Reviews for Sony DVP-CX995V 400 Disc DVD Changer

Progressive Scan, HDMI - MPN: DVPCX995V

  • 2
  By member: ratman1 - Jan 20, 2008

cannot play disc

Strengths: it frees up the clutter of the disc cases lying around

Weakness: not better than a 1 disc player(after 1 year old)

i bought my unit and used it for 6 months. one day i was tring to watch movies and the unit would flash reading disc, then flashed cannot play. it would then start reading next disc and again said cannot play over and over.i sent it to be fixed(under warranty)and they sent me a refurbished unit(not too happy but it works).here i am 1 year later and i got the same problem(out of warranty now).sony service says service may not be available on this unit but an exchange purchase (261.47 + tax )is possible. might as well buy a new unit. think twice about buying this product. if some else has had this problem with their unit, please let me know what was the resolution.

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Reply by member: ledzappa
Apr 19, 2008

I had the same issue. Took the unit apart and found that the servo would not spin up. The seating mechanism would not seat all the way anymore for some reason and therefore the servo would not work. I could juggle it and it would work, but then after a couple discs it would fail to seat and spin up again. Mine was about 2 years old and I knew it would not be worth sending it in for repair, so in the trash it went.

Reply by member: man2mann42
Aug 4, 2008

is there someone out there who can help me ro tell me what i can do to fix my dvp-cx995v

  • 2
  By member: slaperk - Dec 16, 2006

Very Frustrating - Loses title information

Strengths: Holds 400 DVDs/CDs

Weakness: Loses Manually typed title information.

We purchased the Sony 400 DVD player in August 2005 and had no problems for several months. However, in early 2006 we lost all the title information we had manually entered. Essentially, the machine “reloaded” all the discs, wiping out all the information. We reentered the information a few times and it kept doing it. We called Sony and they suggested that our power wasn’t “clean” enough, so we purchased an expensive power conditioning unit (it cost more then the DVD player!!), retyped all the information and had the problem again.


We contacted Sony for a replacement unit. We had the same problem, and the unit was replaced a second time. With our third unit, we haven’t taken the time to reenter the information. Instead we are using printed spreadsheets to keep track of our CDs/DVDs.


Sony says they have no record of anyone else experiencing this problem, but I see from other reviewers on Amazon, Yahoo and Remote Central websites that this is not the case.


In general we have been very pleased with all our Sony products; however, this experience has been very frustrating.

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  • 5
  By member: kwkkwk - Dec 31, 2005

Excellent dvd library for 400 dvd/cd's

Strengths: Capacity, onboard menu dvd selection, price

Weakness: To be perfect it would program itself with the disk info

This unit is awesome! Some potato-heads are unfairly giving this fantastic device a very low score for their own lack of understanding. It does an excellent job of storing, selecting, and playing back a library of 400 disks. Some of the reviews made me cautious about buying it. I paid more to get it from the local Circuit City so that I could buy the extended warranty and have a local store to deal with for return or service issues. Here's what I found about the problems cited in the reviews:

1. plays a disk when you turn it on and you can't stop it
-> So what? That may be what you want, --to resume the previous disk, if not I have found that you just select the FOLDER button on the remote. The play is terminated and you get the menu. Perhaps the complainers never tried this?

2. Pioneer DV-F07 is so much better
-> Hmmm... Retail price of the Pioneer is $1,100 and supports only 301 disks. I paid $355, have support for 400 disks & it works like a charm. Tough call?

3. Pioneer hooked up to the same TV looked 10 times better...
-> Really? I had the same problem at first. I unplugged by dvd player and plugged in the library to the S-vid that I was using. (I have ordered an hdmi interface for my 42" plasma but that hasn't come yet.) It did look washed out and muddy, however, a few adjustments on the panel and it looked great. Each device puts out a video signal with its own characteristics and the display must be adjusted for the device and interface used. This is precisely why I gave up on using my A/V receiver as a video switch for all my vid gear. Every time I changed devices the settings on the display needed to be tweaked for the device, even though the interfaces were the same.

