This morning I installed the updated firmware on all four of my changers. The disk titles in the explorer were retained.

The only settings that were reset are the handful of options set through the Display menu, like default resolution, display brightness, that sort of thing.

Sean

Do you have a link for the firmware update?

It is in post 1735.

If anyone has been on the fence about getting one of these, and you live near a Sony Outlet store, give them a call. They have been selling refurbished units for a MINDBLOWING price. The price is so good that they sell like lightning, but the stores have been getting regular shipments in too. I picked up a 995 the other day and I have to say, so far I really like the unit. It has its flaws, but overall it's a very nice machine with a lot of features. I always wanted one of these, but I was waiting for the right price. My unit was extremely well packed, looks brand new, and works perfectly. You can find locations and phone numbers at www.sonystyle.com (Not many locations, but they're pretty spread out throughout the country.)

This morning I installed the updated firmware on all four of my changers. The disk titles in the explorer were retained.

The only settings that were reset are the handful of options set through the Display menu, like default resolution, display brightness, that sort of thing.

Sean

When I hold the "STOP" button and press "1" on the remote, when I release both, the last DVD played loads and plays. If you get this to work, which slot do you put the update dvd in. I'm confused. Thanks.

Jim

Alright I quickly looked through the pages of this thread for help but didn't see what I needed. I just bought this unit as a refurb, I put in a couple discs to test it out and it worked fine. So I put in all of my discs so that it could load all the data at once, but now it makes like a screaming sound and won't rotate all the way around. I can't see any obstructions or anything holding it back, I have rotated it all the way around with the door open, but it won't do it by itself. Has anyone heard of this problem? I would really like to not have to send it to Sony or bring it back to the store, since the store is hours away.

Tom3b848 - I had the same problem with my player and called Sony Support. They recommended me sending it back in. Since I did not want to send the player and all my discs to Sony, I took a gamble by removing a few screws and taking off the lid. Once inside I found there was a disc that came loose from the tray and was preventing the player from working. I removed the disc (which ended up getting scratched pretty heavily) and put the lid back on. It has worked fine ever since.

This may have voided the warranty, but at the time I did not care.

Okay, for those of you doing the firmware update, here's how to do it:

1. Turn on the player, and select slot one. Press Eject, and remove the existing disk from slot one (assuming there is a disk in there).
2. Put the CD that you burned with the firmware (be sure it is a CD, *not* a DVD) into slot one.
3. Press Close, then turn off the power after the door closes, but before the disk loads. Just keep trying until it listens and you see "power off" in the display. Then wait for it to turn off.
4. Press stop on the player, and while holding that down, press the 1 key on the remote. Release them and the player should turn on and load the firmware disk in slot one.

Wait for the message "loading firmware" on the display. Wait several minutes until it says "finished" on the display. You don't need the TV on, and you won't be able to see anything once it starts anyway, so watch the player instead.

5. When it says "finished" in the display, press the Power key on the player. It will turn off briefly, then turn back on.
6. Cut the power to the player for a short time, say ten seconds or so.
7. If the player doesn't turn on by itself, turn it on. Press the Stop and Eject buttons to make it stop loading and eject the firmware CD. When the door opens, remove it.
8. If you had your player set to "player 2" or "player 3" it will be reset to "player 1" at this point, so you'll need to go through the holding down the enter key on the player while pushing power to set it to the correct number. After that, go into the settings using the display key on the remote and set everything back the way you had it.

Done!

(There is nothing magic about slot one, it is just an easy to remember location so you are less likely to make a mistake and select the wrong disk.)


Sean

If anyone has been on the fence about getting one of these, and you live near a Sony Outlet store, give them a call. They have been selling refurbished units for a MINDBLOWING price. The price is so good that they sell like lightning, but the stores have been getting regular shipments in too. I picked up a 995 the other day and I have to say, so far I really like the unit. It has its flaws, but overall it's a very nice machine with a lot of features. I always wanted one of these, but I was waiting for the right price. My unit was extremely well packed, looks brand new, and works perfectly. You can find locations and phone numbers at www.sonystyle.com (Not many locations, but they're pretty spread out throughout the country.)

Thanks for the tip! I'm very tempted, but I already have four of them and my wife would beat me if I bought another one at this point, even if it was free. Still, I could use one in the bonus room... :)

On the other hand, maybe this means they are coming out with a new model in September and they are clearing stock prior to announce. I doubt it, but it is fun to think about. My personal guess is that the next iteration will start off life as an ES model, will do Blu-Ray, and will come out in the Spring of next year for around $1200+. Hey, if I get it right, remember you heard it here first! (Just idle speculation on my part, so don't get your hopes up.)

Sean

Okay, for those of you doing the firmware update, here's how to do it:

1. Turn on the player, and select slot one. Press Eject, and remove the existing disk from slot one (assuming there is a disk in there).
2. Put the CD that you burned with the firmware (be sure it is a CD, *not* a DVD) into slot one.
3. Press Close, then turn off the power after the door closes, but before the disk loads. Just keep trying until it listens and you see "power off" in the display. Then wait for it to turn off.
4. Press stop on the player, and while holding that down, press the 1 key on the remote. Release them and the player should turn on and load the firmware disk in slot one.

Wait for the message "loading firmware" on the display. Wait several minutes until it says "finished" on the display. You don't need the TV on, and you won't be able to see anything once it starts anyway, so watch the player instead.


5. When it says "finished" in the display, press the Power key on the player. It will turn off briefly, then turn back on.
6. Cut the power to the player for a short time, say ten seconds or so.
7. If the player doesn't turn on by itself, turn it on. Press the Stop and Eject buttons to make it stop loading and eject the firmware CD. When the door opens, remove it.
8. If you had your player set to "player 2" or "player 3" it will be reset to "player 1" at this point, so you'll need to go through the holding down the enter key on the player while pushing power to set it to the correct number. After that, go into the settings using the display key on the remote and set everything back the way you had it.

Done!

(There is nothing magic about slot one, it is just an easy to remember location so you are less likely to make a mistake and select the wrong disk.)


Sean

Sean: Thanks for the procedure, it worked fine. But, it did not solve my HDMI issue. None of my DVD players, including the Toshiba HD-XA2 will do the HDMI handshake with my Fujitsu P50(40) PDP. Back to the drawing board.

Jim

OK, gang, I have two quick questions about the 995. I just upgraded the firmware, just for kicks. The update seems to have gone smoothly, but is there a way to check the machine to see what version of the firmware is installed? Also, it's my understanding that this unit upconverts to 1080i, right? If so, is there a way to disable the upconversion? Just curious. Thanks for any information!

There doesn't seem to be a way to see the firmware level on the player. I think if there were a way, it would have been in the firmware update instructions. So, I guess there isn't one.

The upscaling resolution can be set in the player settings using the display key. If it is set to 480p, there will be no resolution upscaling (other than deinterlacing).

Sean

So I picked up two refurbed 995V's over the weekend, and I kinda have a love/hate thing going on. They both play movies great, but I had planned on using one as a CD jukebox and neither one will play CD-R recorded CD's. Anyone else have a problem playing recorded CD's? Certainly not a deal breaker for me, but really disappointing if there's no work around.

btw, this thread is huge! I read all 59 pages to make sure I wasn't repeating questions that had already been asked, but my eyes started crossing around page 43, so I apologize if this has been covered.

I just purchased a refurbished unit on that special and got the 2 year replacement warranty at a ridiculous low price. Thought that might be a good idea knowing some of the issues. So far unit works as described.

I am about to move into a new house and had a question regarding transportation. I am only moving a couple of miles away, should I go through the process of removing all of the discs? What I did last time was remove all of the discs and shut off the player before it could notice the discs were gone. Then I opened the unit before it could notice the discs were gone and loaded the discs in the same order. Worked like a charm, but I had to document what slot each disc was in. Very time consuming.

Anybody have any moving tips for the unit?


Did this work?
What do you mean by "removed the discs before it knew they were gone?"

I use a Philips ProntoProNG TSU7000 remote to control my DVD collection. Each disc I put into the changer's number slot is cataloged using InterVocative DVD Profiler software. I than program my TSU7000

So do you then browse through the pages on your pronto to pick the movie you want to watch?

Dont you have to list potentially 400 movies on that small screen of the remote?
How has that worked out?

So do you then browse through the pages on your pronto to pick the movie you want to watch?

Dont you have to list potentially 400 movies on that small screen of the remote?
How has that worked out?


Greetings,

I also use the Pronto TSU7000 along with my 995 adn it works very well. I download the DVD jacket photos and resize them. I can fit approximately 16 images per page. Each jacket photo corresponds to a disc slot. Pressing the photo loads the film.

I have them catagorized so pressing the catagory brings up the first page of jacket photos. I also keep a written list using a word document program so I know which DVD is assigned to which slot.

I have approximately 250 discs loaded and using this system I have never felt that finding a particular jacket photo was a problem. It is much faster than bringing up the folders using the player's software.

It looks pretty cool too......:-)


Regards,

So do you then browse through the pages on your pronto to pick the movie you want to watch?
Yes I do. Normally, there are 9 DVD cover images per page.

Dont you have to list potentially 400 movies on that small screen of the remote?How has that worked out?
No, I browse my collection by DVD cover images that are in alphabetical order via a genre/categories pages.

I'm using Lowpro's brilliant DVD Lobby solution. If your interested, all the details about his configuration can be found here:

http://www.remotecentral.com/cgi-bin/mboard/rc-prontong/thread.cgi?3189,7#133

To me it was definitely worth the look, the time, and the effort it took to program my remote control for my DVD collection. I couldn't be any happier, except for the DVD addiction that I can't kick (I'm on my 3rd DVD Changer). :)

I am on vacation and don't have access to my player. For reasons I won't go into, I must use component out to my Panasonic L500 720p LCD. I have been using 480p, but I was thinking, sending 480i might be better. (1 less step in the conversion to 720p.)

Can I send 480i at 0 IRE, or must it be at 7.5 IRE?

Thanks,

ej

Could someone please confirm if the Sony DVP-CX995V DVD changer can read DVD+R Dual Layer discs of home made movies?

I have the older model CX985V. While it has no problems reading DVD+R Single Layer discs, it would refuse to read any dual layer media. It shows an error message – Disc is dirty.

I am using a Samsung SH-S182M Super DVD burner using the Verbatim DVD+R Dual Layer blanks. They play back fine on the Samsung burner, but will not play back on the Sony CX985V.

If the newer model is able to read home made Dual Layer DVDs, I will buy one.

Does anyone know if you output the raw 480i from the 995 as I would like the Reon chip in my Onkyo do all of the video processing? I would like it to do all of the audio processing too. Therefore, what audio out can I get from the 995?

Thanks in advance for much needed info

Al

Does anyone know if you output the raw 480i from the 995 as I would like the Reon chip in my Onkyo do all of the video processing? I would like it to do all of the audio processing too. Therefore, what audio out can I get from the 995?

Thanks in advance for much needed info

Al

Yes you can do this... but you will have to use the Component outputs from the 995, which also means you will have to use either optical or coax digital audio out from the 995.

Let me know how it works... I have a 905 coming on Friday.

Thanks for the answer Stevo.

I was hoping to keep everything via HDMI. Any thoughts? I was afraid that the Sony would not process as well as the 905 I have coming on Tuesday.

Congrats on the 905. I'm hoping its as good as all of the praise it has recieved from people who don't have one yet. :-)

Thanks for the answer Stevo.

I was hoping to keep everything via HDMI. Any thoughts? I was afraid that the Sony would not process as well as the 905 I have coming on Tuesday.

Congrats on the 905. I'm hoping its as good as all of the praise it has recieved from people who don't have one yet. :-)

I certainly hope the 905 lives up to it's expectations....... :D

On the CX995 my experience is that it does a "lousy" job of scaling... it is really convenient to use as I have the titles programmed into my Harmony 880 so you just pick the title and push! After trying the 995 a few times I left the DVD's in for my wife, but if I was home I would pull it out and play it in my Oppo 971 which did a much better job (IMHO) of scaling and de-interlacing the signal (I am using a 720p projector on a 135" screen).

After I purchased an HD-DVD player in April of '06 I pulled the Oppo and have been using that for SD and HD DVD's, as I felt it did a slightly better job than the Oppo and it opened up a shelf on the rack.

My plan with the 905 is to feed the 995 into the 905 via Component for Video and either digital coax or optical for audio. Then set the Reon to output 720p and let the fun begin.

With the HD-DVD player I will just have to test it at 1080i and 720p and see whose scaler does the better job!

With my DTV HD-DVR, I plan on setting it to "native" (as it will output a 480i signal via HDMI and use the HDMI connection for both video and audio.

Not sure exactly what to do with the Xbox 360 yet... whether to let the xbox scale the output to 720p or set it on 480i as it does not have a "native" setting.

I certainly hope the 905 lives up to it's expectations....... :D

On the CX995 my experience is that it does a "lousy" job of scaling... it is really convenient to use as I have the titles programmed into my Harmony 880 so you just pick the title and push! After trying the 995 a few times I left the DVD's in for my wife, but if I was home I would pull it out and play it in my Oppo 971 which did a much better job (IMHO) of scaling and de-interlacing the signal (I am using a 720p projector on a 135" screen).

After I purchased an HD-DVD player in April of '06 I pulled the Oppo and have been using that for SD and HD DVD's, as I felt it did a slightly better job than the Oppo and it opened up a shelf on the rack.

My plan with the 905 is to feed the 995 into the 905 via Component for Video and either digital coax or optical for audio. Then set the Reon to output 720p and let the fun begin.

