A 6 CD carousel with the ability to change CD’S while one is still playing TOS link. The remote is simple and gets the job done. A straight forward unit.

No button to turn off CD player on remote. Hardly worth mentioning

Addendum to the review below: The CD player has continued to age nicely, with burn-in time, but it's important to note that I got the biggest improvement by upgrading to Monster Cable interconnects and speaker wire. Now I swear there's a violinist in my living room playing Paganini. Such a big, sweet, full, clear, transparent sound. This just goes to show that your system is only as good as its weakest part, including the wires. If you try this CD player and think it sounds too harsh, you might want to try the Monster Cable upgrade, because apparently it can perform quite nicely.

6-disc; Custom File

poor ergonomics; less than stellar reliability

The ergonomics of this unit are poor:

o) repeat button resets to off at power off
o) the repeat button is not on player, but only remote!
o) disk skip button is in awkward place when tray is open
o) track LED's design is not great (no track calendar)

The unit has started "glitching" after only two years. I owned other (brand) players that lasted much longer (the Kenwood single play is still working after 12 years).

The reputation of Onkyo superior quality is a myth from my perspective, at least in this case.

Similar Products Used:

Sony ES 5-disc

Very nice sound, 6 disc changer, reasonable price.

No peak search, No headphone out.

I have use it for more than 1 year. The Onkyo DX-C540 produces a very good, clean sound. This is a great CD player for this price. I have been very pleased with it!

This carousel player is very sturdy in construction, rivalling equivalent models by Yamaha or Denon. I was very impressed with its performance for the price.
I recently upgraded to this changer from an old ES series Sony single-CD player, which had some great features that I'll miss (I like Sony's 20-track display grid), but I don't like the general usability of Sony's carousel changers (i.e., the drawer only comes out far enough to change one or two discs at a time and it takes 12-15 seconds to change discs...!).

The Onkyo 540 places all controls above the carousel tray, so that none are obscured when it's open. The tray comes out far enough to view 3 discs (though you can change out 5), and the disc change time is between 8-10 seconds (not as fast as Yamaha, but reasonable). Some other pluses include: digital output, custom program & file, next track selection (which allows you to specify which track to play next without interrupting the current selection). One minor complaint is the remote, which is missing a few key buttons that are on the player.

All in all, a well-built model that performs well and the 6-disc carousel is a nice touch that's unique to Onkyo. This is a great choice for middle-end quality changer at a low-end price.

The difference this system made to my sound system was incredible. CDs took on new life and music new dimension. Picked it up at J&R for $225.00 (shipping included). It was definately a good buy! It cannot be power off with a remote however, and the included remote seems very spartan.

I recently purchased the 540 for $270. It is definitely a great buy at that price. When I connected it to my NAD C340 and B&W 302s. I oculdn't believe the sound I was getting compared to my previous player. The sound was very crisp and defined.

This is a great player for the money. I recently purchased mine to replace an old (7 years) Pioneer cartridge changer. Changing discs is a snap with the wide open tray. It allows access to 3 discs simultaneously. I was considering a Sony changer w/ digital out, but the Onkyo is much more user-friendly. Changing discs was an important feature to me, and the 540 does the best job. The digital out is great too. I upgraded to a Yamaha RX-V785 receiver and the sound quality from the 540 is perfect. If you're considering a carousel changer from Sony or Yamaha - forget about them! I picked up my 540 for about $225 on the net - I couldn't find it at any local retailers. It was well worth the extra cash over the other carousels out there.

I got my c540 yesterday and have been putting it to the test with my Onkyo TS DX 474 Receiver and Energy Take 5 speakers. I compared with with a Technics SL-PD888 (about $100) cheaper and found a noticable difference in audio quality. Maybe not $100 better, (I would say maybe $40) -- but adding to that the digital output; the ability to use the receiver's remote to control the c540 (certain Onkyo components can share remotes, 'though the receiver's remote is minimalistic); and the 6 (vs. 5) CD tray -- made me decided to go with the c540. I found the access time between CD's to be on par with the Technics and much better than some of the Sony systems I tested at the store.
There were a few minor things that I think could be improved. I'm not complaining 'cause I really like the c540, but here they are, in case any are important to you.

1. The remote lacks an on/off button, forcing you to leave it on or shut off manually.

2. It has a larger footprint than the 5-disk players (435 x 131 x 433 mm)

3. The disc skip button on the player is too close to the tray and could be more intelligent (i.e. forward to 2-3 cd's instead of forwarding just one).

4. The tray holding the CDs seems a wee-bit flimsy and I worry that it may break if it gets banged around while I'm changing CDs. It's not terribly bad and probably not worse than any of the trays for players in this price range.

I purchased it at J&R for $225 (+ $16 2-day FedX). I spoke to the rep who dropped it from $250. I mentioned that someone from this site got it for $225 shipped, but he was unwilling to go cheaper. The local store was selling the lower end model (C340) for $230, so I think this was a decent deal for this quality player.

Ok, have had my Onkyo Changer since January. The electronics store I worked in was under Liquidation so I managed to buy it for $100! It was a display model, but I know personally that it was well taken care of! So far it has been the best $100!
My opinion is holding to just about everyone else's opinion. Great cd player, even if you have to pay the full retail of $299.99.... we sold it for $279.

I have tested the player on my setup, which consists of a Yamaha CX-630 preamp and a B&K ST-140 amp, with Klipsch KG-3.5 speakers. It seems to have a nice warm sensation to it. (And I have always been an "anti-changer" kinda guy) Not "Yamaha" warm but a pleasant warm. Surprising for its price range. Audio quality in general isn't stressed. Just constant.

The remote is decent, and manageable. And in general the unit is well built like most other Onkyo products. Earlier someone mentioned about about the platter being a little flimsy.... from most of the cd players I have sold and looked at, in that price.. the Onkyo stomps them all with its construction. Slightly flimsy, but probably built that way to be able to take the occasional bump. Instead of being stiff as a board?

In genral, if you can at this time of the year, still find this player.. BUY IT. You won't regret it!