4. Programming titles is too hard. Its easier to use an excel spreadsheet.
-> Excel is a fine tool with a PC behind it that costs 2 or 3 times what the dvd lib costs, not even counting the cost of the software. The programming is simple and easy if you use the ps2 keyboard. Sure cut & paste functions would be nice as well as some sort of backup copy, but this is not a PC!! Its not much more trouble than creating the excel spreadsheet & the functionality of the menu is part of the reason that you have the library in the first place. So why wouldn't you use it? I just loaded the dvd's and wrote down a list as I put them in. Then I went thru and entered them into the folder menu in a couple of sittings. Piece of cake.

5. Could not get picture using hdmi -- dvi converter
-> I used an hdmi -->dvi cable and got an excellent picture except that there was a single pixel "snow" line down the left edge on my plasma panel. I have since ordered the hdmi interface card for my panel. Don't have it yet. Signal conversions are always a crap-shoot.

6. won't play DVD+/-R disks properly.
-> I have tried a couple & they worked perfectly. Both +R & -R. I will update this post if I find any problems.

7. Takes long time to retrieve the disc
-> Are you kidding? The fetch time is very reasonable. How long does it that you to thumb thru your dvd storage shelf, select a dvd, remove it from the case, open the dvd player, put it in the dvd player, close the player and start the disk? I bet the library will beat you every time.

Bottom line: This is not a perfect product but it does the job that it was intended to do and does it well. Could there be other features or could it operate exactly as I want it to, --of course, but overall it is an excellent product at a reasonable price. I highly recommend it.

(Apologies for the lengthy post but there was much to say about a device that you entrust your entire dvd collection to and spend a fair amount of time setting up and learning.)

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  • 4
  By member: zornzorn10 - Dec 2, 2005

Better than last model but some quirks

Strengths: Convenience

Weakness: Speed and disk management

I have 2 of these, stacked. There are switches on the remotes (behind the battery) to allow you to operate up to three of these in the same room. Unfortunately, you need one remote for each unit.
 
For most disks (9/10) you need to enter the disk name manually. Don't even THINK of trying to do it with the remote. You'll need to plug in a computer keyboard.
 
Other complaints:
Sony does not understand alphabetical order. They think that any capital letter comes before any lowercase letter. SPONGEBOB comes before Shrek.
 
When you turn the unit on, it immediately starts playing whatever was loaded last (which is good) but you can't stop it from loading until the movie has already started (and this is slow) (which is really bad).
 
If the DVD is made with a title, that title loads itself into the system (usually a good thing). You can't override the built-in title (and often you'll want to do so) (that's bad).
 
There are generas that you can enter for the disks, but they have fixed them. You can't enter your own. For me it made this feature worthless.
 
Video CD's can not have a title entered except in the area you use to enter an artist.
 
The end result of all this is that sorting the titles alphabetically on screen is far less than perfect (though it is pretty good). If you buy one enter all titles in all capital letters and half the battle is won.
 
There are a number of cool disk sorting features that most people will never figure out since the manual is so poorly written. This is very frustrating, prepare to consume several drinks afterwards. If you are unable to program a VCR, don't buy this unit.
 
Make no mistake they are large. If you see one in the store, you probably won't appreciate the size :
22 inches deep (including the knob up front and clearance for wires in back)
x 17 inches wide
x 7.5 inches high
 
This is lots better than jewel cases or disk storage books, but this need to fit near your TV.
 
Multiple outputs including HDMI (great if your TV has the input). There are no inputs so if you buy more than one, your TV will need lots of inputs.
 
This jukebox will upgrade the output from 480p to 1080i, but I can't tell the difference. And really, it's unreasonable to expect the output to be better than the DVD itself. I'm not sure if this feature is beneficial.
 
I know I've given you a lot of negatives here, but after buying one, I bought a second one and am thinking of buying a third. If you have lots of movie DVD's, home movie DVD's or CD's, picture CD's, audio CD's, etc., these are great. DVD's will last forever in these units. They won't get scratched, cracked, lost, stolen or borrowed.

