Volume Controls for CD Players

Probably easier to purchase one of those external volume controls.

"fidelity may be degraded by the manner in which the remote control functions" doubtless refers to the loss of bits in digital attenuation, an uncontroversial fact but maybe in some designs, with "bits to spare", not a worry. Wadia goes to great lengths (adjustability) to let you use as little digital attenuation as possible. Accuphase claims theirs does no harm up to quite a few decibels down. I use theirs and never more than 12 db down, and hear no deterioration. The advantages of direct connection to a power amp are very noticeable, however. Even a world-class separate passive preamp is less detailed and transparent. As for built-in analog volume controls, I suspect that many are simply poor quality attenuators. This would be likelier in less costly products, and reviewers almost always say they're terrible.

I like the idea of eliminating a preamp but the sound quality does suffer (reduced soundstage). A good preamp makes a noticable difference.

Sound quality does not necessarily suffer w/o a preamp. There are many cases where eliminating the preamp and driving the amp directly from the CD player is a noticeable improvement. A couple examples include: Sony XA7ES or Cary 306/200 driving the amp directly. This will also depend on "system synergy" with cables and the amp.