Despite the advantages of non-contact playing, the CD player can be affected by external environment and physical abuse. The following two conditions may result if operating circumstances are not ideal:

Important: The CD player will handle some rough driving conditions without skipping or muting, however certain environmental and harsh physical conditions will affect normal operation. Excessive heat or cold, moisture, extreme bumps and vibrations (such as speed bumps and large potholes), and bad discs can result in unwanted operations.

Sound quality and disc player operation will be affected if special care is not given to protect the discs themselves from scratching, moisture, cold, and fingerprints.

For audio system wiring schematics, refer to Radio/Audio System Schematics in Entertainment.

Although CD technology is capable of providing some of the most noise-free audio listening available today, noise may still be introduced in certain ways. Address concerns of background noise by first examining the listener's disc for dirt, scratches, dust, or fingerprints on the top and especially on the bottom (side opposite the label) surface.

Some noise may be attributed to the recording technology. While a clean, well-kept disc should not introduce any new noise during play-back, the sound quality is only as good as the original recording. For example: many "Oldies" are recorded on CD's with AAD technology and some limitations of early recording equipment and techniques can be heard during playback.