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  • 1
  By member: pilot500 - Jun 6, 2006

A big Disappointment

Strengths: none

Weakness: slow operation

I purchased this unit to replace my Sony 400 disk CD only changer. My hope was to be able to integrate my DVDs with all my Cd's and not have to use two units to play them. Well I read the reviews and was hesitant but took the plunge anyway. Now I've used the Sony 30 days and am returning it. The reviews are right. Its terribly slow to read a disk either DVD or CD. It lacks a feature on older changers that provides a slot for a quick play disk. It seems lost when changing disks sometimes turning the carousel in both directions until it decides to play the selected disk. The scan forward and reverse is very very slow and jerky. Finally, the last straw, it fails to play scratched disks that my other DVD plays and often will NOT play DVD+R disks. Also I just remembered. Why didn't Sony make direct access to a disk available from the remote?

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  • 2
  By member: hanersky7 - Sep 14, 2005

Great specs, but horrible implmentation!

Strengths: Great video up-conversion through HDMI Huge 400 disc capacity Plays many flavors of discs

Weakness: Extremely slow for navigation. Disc Explore - Made and certified by idiots! No multilink for multiple changers! Auto play can NOT be turned off! No DVD-Audio (Because of $ony's $ACD)

Let me start off by saying that I've been in the Hometheater business for many years and I’ve never been more frustrated and disappointed with a product such as this one. The R&D department must have been sleeping or simply didn’t care. I’ll give you some examples that will make you want to pull your hair out if you decide to purchase this unit.

Example 1: Unlike their Mega CD changers, you need to use the Disc Explore to painfully enter the titles in. (Around 8% was recognized by the player – Columbia Tri-Star titles obviously). What if I don’t want to use the slow and pathetic Disc Explore? What if I want to simply open the player up and as I insert each DVD into a slot, I want to enter the disc’s name via PS2 keyboard and then proceeds to the next! What is so hard about that? The Sony Mega changers can do that, why can’t the DVD changers do it?!

Example 2: I turned off the “Auto Play” feature. Of course it still plays ever time the player turns on. (Sony what is so hard to test these things out!) This is really annoying when you’re trying to search for a disc and the darn thing will not stop!

One last tid-bit before I wrap this simple review up. Sony claims that this plays CD’s and other media. - Dear Sony, If you know people are going to intermix their CDs and DVD collection, why didn’t you put a fast forward or rewind button on the deck itself! That option is only available on the remote! What if I want to press fast forward and I my remote is MIA?

I use an Excel spreadsheet and simply bypass the Disc Explore. The DVD changer itself performs very well in the video quality (HDMI), but the above faults simply push this player back to the Medieval Age. In a scale of ten, I would rate this product 4 out of 10!

Sony you need to fire your DVD Disc Explore R&D and testing department. I will make it my personal mission to tell all future buyers of this huge fault.

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  • 2
  By member: dulino - Oct 13, 2006

Good idea, bad implementation, poor service

Strengths: Fits lots of disks, good interface

Weakness: Poor customer service, good luck if you have disks in it and it stops working

I had mine for about 8 months. It is still under warranty. This morning it stopped working -- I unplugged and plugged it back in. Nothing helps. SACD and Multichannel lights blink and that is all there is to it. I can't even get to the disks.

I called Sony. They gave me the runaround through their script. Long story short -- to get it serviced you have to mail it. But mine has a rented disk in it, not to mention a collection of CDs and DVDs, as well as a handful of family movies. I need to get the disks out before mailing the unit to Sony. Sony is telling me that it will void the warranty.

Sony offered a solution -- that I personally made a list of disks in it and they will reimburse if any get lost or damaged. Too bad I see no way they can reimburse me for my wedding video (the only master copy is in there). And how am I supposed to give them the list of disks when I relied on the jukebox to track them in the first place ?

I don't know what I am going to do at this point. I am definitely not mailing it to them with my disks in it. If I void the warranty and have to pay for repairs or a new unit I can guarantee that the new unit will NOT be a Sony product. I am also not sure if I will ever buy another Sony product again, considering the idiocy of their customer service.