With the HD-DVD player I will just have to test it at 1080i and 720p and see whose scaler does the better job!

With my DTV HD-DVR, I plan on setting it to "native" (as it will output a 480i signal via HDMI and use the HDMI connection for both video and audio.

Not sure exactly what to do with the Xbox 360 yet... whether to let the xbox scale the output to 720p or set it on 480i as it does not have a "native" setting.

Thanks for all that info. I think I will wait till I hear what works for you before I get the 995. I only have about 150 dvd's nad don't expect to get many more as I converted to a Netflix fan for now. Please let us know how it works out for you and good luck

Al

Could someone please confirm if the Sony DVP-CX995V DVD changer can read DVD+R Dual Layer discs of home made movies?

I have the older model CX985V. While it has no problems reading DVD+R Single Layer discs, it would refuse to read any dual layer media. It shows an error message – Disc is dirty.

I am using a Samsung SH-S182M Super DVD burner using the Verbatim DVD+R Dual Layer blanks. They play back fine on the Samsung burner, but will not play back on the Sony CX985V.

If the newer model is able to read home made Dual Layer DVDs, I will buy one.

My 995 will play Verb +R DL discs burned on my Pio 640, but the layer transition hesitates more than on any of my other three players, which vary from no hesitation, to barely detectable. The Sony is easily noticable. You could always take one of your DLs with you to the store, and see if it will play on a 995.

Well I decided to get adventurous and do the firmware update...

I burned the 4 files in the download to a disc... (was I supposed to leave all 4 files in the folder and just copy the folder to a CD?

I followed the instructions above and after #4 my display says "Disc Update" instead of Firmware Update...

Also it has had that same message on the screen for about 5 minutes...... has something gone awry

Well after 20 minutes nothing had changed...... so I ejected the disc, powered down and started over again...

The second time it only took a couple of minutes and then the screen said "finished" no clue as to what happened the first time.

My 995 will play Verb +R DL discs burned on my Pio 640, but the layer transition hesitates more than on any of my other three players, which vary from no hesitation, to barely detectable. The Sony is easily noticable. You could always take one of your DLs with you to the store, and see if it will play on a 995.

Thanks a million! You made my day. This is exactly the information I was looking for and by sheer coincidence I am using the same Pioneer DVR-640H-S DVD recorder to tape and edit the TV shows.

With your confirmation, I can now safely order the Sony 995v DVD mega changer, knowing that the Dual Layer DVD+R discs burned on the Pioneer 640 will play back on the Sony changer.

I found the Verbatim DVD+R Dual Layer 8.5GB discs to be the absolute best. NewEgg always have good deals on these 20 pack cake boxes. Never had a coaster.

Thanks again for your prompt and helpful response.

Kris
Your negative statements regarding this player's SACD performance are somewhat unfounded actually.
I believe you may not be very well versed in SACD technology
The SACD format is DIGITAL TO ANALOG audio-only decoding that occurs AT THE SOURCE (ie not in the HT receiver) and designed to recreate music as close to a sonically true performance as possible (something quite dear to true audiophiles apparently) ;) It does this by delivering analog-only material directly to the amplification stage.

... snip ....

THERE NO SACD PLAYER THAT EXISTS THAT WILL OUTPUT PURE SACD AUDIO (2 channel or multichannel) VIA ANY DIGITAL OUTPUT

... snip ...

HTH
WOT

Unless you forgot about several Oppo's and the PS3, and ....... Probably shouldn't tell other people they aren't "well versed in SACD technology".

Back on topic, I just landed one of these at a Sony Outlet store for a very nice price. Only problem is that it was picked up for me by a relative several hundred miles away, and I won't be getting it myself for 3 weeks. Oh well, looking forward to getting this hooked up via HDMI to my Yamaha 661 and playing well with my Harmony 676. I actually read all 1700+ posts in here so I know what I'm getting into.

Yes you can do this... but you will have to use the Component outputs from the 995, which also means you will have to use either optical or coax digital audio out from the 995.

Let me know how it works... I have a 905 coming on Friday.


Why use the component out?
Cant you do the same with the HDMI out?

Ok this was asked earlier, but no one responded.

Has anyone had problems with it scratching discs. I've seen a few reviews where people said it destroyed their whole collection.

Also seen a lot of comments about it's overall reliability, lots of bad reviews about units going down within a year.

I would like to get one of these refurbed units from a Sony outlet but the problem is that all of the outlets are very far away from me---Would ANYONE be willing to pick one of these up for me and ship it???---Of course I'll take care of all of the costs plus throw in some extra $$$ for the effort....PM me if interested!!

THANKS!! Kevin

Ok this was asked earlier, but no one responded.

Has anyone had problems with it scratching discs. I've seen a few reviews where people said it destroyed their whole collection.

Also seen a lot of comments about it's overall reliability, lots of bad reviews about units going down within a year.

I've had mine for just over 6 months. No issue with scratching discs. Unit is working fine. It's used 4 or 5 times a week. Now to go knock on wood....

Hey All,

I have a situation I require assistance on. My new in-laws are coming to
visit next week. I need to hide my 'adult educational' videos from the
menu list. I'd prefer to hide rather than remove from the unit. :rolleyes:

I have them tagged to folder 'A' but that doesn't remove them from the
'ALL' or 'Video' lists.

Can the parental control feature hide them for me? Manual isn't the most
clear on this feature..

Any help would be appreciated.

Lumpy

I have been reading this thread for over a year, but could not justify the cost of the changer - needed money for HT equipment, basement HT/bar and play area. Anyway, I picked 2 up at the outlet store and hooked one up yesterday.

Added about 100 DVDs and could not believe how manageable my collection is now. The picture quality on the 42" plasma is as good or better than my Panasonic XP30 via component.

The next project is to program my Philips TSU3000 remote and buy something like DVDLobby to do some automation.

Thanks everyone for their contributions to this thread.

Hey All,

I have a situation I require assistance on. My new in-laws are coming to
visit next week. I need to hide my 'adult educational' videos from the
menu list. I'd prefer to hide rather than remove from the unit. :rolleyes:

I have them tagged to folder 'A' but that doesn't remove them from the
'ALL' or 'Video' lists.

Can the parental control feature hide them for me? Manual isn't the most
clear on this feature..

Any help would be appreciated.

Lumpy

Well, even if that works, they could still eject them and look at them.

This is a situation where you need a seperate changer for the "educational videos", so you can just disconnect it and remove it until the in-laws are gone. :o

To keep the kids and in-laws out of the changer just lock the front cover.
http://img517.imageshack.us/img517/595/20070813142758kd1.th.png (http://img517.imageshack.us/my.php?image=20070813142758kd1.png)

To keep the kids and in-laws out of the changer just lock the front cover.
http://img517.imageshack.us/img517/595/20070813142758kd1.th.png (http://img517.imageshack.us/my.php?image=20070813142758kd1.png)

Umm I'm not worried about them physically looking in the unit. I'm worried
about when they pull up the on-screen list of movies. I don't expect my
electronically challenged in-laws to start manually ejecting DVD's.

I'd like to be able to pull up the movie list for them so they can choose a
movie to watch without them seeing ' Big Booty Babes #6' ect in the list. :D

Is there a way to block titles from the movie list?

Oh and I don't think I have enough 'educational' material to warrant a
seperate changer.... ;)

Umm I'm not worried about them physically looking in the unit. I'm worried
about when they pull up the on-screen list of movies. I don't expect my
electronically challenged in-laws to start manually ejecting DVD's.

I'd like to be able to pull up the movie list for them so they can choose a
movie to watch without them seeing ' Big Booty Babes #6' ect in the list. :D

Is there a way to block titles from the movie list?

Oh and I don't think I have enough 'educational' material to warrant a
seperate changer.... ;)


Lock the cover and delete the disc info. Only way to do without removing them.

Lock the cover and delete the disc info. Only way to do without removing them.
Does that actually physically lock the cover? Or just disable the button? As my 17 month old tends to skip pressing the button, and instead just slides it open..... :eek:

Ahh!! I never thought to do that...I guess if you really want to get into the case that would be one way of doing it. I wouldn't think there is a mechanical lock, give it a try once.

Amazon has dropped the price on the Sony 995 to 299 free shipping

Amazon has dropped the price on the Sony 995 to 299 free shipping

It has been that way for quite some time. Same with J&R.

If you end up removing them remember that it doesn't delete the title info right away. You need to force it to scan all the newly empty slots to ensure that the title info is deleted.

I just bought the 400 DVD jukebox and now want to manage my DVD library via some GUI. The library interface on the Sony unit will not work for me.

Here is what I already have:
~ Pronto TSU3000 remote
~ DVDProfiler
~ USB-UIRT
~ Laptop in the equipment closet

I will prefer to use what I already have and here is what I want to achieve:

Using the laptop, display all movies - jacket/rating/other info on the plasma/projector. Select the movie via the remote and have the front-end application select the appropriate slot on the DVD jukebox and turn related equipment on at proper setting and play the movie. I will also want to, at some point, play AVI/MPEG files I have stored on the harddrive.

I am very familiar with Pronto and programming it. However, can't figure out which application to use to automate this. I am open to even trying freeware to get some hang of it. If I need to control the DVLobby running on the laptop via pronto, what additional software do I need on the laptop to control it?

Thanks!

sunnyvali -

Even though my configuration doesn't operate the way you want yours to work (described above), there are some similarities. i.e. Pronto Pro TSU7000, DVD Profiler 3.0.3, Changers (x3) ...

Check out this recently written thread, if you are interested:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=11183895&&#post11183895

Good luck.

Post deleted

Well, there's finally a BD megachanger, but it's not really what I'm looking for (which is just a changer without all the other bells and whistles).

http://www.electronichouse.com/article/200_blu_ray_dvds_500gb_sonys_insane_changer/C157

and here's the thread over in the BD player forum:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=903747

I have encountered the dreaded disc title wipe-out. During a thunderstorm power went up and down a few times. Although my equipment was not operating during this time, it affected the memory in the CX995. The next day I went to use the browser function and all my DVD's had "?" for titles. What a flaky piece of hardware. I certainly would not invest $3500 in that Sony BD server. It's probably riddled with problems and root kit software.

I have encountered the dreaded disc title wipe-out. During a thunderstorm power went up and down a few times. Although my equipment was not operating during this time, it affected the memory in the CX995. The next day I went to use the browser function and all my DVD's had "?" for titles. What a flaky piece of hardware. I certainly would not invest $3500 in that Sony BD server. It's probably riddled with problems and root kit software.

Here in Florida we have those surges daily. I had this happen once (before i installed a ups) I started reloading one disc and they started reappearing even the ones I had loaded the titles manually. You have nothing to loose.

Just got the new Pioneer 6010 Plasma. Although I have a BlueRay player, the 955v still holds 400 dvds for me. So I tried to use the 955V HDMI output to the new plasma. However, I'm not getting any picture at all. Already went into the Menu and checked that HDMI was set to Auto. I'm also using S-Video to go to another room. However, I don't think this is causing the issue since I had unplugged all other output connections,using only HDMI, but still no picture. Can anyone help? What am I doing wrong? Thanks.

I had a little "Believe it or Not" scenario happen to me yesterday. I just bought a new Phillips burner, so I burned a DVD DL+R disc to test it and make sure that all the SW and HW was working.

Well, the burner couldn't read back the disc that it just made at all. It couldn't even read the directory info.

So I tried it in an old dvd-rom that I keep around because it been good at reading bad discs (it's so old its rpc1 not rpc2). It could read the first layer perfectly, but it hung on the second layer.

Just for giggles, I tossed it in my 995 to see what would happen. The 995 played the entire disc with just a slight glitch on the layer change.

This was a first for me. I've never had a case where the burner that created a disc couldn't read it back. And I've never had a case where my 995 could play a disc that my old rpc1 dvd-rom drive couldn't play.

Has anyone heard of a new sony model coming out to replace the 995?

I havent. Been waiting for years now :)

I dont think its coming.

They seem to be headed down the "media server" path.

They just introduced that new 200 disk BD "server" and the newest stuff on the SD side were also "servers".

It looks to me like they've decided to stop doing simple $400 "carousels" and instead only do $3500 dollar servers.

They seem to be headed down the "media server" path.

They just introduced that new 200 disk BD "server" and the newest stuff on the SD side were also "servers".

It looks to me like they've decided to stop doing simple $400 "carousels" and instead only do $3500 dollar servers.

why not give us the basic hardware and allow the PS3 to control the server? that would make me happy!

however, i don't see the $3500 tag as totally unjustified for the technology that it has.

a BD is maybe $1000
the changer part $250
the hard drive $200 (high speed)
the rest of the system can be accomplished with a PS3 so lets add another $500 for the fun of it.


that puts the total at around $1950 for the system. now add the $200-400 you would spend on a NICE media center to hold 200 movies. that leaves $1250 for having all your stuff in one spot - that is basically $6 per disc for storage. that is at full list, which i figure you could easily work $500 off of this unit. not too bad of a premium if you have small kids who tend to get into discs. at $25 - $50 a disc, that can add up quick.

now, i really wish they would make a changer only version of this that could utilize the power of the PS3 and have a lower price point.

It would be kinda silly to try and sell a 400 BluRay disc carousel right now, since no one has that many discs. In a few years, when prices for the tech come down, and way more people have adopted it, they will make carousels.

Way, way back in this long thread, I recall that someone posted a statement from Sony that they would not be doing more development of SD DVD, and would not make a newer model, as they were concentrating their efforts on the next gen format, and equipment for it.

