I think the death blow to the dedicated CD player will be the laser mechanism manufacturers. CD only readers are becoming more scarce everyday. There's very little money in it to the big guys, IMO. They'll all make mutli format only readers sooner than later. The universal players aren't nearly as beloved by people like us.
I highly doubt the CD player will completely vanish for a very long time. Then again, I see the turntable outlasting the CDP, and quite easily. Albums are so much cooler to people than CDs and will hold their retro value far longer than a small disc.
I think entry level CDPs like the NADs will die off first, followed by the $1-$4k or so market. All that'll be left will be above or around that. Hopefully not, but that's what my logic tells me.
I highly doubt the CD player will completely vanish for a very long time. Then again, I see the turntable outlasting the CDP, and quite easily. Albums are so much cooler to people than CDs and will hold their retro value far longer than a small disc.
I think entry level CDPs like the NADs will die off first, followed by the $1-$4k or so market. All that'll be left will be above or around that. Hopefully not, but that's what my logic tells me.