Good idea, bad implementation, poor customer service. Do yourself a favor and find a better product. There is a reason why Sony is the only player in the jukebox market. It worked well when it worked, but I would not purchase another one.

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  • 3
  By member: wong618 - Oct 1, 2005

Good high capacity player with kids

Strengths: High capacity

Weakness: Disc management systems

I don’t understand why everything has to be controlled by the disc navigation system. Why can’t I just punch in the disc number and it will play whatever on that slot. Sometime it is very painful to browse thru the whole list to get to the disc I wanted to play. If you are planning to load all 400 discs, be prepare to spend an hour for the machine JUST to load (recognize) your entire discs collection and only about 5% of the titles could be picked up. The rest you will have to manually key them in using a PS/2 keyboard. A pizza delivery would be good idea ‘cause you won’t have time to do anything else for another 3 – 4 hrs. I use an Excel spreadsheet to keep up with each disc and it works out pretty good. The main reason I brought this machine is because of its capacity so I won’t have to keep getting up and changing disc for my two kids; in the long run it is good for your disc due to less handling. For the price (paid $309), picture quality, and convenience (once it’s setup), I would recommend this machine to anybody especially with small children.

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  • 4
  By member: K1atOdessa - Nov 21, 2005

Good player with high capacity, some flaws

Strengths: Ability to store 400 disks in a relatively small space.

Weakness: Slow to recognize disks, "Auto Play" feature does not work correctly.

I currently have a Sony 400-Disk CD MegaChanger to house all my CD's. As my DVD collection has increased, it became apparent that a single-disk DVD player was an annoyance. The ability to keep all my DVD's together in a small area and the reduction of the risk of damage by handling made a 400-Disk DVD changer a necessity.

Before the DVP-CX995V arrived, I used (2) 200-Disk cases to hold all my DVD's. The weight of the two cases made transport inconvenient and the time-consuming effort of finding the desired DVD was horrible. Now, I have all my disks contained in the DVD MegaChanger accompanied by a spreadsheet containing the DVD located in each carousel slot (this is the same way I organized the CD MegaChanger). Using an external spreadsheet to list all the disks is helpful due to the fact that there is a name length limitation, and many disk names can extend beyond this limit.

Overall, the DVD MegaChanger did exactly what I expected it to do: contain all my DVD's and let me watch them on my TV. Initial setup was easy, although inserting disks is time-consuming. I would recommend the DVP-CX995V to anyone with a large collection of disks who wants to organize them into one place.

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Reply by member: kwkkwk
Dec 31, 2005

"...there is a name length limitation, and many disk names can extend beyond this limit"
I addressed this by using the Artist field for info besides artist. For example: Title- The Prisoner of Azkaban, Artist- Harry Potter; Title- Tomorrow Never Dies, Artist- James Bond
This way you can sort by "Artist" and group franchise movies together.

  • 4
  By member: ljrodriguez - Nov 28, 2005

Great Add On to Home Theater System

Strengths: 400 slots for DVDs, Music CDs and Photo CDs, 720P output through HDMI, SACD through 5.1 speaker output.

Weakness: Continuing problem with startup, SACD through 5.1 output, usless connection cable, 21" depth required to install.