It would be kinda silly to try and sell a 400 BluRay disc carousel right now, since no one has that many discs. In a few years, when prices for the tech come down, and way more people have adopted it, they will make carousels.I agree with the first part, but I'd think in a few years, you're more likely to see more servers with NO disc storage.

I think the pricing is ridiculous. The 777ES is a solid product for $500. They could throw in Blu-Ray electronics for an additional $500 and then would have a fair priced changer. That being said, I would be just as happy if they just updated the 995 with the DVP-NS77 processing and add $100 to the price to improve the cataloging portion. That would be a nice $500 changer that would sell way more than a $3000 Blu-Ray player.

i would buy a $1000 -1500 BD changer (even a PS3 add on) right now. as i start my collection, it would be nice to have a place to put them.

Well you probably are not going to see a $1k-$1.5k Blu-Ray megachanger anytime soon. The entire industry for Blu-Ray players, has only just recently really got their single disc players under the range of $1k pricing. Any HD-DVD or Blu-Ray megachanger, would be a *statement* type product right now, and also priced as one! And with Sony that means it would probably only be a ES product. The DVP-CX777ES changer is still is available and it has a MSRP of $800, so a Blu-Ray version would probably be at least $2k, because if Sony were to make a Blu-Ray megachanger right now, I see them only doing so with it as a ES model for the first year or so. Also, why in the world do you think a PS3 would even be needed in any way? As the changer itself still would need to do all the work. So needing to have a PS3 also just to run the menus or such, would really add nothing more to the mix except more cost as a $500 video interface for a megachanger. And in fact, just by having the video signal needing to run through it if used like that, it could even end up compromising the picture quality.

I can't be sure if this applies to all players, but it seems reasonable that this is the case. If anyone else sees otherwise, please let me know.
On turning the player on, it takes 13-15 secs minimum before it can accept any command. During that time it is loading/trying to load the last played disc. There is nothing I can do to interrupt this. I have tried both methods suggested - The Eject/Open Door buttons on the remote and on the player and the Folder buttons. Clicking any of these immediately after a Power on produces a "Please Wait" on the player's display. Its only after 13-15 secs that the player will accept any other command. At that point, I have found it much quicker to just click "Display", "Enter", type a disc number and "Enter" again to switch to any other DVD/CD I want to play.

Some Other Observations.
Audio DVDs
I created an Audio DVD disc using ulead's Burn.Now. Nice piece of software, however there seems to be no way to shuffle the audio tracks. The Sony does not allow that option once the disc is loaded, and if shuffle is set to on before switching to the Audio DVD, the player will refuse to play the Audio DVD. Anyone has any suggestions on a software/method that would allow shuffling an audio DVD?
A good feature though is that its very easy to move to any song (this might be obvious), provided you know the song number, you simply enter the song number using the number keys and hit "Enter".

MP3
It is quite disappointing but I have found no way to display the song titles (file names) or ID tags. Compatibility/smooth play with most of my existing MP3 discs is also downright poor - songs skip a lot. Anyone have some encoding settings that work best with MP3 playing on this player? Also disappointing I could not get MP3 DVDs to play.

Remembering last position on a disc
An interesting ability that I discovered by chance was the player will remember your last position on a disc irrespective of its disc slot! I stopped a disc midway to check it on another DVD player and then returned it to a different slot on the Sony and it picked up exactly where I had left of the last time. This gives me hope that remembering a disc after it has been taken out could potentially be just a firmware update away (if Sony ever decides to listen to its users :rolleyes:) I love the fact that it remembers 40 last positions btw and use that a lot as my household has 3 users with different tastes.

I have had this changer for about 2 months and overall I am quite happy with its capabilities (aside of those points mentioned above). Purchased it refurbished from a Sony Outlet with a 2 year additional warranty at a fabulous price. On the warranty, I checked with the sales agents and they specified that the warranty will basically just return your purchase price back to you (if the player fails) as it is unlikely that they will have the same model available to replace the failed one with. The warranty will not replace the player with a different model.

This gives me hope that remembering a disc after it has been taken out could potentially be just a firmware update away (if Sony ever decides to listen to its users :rolleyes:)

There has been one firmware update that I know of for this changer.

http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/model-swu.pl?mdl=DVPCX995V

Alas, it appears that it doesn't address any of your regarded issues. :(

I have tried both methods suggested - The Eject/Open Door buttons on the remote and on the player and the Folder buttons. Clicking any of these immediately after a Power on produces a "Please Wait" on the player's display. Its only after 13-15 secs that the player will accept any other command. At that point, I have found it much quicker to just click "Display", "Enter", type a disc number and "Enter" again to switch to any other DVD/CD I want to play.


You don't hit the "Open Door" button after hitting the power button, you hit the "Open Door" button instead of hitting the power on button. Then it will work. It will power on, open, and let you enter a disc number on the remote, or by turning the knob on the front.

I Am Thinking Of Purchasing The Cx995v- Can Anyone Tell Me If It Can Play Divx Discs?

No it does not.

I just took delivery of a new multiregion 777ES from JVB - seems like a very impressive piece of kit.

One thing I'm curious about is the display. If you look closely, it has fine red horizontal lines going accross it every few millimetres (like lines in a notebook). Is this normal for the 777?

(Sorry this is a bit OT - the only 777ES thread I could find is archived).

I just took delivery of a new multiregion 777ES from JVB - seems like a very impressive piece of kit.

One thing I'm curious about is the display. If you look closely, it has fine red horizontal lines going accross it every few millimetres (like lines in a notebook). Is this normal for the 777?

(Sorry this is a bit OT - the only 777ES thread I could find is archived).

The fine red lines are the hot cathodes of the vacuum fluorescent display. They are visible on every display with this type of construction. They may appear red in a totally dark room because they are giving off energy to excite the phosphors in the display. Nothing to worry about.

Thanks for the explanation. Another thing I've just noticed is that the 'eject' button only makes the selected disc move out a couple of millimetres, so it's not all that easy to get it out - is that also normal on these machines?

Thanks for the explanation. Another thing I've just noticed is that the 'eject' button only makes the selected disc move out a couple of millimetres, so it's not all that easy to get it out - is that also normal on these machines?

Yes this is normal. My DVP-CX777ES is the same way.

Regarding the debate about future changers from Sony, I think the ideal outcome would be for Escient to build their own changers.

This would make sense for Escient because at the moment a large part of their business is entirely dependant on Sony, who seem to make some very strange marketing decisions.

For example, Sony only markets the 995 and 777 in the US and Canada. You can't buy them in Europe, Japan or anywhere else, as far as I know. I can't see how this makes sense, because the 777 can certainly play PAL discs, if it's made mult-region. So all Sony would have to do to sell the 777 worldwide is key in a different region code and change the power supply.

But they can't be bothered. As a result, Escient are not able to market any of their DVD management products outside the US or Canada. And there's nothing to stop Sony discontinuing the 777 at any moment, which would presumably play havoc with Escient's business.

Sony's latest 'brainwave', the HES-V1000, doesn't make much sense to me either. Who is going to buy this thing, and more to the point, where are they going to put it? I can't see many people wanting one in their living room, and it's not the right shape to slot into an equipment rack either. And 200 discs isn't much capacity for $3,500 ($17.50 per disc...).

Anyway, I can't see either HD format winning the format war any time soon (no-one really won the DVD-R v DVD+R format war), so if you get a changer for HD discs, you'd want it to play BDs and HD-DVDs, and Sony aren't likely to make one like that. If Escient could make a 400 disc BD/HD-DVD/DVD combo changer for say $2,000 and also offer a cheaper DVD only model they'd probably sell quite a lot of them and they would also reduce their business risk and massively expand the worldwide market for their DVD manager products.

How does this player handle DVD-R and DVD-RW playback? I am thinking of taking the plunge. I have over 100 DVD-R's most home movies, etc.

I read on other forums to not take a gamble on this unit if using DVD-Rs.

Does anyone have similar experiences?

Thanks
Chris

How does this player handle DVD-R and DVD-RW playback? I am thinking of taking the plunge. I have over 100 DVD-R's most home movies, etc.

I read on other forums to not take a gamble on this unit if using DVD-Rs.

Does anyone have similar experiences?

Thanks
Chris

If you search this thread, you'll find this post I made in March 2007:



This post is to help anyone else now or in the future (when this post is found by search engines).



After lots of pain trying to back up and burn DVDs I discovered that DVDs backed up using software ShrinkTo5 or DVD neXt COPY would not play on the Sony DVP-CX995V (but would play on many other DVD players, including a Sony standalone I have).



The software combination that has worked every time for me is:

* RipIt4Me to do the ripping

* DVD Rebuilder to do the re-encoding/shrinking.



Using that software combo worked for me on all types of media DVD-R or DVD+R I tried.

Has anyone had any success with DVD-R using Nero Recode?

I am currently using DVD-Shrink if I need to compress the content and then Nero Recode to burn the DVDs.

I've had better luck with -Rs over +Rs. I use DVD-Shrink, but I think some of the previous posters are correct that the 995 doesn't like the highly variable bit rates that DVD-shrink sometimes outputs.

I've been converting some old VHS tapes (stuff that's not available on DVD) recently using a ManDVD (a linux dvd authoring program). It outputs a much more constant bit rate than Shrink and I seem to having less problems with that than with stuff that came out Shrink.

I have made hundreds of -R DVDs, and some +R DLs, on my Pioneer DVD recorder, and my Sony 995 hasn't had a problem with any I tried. Oops, take that back. I found one that would not play, but it wouldn't play on my Toshiba either, so I think it was a bad burn. I made a backup with the Pio DVDR, and the backup played in the Sony.

I just this Player up to a New Sony Bravia LCD, previously it's been ruuning on a 720p Set. I tried setting the HDMI resolution to 1920x1080i, but I cannot het the HDMI Light to come on when a HDMI Cable is plugged into the set. According to the manual it should light automatically. Could it be the way I have the HDMI Light configured on the Bravia? I tried different cables and am frankly at a loss, anyone have any Ideas?

Can I use a wireless keyboard with this model?

Yes, I do.

What model works the best?

I just this Player up to a New Sony Bravia LCD, previously it's been ruuning on a 720p Set. I tried setting the HDMI resolution to 1920x1080i, but I cannot het the HDMI Light to come on when a HDMI Cable is plugged into the set. According to the manual it should light automatically. Could it be the way I have the HDMI Light configured on the Bravia? I tried different cables and am frankly at a loss, anyone have any Ideas?
Scarpad,

I had the same problem with my new Bravia. The DVD player needs the firmware update...

http:// esupport.sony.com/US/perl/mod...?mdl=DVPCX995V

What model works the best?

Well, I have very limited knowledge of computer things, and I'm not at home to check mine. It's been almost two years since I bought it, but IIRC, there are two different possible connections to a computer, and the 995 uses the USB port, so you need one that connects to USB. Also, the simpler and cheaper models are fine, because you are connecting to the 995, NOT to a computer, so the more expensive models have features you couldn't use.

Well, I have very limited knowledge of computer things, and I'm not at home to check mine. It's been almost two years since I bought it, but IIRC, there are two different possible connections to a computer, and the 995 uses the USB port, so you need one that connects to USB. Also, the simpler and cheaper models are fine, because you are connecting to the 995, NOT to a computer, so the more expensive models have features you couldn't use.

There is no USB port on the CX995, only a PS/2 port on the front.

As long as your wireless keyboard has a PS/2 connection it should work.
I just bought a cheap wired mini keyboard strictly for the CX995. Very rarely do I need to use the keyboard though.

There is no USB port on the CX995, only a PS/2 port on the front.

As long as your wireless keyboard has a PS/2 connection it should work.
I just bought a cheap wired mini keyboard strictly for the CX995. Very rarely do I need to use the keyboard though.

Well, I said I didn't know much about computers... :o At least I read enough to buy the right keyboard back when I bought it.

Thanks for setting us straight.

... it is really convenient to use as I have the titles programmed into my Harmony 880 so you just pick the title and push!
I can't get my 880's Media function to function w/ my Sony 985; i.e., after entering titles into the Media table and updating the remote, I only get a blank screen when I hit Media button. Any idea what I am doing wrong? I'm following the same procedure I used w/ my 680 which worked fine w/ my 985. Thanks in advance for any help.

I can't get my 880's Media function to function w/ my Sony 985; i.e., after entering titles into the Media table and updating the remote, I only get a blank screen when I hit Media button. Any idea what I am doing wrong? I'm following the same procedure I used w/ my 680 which worked fine w/ my 985. Thanks in advance for any help.

Could never get it to work perfectly when I tried it last, but check this thread: http://www.remotecentral.com/cgi-bin/mboard/rc-harmony/thread.cgi?4927

I still had problems clearing the menu after the disk comes up, but it'll get you most of the way there.


*edit* oh, whoops, didn't see that your problem was actually with the media button, not getting disks selected. Well, you'll need this next. :D FYI, I couldn't get the spreadsheet method working - only manually in the application.

I had problems with setting up the list in Excel... but I called Harmony and they talked me though it.

You can also type them in one at a time right into the Harmony software.

Devices Tab

Select Changer

Select settings

Select Set Up Media

Suddenly, the original remote that came with my CX995V is not working. I tried new batteries and pressing every button on the remote, but it is just not working. Before I order a new remote, does anyone know if there is a way to check and make sure that it is not the IR sensor on the player itself that might be the problem?

