Sony BDP-CX960 400 Disc Blu-ray Disc / DVD MegaChanger (Black) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Initial review (10/09/2009), will update in the coming days:
Overall, I love it! Below are a few things I found while installing the unit:
My current entertainment center could not accommodate the changer due to its extremely large size. The width of the unit is pretty standard for a component; however, the height is 9.5 inches and almost 22 inches deep. My entertainment center does not have adjustable shelving, therefore the changer will not fit, and I will have to purchase a new shelving unit (bummer, but not a show stopper).
Once connected to my HDTV and surround receiver, the unit was very easy to set up via the onscreen guide. Initial set up was pretty quick, loading discs was not.
Okay, on loading my collection of 283 discs, the player began "Loading Disc Information" from Gracenote via the Internet. ***YOU MUST CONNECT THIS UNIT TO THE INTERNET*** or you will be forced to manually type the information into the player. I bring this up as I previously stated that I loaded 283 discs, and all but 12 could not be found on Gracenote. Why is this important? Well, you must type it in manually...... via the remote!! Prior models of this changer had a computer keyboard input for this, however, this one does not. Not a huge deal if it's only a few titles (it was like sending a text message a few years ago before QWERTY keyboards appeared on phones, for the letter "c" you have to hit the number 2 key three times, etc.) Actually, for 12 titles it was painful.
The player connected via the Internet to Gracenote for disc information. This process is time consuming so be patient. The "Loading Disc Information" portion for 283 discs took roughly 2 hours and 45 minutes. Once complete the changer will initially alphabetize your collection and place all the discs that it could not find at the top of each folder (e.g., Photo, Music or Video, etc.) This is where you have to type in the disc information.
Gracenote, hum, not so sure about this. Sort of strange results as I have both a DVD and Blu-ray version of a few movies and they are cataloged differently on the player. One example is "Young Frankenstein" one version is placed under "comedy" and the other under "horror". Also, it appears random, however, Gracenote found the movie "Airplane" which is roughly 29 years old, but could not find or have record of "The Wizard of Oz" on Blu-ray. Also, on boxed sets, it found some but not all of the collection (e.g., "Family Guy" it found disc 1, 2 and 4, leaving disc 3 to be manually entered???)
On BD-Live, pretty cool. You will need a USB thumb drive of at least 1 GB. And, the drive slot is on the back of the unit. So I would recommend that you place the drive in first before you place this unit into a cabinet and connect all the cables, as once you get going and then decide you need it, it's a bit cumbersome getting to the back of this unit (especially since it will be loaded with up to 400 discs, etc.)
On the rental slot, start loading your collection in slot number 2 as the "quick" rental slot is reserved for slot number 1. If you don't plan on using this, which I don't, then begin loading with slot 1. Actually, you can start loading disc wherever you want, just thought I would point that out.
Lastly, many of your DVD's will be located under multiple folders (e.g., Photo's and Video's) as the disc may contain JPEG images, which will qualify them as photo's, etc.
Well, I have only had the player now for roughly 27 hours and love it thus far. I will update this review if I experience any strange behavior or if something dramatically changes my opinion.
UPDATE 11/14/2009:
One month later, I still love it! There are reader comments and responses (below under comments) however, I thought I should make note that the player performed well with a power outage (I intentionally unplugged the unit to perform this test). This is extremely important if you have ever owned a prior Sony Megachanger as those units would not retain any data beyond at 6-8 hour period without electricity (I have personal experience regarding this and it was extremely painful.) This is a solid unit so far, and I promise to update this review and related comments should anything change. Stay tuned folks.
UPDATE 12/15/2009
Sony released a software update to the player today, December 15, 2009. I went from version 15.1.010 to version 15.4.013. The download and update was pretty smooth, and completed within 8 minutes. The screen on the unit will flash "Version Up 0/9", where there are 9 updates to be performed, etc. The system took the longest at 7/9 at roughly 4 minutes, however, when competed, you should see "Finished" on the box and it will then turn off. I have no details of this update as of yet. The system found two DVD's as NOT recognized (strange as they were there before), however, Gracenote found them and all is good. Best regards.
UPDATE 02/02/2010
Powered on the unit this evening and noticed I had 7 "unknown" discs (in various slots). Since I have not added any new discs in over a month, I was a bit concerned. Not sure what the problem/issue was, however, upon pressing the "load" button on the unit, the missing titles were restored from Gracenote. One positive note, the unit only scans the unknown discs to load, it does not attempt to reload the entire library. This is not a "show-stopper" for me, I still love this player!
UPDATE 01/03/2011
Purchased a boxed set (16 DVD's) and only the first four (4) were recognized by Gracenote. Strange, as the recognized disc's were the oldest dating back to 1988. I have submitted a service request to support@gracenote.com (providing all the required information) to get the information updated, will update this review on resolution. Still love the player.


Click Here to see more reviews about: Sony BDP-CX960 400 Disc Blu-ray Disc / DVD MegaChanger (Black)

Organize your disc library and enjoy quick access to 400 Blu-ray Disc movies, DVDs, and CDs with the Sony BDP-CX960 MegaChanger. A user-friendly interface makes it easy to find the movie, TV show or CD you're looking for by sorting and grouping title, genre, cast and more. The BDP-CX960 also features stunning Full HD 1080p quality in Blu-ray Disc technology and DVD upscaling to near HD quality.

Click here for more information about Sony BDP-CX960 400 Disc Blu-ray Disc / DVD MegaChanger (Black)

Read More...