I purchased this unit to suplement my existing Sony CX875P 300 disc changer as my DVD and Photo CD libraries were growing. I was attracted to the 720P HDMI interface, the ability to play SACD and the ability to store and display my photo cds on my DLP screen. The price I purchased this unit was great and the delivery was excellent. Kudos to Electronics Expo.
My A/V system includes an HDTV with the HDMI input connection and my receiver handles the 5.1 output from this player. Hookup was relatively easy and I was able to accomodate the larger depth as I have my equipment setup in an open rack. However, check your space before you get this unit!!!
The startup problem with Sony DVD changers has been around for a long time and the countless requests, writeups, etc does not seem to get through. However, this is more of an annoyance for me as I resolved it by either never turning off the unit or issuing the folder or open command when the unit is first turned on.
This unit will output through HDMI at 1080i, or 720p or 480p. I used 720p as my HDTV downsizes 1080i. I do see an improvement over 480P and 480i but that's me. You should try to see for yourself. It would have been nice to output 720p through composite but HDMI is a one connection cable and inexpensive at Radio Shack.
I have not run into any problems with my photo cds and I am glad of that. I finally have a place to catalog and store my photo cds. I also impress people with the display of the photos through my HDTV using a minimum of effort.
My receiver had only the 5.1 input left, which was fortu-nate but I was surprised the SACD require's the 5.1 cables to be the interface, not the digital coax or fiber. The result is my receiver cannot change the play of any audio output that comes out of this changer (like stadium, night club, stereo, etc). Another annoyance I have to deal with (and no, I do not want to add any more cables outside the 5.1 and HDMI).
Speaking of cables, the one that comes with the unit is totally useless. It's the component red, white (audio) and yellow (video) cable. Using this cable defeats all the enhancements this unit was built for. The cable is so short, you would have to keep the changer directly behind the HDTV.
Overall I give this unit 4.25 out of 5. Getting rid of those little DVD boxes and cd jewel cases along with those storage units is wonderful.

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  • 5
  By member: JustPlainDon - Feb 10, 2006

Good player, huge capacity, lots of features

Strengths: Plays my DVD+R DL discs (Verbatim), huge capacity, accepts PS-2 keyboard input for titles

Weakness: Large size is too deep for most component shelves.

I've had the unit for less than 24 hours and so far I like what I see. Despite what I've read elsewhere, the unit does play my DVD+R DL discs (only tested a few Verbatim discs so far). It has no problems with my single layer discs either (both -R and +R). Considering the number of discs, the wait for the unit to find a particular disc, load it, initialize and then play is not bad.

No HDTV at the moment (coming soon) so I haven't tested the HDMI output or the upscaling to 1080i.

Right now, I'd recommend this unit to people who have large DVD collections and that watch their movies repeatedly.

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  • 4
  By member: rsetlur - Mar 10, 2006

Sony MegaChanger

Strengths: Great picture quality, hdmi upconversion, store all your discs

Weakness: AutoStart problem, no way to directly go to a disc on remote

This is great changer for both CDs and DVDs. You can store all your dvds by numbers and use a harmony remote to select disc.

Forget the built in disc explorer. Since most media dont have premade titles, you will have to input it manually.

After using it for a few months, I am very happy with the picture quality over svideo and now over hdmi to my plasma tv.

The only solution for the infamous autostart problem is to hit the stop button on the harmony remote. By the way, did I mention you need to definately buy a harmony remote if you use this thing. Then you can use the harmony's media trick to select the disc you want.

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  • 4
  By member: 9eagles - May 19, 2006

BIG, BAD, GOOD

Strengths: Holds many DVD's. Great Picture.

Weakness: Long wait to load desired DVD. Not easy to set up. Set for 2 Channel audio as default (you giviing me HDMI and you think I only use 2 channels and not 5 or 7???)

This thing is huge. Keep that in mind when you think of space to put it.
I love the picture, but setting it up was a pain (I lost the manual). I fought for days trying to get 5.1 audio set up. I finally downloaded the manual from the Internet.

I hate the disk loading when you start it (it takes too much time). I turn it on and then fire up the projector to allow it time to load the last CD only to unload it and open the door to put in the new CD or select the one I want to watch.

In all, I really like it.

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  • 1
  By member: nr35 - Aug 29, 2005

No HD component video output

Strengths: 400 disk changer

Weakness: Beware this unit supports up conversion of DVD to 1080i and 720p only with HDMI output which is HDCP compliant. Player will NOT send 1080i and 720p output signals on component video output (y cr cb).

Beware this unit supports up conversion of DVD to 1080i and 720p only with HDMI output which is HDCP compliant. Player will NOT send 1080i and 720p output signals on component video output (y cr cb).