Thanks,

Ray

Before you condem the remote, first make sure you did not somehow set the ID number wrong on either the changer or the remote by mistake, thus creating a mismatch between them. The ID number can be set to DVD1, DVD2, or DVD3 on both the changer and the remote, and what ever number they are set for, they must be matching.

If you are not familair with this option of setting up the remote and changer ID numbers, you may want to check out the instrctions for doing this in the owners manual, starting at page 15.

http://www.sonystyle.com/wcsstore/SonyStyleStorefrontAssetStore/pdf/DVPCX995V.pdf

Before you condem the remote, first make sure you did not somehow set the ID number wrong on either the changer or the remote by mistake, thus creating a mismatch between them. The ID number can be set to DVD1, DVD2, or DVD3 on both the changer and the remote, and what ever number they are set for, they must be matching.

If you are not familair with this option of setting up the remote and changer ID numbers, you may want to check out the instrctions for doing this in the owners manual, starting at page 15.

http://www.sonystyle.com/wcsstore/SonyStyleStorefrontAssetStore/pdf/DVPCX995V.pdf

I tried using the instructions on page 15 of the manual, but nothing happens when I do that. If I hold the Enter button and press the power button, it displays the same thing as if I just pressed the Power button. I did try to use my Harmony 659 to control the player, and that works so its not the IR sensor. Any other suggestions?

Ray

I can't get my 880's Media function to function w/ my Sony 985; i.e., after entering titles into the Media table and updating the remote, I only get a blank screen when I hit Media button. Any idea what I am doing wrong? I'm following the same procedure I used w/ my 680 which worked fine w/ my 985. Thanks in advance for any help.

Got the media button to display contents of Media Table by changing type of device to DVD instead of CD in 880 device setup - now works as expected.

I tried using the instructions on page 15 of the manual, but nothing happens when I do that. If I hold the Enter button and press the power button, it displays the same thing as if I just pressed the Power button. I did try to use my Harmony 659 to control the player, and that works so its not the IR sensor. Any other suggestions?

Ray

Happend to me once, but moving the remote device switch on the back of the 995 got everything working together again.

Is there any way to have the 995/777 play only audio cd's, or to create a "playlist" of certain slots?

*answer is on page 45/46 of the manual, though I had to read them a couple times to get a full understanding.

I'm using the Harmony 659 with the CX995. It is working and accessing DVD's using the Media button. It was not very intuitive to set up. The biggest problem I have is the poor IR reception that this DVD changer has. If I don't point the remote straight at the IR port it won't change discs because it misses commands from the remote. I'm going to try an IR repeater/blaster and see if this solves the problem.

I found this on remotecentral but edited it to get it working on mine:

Assuming you already entered your DVD titles into the "add media" function,

1. on your logitech homepage under the "devices" section, under "DVD - Sony DVD (DVP-CX995V)" choose "more options".
2. click on "Advanced setup for this DVD"
3. check the box for "I want to turn off this device when it's not in use" and click next.
4. check the box for "One button on the remote for turning it both On and Off" and click next.
5. check the box for "I don't have the original remote, but I know the commands that are used: PowerToggle" and click next (i just did this out of laziness, you could also use your own remote)
6. click "next" on the page with the delay times
7. enter the number of discs your dvd player can hold: 400. click next.
8. check the box for "I use number keys to select a disc" and click next

ok here's where it gets odd:

9. for "What command do you use to START disc selection?", choose: ""My device needs more than one command to turn it on and off." Why they say "turn it on and off" i have no clue, but this is what is used to program it.
Now click next.
10. There should be multiple dropdown boxes now. For the first one, choose "stop", for the second box choose "display", for the second, choose "select". I had to add a "stop" command to get it working. If a DVD is playing and I don't issue a stop, the DVD menu display screen ended up staying on the screen after the selected DVD started playing. You may need to adjust these commands.
If there are not enough boxes choose "My device needs more than one command to turn it on and off." to add a third drop down box. Your commands will be as follows:
"Stop"
"Display
"Select"

Click next.
11. for "What command do you use to FINISH disc selection?", again choose: "My device needs more than one command to turn it on and off."
Click next.
12. For the first dropdown, pick "select", for the second, third AND forth, pick "display" (this is done to get rid of the display screen afterwards, I needed three "displays" to make it work)
Your commands will look like this:
"Select"
"Display"
"Display"
"Display"

Click next.
Then keep clicking next until you're out of that screen and back to the homepage.
Upload your changes to the remote, and presto, media function should work fine.
I know this is a fairly old post, but I just tried to do this using the Harmony website and my Harmony 659, and now when I execute the "Watch a Movie" activity, the player does not turn on at all. I tried "fixing the problem" using the help on the remote, but it just keeps asking me; "Is the DVD on?". If I press No, it just asks "Is the DVD on now?". Am I doing something wrong here?

Can somebody give me the dept of CX995V from the front foot to the back? I'm having a hard time finding audio rack to house it. They all seems to small to house it. I don't care if the face stick out a little.

Also does anyone here own Icon Series Audio Rack.
Here a pic of it:
http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd258/sprak74/BD1029_l.jpg

That is one sweet rack system.

Can somebody give me the dept of CX995V from the front foot to the back? I'm having a hard time finding audio rack to house it. They all seems to small to house it. I don't care if the face stick out a little.


Try using the search option, the question has been asked here at least once before.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7183454#post7183454

Just finished installing mine. Went pretty smooth. HDMI works fine, reading entire manual to ensure I do not change a setting I'm not supposed to. SO far so good.

Geez, out of 320 DVD's this thing logged 47! Oh well.

That's actually not too bad. I just bought a bunch of Criterion Collection DVDs, and it didn't log any of them.

Yeah, I think it a great unit too. I just got one last week and work better than I expected. Mine was built October 2007. Do you think it's already updated to latest firmware? Sony site says the latest firmware was around July 2007.

(Sorry for posting in this forum, but I did a search for my CX875P - which was an ancestor of the CX995V- and this was the only thread with any hits, so I thought I'd give it a try)

It has played without any problems (since 2002 according to the copyright date of the owner's manual) until recently; it seems to have stopped reading discs. It loads the disc, then the display quickly flashes "Cannot flip", the "flip" indicator on the front flashes and the disc slides back to the carousel, the carousel rotates halfway around and tries to load the B side of the disc, then the display flashes "No disc", the carousel rotates back around and it moves on to the next disc and repeats. It happens with both DVDs and CDs, and the discs play fine in other players.

I realize the most obvious solution - toss it and get a Blu-ray player - but it does have 200 discs loaded, so if there were an easy fix...I'd appreciate any ideas.

Does this happen to all DVD/CD or certain one? I have the CX995V and I don't think it does the "flip disc". I don't know, but all I can think of is try using laser lens cleaner. Maybe dust accummulate overtime and the laser is having a hard time reading DVD/CD. Good luck.

Thanks for the reply - it happens with all DVDs and with CDs too. I did try a laser lens cleaner, but no help.

Another thing to consider before thinking about spending a lot to repair a CX875P. I'm pretty sure that Sony has even run out of certain parts for the CX875P by now, with no more replacements being made for them. I know a few years ago they were just starting to run low and even out on some of the more unusual non-standard parts. So depending on what it wrong with it, you may not be able to get the needed parts. So looking to buy a good working used one, or a newer 995 might be a better choice.

Just had my new 995 delivered! With my luck, however, Sony will announce a new generation of mega changers at the CES.

I'll have to run through this thread before I ask any noob questions about the unit.

I couldn't locate any post which explained how to check to see what firmware version one's 995V is running (and the Sony support website didn't help at all), so I called Sony support last night.

After a bit of "checking my sources," the Sony rep told me to "play some DVDs and see if there are any problems. If so, do the firmware update." Brilliant!

Yah well, I guess it's a couple-year-old product.

I couldn't locate any post which explained how to check to see what firmware version one's 995V is running (and the Sony support website didn't help at all), so I called Sony support last night.

After a bit of "checking my sources," the Sony rep told me to "play some DVDs and see if there are any problems. If so, do the firmware update." Brilliant!

Yah well, I guess it's a couple-year-old product.

The latest firmware update was in July of 2007 I believe. I just updated mine because of skipping during playback of dvd+r discs. Updating the FW did not help, but it has helped others.

So my DVD player has run fine for the 18 months I've had it. Suddenly last night I get a "cannot read disc" on a majority of my Dvd's (Which have run fine in the past. Researched here and tried to update the firmware, but guess what "Cannot read disc"!
Any suggestions?

Ok.. after 3 different burns to different cd's I finally got the firmware to read. It is updated now, as far as i can tell...but I still have the cannot read on my dvd's. I have tried moving the discs around but its consistently the same ones that fail. And like I said, they have worked fine in the past.. There is definately a different noise when it plays a disc that ultimately ends up "cannot read"

Occasionally I have had that happen to individual discs, and I have just ejected them, reinserted them, and they have always read. You might try that with one, and see if it works. PITB to do that with a lot of them!

Ah brilliant sony. I called tech support about my cannot read disc error. After finally convincing him I had a DVD player and not a CD player, he told me this is not normal for this unit. I paid $299 for this guy back on 6/2006. He told me I was eligible for an exchange on the unit. For only $283! I told him No thank you, and Ill never buy another Sony product again. All I can say i so much for my Playstation 3!

sony dvd cx995v

Ah brilliant sony. I called tech support about my cannot read disc error. After finally convincing him I had a DVD player and not a CD player, he told me this is not normal for this unit. I paid $299 for this guy back on 6/2006. He told me I was eligible for an exchange on the unit. For only $283! I told him No thank you, and Ill never buy another Sony product again. All I can say i so much for my Playstation 3!

Same thing happened to me yesterday. I bought mine around the same time you did and now it just dies?

I was watching one thing. Decided to watch something else so switched to that disc (A burned one) and it could not read. From that point on it couldn't read any discs. Then I just let it skip from disc to disc. Finally it landed on one it could read. Then I switched again and it read that one.

This morning I wake up, changed the disc and now I can't get it to work at all.

This is killing me. I can't afford another one or fix this one and now not only do I have to go through the trouble of finding all the covers for my discs, I lost my disc changer.

OK, so I had nothing to lose, so I went and opened the case in the back that protudes out where the actual player is and did some investigating.

The discs were not spinning !!!

I tried jiggling things. That did not work.

DO THIS SOFTLY !!!

So just as the player locked the disc in I tried to spin the disc manually (Spin Disc Downward) with the tip of my finger and it started spinning by itself. Had to be a little jammed. I have loaded 5 Discs so far and it loaded and read them all.

I will update if things change.

It worked for a while and now it's dead. The servo kept getting stuck and now it wont even spin.

I just noticed something strange with my 995. We all know how finicky they are about reading disc info. I have a Pio 640 DVD recorder, and have played lots of -R, finalized video mode DVDs I made with the Pio on the 995. They never display disc info, which didn't surprise me. So, a few days ago, I loaded a bunch of -RW VR mode discs, not sure they would even play. They played fine, and the 995 read the disc title info from the VR mode discs! Very strange! Of course I don't plan on hanging on to -RW VR mode discs very long, so it's nearly useless. Wonder why it won't read the same info from a finalized video mode disc?

There are particular fields (in the video_ts.ifo file iirc) where the Sony's look for title information rather that in the Burst Cut Area (which is where most manufacturers put the title info.

I'm not sure why your Pio is writing to those fields in one mode but not the other. :confused:

If you want to make certain that you have title info then you could rip the video mode dvds and add the title info manually and then burn new disks.

The easiest way to set these fields that I've found is with the freeware app TitleWriter. You should be able to do it with IfoEdit too, but I've never been motivated enough to overcome the IfoEdit learning curve.

If you search through this thread for Titlewriter you'll find a discussion on how to use it.

Thanks for the info, Mac!

I just came across this thread for the 995v and figured since I was an owner of one I would post my experiences. I am on my 2nd one....(will not explain the reasons as to why) but overall I guess it's not bad. I certainly wish another company offered one instead of Sony....I cannot stand Sony products or their support. Anyway, things I have noticed that are irritating: Only give you 4 folders to separate a collection of 400 total discs? can not figure out how to add a space with titling a disc using the remote, on my previous player have had an instance where all my titles were erased and showed up as all ? marks, slow with changing discs, once you start discs and you try to stop it or perform another function it gives you an error message stating operation cannot be performed, basically until its ready for you to be able to stop it or do some other function, and it does a horrible job at playing copied movies, I have a few movies not sure whether they are -r's or +r's but I do not think it matters it just does not like dvd r's, and it will not play mp3's when they are burned on dvd'r only cd'r.

Other than that, I think I am done ranting.....

As I posted earlier (last page), I updated the firmware but my player stil skipped (video, not audio) after the update.

Today I unplugged the HDMI cable (which allowed for upconversion of SD DVDs) and connected the player using the component cables.

The first DVD+R that I watched played fine with no video skipping or dropouts, when the exact same disc did have video dropouts when it was connected with the HDMI cable.

I plan on leaving the component cables hooked up.

... can not figure out how to add a space with titling a disc using the remote, ...
.....

In the "virtual keyboard" the "space" is at the end of all the numbers in the third line of keys (I can't recall off the top of my head if it is immediately after the "9" or if there are some other characters in there first).

In the old 860 megachanger you, it would return to the "A" after each character and you could get a "space" by clicking on the "A" before hitting any arrow key. After hitting any arrow key it becomes the "A" again.




... and it does a horrible job at playing copied movies, I have a few movies not sure whether they are -r's or +r's but I do not think it matters it just does not like dvd r's,
.....

