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Theoretical question about how CD's work

Theoretically, can the contents of a CD be printed out onto sheets of paper in 1’s & 0’s, re-entered digit by digit (say, by a generous helper monkey with an infinite lifespan) into some sort of program, and the same sound will be replicated? Just trying to understand how CD’s work (though I’ve been trying for 25 years and it still seems like magic to me).
sealrock
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fleschler
2,030 posts
 
Maybe the high speed and narrower laser beam is at the heart of why a cheap Sony Blu-ray player sounds so great compared to 80's and 90's CD players.  I had huge and very heavy Sony CD players that sound thin compared to a one pound Blu-ray player.  This suggests that the transport quality maybe better now than then as well as the DAC formulation.
geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
Maybe Michael Green is right, after all. I.e., Lightweight systems sound better than heavy systems. The sampling rates are much higher for Blu Ray. Large capacitors and transformers in older, heavier CD players would not be good for the sound. So, it’s a little like comparing apples to oranges. I find small, lightweight (portable) CD players have inherently good sound. One assumes Blu Ray discs are subject to scattered light and vibration issues just like CD players. 
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