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CD players are back, and offering up modern, interesting features
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In case you didn’t get the memo, CD sales are surging, up a whopping 58.6% in the U.S. this year, according to the RIAA. And whether you’re looking to break your old disc collection out of the attic or closet, or you’re considering starting a new CD collection and ditching that algorithmically driven streaming service, there are plenty of options to choose from. Some can offer as good or arguably even better audio quality than a 90s-era Discman or hi-fi player, while others prioritize modern features, like Bluetooth, showcasing your spinning disc, novel form factors, or RGB lighting.
There are solid, affordable, sub-$150 options that deliver the best of old and new, though. Below is a list of some of the best and most interesting new CD players, starting with a couple that I own and enjoy myself.
Most of my old CDs are housed semi-permanently in a large Sony CX555ES 300-disc CD changer I picked up, refurbished and serviced, from eBay in early 2025. But my whole collection (roughly 450 discs at this point) doesn’t fit in that machine, and I often want to listen to my more recent purchases someplace other than my living room.
That led me to buy the Fiio DM13 last year, around the Black Friday deals season. If you haven’t heard of Fiio, it’s a Chinese consumer electronics company that has made a name for itself over the last decade-plus, churning out all manner of audio gear that typically sounds and performs well for its price bracket.
This CD player features dual CS43198 DACs for solid sound, a nice metal frame, an ample 3750mAh battery, and Bluetooth 5.2 (although pairing is kinda clunky).
The DM13 has a nice metal frame and sounds great, thanks to dual CS43198 DACs and a SGM8262 op-amp, and sports a USB-C rechargeable 3750mAh battery that lasts a solid 7-8 hours. It also supports Bluetooth 5.2 (SBC, aptX, aptX Low Latency, and aptX HD) for wireless connectivity, and has a balanced input for high-end headphones.
I briefly considered the more premium FiiO DM15 R2R (better DAC and Bluetooth chip, and a better screen, plus a disc window — but it didn’t feel different enough, and I didn’t really want to spend $250-plus on a (second) portable CD player. That’s when I heard about the recently announced Fosi Audio DISC Nano CD player. And mere moments after seeing it (and reading that it was priced at $99), I knew I wanted one.
Yes, it’s a CD player that’s smaller than a CD, with two edges of the disc exposed while it’s playing. Yes, Sony did this with its D-88 Discman in 1988. Yes, it’s mostly a gimmick. But yes, I still bought one and (mostly) love it.
Fosi Audio is a newer company (founded in 2017, also in China) that typically makes budget-focused gear. I’ve been using the company’s $89 Audio Box X4 Phono Preamp for going on four years, and it’s performed flawlessly.