I've gotten to the point where single layer disks work perfect everytime now (I limit burns to 4x, use Ritek (sp?) media and always leave a couple of hundred MB empty at the end.)

But dual-layer perfection still eludes me. Sometimes they work great and other times terrible. I've tried a bunch of different brands of DL media but they were all repackaged Ritek media. If someone knows of a brand that doesn't use Ritek media, I'd like to know who it is so I can try it.




...and it will not play mp3's when they are burned on dvd'r only cd'r.

Other than that, I think I am done ranting.....

That one bugs me too. But only a little bit since I have all my music on the computer, which is connected to the same stereo system as the 995 and it's almost as easy to fire up the computer as it is to fire up the 995, so....

As I posted earlier (last page), I updated the firmware but my player stil skipped (video, not audio) after the update.

Today I unplugged the HDMI cable (which allowed for upconversion of SD DVDs) and connected the player using the component cables.

The first DVD+R that I watched played fine with no video skipping or dropouts, when the exact same disc did have video dropouts when it was connected with the HDMI cable.

I plan on leaving the component cables hooked up.

Hmmm. I only use component too and have good luck with burned media. I wonder if you're on to something there.

The space is represented by a solid white block.

In the "virtual keyboard" the "space" is at the end of all the numbers in the third line of keys (I can't recall off the top of my head if it is immediately after the "9" or if there are some other characters in there first).

I thought I definitely tried the space button on the virtual keyboard and nothing happened but I will try again. Thanks!

I've gotten to the point where single layer disks work perfect everytime now (I limit burns to 4x, use Ritek (sp?) media and always leave a couple of hundred MB empty at the end.)

But dual-layer perfection still eludes me. Sometimes they work great and other times terrible. I've tried a bunch of different brands of DL media but they were all repackaged Ritek media. If someone knows of a brand that doesn't use Ritek media, I'd like to know who it is so I can try it.

Yeah, I don't even bother w/DL I only mess with SL stuff, I figure if can't consistently get that right that no sense adding to the drama...anyway, I always use nero recode and then nero buring rom after I have the .vob file....some movies work some don't.

That one bugs me too. But only a little bit since I have all my music on the computer, which is connected to the same stereo system as the 995 and it's almost as easy to fire up the computer as it is to fire up the 995, so....

Yeah, I took out my 3 or 4 music disc that I had in there...now I just stream my music via portable device (zune) through my distributed audio system....skipping the 995 all together.....

I guess all in all for what you get 400 disc mega changer it's not bad...at least until it breaks! I'm curious if this changer has any memory like RAM (like a pc)...I thought I read one post in this thread that said it did have memory but also on other forums I have read that it doesn't which explains when the electric goes out you very well could lose all of your data (titles, etc)? Anyway, if that is the case where it doesn't have any memory at all and you run the risc of losing your data with any amount of time due to loss of electricity, then I need to possibly think of some UPS to back just that component up......any suggestions on this dilemma? I certainly don't feel like wasting a couple hours each year re-entering data due to power loss!

Thanks,
Michael

...But dual-layer perfection still eludes me. Sometimes they work great and other times terrible. I've tried a bunch of different brands of DL media but they were all repackaged Ritek media. If someone knows of a brand that doesn't use Ritek media, I'd like to know who it is so I can try it....
Verbatim DL is supposed to be much better.

Thanks I'll give Verbatim a try. So far the worst to best DL results for me has been GQ, Memorex, Sony, TDK. They're all Ritek, but the TDK and Sony are definately better than the other two. So I guess they must have more stringent QC.

And anything faster than a 2.4x burn seems to be a disaster, so it's painfully slow (but worth it to avoid making coasters).

Yes, Verbatim +R DL is the way to go. I have a Pio 640 DVDR, and have made lots of -R SLs, and 10-20 +R DLs. All have played well on my 995. Even my VR mode -RWs played. With the DLs, I did notice a slight hesitation at layer change on a couple of them, but on most, it is unnoticeable.

BTW, power loss will not cause info loss on the 995.

Yes, Verbatim +R DL is the way to go. I have a Pio 640 DVDR, and have made lots of -R SLs, and 10-20 +R DLs. All have played well on my 995. Even my VR mode -RWs played. With the DLs, I did notice a slight hesitation at layer change on a couple of them, but on most, it is unnoticeable.

Great info. :)

BTW, power loss will not cause info loss on the 995.

Correct. I have titled about 150 DVDs on my 995. My unit was unplugged many times while I built an equipment room for my in-wall rack. Sometimes the 995 was without power for more than a few days at a time. All titles were still there when I plugged it back in. HOWEVER, I was watching a movie on the 995 when the power went out for about 3 seconds. Then the power went on-off-on very quickly. After this all my titles were wiped out. So the unit is very sensitive to brown outs and small power failures. I bought a UPS to plug in my 995,PVR,XBOX,router, and haven't had any issues yet. A few days ago a car went through a stop sign two blocks from my house and took out the hydro pole. The UPS kicked in and the 995 still has all it's titles. Long term use of the UPS will tell for sure if it is helping.

Does anyone have instructions on editing a dvd's title if I dont have the remote control? I bought the unit from a friend who didnt have the remote and now I cant figure out how to title any of my dvds :( BTW the unit is the dvp-cx985v which from what I've read is the same as the dvp-cx995v except im lacking hdmi output. TIA :)

Does anyone have instructions on editing a dvd's title if I dont have the remote control? I bought the unit from a friend who didnt have the remote and now I cant figure out how to title any of my dvds :( BTW the unit is the dvp-cx985v which from what I've read is the same as the dvp-cx995v except im lacking hdmi output. TIA :)

Yes you can. It's best to get a PS2 keyboard and plug it into the front jack. Then turn on the power.

Press STOP on the front panel once the unit has taken it's sweet time reading the last disc played. Then press FOLDER. Navigate the folder menu using the large 4-way button on the right of the loading door to go up or down to the DVD you want to title. Press in on the navigation button to SELECT. Then navigate to EDIT and press SELECT again. Press SELECT one more time to enter the title using the keyboard. Doing this without a keyboard is just insane BTW.

Ok I pressed the flder button now it says FOLDER ALL on the front panel. I have my 1 dvd selected and when I press the navigation button in it starts playing the dvd. What am I doing wrong??

Ok I got it to let me enter the name: I pressed folder once and it selected all disks, pressed it again and it selected dvd. I pressed enter twice on the keyboard and it let me enter a title. Now another question is can I enter a screen grab using the keyboard or front panel for my dvd's or will I need to purchase a remote for that?

You should be able to navigate through everything on your TV set.

I was never able to get a screen capture to work correctly. Sometimes they worked and other times all I got was a scrambled mess. I never could get them to show up full screen either, only as thumbnails when browsing through the discs. Although DVD's that have built in screen shots (I.E most Sony pictures DVD's) work fine.

Right now I got: ALL DVD CD ADVD B C D... I selected DVD. I input the name as Terminator 2 SE. and put genre flag as sci-fi. now it shows me a cheezy alien which I would like to change into a screengrab of the title menu of the dvd. Is that possible using the front panel and the keyboard?

One more quick thing since I didnt remember seeing this in the manual. If I load my dvd's out of order, when I have them all loaded in the folder view display will it sort it alphabetically? It would be such a pita to have to organize them alphabetically before I inserted them.

Right now I got: ALL DVD CD ADVD B C D... I selected DVD. I input the name as Terminator 2 SE. and put genre flag as sci-fi. now it shows me a cheezy alien which I would like to change into a screengrab of the title menu of the dvd. Is that possible using the front panel and the keyboard?

You can't get screen captures of DVD title menus but you can get a capture of the movie title as it is playing.

One more quick thing since I didnt remember seeing this in the manual. If I load my dvd's out of order, when I have them all loaded in the folder view display will it sort it alphabetically? It would be such a pita to have to organize them alphabetically before I inserted them.

I don't bother ordering my DVDs it's just too much of a hassle. I just ad them one at a time as I buy them. Sony did not include any useful ways to use the browser for DVD sorting other than the disc type options: All,Video,Music,Picture, or Folder A-B-C-D.

One more quick thing since I didnt remember seeing this in the manual. If I load my dvd's out of order, when I have them all loaded in the folder view display will it sort it alphabetically? It would be such a pita to have to organize them alphabetically before I inserted them.

Yeah, the lack of sorting & organizing features is why most of us 995 owners keep the data in some other form which allows us to sort it and then print out a copy. :(

I found out if I go into the ALL Folder it sorts everything alphabetically regardless of slot which is just what I wanted :) Has anyone tried cracking open the case of this beast to see if there is a way to interface it to the pc? That would make life so much easier.

I've been through a lot of DVD media in my job and I can say from experience that Verbatim and Tayo-Yuden media (can be purchased on-line or as Fuji branded-Only the "Made in Japan" ones) are leagues better than the rest. Not only do they burn with little/no issues, but they have been very reliable for long term storage- something that the cheaper media has not done for us:-(

So my DVD player has run fine for the 18 months I've had it. Suddenly last night I get a "cannot read disc" on a majority of my Dvd's (Which have run fine in the past. Researched here and tried to update the firmware, but guess what "Cannot read disc"!
Any suggestions?

Ok.. after 3 different burns to different cd's I finally got the firmware to read. It is updated now, as far as i can tell...but I still have the cannot read on my dvd's. I have tried moving the discs around but its consistently the same ones that fail. And like I said, they have worked fine in the past.. There is definately a different noise when it plays a disc that ultimately ends up "cannot read"

Mine is doing same thing "CANNOT READ DISC" one year old unit what a shame, just about had it with Sony junk.

Your best bet is a printout sorted by title. Don't waste any time using the features of the Sony, it's not worth the time. Keep a spreadsheet.

my 2 cents

Does anybody know, will this machine output the SACD 5.1 ch output through the HDMI? I'm about to pull the trigger on an Onkyo TX-SR875 AVR that processes uncommressed 5.1 PCM and it would be real cool if I could eliminate the 5.1 channel analog cables.

NVM. I found the answer, running through manual a second time. SACD signals are not output from digital out :(

It wouldn't be possible, since the SACD decoder is in the 995. So, its outputs are analog.

I know it's hidden somewhere in this thread...but how do you update the firmware for the DVP-CX995? and i thought i saw something where you could change the software that makes it so you can input information/the title tags for the dvd player? i'm new to this thread so i apologize for any dumb questions..

I know it's hidden somewhere in this thread...but how do you update the firmware for the DVP-CX995? and i thought i saw something where you could change the software that makes it so you can input information/the title tags for the dvd player? i'm new to this thread so i apologize for any dumb questions..

Um, the CX995 already has the disc title feature. If the DVD has the title embedded then the 995 will read it and put it in the BROWSER.
You can update the firmware by downloading the firmware and burning it to a CD as per Sony's instructions.

Um, the CX995 already has the disc title feature. If the DVD has the title embedded then the 995 will read it and put it in the BROWSER.
You can update the firmware by downloading the firmware and burning it to a CD as per Sony's instructions.

Unfortunately, only a small percentage of disks seem to have this information, making it pretty darn useless. But the feature IS there....

Unfortunately, only a small percentage of disks seem to have this information, making it pretty darn useless. But the feature IS there....

Yep. Very few DVD's have this info. Most Sony pictures DVD's have title info. I did say "IF" BTW. :D

I know it's hidden somewhere in this thread...but how do you update the firmware for the DVP-CX995? and i thought i saw something where you could change the software that makes it so you can input information/the title tags for the dvd player? i'm new to this thread so i apologize for any dumb questions..
What I would do I catalog all my DVD's into a free software available online called DVD Profiler (http://www.invelos.com/Products.aspx) there is also a free plugin that you can use to control the Sony DVP-CX995 (http://mysite.verizon.net/vze39sc9/mediadogg/id1.html) if you buy a little IR blaster called a USB-UIRT for $55.00...best money I spent. Good Luck!!!
http://www.sonystyle.com/wcsstore/SonyStyleStorefrontAssetStore/img/195x128/DVPCX777ES.jpg + http://www.invelos.com/images/dvdproLogo.gif + http://www.usbuirt.com/uuorder3.jpg = http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:uHS0QN_hcbSjYM:69.13.97.211/t-shirt-designs/prodimages/smiley%20face.jpg

That's pretty cool. So you would need a HTPC or a dedicated PC/laptop just for controlling the changer? The plugin seems a bit complicated at first pass.

I'm not sure something like this would work for me. I already have an MX900 remote and RF/IR base station which I have programmed a series of macros to directly select DVD's by number. I have the full DVD Profiler and I print coffee table books with a listing of all my DVD's listed by slot # to use with my MX900 remote. Works pretty good. But now you got my wheels turning. A touch screen or color PDA would make a really cool user interface.

What I would do I catalog all my DVD's into a free software available online called DVD Profiler (http://www.invelos.com/Products.aspx) there is also a free plugin that you can use to control the Sony DVP-CX995 (http://mysite.verizon.net/vze39sc9/mediadogg/id1.html) if you buy a little IR blaster called a USB-UIRT for $55.00...best money I spent. Good Luck!!!
http://www.sonystyle.com/wcsstore/SonyStyleStorefrontAssetStore/img/195x128/DVPCX777ES.jpg + http://www.invelos.com/images/dvdproLogo.gif + http://www.usbuirt.com/uuorder3.jpg = http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:uHS0QN_hcbSjYM:69.13.97.211/t-shirt-designs/prodimages/smiley%20face.jpg

can you ellaborate a little more, exactly what does this do?