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  • 1
  By member: videoducto - Dec 25, 2006

No what I expected

Strengths: read all kind of discs, even homemade dvd-/+RW,cd or mp3

Weakness: Hard and grievous access to any disc

First at all I ‘m a profound users manual’s reader. That’s the first thing you have to do, to understand any new generation electronic device. And I study the DVP-CX995V manual from page 1 to 92 so many times, and I got very disappointed with the most important feature for me. The easy and fast disc surfing. With this machinery you have to go from disc 1 to 200 looking one by one trough the disc explorer pushing your finger continuously on one key of the remote, or you have to step up from your sofa and touch the 100 disc skip button on the unit. And don’t count with the numeric key on the remote, since they are useless. Why Sony didn’t’ design just the touch number on the numeric key, plus disc button on this powerful equipment remote control?

http://ai.pricegrabber.com/uploaded_images/006000-006999/006356.jpg  

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  • 1
  By member: buster101 - Dec 21, 2006

Good Idea Very Very bad implementation and service!!!

Strengths: Storage capacity is great.

Weakness: Has trouble playing DVD +/- and duel layer disks, very slow exchanging disks, is noisy and gets noisier with time, poor or no auto movie title input too many other weaknesses to put here.

This is my first time ever giving a review of a product but this item is so bad and SONY's service is so terrible that I just had to do this.
I've owned the SONY DVP-CX995V for 16 month's, Aug 2005 through Dec 2006. I researched this item and read reviews considered the negative comments but still decided to buy it. My unit worked reasonably well considering that I had to purchase a keyboard to input movie titles and it would not play some DVD + or - or duel layer disks (It seems to pick and choose which one it will recognize, start or play without stopping or pausing, at it's own whim). As time went on that problem got worse. It will not play any CD or DVD that has a Minor scratch or slight smudge (my other DVD Players have no problem playing them). This month it started hanging up with disks still in the play mode and only after a lengthy process can I get it to release the disk. It keeps erasing the titles from it's list and I have to retype them in (it will only let you re-enter the disks it identifies at the time although the player is full) or keep a separate hard copy or computerized data list. It will not play 90% of the 399 music CD'S or DVD disks. There are other Problems with this unit so when you read the negative comments of others concider them as fact.
I contacted SONY but of course the major problem didn't happen until the 1 yr warranty was over so they would only exchange it at a cost of $256.00 + tax and shipping for a Re-manufactured one or return for repair at a cost of $188.00 + tax and shipping (return shipping free). There are no other choices.
I like the idea of having one place to store and play my disks and SONY has provided me with an expensive storage box but not anything to play them on.
I am or was until now a staunch SONY advocate almost all of my multimedia equipment is or has been SONY products but no more they have lost me as a customer.
"DO NOT BUY THIS PRODUCT"!!! I didn't listen to the warnings and now I am paying the price!!!!!

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  • 5
  By member: sclamdrs - Feb 15, 2006

Great for organizing a lot of dvds

Strengths: 400 dvds in one place with great picture

Weakness: Sometimes seems a little slow

This is a excellent organizer in a relatively small space for reducing the chaos of a lot of dvds. Sometimes seems a little slow, but this is a small price to pay for the convenience. Also the picture is great. This is a fine companion to the Sony mega cd only changers.

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  • 4
  By member: dmf415 - Jan 19, 2006

sony dvd 400 disc changer

Strengths: works just like my regular DVD player cept u can throw 400 discs in it.. keeps my place a little tidier

Weakness: has region code checking.. anyone have a hack for this? Also , this thing is huge.. i didn't think that this would not fit in my tv stand.

Filing away your DVDs is time consuming.. but I think its all part of the fun. It helps alot that you can use a ps2 keyboard for filing away your DVD movies. I haven't fully read the instructions but it appears you have to preview the dvd before labeling.. but hey... i didn't try to remember what slot i threw my dvd in.. i just threw em all in the changer.. and previewed them before filling out the database.
Once filled you can view the title of the cd on the led screen on the front of the machine by pressing a few buttons on the remote. although it only shows a certain amount of characters.

