The History of CD Player

A century after Thomas Edison invented the phonograph, companies like Sony and Phillips introduced digital audio in the form of the compact disc in 1982. Radio stations were among the first to use the new technology, but throughout the 1980s CDs began to replace the consumers' collections of records and cassette tapes. Today the CD player is falling out of favor as new technologies like the MP3 player have begun to replace it.

Technology

Sony, Phillips, CBS/Sony and Polygram introduced the CD-DA (compact disc-digital audio) in 1982. Sony and Phillips worked together to develop CD technology in a series of standards called the "Color Books." The "Red Book," written in 1980, outlined the specs for a CD: Each one could hold 74 minutes of music and up to 99 tracks. The 1983 "Yellow Book" outlined the basics for Compact Disc-Read Only Memory or CD-ROM technology. Other books covered synchronizing audio and video technologies, writable CDs and data compression, which has evolved into DVD technology. The Color Books standardized the system for all companies that followed.

First CD Player

Sony introduced the CDP-101, the first CD player, in October 1982. In the development stage, Sony produced a prototype called the "Goronta," which required user to insert CDs vertically. Before unveiling it to the public, researchers realized it was much easier to place a CD into the player horizontally. The "101" was chosen as a nod to the binary system used in digital technologies. According to Sony's corporate history, 0101 means the number five, which was chosen because the first CD player was considered "of a medium class."

First CDs

CBS/Sony introduced the first 50 CD titles in 1982. The very first CD released was Billy Joel's "52nd Street." Other titles covered a broad range of musical tastes, ranging from classical to classic rock, to appeal to a wide audience. Two more batches were released that year, bringing the total available titles to 100.

Benefits

Digital audio produced a sound quality that was impossible to achieve on a record or cassette tape. CDs were lightweight and portable, and they were extremely durable. Sony researchers were surprised when their demo CDs returned with scratches on them, yet they sounded as clear as new when played.

Future of the CD Player

With new digital technologies like MP3s and MP4s, the compact disc is becoming obsolete. Portable CD players for personal use were far bulkier than the shrunken size of the MP3 player. Many music enthusiasts today choose to download music on a per-song basis, which is destroying the artist's vision of a package of music carefully ordered to achieve a desired effect. Illegally downloading and distributing digital files has also reduced CD sales and royalty fees to the musician.

References

• History of the Compact Disc
• Sony History: A Great Invention 100 Years On