That's pretty cool. So you would need a HTPC or a dedicated PC/laptop just for controlling the changer? The plugin seems a bit complicated at first pass....But now you got my wheels turning. A touch screen or color PDA would make a really cool user interface.
Yes you would need a HTPC to control the changer with the DVD Profiler plugin. I am currently using a ELO touch screen I picked up off ebay for $125 and a freeware front-end software called xLobby to control my DVP-CX777ES 400 DVD MegaChanger...here's my setup if you care to see it. Since this photo I have added the touch screen. Works great!!!

The solution I am talking about above was something I was looking at doing until I found xLobby....now I'm hooked. Another solution for those of us with the Sony DVP-CX777ES Changer that I am experimenting with is Vista Media Center with a freeware plugin MyMovies (http://www.mymovies.dk/home.aspx)which imports all your DVD Profiler information and controls your RS-232 changer...including location and slot numbers.... it will cost a little bit more $$$. By the way, if you are a Netflix user...a new plugin just came out today for Vista Media Center that lets you select and stream thousands of Netflix movies on your TV!!!! It's called MyNetflix (http://www.anpark.com/).

DVD Changer what $200
HTPC - ??? you could use the home PC if you don't want to spend anything
DVD Profiler - Free
DVD Pro plugin - Free
Touchscreen - $125
USB-UIRT - $55 + ship
Awesome setup for around $380.00

sharp_1 I don't see a picture.

Any idea if xLobby can control the USB-UIRT module or is it strictly RS232? My 995 doesn't have RS232.

couple questions..


1. how do you install the firmware on the player?

2. does anyone else notice a ring of scratches around their discs as a result of the player? cuz i am reorganizing it and i notice A LOT of my discs (ones that were immediately put into the player from being opened) have a scratch ring aroudn them. I'm a little worried to put ne of my discs back in there...anyone else have suggestions or similar stories? or even better...solutions?

I'm not sure something like this would work for me. I already have an MX900 remote and RF/IR base station which I have programmed a series of macros to directly select DVD's by number. I have the full DVD Profiler and I print coffee table books with a listing of all my DVD's listed by slot # to use with my MX900 remote. Works pretty good. But now you got my wheels turning. A touch screen or color PDA would make a really cool user interface.

Todd Scott-

I have a URC as well and your quote about how you have macros set up to directly select DVD's by number? That is interesting..can you elaborate more on this? I too have a print out (excel) for viewing the movies by genre in a coffee table drawer.

Thanks,
Michael

Yes , how do y0u even select a dvd by number even with the regular remote?

Yes , how do y0u even select a dvd by number even with the regular remote?

Press DISPLAY on the remote
Press ENTER on the remote
Enter the slot number of the disc you would like to play using the keypad
Press DISPLAY twice to get the OSD off the screen.

I will copy and paste my macros and how I use the MX900 later tonight.

wow that is good to know,I always thought you could do that but that owners manual SUCKS

wow that is good to know,I always thought you could do that but that owners manual SUCKS

Yeah it does. This method for direct disc selection is not even mentioned in the manual. :mad:

Any idea if xLobby can control the USB-UIRT module or is it strictly RS232? My 995 doesn't have RS232.
Yes, xLobby can control the both the IR and RS-232 changers.

Take a look at some of the skins that have been designed in xLobby (http://xlobby.help.googlepages.com/skins)...pretty cool stuff!!!

Yes, xLobby can control the both the IR and RS-232 changers.

Take a look at some of the skins that have been designed in xLobby (http://xlobby.help.googlepages.com/skins)...pretty cool stuff!!!

Awesome stuff. Thanks for the link.

Todd Scott-

I have a URC as well and your quote about how you have macros set up to directly select DVD's by number? That is interesting..can you elaborate more on this? I too have a print out (excel) for viewing the movies by genre in a coffee table drawer.

Thanks,
Michael

I created a separate device called "select" and created the screen to look as follows:

http://gallery.avsforum.com/data/502/dvd11.JPG

Here is the macro for the START button which prepares the 995 for direct entry:
1 STOP DVD.261
2 <DELAY 2.0>
3 DISPLAY DVD.261
4 <DELAY 3.0>
5 ENTER DVD.261

(DVD.261 is the code for the DVP-CX995V)

Then you select the DVD # from the keypad.

This is the macro for the DONE button which you press after you selected your DVD:
1 ENTER DVD.261
2 <DELAY 5.0>
3 DISPLAY DVD.261
4 <DELAY 3.0>
5 <JUMP> Navigation -

The JUMP command tells the remote to go back to the screen that called the SELECT screen up. This is a really powerful function which allows the remote to do little sub menus.

Notice the long delays. The 995 is a real dog when it comes to processing instructions from the remote. I have the optional RF base station and IR flashers so I don't need to point the remote at the DVD player. It could be a real nuisance using IR.

So give that a whirl.

so again, has anyone experienced small scratches aroudn their discs when they take them out? im afraid to put the discs back in due to any scratches that may occur :(

and can someone please tell me how to install the firmware?

and can someone please tell me how to install the firmware?


Instructions can be found here http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/swu-download.pl?mdl=DVPCX995V&upd_id=2824&os_id=7

so again, has anyone experienced small scratches aroudn their discs when they take them out? im afraid to put the discs back in due to any scratches that may occur :(

Here's another post similar to what you are experiencing:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=9347821&postcount=1493

I have noticed the scratches as well. I have owned this unit for approximately 16 months and I am now getting a Cannot read disc error for all discs loaded. Since the warranty is up, Sony was no help. They only offered to trade a refurbished model for my apparently broken one at basically the price of a new one. I'm currently not willing to spend that kind of money again for a refurbished model no less. Anyone had this problem and managed to fix it? I've tried unplugging and plugging the unit in again, I've unloaded all discs and attempted to play just one, playing a CD rather than a DVD, and nothing works. The unit is in an all adult environment and has only seen light use so I was very surprised to not get at least three years out of the product.

I pulled out a few discs to inspect on my approximately 2 year old 995. No scratches found. (knock on wood). If this unit ever goes belly up it will be my first and last Sony product. I will go the media server route next time. To me the 995 could have been the ultimate DVD changer if Sony had put a little more effort into it. But the user interface lacks so many useful features, is clumsy, slow to respond, and of course there is the annoying undefeatable "must read disc before continuing" feature.
On the other hand the unit very sharp looking, with incredibly good picture and sound.

Many ways of defeating the "must read" thing have been mentioned here. I recently discovered another. Just bring up the display, and enter the number of the disc you want to go to. It goes immediately, without reading the disc it was on.

It isn't the must read feature issue. The unit won't play discs that were previously recognized. The unit won't play any discs at all and the disc explorer is inaccessible. The unit froze while I was watching a disc. I powered it off and back on only to get "Cannot Play Disc" error on the front display. This occurs for all 200 titles loaded. The tray still rotates and the door will open and close, but when it attempts to read a disc it fails. I'm sorry if I was too vague before. It appears to be a hardware issue, but I thought someone here may have managed to fix this and restore functionality. Thanks for the reply and any suggestions are appreciated.

I tried to do the firmware update and I think it bricked my player. I followed the instructions correctly, but it never displayed anything about updating or anything except that it was a firmware disc and the picture on the screen displayed some distorted pixelized pictures before shutting down . Now when I power up it says "Sony DVD" and then shuts itself off. No tray rotation, no door opening or anything. I took the top off to look for a jammed up disc, but there are no issues. Anybody know how to hard reset other than unplugging it because that didn't help thoughout the entire weekend? I wish I never downloaded the firmware. I guess I was hoping for a better handshake between my DVD player, receiver, and TV. I had no issues with it until now. I have it outputing 480p via HDMI through to an Onkyo 905 with a Reon VP in it. I'm really going to miss it and I may have to bite the bullet and buy a new one if they are still available. I used it for my Simpsons and Family Guy collection and a ton of TV shows, etc. It's a shame Sony didn't make a new one that outputs 480i via HDMI. An external VP would handle the resolution even better that way. If anybody knows a solution or how to help, please do. Thanks in advance.

It isn't the must read feature issue. The unit won't play discs that were previously recognized. The unit won't play any discs at all and the disc explorer is inaccessible. The unit froze while I was watching a disc. I powered it off and back on only to get "Cannot Play Disc" error on the front display. This occurs for all 200 titles loaded. The tray still rotates and the door will open and close, but when it attempts to read a disc it fails. I'm sorry if I was too vague before. It appears to be a hardware issue, but I thought someone here may have managed to fix this and restore functionality. Thanks for the reply and any suggestions are appreciated.

I don't think the two posts about the "must read" thing were in response to you.

Your problem might be something as simple as a dirty lens. With most players, I would recommend a cleaner disc. But, the 995 doesn't like things thicker than a normal disc, so a cleaner disc might jam up. If you feel comfortable opening the unit up, and using some canned air on it, or maybe a swab with a drop of carbon tet, try and clean it yourself. Otherwise, it is definitely worth a trip to a local repair shop, to see if it can be fixed cheaply.

"Your problem might be something as simple as a dirty lens."

I would agree with this. For me, a Q-tip and rubbing alchohol has repaired many optical drives over the years. It would require some disassembly, but it might be just the ticket.

Cleaning the lens is not likely to help. It is more likely a failure of the laser mechanism or focusing element. There was a reason why you could buy replacement lasers for the original Sony Playstation, because Sony laser pickups are crap.

hi guys, I just bought a Sony KDS 60A3000 HDTV and have been using my CX955V for a year or so now, with a regular Sony CRT, and really like it. I've got about 375 DVDs loaded right now (btw do NOT tip it when moving!)

Anyway I tried plugging the HDMI cable from the DVD player into the TV and can't seem to get a signal at all. The HDMI light on the player doesn't light up, I've tried a couple cables, all new from Monoprice, and all 3 HDMI inputs on the TV.

I've tried playing with the resolutions in the settings and still can't seem to get a picture. Works fine over component, but I'd really like to move to all HDMI cables.

I'm going to be getting a Denon receiver pretty soon (its shipping) so I guess I will try to plug the DVD player into that when it gets here, but I would like to watch some DVDs in the meantime.

http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/4835/20080221213923gn1.png

I've tried playing with the resolutions in the settings and still can't seem to get a picture. Works fine over component, but I'd really like to move to all HDMI cables.


Guess you skipped over reading that part Sharp_1?

Thanks for trying, I guess.

hi guys, I just bought a Sony KDS 60A3000 HDTV and have been using my CX955V for a year or so now, with a regular Sony CRT, and really like it. I've got about 375 DVDs loaded right now (btw do NOT tip it when moving!)

Anyway I tried plugging the HDMI cable from the DVD player into the TV and can't seem to get a signal at all. The HDMI light on the player doesn't light up, I've tried a couple cables, all new from Monoprice, and all 3 HDMI inputs on the TV.

I've tried playing with the resolutions in the settings and still can't seem to get a picture. Works fine over component, but I'd really like to move to all HDMI cables.

I'm going to be getting a Denon receiver pretty soon (its shipping) so I guess I will try to plug the DVD player into that when it gets here, but I would like to watch some DVDs in the meantime.

Have you updated the firmware on the 995? I believe the firmware fixes issues with HDMI handshake and certain SONY tv sets. I bet this is your problem. Bloody Sony and their overzealous DRM crap.

From SONY:
"This utility updates the firmware of the DVP-CX995V and provides the following benefits:

* Resolves an issue where certain televisions that support the new xvYCC color feature (x.v.Color™), may show no video and/or play no audio when connected to the DVD player using HDMI™ connections. This may occur with televisions manufactured by Sony or by other manufacturers.
NOTE:This issue occurs only when using the DVD player as the source device for the program being viewed on the television. Audio and video viewed from other sources, or via connections other than HDMI, are unaffected by this issue. This is an HDMI error found within the DVD player and is not a problem with the television’s HDMI connection.
* Improves playback compatibility with certain DVD discs. "

You can download the firmware here: DVP-CX995V firmware (http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/swu-download.pl?mdl=DVPCX995V&upd_id=2824&os_id=7)

Great find Todd, I thank you very much for it. I'll apply that when I get home, as with the latest one for my A3000 too. Hopefully I'll report back later with good news.

Have you updated the firmware on the 995? I believe the firmware fixes issues with HDMI handshake and certain SONY tv sets. I bet this is your problem. Bloody Sony and their overzealous DRM crap.

From SONY:
"This utility updates the firmware of the DVP-CX995V and provides the following benefits:

* Resolves an issue where certain televisions that support the new xvYCC color feature (x.v.Color™), may show no video and/or play no audio when connected to the DVD player using HDMI™ connections. This may occur with televisions manufactured by Sony or by other manufacturers.
NOTE:This issue occurs only when using the DVD player as the source device for the program being viewed on the television. Audio and video viewed from other sources, or via connections other than HDMI, are unaffected by this issue. This is an HDMI error found within the DVD player and is not a problem with the television’s HDMI connection.
* Improves playback compatibility with certain DVD discs. "

You can download the firmware here: DVP-CX995V firmware (http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/swu-download.pl?mdl=DVPCX995V&upd_id=2824&os_id=7)

Worked like a champ!! Thank you very much Todd...

Now to just figure out what looks best... do I use 1080i from the DVD player or let the TV scale the picture... thanks again!

Worked like a champ!! Thank you very much Todd...

Now to just figure out what looks best... do I use 1080i from the DVD player or let the TV scale the picture... thanks again!

That's great! At least the firmware does something good for someone. I upgraded my firmware just for the incompatibility issue with certain DVD's.