This changer is ideal for those who want to keep their tv center nice and tidy.. its also a lazy mans player as you don't have to get out of your seat to change dvds.

Another thing... a few people have mentioned you can't turn auto play off.. INCORRECT INFORMATION RTFM PEOPLE! You turn off the autoplay dvd on powering on within the custom menu settings. Look in the back of the manual under troubleshooting and it tells you where to turn off autoplay !!!!

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Reply by member: qwertyv
Feb 6, 2006

Could you let me know how you managed to turn auto play off? I bought this unit two days ago. One of the first things I did was turn the Auto Play feature off. It's not only in the troubleshooting section (p.88) of the manual, like you mention in your review, but there's also a section for it on page 80:

Custom Setup -> Auto Play -> Off.

This doesn't work for me either, just like many people on this and many other reviews I've read.

Your instructions, if different from p.80 on the manual, would be useful to me and others...

Reply by member: jed1
Nov 16, 2006

Did you ever find a region hack for this? I bought one in the US whilst on a business trip and am now back in the UK. Would be great if I could make it region free.

Reply by member: huffdav
Dec 15, 2007

I also have one of these units and need help with setting the region code for Pal and US...I see that the CX985 Sony has already been done...so that means this one can also. If anyone can help please send the instructions to me...hudv380@aol.com

  • 3
  By member: DMLloyd - Jul 8, 2006

Convenient access to 400 discs. SACD and HDMI are a...

Strengths: Video and digital audio quality is very good (I'm using an HDMI-DVI cable for the video and a high quality coaxial cable for the digital audio). The player also plays back JPEG pictures and MP3 audio.

Weakness: There are two problems I am experiencing with the player: SACD playback (audio dropouts when listening to SACDs) and HDMI>DVI upscaling does not work.

I recently purchased the Sony DVP-CX995V to replace our older DVP-CX985V. For us, the main differences between the two were the reasons for upgrading to the newer model; digital HDMI video output with upscaling of DVD movies to high-definition, the new version of Sony's Disc Explorer, and 192kHz/24-bit audio D/A converter (the same specification as the DVP-CX777ES model) for SACD playback.

The new Disc Explorer is faster, mainly because it does not display the jacket cover pictures for each disc in the main menu as did the previous versions. Other than that the two players are fairly similar.

A few general points to note about previous and current Sony DVD/SACD changers:

- SACD (Super Audio Compact Disc) playback is analog output only.

- DVD-audio discs cannot be played.

This model, like most others, cannot play the second side of a dual-sided DVD disc.

The majority of DVD video discs do not have title information (which is displayed in the Disc Explorer menu). For this you will have to type in the information by attaching a keyboard to the player. All of the SACD discs we own already have title information on the disc. For discs which do contain title information, the text cannot be edited.

There are two problems I am experiencing with the DVP-CX995V:

- SACD playback.

For reasons unknown, I experience random audio dropouts when listening to SACDs. I have over 30 titles, all of which are brand new, with no scratches/dust/fingerprints. The DVP-CX995V is installed on an isolation platform (using four isolation bearings for vibration dampening), is supplied with clean power (as is all of the other AV equipment), and is connected to my preamplifier using two high quality DH Labs analog interconnect cables with locking RCA connectors. I have tried cleaning the lens of the DVP-CX995V several times, but I still get random audio dropouts regardless of which SACD title I play...

I have never experienced any problems with digital audio from the player.

Also, I can't get SACD surround sound, as the analog inputs on my preamplifier are two channel (stereo) only. (5.1 surround output needs six inputs).

I really wish Sony would get their act together and make digital output standard for all SACD playback. Currently a few of the ES receivers have iLink inputs for digital SACD playback, and only a few ES models of single disc players have iLink output. Having to use analog audio connections between components is far from ideal, and vastly limits the potential of this audio format.

- HDMI upscaling.

The HDMI upscaling on my DVP-CX995V does not work, period.

