Great to keep CDs this way and toss the jewel boxes...

Does not deliver a quality of sound acceptable in a high end system

I bought my first Sony 200-CD changer when they first came out - 96 I think, and it was great. Even to this day it has never given me any problem...a dream device. And it was more than good enough for my
old amplifier and speakers from the 1970s (albeit with Heil AirMotion Transformers! - best $70 I
ever spent). But when I upgraded to a pair of Newform Research R-645 speakers
(http://www.newformresearch.com), suddenly I started to hear just how bad a CD can sound!
Was it the amplifier (a sony GA9ESG)? No, I eliminated that. Was it that the speakers had not
settled in? No - I ran them long and loud for weeks. Finally I got a 96/24 DVD player (a Toshiba
SD3109) and started to use that for CDs. Suddenly all my problems were over. The CDs that were
giving me fits all sounded great. So: the Sony changers served me well for years and years, when
I had a crummy system. But the minute I upgraded, they failed to make the grade. Be forewarned.
By the way, if you put two sony CD-changers on top of each other they make a great little
coffee-table and the changers remain a fine way to store and access 400 CDs!!

Similar Products Used:

CX-225 - earlier generation of the same machine

Disc and track titling, On screen display, Ability to control a second changer, Keyboard input, Optical output, Sound quality, Delete file, Ability to hold 200 CD's and control another 200 disc changer

Slow and noisy transport, Rotates carousel completely when turned on, No optical pass through

I have owned the CX270 for about 4 months and have been very pleased with it. I purchased it new from the Sony Outlet Store in San Marcos, TX for $329. This unit has the capability of controling a second Sony CD changer. I already owned a CX255, but needed more space for my CD collection. The CX270 fits the bill.

One of the key features I have always like about this unit is the ability to store disc title, artist name, and track titles for all 400 discs. The titles are limited to 16 characters, and you are limited to labeling 16 tracks per disc. A PS/2 keyboard input is provided on the front to make the titling easier. I really like this titling feature because when I record CD's to MD, the unit transfers the disc and track title information to my MD recorder. You can also create a Delete file for each disc, which tells the player which songs you don't want to play. This feature is very handy if you like to just let the unit play for a long time while you are doing work or something.

Once all of the titling is done, the on screen display is very handy for sorting through all of it. The unit has a single RCA video out to run to your TV. Once hooked up, you can scroll through the disc titles on the screen using the remote. Once you select a disc to play, another screen comes up with the disc, artist, track, time, and play mode information on it. It is not necessary to use the on screen display in order to operate this unit, but it does make it much easier.

When using this unit to control a second Sony 200 disc changer, the CX270 takes over the other one completely. This is very handy, because the only reason you need to touch the other unit is for disc loading/unloading. If your equipment rack doesn't have much space, the other unit can be placed elsewhere. Neither the display nor the remote sensor of the slave unit is active while the CX270 is on. All of the buttons from the CX270's front panel will also control the slave unit. A very easy to use system.

I have also been very happy with the sound quality of this unit. CD's played in it sound almost as good as ones played in my DVD player. I don't know much about the D/A converters in this unit. My receiver has an optical input on the CD input, so I use that exclusively. The disc trasport on this unit is very good, and I've never had a problem with it jamming. It is also noticeably quieter than the one on my CX255.

There are a few things I don't like about this unit, however. First of all, the carousel rotates completely whenever it is turned on, or the loading door is closed. This takes about 10 seconds or so, which isn't long, but I don't like the wait. Also, there is no optical pass through for the slave unit, just an analog one. To get around this I've got the slave hooked up to another digital input on the back of my receiver. I also didn't like the way the unit interacted with my Sony receiver. When the unit is used by itself, I suggest using the CD1 remote setting. This way it interacts with other Sony equipment as a CD player. However, unlike my other player, it will not automatically switch the receiver to CD when a disc starts to play. In order for the unit to control a second CD changer, the CX270 must be set to command mode CD2 and the slave to CD3. (S-link cables must also be hooked up). When the CX270 is set to CD2, it starts flipping the receiver to Video 2 when a disc starts playing. The reason is explained in the manual, but I still don't like it. For some reason, mine quite doing this when I hooked up the second changer. Now when a disc starts playing, it doesn't do anything to the receiver, which is fine with me.

I would highly recommend this unit if you can still find one. For $329, I can't complain at all. This unit used to list for $1000. I don't know if it's worth that much, but it is a very nice CD player. I haven't found another CD player with this much titling capacity and flexiblity.

Similar Products Used:

Sony CDP-CX255

I bought this player in late 1997 for about $500.
The transport is slow (as much as 20 seconds to change discs) and very noisy.

The PS/2 keyboard port is an excellent idea, and I wish more manufacturers would do it, but it's implemented badly; typing quickly will make it drop keystrokes, and the very small maximum length on artist and title names is obnoxious. I haven't tried chaining players, but judging from the manual, it looks kludgey.

Sound quality seems acceptable, though not exceptional.

Several months after buying the player, the memory of disc names started getting flaky; most of them disappeared, and as I add more, older ones seem to disappear.

I have heard a lot of stereo store employees comment on the unreliability of the Sony megachangers, and know at least one person who went through two of them and had them both die before finally giving up on them.

I would not buy a model in this line again. I've heard some better things about Pioneer.

From the front panel and the owner' manual, it appear that this unit is a clone of the top of the line 90ES 200 CD changer. The $100 difference in MSRP is probably for the extra 4 year warranty that comes with the 90ES. Sound reproduction after three weeks break-in is very good for a $550 unit (thru mail order). Rotating motor and loading mechanism are noisy and sound like they can break down at any time (extremely annoying). The built-in microprocessor seems to have some bugs. On three separate occasions, the unit would suddenly stop playback after 5 or 6 four songs, despite the unit being in CONTINOUS PLAY setting (meaning it is supposed to play every songs from every CD that are loaded in the unit). I've owned this unit for only 3 months and cannot comment on its long term reliability which is definitely questionable. If the motor and loading mechanism can hold up after a couple of years, then this unit would be a good buy thru mail order for about $550. By the way, my previous CD jukebox was a $350 Pioneer unit and it also has its share of problem. I don't want to put out the impression that Sony jukebox are bad, you win some and lose some. (4 stars considering the low price)

System:
B&W 805's
B&W HTM2
B&W Dipole Rear
Denon AVR5700 receiver
KimberCable / Monster Cable (All bi-cabled)
Velodyne HGS-12
Sony CDP-CX270


I couldn't tell the difference between the CDP-ES90
and this unit. Both sound tremendous. Everything
is a plus on this unit EXCEPT for time to seek could
be improved....

All in all, relative to the dollars being spent..
I would HIGHLY recommend this to anyone!

Oh yea, On-Screen display has a high coolness factor
and the chicks seem to dig it..

Other than the ES series model this is Sony's top of the line 200 CD changer. It eliminates the difficulty in entering CD titles by allowing for connection of a standard PC keyboard (excellent feature). Quality is similar to other Sony CD players. With this type of product convenience seems to be the major selling factor and this unit really acheives that!