Great DVD

CD not so good

This player has great video and is a quick change on double sided DVD's. I have had no problems in my 2 years of ownership and it has played every DVD I have ever rented (~150). I have come to the point that I prefer to watch movies on DVD than at the theater because of the supierior audio. My system consists of a B&K AVP-1030 processor, this sony DVD player, Front - Paradigm Active 20's, Center - Paradigm Active 450C, Rear - Paradigm AMS-300 in wall, Sub - (2) NHT 12" passive, Sumo Polaris sub-amp, H/K PA220 rear amp and Audio Contro active cross-over.


The CD audio is not so great. It will not play some of my CD's that play fine on other players that I own (Denon, Sony) and does not sound all that great. I would be nice if it had DTS, but this is not a big deal to me considering my B&K AVP-1030 doesn't have DTS either. I am looking to get a Denon AVR-5700 and this may be a larger deal then. I will up-date you if and when this happens.

I am giving it a four star rating although its higher but its not a five star because of the CD portion.

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This is my firsr DVD player

Great overall design and powerful remote functions. Unlike many first generation DVD players, this player has little trouble with layer changes on RSDL disks and, on 99.9% of the DVDs available, the layer change goes unnoticed.

Not DTS compatible.

In my opinion, the absolute best of the first generation players. As stated above, the layer changes on RSDL discs is virtually unnoticeable. The construction is sturdy and the remote functions are plentiful.

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None.

This unit has played every DVD ever place in it's tray.
Excellent picture.

None in 1997.
2001; no DTS and no component output

This unit has performed flawlessly. It has played every (clean) DVD or CD placed in it's tray. I have had this unit since 1997 and have replaced all other components in my system at least once; yet have kept this player. It passes the DD 5.1 signal however will not pass DTS signals.

This unit, though long in the tooth, has been and continues to be an excellent value. I rate this unit five by five.

Sony DVP-S3000 DVD player, Sony KP53 XBR200 TV, Yamaha 2095 as pre/pro (upgrading soon), cinepro 2k6III amp, PSB Silver i's front, PSB mini's rear, PSB C6i center, PSB Sonic 7 sub, Sony SAT A4 digital Satelite receiver, Yamaha CDC 565 CD player, and JVC HR-S4500U S-VHS.

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None; this is my first and only unit.

Great video and audio for DVD's. Also a very good CD player as well.

No DTS output or component outputs.

I am glad that I bought this back at the end of '97. I have heard a lot of nightmare stories about playing problems with other DVD players that have been fourth generation players. I haven't had a single problem with this player and I have had over two years. Its a shame that they are not being made anymore.

Great features, good picture and sound.

Unit stops while playing DVD no recovery possible. Happens on 95% of all DVDs, new or rented, clean or dirty.

Have had the Sony DVD S3000 since it's introduction into the market and have loved having it, especially when it was new technology and there were few offerings in the market at the time. I have never thought of replacing it except for one flaw; the unit stops in the middle of a movie, for no reason and the unit must be reset and indexed forward throught the scenes or chapters beyond the place of freeze up to continue watching the moving. This usually takes about 5 to 10 minutes to get done and takes the fun out of watching the movie, especially if you have guests watching movies with you.

One word would describe it. Quality

Poor remote control. Lack of DTS support.

I've used the 3000 for almost 2 years now. I own about 70 DVD's, and I have had no problems with the Sony reading any of the discs. I also use this player as my CD player. This player works all the time.

Excellent picture and sound

no DTS (if that's a big deal to you)

I have had the S3000 for several years now, and have not had ANY problems. I ran it head to head with the 7000, both on my set-up and (for my eyes and hears) saw no discernible difference. I thought I could hear a difference, but when I did a blind test I couldn't pick a consistent winner. I even compared the S-Video with the component video, and again I found when I adjusted the set for similar saturation etc.(using video essentials DVD) I could see no discernible difference. Perhaps, I'm no audiophile, or videophile...but by my ears and eyes (I'm pretty picky) there was no perceivable difference between the 7000 and the 3000. I have heard that they different DACs, so if you equipment (mine is admittedly entry level) and ears are up to the task, perhaps you could hear the difference.

Excellent Picture, Dolby 5.1, Solid construction (not an anchor, but seemingly well built otherwise). Very quiet.

No DTS. CD Audio (although good) is not 'audiophile' quality.

This was my first DVD player. I watch maybe 4-5 DVD's a week so it's been a workhorse and has never hiccupped in the two years I've constantly been using this player (My Pioneer LD player & Sony VHS just collects dust now).

During the time I've had this player I've come to understand what constitutes decent DVD playback (black levels, artifacts, pixelization, etc.). Within those 'parameters' the Sony DVP-S3000 simply outputs an excellent picture (on my Sony 36" XBR). Further, the DD 5.1 seperation is very distinct & clean (via it's optical output to a Harman Kardon AV500). The downside is it has no DTS although that isn't much of a biggy since the Dolby Digital is so 'crisp' on this unit anyway.

CD audio might be it's only real weakness. While it has a nice range & distortion level (2hz - 20khz @ .0028% THD), overall IMHO the soundfield imaging is a bit 'tight' (interestingly, audio seperation is not noted in 'specs'). But it is *damn quiet* though (s/n ratio is 107db). Another plus is the transport is very quiet (cannot hear disk/motor rotating) so there is no distraction in very quiet video/audio passages.

Being a 1st/2nd gen DVD player, I imagine the price of this unit has come down considerably from the $600 I originally paid. If you are looking for a great value on a used DVD player that otherwise does what it was *primarily* designed to do (display excellent video with great Dolby Surround), this should be a serious candidate for your money.

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My 1st DVD (although I've auditioned many others since purchasing this one)

Works great

Remote has lots of functions, but awkward set key placement

I bought this used and it works great. It has never not played a DVD, and I rent all of mine.

Great looking (relative to other units), good price to performance, automaticly selects 5.1 sound

None for my use of the product

I've had my Sony DVP-S3000 for over two years now, and it has performed flawlessly. Compared to some of the other comments I have read on the 97 crop of DVD players, it switches layers very quickly on dual layer DVDs.

I'm very pleased with my purchase two years later -- that's a strong statement in the fast pace of changes.