The reason why ? Because it is connected to a Sony high definition screen (PFM-42X1/B) using HDMI output from the player into a DVI input on the display. The player recognizes an HDMI connection, but will only output 640p. Even the Disk Explorer menu is displayed as 4:3 on a 16:9 screen (automatically switching between 16:9 and 4:3 for DVD movie playback does work).

Calling Sony support didn't provide a solution.

The thing that really worries me is that Sony are moving towards HDMI output on all of their consumer video products, and it is highly likely that they won't work with DVI either.

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  • 5
  By member: twoallame - Jun 10, 2006

Sony DVD 400 disc Player

Strengths: 400 disc capacity

Weakness: Won't let you push in the disc number, on the remote manually

Read other reviews that complained about the format in choosing the disc number but I find it easier then getting up opening the player, locating a new disc loading and playing the new disc. I can just sit on the coach and use the remote to play any or all 400 discs with out getting up. This is a wonderful unit. I will now consider getting the Sony juke box CD player for all the cds that I have. This is just too convenient. Ideal audio and video where I purchased the unit was very efficient in delivery of my purchase.

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  • 3
  By member: prothstein - Dec 19, 2005

Advertises HDMI, but no cable!?!

Strengths: Disc capacity

Weakness: No HDMI cable supplied

Not much experience using this unit yet, but right off the bat, the lack of a supplied HDMI cable is a real pain. Purchased because it has an HDMI out, it is advertised as such, and emblazoned on the box, but product arrives and (since I live in a rural area) I have to either drive 30 miles or wait several days to hook it up...

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  • 4
  By member: johndoe2019 - Oct 26, 2007

it's easy

Strengths: Holds 400 DVD's, CD's, etc. Upconverts movies to 1080i if you have HDMI. Without early adopting Blu Ray or HD DVD, it's awesome in my book.

Weakness: The menu and documentation are lacking. I strongly dislike the way that discs are labeled in the explorer menu. Labeling from the PC in the future is my recommendation to Sony.

I heard one user say that the Sony DVP-CX995V is hard to operate, especially between changing discs. IT'S EASY WHEN YOU KNOW HOW.

To Skip 100 discs at a time:
On the remote, have the function tab selecting "DVD" instead of TV, or DISC EXPLORER. Then under "Volume", press the "+" or "-" key to skip ahead or back.

To Skip 10 discs at a time:
On the remote, have the function tab selecting "DISC EXPLORER" instead of TV, or DVD. Then with the FOLDER window view open, under "Volume", press the "+" or "-" key to skip ahead or back.

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  • 2
  By member: 45shooter - Nov 22, 2006

DVD Carousel

Strengths: Capacity

Weakness: Won't play DVD-R and can't program A DVD playlist

This is a good player with two major weaknesses IMO. One - you can't program a DVD playlist _this really surprised me as you can with the previous 300 disc player. It's the feature I wanted most - I have lots of TV seasons of various shows and I often programed my favorite episodes to play in sequence as well as program a list of movies for an evening. What's really weird is that you can program CD's - why not DVD's? Major bummer. Two - it won't play any of the hundreds of dvd-r's I've burned. After you load one, it reads for several seconds then says "no signal detected" then turns the unit off. Why - when the 300 disc units play everything? Sony took a step forward with this unit - increased capacity - and two steps back - no programability and no dvd-r playability.

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  • 3.9
  testseek.com - Oct 22, 2008

Sony DVP-CX995V

Testseek.com has collected 3 expert reviews for Sony DVP-CX995V and the average expert rating is 78 of 100. The average score reflects the expert community’s view on this product. Click below and use Testseek.com to see all ratings, product awards and conclusions.

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  • 2.6
  TopTenREVIEWS.com - Jul 16, 2008

Sony DVPCX995V

Sony DVPCX995V receives an overall TopTenREVIEWS score of 2.07 out of 4.00. It is ranked the #55 standard DVD player of all time. The overall rating represents an intelligent balance of features, value as a function of price to features, and a summary of reviews from a variety of sources. The TopTen REVIEWS' formula gives a picture of important consumer features, market value, and a product's...

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