Still, better to try cleaning the lens before throwing it in the garbage. I've had a problem with a dirty lens in several players before, and still use a lens cleaning disc in them, from time to time. But, not in the 995, I don't want a jam.

REPLY TO POST 1920

Still, better to try cleaning the lens before throwing it in the garbage. I've had a problem with a dirty lens in several players before, and still use a lens cleaning disc in them, from time to time. But, not in the 995, I don't want a jam.

REPLY TO POST 1920

I think I will attempt to clean the lens before tossing the player. Something tells me that the player is a goner, however. I have experienced a dirty lens before and it has normally shown signs of skipping, rather than completely cutting out. I had absolutely no warning it just quit. In my experience with PCs, this is normally a failure of hardware and leads to replacement. Thanks for all the assistance and I'll let you all know what happens.

well im thinking of selling my 400-disc..I've seen a lot of the discs and like others have reported...a LOT of them keep getting those weird moon-shaped scratches on the edges of them...and i am worried that ill have to replace them eventually if it continues...is there anyway to fix this? cuz my dvd player is def out of warranty now...

Take off the cover and watch it as you change discs. Use discs that are already scratched. My guess is there's a bit of dirt or foreign material stuck to part of the disc handling mechanism.

Take off the cover and watch it as you change discs. Use discs that are already scratched. My guess is there's a bit of dirt or foreign material stuck to part of the disc handling mechanism.

is there anyway to clean that off?

is there anyway to clean that off?

A small can of compressed air will work wonders. Clean everywhere the discs touch including the entire carousel.

A small can of compressed air will work wonders. Clean everywhere the discs touch including the entire carousel.

i will try this and then test it out on a couple old discs! thanks for the advice!

Worked like a champ!! Thank you very much Todd...

Now to just figure out what looks best... do I use 1080i from the DVD player or let the TV scale the picture... thanks again!
Glad to see you got it to work. Sorry to send you back to the manual if you tried that technique already. Sometimes a re-read of the manual helps catch a step you might have missed before.

What did you end up doing? 1080i out of the player or upscale at the TV?

A small can of compressed air will work wonders. Clean everywhere the discs touch including the entire carousel.

although i am a bit curious about something...how could dust be scratching up my discs? or could it be something else?

although i am a bit curious about something...how could dust be scratching up my discs? or could it be something else?

Obviously dust would not scratch a disc. I'm talking about dirt, sand, bit's of plastic slag from improperly made discs, etc.

Obviously dust would not scratch a disc. I'm talking about dirt, sand, bit's of plastic slag from improperly made discs, etc.


True, the disc itself could even be the source of whatever material might be floating about inside the player and is causing scratching in some cases. Sony even advises you to "burnish" the edge of a new disk in the owners manual, with something like a pen or pencil before placing it in the player. In order to remove any loose plastic that may be leftover from the disc molding process.

Anyone using a Harmony 1000 with the 400 disc changer?

I am thinkin of picking up this changer...wish I would have gotten in on the Fry's deal but will probably just go through Amazon now...unless someone know a better deal than $299 shipped 2 day.

Thanks!

The instructions for the firmware update are simple. Yet I am holding in the stop button on the player and pressing the 1 button and when I let go it comes on and starts playing a disk. Am I supposed to keep holding in until it displays the no disk? I have a new tv that will not except the hdmi.

so again, has anyone experienced small scratches aroudn their discs when they take them out? im afraid to put the discs back in due to any scratches that may occur :(

and can someone please tell me how to install the firmware?
Having unit sitting in front of me in pieces (I have the “Cannot Read” any disk problem) I can offer a few comments on the "moon shaped" scratches issue:

While I don't have this problem, by looking inside the unit, if the scratches are around the edge of the disk as I've read in other posts, then I would say that you have dust or grit in the feed armature that picks up the disk from the carousel and puts it in the laser unit. This part is very easy to clean and doesn’t require more than a regular Phillips screwdriver and some cotton swabs. There are 2x screws on the top, 2x on the sides, and 3x across the top back of the unit. Remove these and the whole top comes off and you can get easy access to the feed arm. Probably take you 10mins including the cleaning to have it apart and put back to together

I think I will attempt to clean the lens before tossing the player. Something tells me that the player is a goner, however. I have experienced a dirty lens before and it has normally shown signs of skipping, rather than completely cutting out. I had absolutely no warning it just quit. In my experience with PCs, this is normally a failure of hardware and leads to replacement. Thanks for all the assistance and I'll let you all know what happens.
I'm having the exact same problem with my C995V. It won't read any disc you put in it. I've dissembled the player to clean the lens and also to check to make sure it’s not something mechanical.

So I’m sitting here with the unit in pieces (its actually pretty straight forward to take it apart – only one screw seems to be an after thought). I can tell you that I think it doesn’t have anything to do with the laser itself, but rather the positioning of the carriage that moves the laser down the disk. The reason I say this is that if you move the laser out of this “home” position, and then put in the a disk it can read it. However, do it a second time (it returns to “home” after it ejects the first disk) it can’t read it.

I’m playing around with a small micro switch which seems to be the indicator for the home position. If this proves wrong then its time for a new laser unit.

Anyone have ideas where you can buy the laser unit for these? Is there a Parts Web site?

Quick question....

Let's say I have it full, with 400 discs.

What happens if I take 1 disc out to play it in a different DVD player?

Will it still save the information for that slot?

Or, will I have to re-enter it every time I take a DVD out and put it back in?

Anyone have a picture of what the list of movies looks like? How can you sort it all?

Thanks

Ok - So I've cleaned the lens, messed around with the microswitch and the optical pickup unit just seems shot. So I've now its time to replace the laser unit.

Here are few points that may help others looking to DIY replace the laser unit.

a) The laser unit is called an "optical pickup assembly" in repair parts speak

b) The laser units don't appear to have a part number actually ON the unit (how nice!) but they have a cryptic description on a sticker. The first numbers letters in the upper right corner are the description. The rest of the numbers appear to be useless in finding the replacement part. (Although I'm open to an education on this!)

c) In the case of DVP-CX995v the unit you need is called a "DBU3" "or DBU-3". The attached document is a picture of the unit.

d) AND the PART NUMBER you need to replace it is
Part Number: A1067676A
Descriptions: OPTICAL PICKUP ASSY DBU3
This is the whole laser pickup with the disk motor and carriage, etc.
They don't sell the sub parts only the Service Assy.

e) Here are some links to suppliers I've found, I have no idea if they are reputable:
alltronic.com.sg ($10.00 I'm very suspect but its there as overstock)
servicesplus.us.sony.biz ($93.11 - I'm not sure they will sell to DIY)

f) After removing the cover from the unit it takes about 15mins to replace the laser and then to replace all the screws. I would recommend testing it before you put all the screws together.

I'll report back after I've made the replacement and if it worked...

Quick question....

Let's say I have it full, with 400 discs.

What happens if I take 1 disc out to play it in a different DVD player?

Will it still save the information for that slot?

Or, will I have to re-enter it every time I take a DVD out and put it back in?

Anyone have a picture of what the list of movies looks like? How can you sort it all?

Thanks

Info will only be erased if the unit knows the slot is empty. So, if you don't rotate the carousel in such a way that it detects an empty slot, before you replace the disc, the info will be retained. Easiest way is to turn the knob to a disc near the one you want to take out, remove the disc you want, and leave the carousel in the same position until you replace the disc. But DO NOT remove the disc with the eject button, or the info will be wiped.

I really want to get a large changer.

Is this the best one released? I believe Pioneer made one, any opinions on that one?

I am nervous that after all of my titles are entered, they will be lost. <sigh>

Is it worth it to buy the APC UPS for backup power?

The Sony 777es was released earlier, but has some attractive features the 995 doesn't, like hooking up to the internet to catalog your DVDs. I think they are still available. They have been discussed on this thread, many months ago. You could search the thread, and get some more info. Aside from that, the 995 is the thing to get.

Glad to see you got it to work. Sorry to send you back to the manual if you tried that technique already. Sometimes a re-read of the manual helps catch a step you might have missed before.

What did you end up doing? 1080i out of the player or upscale at the TV?

Currently I'm just letting the TV upscale, and on older DVDs it's not noticably better than letting the DVD player do it, on newer DVDs it seems like a visible improvement. YMMV as each person has differences in what makes a good picture to them.

Anyone using a Harmony 1000 with the 400 disc changer?

I am thinkin of picking up this changer...wish I would have gotten in on the Fry's deal but will probably just go through Amazon now...unless someone know a better deal than $299 shipped 2 day.

Thanks!

While not using the Harmony 1000, I am using the new Harmony One and it works like a charm, I really love it, and so does my wife.

Nice to know that the Harmony One does well with this (I assume you're using a CSV file to do media entry?). My wife and I have been looking for a good DVD changer solution, and this seems like the best option (especially given that the remote control can obviate the issues with the player forgetting everything it knows).

I guess the only other issues I would have to worry about would be mechanical, right?

Is it worth it to buy the APC UPS for backup power?

That is a good question...I know that has been asked a few times on here but I can't seem to find the answer....I have a 995 myself and am wondering if for some reason there is a power outage, how long or even if the 995 will retain the movie title information? I have heard that the 995 does not contain anykind of ram or anything so I am not sure that it will retain anything....but at the same time I have unplugged my 995 to move it or something and when plugged back in the movie titles are still there (knock on wood)???

Anyone have any answers to this?

Thanks,
Michael

BTW, power loss will not cause info loss on the 995.

Great info. :)

Correct. I have titled about 150 DVDs on my 995. My unit was unplugged many times while I built an equipment room for my in-wall rack. Sometimes the 995 was without power for more than a few days at a time. All titles were still there when I plugged it back in. HOWEVER, I was watching a movie on the 995 when the power went out for about 3 seconds. Then the power went on-off-on very quickly. After this all my titles were wiped out. So the unit is very sensitive to brown outs and small power failures. I bought a UPS to plug in my 995,PVR,XBOX,router, and haven't had any issues yet. A few days ago a car went through a stop sign two blocks from my house and took out the hydro pole. The UPS kicked in and the 995 still has all it's titles. Long term use of the UPS will tell for sure if it is helping.

Just wanted to post a follow up after refining my search...looks like some answers to the whole power loss questions....I am still not very confident in unplugging the 995....pretty nervous when you talk about hours of entering in titles and other information...I am not sure how the unit can retain the title / information without some sort of RAM though?

Oh well, guess you just have to roll the dice.......

Lame, I just found out the Harmony 1000 does NOT support CSV files at this time.

Great...

MY power was out for six days, and I lost no info. Lost a lot of patience with the power co., though...

After the firmware update is complete, does the changer lose all the manually entered title information?

After the firmware update is complete, does the changer lose all the manually entered title information?

This has been discussed already. You will not lose titles after a firmware update.

I just got this unit...mainly for my son and loaded it up with all the Disney movies, etc.

However, I notice a "popping" noise at random times. It is random but almost always happens when I go to the file menu or a DVD's menu. It is two small consecutive "pops" coming from my speakers.

I searched the thread and others have had the same problem...not sure why though.

I am using HDMI out for video to my TV and RCA (left/right) to a receiver for audio.

I will try replacing the cables first since turning off different audio options did not solve it.

Any other ideas?

I thought that maybe the issue could be using HDMI out for video but not audio...

I recently purchased a couple more of these players to put in my bedroom (I have a crazy big DVD collection). So now I'm trying to find a stand or cabinet that I can put them into.

The depth is quite daunting, especially since the disk load mechanism sticks out even farther. This isn't an issue in my other room because I have built in shelves that are very deep.

So far, I've found this stand that looks like it will work, though it is a bit on the pricey side:

http://www.omnimount.com/consumer/product.aspx?ProductId=95504efd-cbef-4d92-a4d3-2ee59c26ef13&CurrentId=4.4.3

Any recommendations? It doesn't have to be open, and can be a cabinet with opaque doors as I'll probably route the IR directly to the players regardless. The trick is finding one deep enough that also isn't 45" wide (I don't have enough space for something that wide).

Sean

Are you sure those are deep enough?

My solution was to put mine on the top of a tripod rack, and make a deeper shelf. Of course for three, that won't help you. But, most any rack with an open back would let you use deeper shelves. If you have wood working skills, those are easy to make. Another possibility is to go to a plastics place, and have shelves made from 3/8" (or thicker) plexiglas in a size and color to suit the rack. I did that for my Denon AVR. I used black plexi, with a polished front edge. Looks great!

The cx777es does not have an internet connection. It does have an RS-232 port which can be used by a pc with the proper spftware or an Escient fireball. I have several cx777es units and like them very much.

If I didn't have fireballs and cx777es, I was going to buy several 985s; I was thinking that it shouldn't be too hard to build an rs-232 to keyboard encoder and then use a pc to send the disc information right into the 985 via the keyboard port. My thought was to use dvdprofiler to generate a list of all the dvds ( in order ) then take the text file from dvdprofiler and process it in excel, add the formating necessary to make the 985 happy ( tab, arrow keys, returns, etc) Then just paste that processed text file into hyperterm and have it talk to the keyboard emulator. I suspect that it would be slow, but it beats typing in hundreds of discs. The other advantage is that if the 985 "forgets" what is in it, it would be trivial to send the files to it again.


The Sony 777es was released earlier, but has some attractive features the 995 doesn't, like hooking up to the internet to catalog your DVDs. I think they are still available. They have been discussed on this thread, many months ago. You could search the thread, and get some more info. Aside from that, the 995 is the thing to get.