Pioneer DV-F727 301 Disc DVD / CD / CD-R/ and RW Player Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I first purchased a Toshiba 3109 and then a Panasonic 220. Both units had typical dvd sound and picture quality and were fairly easy to use. But some of the features that I wanted were either missing or difficult to use. Also, I am very lazy, and when I had an occaisonal whim to see a portion of of a movie that was not already loaded, I usually did not bother. The Pioneer more than satisfied any disatisfaction that I had with the other players. With 300 + 1 discs available, a quick touch of the shuttle made any disc immediately available. The display menues are incredibly versatile and easy to use compared to other DVD players. And finally the picture was equal to the others, but the sound quality was MUCH, MUCH SUPERIOR. The price may be higher, but dollar for disc and overall quality and features make purchasing this Pioneer DVD a no brainer.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Pioneer DV-F727 301 Disc DVD / CD / CD-R/ and RW Player

The DV-727 will play DVDs, Video CDs, Audio CDs and CD-Rs, storing 301 discs in all. Engineered for superb audio and video reproduction, it also offers great convenience: you can enter title/artist CD text with a keyboard and mouse, find a disc or artist automatically, or sort discs for playback by type.

Click here for more information about Pioneer DV-F727 301 Disc DVD / CD / CD-R/ and RW Player

Read More...

Sony BDP-CX7000ES 400 Blu-ray Disc Mega Changer (Black) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The Sony "mega changer" is a unique product, capable of storing a medium-sized disc collection in a single, convenient device.
A wide range of disc types are supported in addition to Blu-ray, including conventional DVDs and audio CDs. Note that DVD-Audio, HD-DVD and SACD are *not* supported.
The build quality is first rate, typical of a Sony "ES" product. It weighs over 30 pounds and seems like it's built to last a while. It hooks up easily using a single HDMI cable (assuming what you're connecting to accepts this type of input). If you're using Sony gear, you can control the "mega changer" using a common remote and Sony's "Bravia Sync" protocol. For older equipment, there are 2 and 7 channel analog outputs, as well as digital coax. If you use high-end AV control system (such as Crestron), there are RS-232 inputs as well. The 5-year warranty is also a good touch.
In terms of sound and picture quality, I'd rate it as excellent. I have a variety of other high-end disc players, and in no case could I see or hear differences on the Sony. DVDs are upscaled for better performance, and the unit supports 24p True Cinema, BD-Live and so on. It supports all the latest surround audio formats and video features, and Sony has a built-in network connection supporting easy firmware updating. While I haven't seen a specific commitment from Sony to support future standards, at least the infrastructure is there if they choose to do so.
The unit also features a built-in Ethernet port that can connect to the Gracenote service to retrieve album art and disc cover graphics. This is a nice touch, saving you from having to manually enter disc information most of the time. Unfortunately, the graphics are sometimes low resolution and on a small display, they can be difficult to see clearly. Also, on prior generations of this product, Sony included a way to connect a computer keyboard so you could easily edit disc information. This feature has been dropped on the BDP-CX7000ES...so long as you're Ethernet connected and storing discs that can be found in the Gracenote service, this isn't a big deal - but if (for instance) you tend to burn your own discs and want to edit titles, it can be quite a chore doing it without a keyboard. Some complain about the lack of WiFi, but you can always use a wireless Ethernet bridge to eliminate the need for any cables (this is how I have mine connected, and it works fine).
Finding discs is always a challenge with units like this, and so Sony provides a variety of ways your collection can be indexed. It's possible to search by title, genre, rating - even director and cast member.
The unit can be somewhat slow loading and unloading discs, which I guess is a function of the size of the carousel. It can take 30 seconds to unload a disc, spin the unit to the desired slot, then load the chosen disc.
There's also a slot that can be used to play a single disc without loading it into the unit. This is a good idea, but as I've kept my single disc player connected to my system, I don't use the Sony for this type of disc. Similarly, there's a USB port for connecting various types of media to the unit (for instance, special BD-Live content, or photos, etc). So far, I haven't found a compelling use of this feature since it duplicates capabilities I have on other devices.
One problem I've had with the unit is that it seems sensitive to being moved - some of the discs seemed to move out of their slots just by sliding the device on its shelf. It seems important to not move the unit once its loaded with discs.
Although this is a fine unit overall, there are a few other areas that could use improvement:
1. WiFi should be built-in...I shouldn't need to buy an outboard Ethernet bridge to connect wirelessly.
2. The Gracenote service is still immature, mislabling about 10-20% of all discs.
3. Would be nice to have built-in support for Amazon's video on demand (or Netflix).
4. Takes a long time to setup initially if you have lots of discs. A wireless keyboard would be a big help.
5. The overall software interface is a bit clumsy...would be nice if it was easier to simply connect the device (over that USB channel?) to a Windows Media Center or iTunes.
6. It runs a bit hot in an enclosed cabinet and tends to generate audible fan noise.
7. Would be nice to have a way to link multiple units for those having more than 400 discs. While you can certainly connect multiple units to your system, each acts independently - without a coordinated index, you need to remember which discs are in which player.
Still, in spite of these shortcomings, I think this is a great product and I give it a solid four stars. It would probably be five stars for picture and sound quality, five stars for construction quality, and three stars for usability and software design.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Sony BDP-CX7000ES 400 Blu-ray Disc Mega Changer (Black)

Store, access and enjoy up 400 discs with Sony's premium Blu-ray Disc MegaChanger, the BDP-CX7000ES. A user-friendly on-screen interface makes it easy to sort and search by title, genre, cast and more, to quickly find the movie, TV show or album you're looking for.

Click here for more information about Sony BDP-CX7000ES 400 Blu-ray Disc Mega Changer (Black)

Read More...