A compact disk player is a digital device. The disk contains a spiral track of binary codes in the form of sequences of minute pits. The diameter of a disk is less than 5 inches, while the tracks are thinner than a hair and can have a length of several miles. The disk rotates at a speed that varies from 500 revolutions per minute at the center, where the track starts, to 200 revolutions per minute at the edge.

The technology behind compact disc players is that a digital recorder measures waveforms and assigns numerical values and then translates them into a stream of electrical impulses. The recorded impulses are played when the laser beam reads the codes and sends signals to the speakers.