Price Paid:  $300.00 from futureshop

Summary:
DO NOT BUY THIS PLAYER. I had a laser failure 1.5 years after it was purchased (1 year warranty). 100$ to fix it and no guarantee it would not reoccur. This is a VERY common occurrence, you can read about it on messageboards.

Strengths:
Not too pricey for a 5 disc player, good sound/picture.

Weaknesses:
Bad laser that fails after warranty expires. Sometimes makes a squeaking sound while playing.

Similar Products Used:
other dvd players

Price Paid:  $350.00 from Best Buy

Summary:
Ahhh yes, this is my first DVD player, and frankly, the only DVD player i'll ever need, until HD DVD comes out, that is. First, let's get the most important aspects out of the way, the visual and audio quality.The video quality is phenominal.I can't count how many DVD's i've watched so far, but i can tell you one thing.Every one of them looked as good as the source material would allow.The video is crisp, clear, rich full, sharp as a tack, colors are produced flawlessly.In other words, it delivers a pristine image.When comparing it to watching a movie at the movie theater, the movie looks sharper and clearer, and the color is vastly better.Perfect.This is using S-Video, BTW.On a 27 inch Magnavox Trinitron, which only Sony Wega's can beat in analog image quality. The audio quality.Well, let's just say it's just as perfect as the video quality.When i first got the player, all i had to listen to it was the TV's speakers.It sounded amazing.Y'know, for TV speaker sound.Then later, and for a while now, i've have it hooked up to a Philips MX955 5.1 soundsystem.Don't let that soundystems price fool you, it delivers a reference quality aural experience.So, of course, whenever i watch a DVD, it sound better than it did in the movie theater.Watching Episode 1, i was literally blown away.The audio quality is like being in the theater, except louder, and slightly clearer.Excellent. Menus are in depth and easy to navigate.Playback options are many.Many different ways to fast foward and rewind. Read times are excellent.Handles the most advanced features, such as on Planet of the Apes like a champ. Cd audio quality is fantastic.I never knew Audio CD's could sound as amazing as tey do when i'm playing them with this DVD player on my 5.1 soundystem.BTW, i'm susing an optical connection, of course.Optical is the best, don't let anybody tell you any different. The only downsides to this unit are the load button isn't on the remote.The remote itself, is excellent.Major functionality, without being too bulky.Don't complain about it, it isn't hard to figure out. I have heard the hissing sound of the laser reading from time to time.It only happens once in a while, and honestly, it's barely noticeable.Even when i was watching DVD's on the TV's speakers, it was never bothersome.

Strengths:
Everything that matters.A $1500 dollar player wouldn't play DVD's any better, bottom line.

Weaknesses:
No load button on the remote.Price is at an excellent point right now.

Similar Products Used:
Seen a good amount in the store.

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
My wife accidently pushed the tray, not very hard, and the unit is trashed. We took it to Circuit City for repair and they quoted $100 just to look at it. I took it apart and nothing is broken, just out of sequence and there is no way I can figure out the correct tray timing so we are out $379!!!!!!!!!!!1

Weaknesses:
tray

Price Paid:  $300.00 from Samman's Electronics

Summary:
My wife and I were in the market for a new CD changer, and when we realized that you could get a DVD/CD changer for only a little more money, we decided to go that route. This was partly due to the fact that we were also getting a new TV (Sony 27" Wega -- separate review to be written). We decided on this model partly due to a sale taking place at the time and partly to Consumer Reports giving this changer a top rating.

My first comment has to be that if you buy this player or currently own it, for God's sake use those Component Video output jacks!! I have NEVER seen a picture as clear as the one output by this player when displayed on my Wega in the TV's 16:9 Enhanced mode. If your TV doesn't have Component Video inputs, save your $ and buy one that does. Otherwise you've wasted your money buying this DVD player, when you could have had a cheaper one without the Component Video outs.

On a related note, if you have an A/V receiver that you're using for the audio handling, don't route the video through it unless you've got a top-line receiver with Component Video in/outputs. Instead, run the video straight to the TV via the Component Video and deal with the hassle of changing your TV's video input source. It really does make a difference, even over S-Video!

Now, the audio quality. Currently, I listen to both DVD's and CD's through my regular 75W 2-channel receiver to a pair of Allison Acoustics AL115's. The volume levels when sent over the analog RCA jacks are actually louder than my VCR, so I'm not sure where some of the reviewers are coming from saying that the output is weak (maybe low sensitivity speakers? My Allisons have a 90dB sensitivity). CD playback is good, certainly as good as or better than our old 5-disc changer (some no-name brand from the old DAK catalog). DVD playback is also quite good, and I haven't had any problems with making out dialog (given that it's a 2-channel system, that is) or getting overwhelmed by the sound FX.

I just purchased an Onkyo TX-DS595 to replace the current receiver, and will be listening to 5-channel audio from that point on via the coaxial digital output. I'll post an update to this after I've had some time to see how the sound has changed (if at all).

BTW, I'm glad you're given the choice between using coaxial or fiber-optic for your digital output. From all I've heard, coaxial is generally better, but it's something of a subjective rating and it's good in my book to have the option to experiment.

Overall, I think this is a good "budget" buy as long as your TV has Component Video inputs and you're on a reasonably good-quality audio system. Otherwise, look for a lower cost model or one that has a higher rating here on AudioReview.

Strengths:
Component Video output, optical and coaxial digital outputs

Weaknesses:
Confusing to set up

Similar Products Used:
None -- First DVD Player

Price Paid:  $250.00 from www.futureshop.com

Summary:
If you've been having problems reading CD-Rs, this should please you. I believe the problems were due to the calibration of the laser. The following procedure enabled me to read CD-Rs in my machine.

By pressing (one after the other) "title", "clear" and the "power" button while dvd player is in standby mode will bring you to a hidden menu (make sure your TV is on!). Select option 1 from the TEST MODE MENU (Drive auto adjustment). From the next submenu choose option 4 (SACD). The tray will open allowing you to put in a CD-R into the player. Follow the on-screen instructions, the first steps are fast but after a while, it checks jitters and that takes forever, hitting "return" then will stop the process. In my case, eventhough I aborted the operation, after I exited the hidden menu, I was once again able to read CD-Rs.

Strengths:
Optical output connected to good amplifier gives great 5.1 (cinema-like) surround sound.

Weaknesses:
Some annoying details in the menus but nothing major. Had problems with some CD-R, found a fix though, (no need to reburn all my discs or to change brand).