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Disk storage issues led me to investigate juke-box style players. Surprisingly there are only a few on the market. I've always had good experiences with Pioneer, but they haven't updated their carousel players in since the late 90s, while Sony has kept up with new formats and digital video. Pioneer max capacity units hold 301 disks; Sony, 400. The decision was finalized when a Frye's Outpost web special offered the Sony cx995 for only $199.

It takes a few seconds for the carousel to spin and load the selected disk. DVD picture quality is excellent on my Pioneer Elite HD RPTV at 480i with the TV doing the de-interlacing. It will output in 480I or P, 720P, or 1080i. I use the component outputs and my picture is stunning. It has all the common output flavors including HDMI. It reads SACD, DVD/RW, video CDs, mp3, and a whole bunch of other formats.

Its my CD player too. The CD audio via the coax out sounds just as good through my CI DAC as they did on my previous player, also a Sony. I have two-channel only, so I can't assess the SACD or 5.1. The cx-995’s DAC is typical of consumer grade and somewhat harsh compared to a quality outboard DAC or receiver. Since most Asylum readers will use an HT receiver or outboard DAC, this isn't as critical as ten years ago.

The downside of the cx995 is its disk management and on-screen interface. Its supposed to recognize disk information and file it for the on-screen menu. In fact, it only recognized a few of the DVDs I loaded, and none of my audio CDs. If you want to use the player's on-screen selection menu, you’ll need to either enter the info with a pc keyboard or the controls (masochists only). Further, some owners report that the unit has a tendency to simply lose all data for no apparent reason. On the other hand, you can do as I, and many cx995 owners do and simply maintain a spreadsheet listing of disks and slot nos. and keep a paper copy handy. Easy and more practical, since you don't need to have the TV on to pick a CD, just enter the disk number. This, though is not a good option for those who want kids or the remote control-challenged to be able to use the unit. Not that it’s hard…it only takes two buttons…but it’s not at all intuitive.

Other minor peeves: it automatically starts reading the last disk accessed when power is turned on, the remote is cheesy with very tiny buttons, and one must be careful to load a rental disk into the precise slot selected (don’t forget its number!). You can’t program the disk or track play either.

In summary, the 400-disk DVP-cx995 is a couch potato's dream. You simply can’t beat the convenience. The 400-disk capacity holds all my CDs and DVDs, and I’ll probably never touch them again except to remove them. No more fussing with jewel boxes! Performance is outstanding for the price range. If you have a good outboard DAC, its also a good primary CD player. I’ve been using it daily for several months now and have had no problems with the mechanism. Sony warns against moving the unit with disks loaded; if they shift they’ll be damaged when its turned on. There are some issues with the disk data and on-screen interface, buts for me that’s low priority issue compared to making life simpler and doing away with the need for storage space.

Product Weakness:	On-screen interface and disk data management
Product Strengths:	Convenience, video quality, multi-format

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