CD players a doomed technology?

Q. I recently read your column about the limited selection of CD players on the market. I have an extensive collection of 4,000 CDs and have this horrible fear of CD players becoming obsolete. What do I do then, just put all my CDs in a big pile and burn them? I have an Onkyo receiver in storage for future use, but in the meantime I am using a horrible-sounding Crosley CD player that looks like an old-fashioned radio. Should I be concerned about CD players going away, and should I buy one ASAP and hold on to it in case they do? If so, I would like to get a 5-disc CD changer and would spend up to $400.

— R.C., Pittsburg, Calif.

A. When I wrote about the limited number of players on the market compared to what was available in the early years of the format, I did not want to create the impression CD players were completely going away. I think calling CDs and the CD format “obsolete” is a stretch. CD is still the leading format for music on optical media, and you will be relieved to know that I think CDs will be playable for the rest of the natural lives of everyone reading this column.

Although I think singledisc players for Blu-ray, DVD and CDs will be around indefinitely, CD changers have definitely fallen in popularity. The only one currently available is the $399 Yamaha CD-C600, so you may want to go ahead and get it now. There are also many used CD and DVD changers available on eBay, Craigslist and in thrift stores.

Rather than suffer with bad sound, why not enjoy your CDs with some headphones? You can get a CD player and put it on your nightstand with a small headphone amplifier. You could also get a CD player or changer and use an adapter cable to connect the RCA outputs to the miniplug input on a high-quality portable speaker like a Soundcore Flare. That will sound much better than what you are using now, too.