just like
they are regressing back to LP. Manufacturers lose,
Customers lose, Sound Quality loses, Competition loses,
motivation to improve S.Q. loses-if everyone gets on the bandwagon of a Computer Audio Format Monopoly. Computer
Audio will only survive if it has something to compete against-a Monopoly Format aint it!

Pettyofficer wrote: "A Monopoly of Products/Formats will only lead to cheaper manufacturing, and less Sound Quality. A decade later people will find something amiss with their Computer Audio Music, and regress back to CD". Gee, I agree with much of what you wrote in this thread, but I have a hard time with this statement. There is no analog poetry or magic in lasers and shinny plastic disks. The only thing I see that CD has going for it in the long run is the current standing stock of titles in a reasonably durable format. Hopefully we will progress forward to combine the ease of use of iTunes with the quality of HD formats.

Speaking of iTunes, it has been pretty well established in this and other threads that the stand alone CD player is dying as a tool for mass marketers to sell, and for the masses to buy to play music. The CD player is not being killed by HD tracks and low volume and difficult to implement audiophile computer software however. It is being killed by universial disk players, and by iTunes and all the iPods, iPhones, iMacs and yes, even PC computers that run this crappy format. A bit ironic isnt it. Remember when Steve Jobs wouldn't do color on the Mac until Apple could "do it right" in high resolution and high color density? Too bad Apple wasn't that descriminating with audio resolution in there products. Hopefully we are not stuck in an infinite loop of mediocrity. In any case, I do not believe "competition" for non-disk driven digital formats is going to come from either analog or redbook.

"There is no Analog Poetry or magic in Lazers and shiny plastic disks". At 10 to 12 Bits (1985-1995) due to CD
monopoly at the time leading to cheaper Sound Quality-what
did you expect? LP was on its way out, supposedly! What
other ways did the manufacturers cheapen out on production? Proves my point that without competition a
Format Monopoly (Computer Audio Downloads) means big profits supported by low-low-low-low quality. A condition
that Manufacturers would love to recreate again. It means you end up with the short end of the stick, with no alternatives!

Don't send the flowers just yet....

People tend to see less value in non-physical items, like music downloads and I note with interest that since it emerged in the 1990's digital music has been hugely popular with fans, but for online music companies and their investors it has almost never been profitable...