CD Players & Transports

A CD player is a device designed to play compact discs (CDs), which are a digital optical disc format used for audio and data storage. CD players became popular in the late 1980s and 1990s and were a significant advancement in audio technology at the time, offering better sound quality and durability compared to older analogue formats like vinyl records and cassette tapes.

A CD transport is a specialized component in a high-end audio system designed exclusively for the purpose of reading and retrieving digital audio data from a compact disc (CD). Unlike a typical CD player, a CD transport lacks built-in digital-to-analogue conversion (DAC) and audio output capabilities. Instead, its primary function is to extract the digital data from the CD and send it to an external DAC or digital processor for conversion into an analogue audio signal.