In 1982, at the dawn of the compact disc, most audio writers, including myself, thought that most CD players would sound the same. How wrong we were.

On paper it looked like the digital system left little room for sonic variations. Other papers proved that bumblebees can't fly. Today, most of the hundreds of CD players on the market sound different from each other, some dramatically so.

The sonic differences come from both the digital domain and from the old-fashioned analog sections of the players. The analog stage processes and delivers the sound once it's been converted from digital back into analog.

CD players range in price from $100 to $10,000. Audiophiles generally spend $2,000 to S5,000 for a premium player that delivers what they consider the ultimate sound.

Most of us spend S200 to $400. A handful of manufacturers - such as Phillips, Sony and Matsushita (Technics) manufacture nearly all the basic transports, including those used in the multi-thousand dollar models. Similarly, a few companies fabricate all of the digital-to-analog converter chips. The quality of these chips can influence the sound quality of the CD player, but just as important are the circuits that operate with and around these chips.

Knowing this, a Chicago-area engineer, Butch Daniels, surveyed the field and purchased a popular, modestly priced Phillips CD player. He carefully analyzed the circuitry and realized dramatic improvements at a reasonable cost. I scoffed that his $750 Daniels Audio Zero-One CD player could sound better than my S2,000 Revox CD player. However, an audiophile friend, who formerly owned a Revox, insisted I audition the Zero-One.

Know anyone who wants to buy a used Revox?

Daniels determined that interaction between the digital and analog sections of the player, and phase distortion detracts from the sound of most CD players. By replacing standard wiring, resistors, capacitors, and insulators within the CD player with superior quality components, phase distortion could be reduced to virtually zero.

Daniels went so far as to replace the power supplies, with separate supplies for the digital and analog sections. With this in mind, Daniels tested a number of modestly priced CD players to find one with excellent digital-to-analog converters that would stand to benefit from his improvements. Daniels chose the full-featured Phillips CDM 12 CD transport on which to work his magic. It uses  Phillips192-times oversampling Bitstream digital to analog converters.

The Zero-One reproduces wholesome deep bass, and clean, extended, ingratiating treble. It reproduces an astoundingly three-dimensional stereo image when used with speakers capable of good imaging. A stereo image is the illusion of natural positioning of voice and instruments in a wide area around the speakers. I have spent far more time listening to music since installing the Zero-One.

Daniels provided me with pages of equations and graphs justifying his efforts. They look good, but not as grand as the sound from the Zero-One. While it may not quite equal the $6,000 Linn Karik/Numerik for which I lust, it equals or surpasses other players in the under $2,000 category (and a few more expensive models) that I've heard. Daniels Audio sells directly from its small factory, rather than through dealers. If you want to hear a great $750 CD player, call [toll-free 888-393-2123].

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