Thanks for the correction. I don't have a 777es. So, you connect it to a PC, but can't you import info from websites, like IMDb, to store on the 777? Perhaps that's what was in my foggy memory...

Are you sure those are deep enough?

My solution was to put mine on the top of a tripod rack, and make a deeper shelf. Of course for three, that won't help you. But, most any rack with an open back would let you use deeper shelves. If you have wood working skills, those are easy to make. Another possibility is to go to a plastics place, and have shelves made from 3/8" (or thicker) plexiglas in a size and color to suit the rack. I did that for my Denon AVR. I used black plexi, with a polished front edge. Looks great!

Interesting idea! I do have an existing rack that I may be able to modify to remove the panel from the back to allow them to overhang the shelves in the rear.

The omnimount stand appears to have large enough shelves from the specs, but if I go that route I'll try to find one locally and go over there with a tape measure to make sure.

Sean

Please somebody help me. I need this player Region Free and if is possible play PAL DVDs.

Thank you all

Please somebody help me. I need this player Region Free and if is possible play PAL DVDs.

Thank you all

I believe this player is not code free, and can not play PAL material. However, the older model, DVP-CX985V, can be modified.

Please somebody help me. I need this player Region Free and if is possible play PAL DVDs.

Thank you all

Check out www.jvbdigital.com They modify lots of players to be code free, and play PAL. They have both the 985, and the 777es.

I keep hearing that the 995 has an option for "command 1/2/3". I must have the cheap model as there is NO way to set this! I there is no way, how do you people that have 2 or more control each one separatly?
Thanks... Bill

I keep hearing that the 995 has an option for "command 1/2/3". I must have the cheap model as there is NO way to set this! I there is no way, how do you people that have 2 or more control each one separatly?
Thanks... Bill

I believe there are dip switches in the battery compartment and then you do something on the front panel of the unit. try downloading the owners manual if you do not have one

I keep hearing that the 995 has an option for "command 1/2/3". I must have the cheap model as there is NO way to set this! I there is no way, how do you people that have 2 or more control each one separatly?
Thanks... Bill

Yes there is indeed a way to do it. Read the manual! On page 16, it shows you exactly how to do it.

If you don't have the manual, here is the link for it in PDF form.

http://129.33.22.12/release/DVPCX995V.pdf

I believe this player is not code free, and can not play PAL material. However, the older model, DVP-CX985V, can be modified.

I have the dvp-cx985v. How can this be modified to run region free? Also is there any difference between the 985 and the 995 except the hdmi port? I read a couple pages back about a dvd plugin to allow htpc to control the changer. That would be neat if it works on the 985 as well. Oh and btw I didnt have the remote for the unit but I bought a harmony 550 from ecost.com for 59 bux and it controls all the features perfectly :) Great deal since the remote for the dvp-cx985v on ebay was 65 bux! hehe.

I have the dvp-cx985v. How can this be modified to run region free?

There are services out there that would provide this modification for a cost.
Post #1964 has indicated one web site that would be able to modify your changer to run region-free. There are others web sites as well.

:( So I guess its not as easy as a remote control code? I have some japanese movies I would like to watch on the unit so I wouldnt being needing pal -> ntsc or vice versa.

Is very frustrating for me too :(, a have a lot of spanish films. I ended to buy a region free/pal/ntsc dvd player (phillips 5982) and put on top of the 995 and use the 995 as a dvd storage :(

If you have a DVD burner in your PC's, then just buy one of the popular programs to copy DVD's that can also strip away the region codes. Problem solved! And for a lot less money than paying someone to mod a 995, that is if they even can. Because JVB digital does not have a mod available for the 995, but they do show one at a price of $390 to mod the circuit board of a CX985 for region free. Where as a good DVD copy program is about $75-$100. And the copies would work on any future DVD player you would also own.

I'm already tried that, with DVD Decrypter and DVD Shrink, I author each dvd changing region from 2 to 1, or 2 to 0 without any success :( can you appoint me to the right direction? Thanks a lot

DVD Decrypter is a old program that is no longer current or supported anymore. And there will never be any updates for it. Check out the programs that SlySoft has, they offer great support and their programs are updated as needed.

That is what I have done for my region 2 films it just makes me made that I have to take my legit dvd's and make backups of them just to run :( On another note, I programmed my harmony 550 to control the 985 but it didnt seem to do anything. Is there a switch on the unit I need to change to make it accept IR? I noticed something on the back called command 1,2,3 do I have to change that? TIA :)

That is what I have done for my region 2 films it just makes me made that I have to take my legit dvd's and make backups of them just to run :( On another note, I programmed my harmony 550 to control the 985 but it didnt seem to do anything. Is there a switch on the unit I need to change to make it accept IR? I noticed something on the back called command 1,2,3 do I have to change that? TIA :)


The "1,2,3" is to change command code sets, so that you can have three different changers, and control them all independently, w/o controlling another one at the same time. Your Harmony can only be set to one set of command codes at a time. So, you could try changing the setting on the 985, to see which set of commands the Harmony is set for, 1, 2, or 3.

That is what I have done for my region 2 films it just makes me made that I have to take my legit dvd's and make backups of them just to run :( On another note, I programmed my harmony 550 to control the 985 but it didnt seem to do anything. Is there a switch on the unit I need to change to make it accept IR? I noticed something on the back called command 1,2,3 do I have to change that? TIA :)

How did you change the region? I used DVD Decrypter as well as DVD Shrink but still the 995 says no play back due to area limitations :(

I desire so much to set this unit Region Free.

How did you change the region? I used DVD Decrypter as well as DVD Shrink but still the 995 says no play back due to area limitations

Have you even set the region code removal settings in DVD Decrypter for the correct region that the DVD happens to be made for? If it's a region 2 DVD, then you probably want to change the setting for RCE to region 2, and not 1. If that don't work, then spend the money to buy a program that will remove the region coding.

SlySofts, AnyDVD will do so. You can even D/L it for free and use it as a trial period for 21 days to make sure it works, before buying it. In fact you can do this with all their programs, and it's a good way to make sure that they will work for you before you decide to buy them. And their CloneDVD program, makes DVD Shrink look prehistoric! It is very good at shrinking dual layer DVD's down to fit on a single layer disc, and also offers easy to use options on what to keep or throw away to make the quality as best as possible when compressing a dual layer DVD to fit on a smaller disc.

Also, DVD Shrink pretty much has nothing to do with removal of anything as far as region codes or anti copy measures, it's main purpose is to compress a dual layer DVD to fit on a single layer disk. So I would not be looking at that as the reason why you have not been able to make a copy play back for you.


I desire so much to set this unit Region Free.

That is not going to happen. You are not going to be setting the CX995 itself to be region free, because there is no mod to even do so.

I really appreciate your time and advise . I will try with SlySofts tools and I will post the results.

Thank you very much

Does anyone know if the DVP-CX995V is to be replaced soon? It has been on the market for 3 years, 1080p and HDMI 1.3 are now more commonplace and in Canada several major retailers have taken $100 off the price. The price drop might be red herring. The price was CAD$499... now CAD$399... which is the same price as Sony in the USA. I know it is available much cheaper online.

Alas for me I have 100s of Region 2 DVDs so the lack of region code hack rules this otherwise excellent machine out for me :-(

Does anyone know if the DVP-CX995V is to be replaced soon? It has been on the market for 3 years, 1080p and HDMI 1.3 are now more commonplace and in Canada several major retailers have taken $100 off the price. The price drop might be red herring. The price was CAD$499... now CAD$399... which is the same price as Sony in the USA. I know it is available much cheaper online.

Alas for me I have 100s of Region 2 DVDs so the lack of region code hack rules this otherwise excellent machine out for me :-(

As fas as I know, Sony has been making the Sony CDP-CX455 400 cd player since 2001 so don't hold your breath....

I suspect that price drop is due to the plummeting US$ which is now roughly equal to a CD$.

Which Canadian stores have dropped the price by $100???
I searched all last night and could only find a few sources for the player all at the original manufacturers price!

I don't know if you have Sony Outlet stores in Canada, but in New York the Sony outlets are selling refurbished units for $109 and offer a 2 year replacement warranty for an additional $20.

I don't know if you have Sony Outlet stores in Canada, but in New York the Sony outlets are selling refurbished units for $109 and offer a 2 year replacement warranty for an additional $20.

OUCH!
I ended up winning an older 850D 200 disc model on ebay for $127! I guess I shot myself in the foot :(
I live close to the border so I'll see if I can find a Sony Outlet store!
Thanks!

I tried to do the firmware update and I think it bricked my player. I followed the instructions correctly, but it never displayed anything about updating or anything except that it was a firmware disc and the picture on the screen displayed some distorted pixelized pictures before shutting down . Now when I power up it says "Sony DVD" and then shuts itself off. No tray rotation, no door opening or anything. I took the top off to look for a jammed up disc, but there are no issues. Anybody know how to hard reset other than unplugging it because that didn't help thoughout the entire weekend? I wish I never downloaded the firmware. I guess I was hoping for a better handshake between my DVD player, receiver, and TV. I had no issues with it until now. I have it outputing 480p via HDMI through to an Onkyo 905 with a Reon VP in it. I'm really going to miss it and I may have to bite the bullet and buy a new one if they are still available. I used it for my Simpsons and Family Guy collection and a ton of TV shows, etc. It's a shame Sony didn't make a new one that outputs 480i via HDMI. An external VP would handle the resolution even better that way. If anybody knows a solution or how to help, please do. Thanks in advance.
The exact SAME thing happened with my cx995v dvd changer when I did the firmware update. Is there anyway to fix it besides sending it to Sony for $261 :-( I just was wondering if you had any luck??

On Sony's repair web page they offer exchange $261 or REPAIR for $129. Has anyone had Sony repair the DVPCX995V?

My DVPCX995V (bougth it 8-2006) starting making a clunking noise and now all I get is "CANNOT READ DISC" message.

I took the top off of unit and disc seems to load okay just won't read ANY disc.

Thanks

I really like my DVP-CX995V, but I'm a little frustrated.

I'm trying to run it through the STR-DA3300ES A/V receiver via HDMI without success. My PS3 works fine, as does my Series 3 Tivo, but I don't get any signal at all from the DVD changer. If directly connected to the HDMI port of the TV, everything is perfect, but not if I run it through the AV receiver. My thought is that the unit is interpreting the receiver as a VCR, and the copy protection scheme kicks in. If that is the case, though, why does the PS3 pass video through without a hitch?

Will the firmware upgrade fix this? Any other ideas? I can't be the only one who's dealt with this.

Thanks

I really like my DVP-CX995V, but I'm a little frustrated.

I'm trying to run it through the STR-DA3300ES A/V receiver via HDMI without success. My PS3 works fine, as does my Series 3 Tivo, but I don't get any signal at all from the DVD changer. If directly connected to the HDMI port of the TV, everything is perfect, but not if I run it through the AV receiver. My thought is that the unit is interpreting the receiver as a VCR, and the copy protection scheme kicks in. If that is the case, though, why does the PS3 pass video through without a hitch?

Will the firmware upgrade fix this? Any other ideas? I can't be the only one who's dealt with this.

Thanks

I can almost guarantee that upgrading the firmware on your 995 will fix your issue. Check Sony's website or do a search of this forum.

There doesn't seem to be a way to see the firmware level on the player. I think if there were a way, it would have been in the firmware update instructions. So, I guess there isn't one.
Sean

Here is how to get into the Diagnostic Mode and view the firmware version:

With power to the unit OFF: On remote, press TOP MENU, CLEAR, I/O (Power) in sequence. Press 5 from the Diagnostic Mode Menu.

-Geoff

Hey, thanks very much for posting this! I have two more players that I haven't updated yet because they are new enough to (I hope) already have the new firmware. Now I can confirm that without reflashing them.

Sean

I can almost guarantee that upgrading the firmware on your 995 will fix your issue. Check Sony's website or do a search of this forum.

You were right. The 995 will now run HDMI video through my AV receiver without difficulty.

One unexpected roadblock: I tried three times to burn the CD with Vista and the 995 could not read it, no matter how I closed the session. I dug out my old XP laptop and it worked the first time.

Now time to tweak my DA3300ES. Next forum!

Thanks for all the help

Ok - So I've cleaned the lens, messed around with the microswitch and the optical pickup unit just seems shot. So I've now its time to replace the laser unit.

Here are few points that may help others looking to DIY replace the laser unit.

a) The laser unit is called an "optical pickup assembly" in repair parts speak

b) The laser units don't appear to have a part number actually ON the unit (how nice!) but they have a cryptic description on a sticker. The first numbers letters in the upper right corner are the description. The rest of the numbers appear to be useless in finding the replacement part. (Although I'm open to an education on this!)

c) In the case of DVP-CX995v the unit you need is called a "DBU3" "or DBU-3". The attached document is a picture of the unit.

d) AND the PART NUMBER you need to replace it is
Part Number: A1067676A
Descriptions: OPTICAL PICKUP ASSY DBU3
This is the whole laser pickup with the disk motor and carriage, etc.
They don't sell the sub parts only the Service Assy.

e) Here are some links to suppliers I've found, I have no idea if they are reputable:
alltronic.com.sg ($10.00 I'm very suspect but its there as overstock)
servicesplus.us.sony.biz ($93.11 - I'm not sure they will sell to DIY)

f) After removing the cover from the unit it takes about 15mins to replace the laser and then to replace all the screws. I would recommend testing it before you put all the screws together.

I'll report back after I've made the replacement and if it worked...


So did this work? And did anyone else have success fixing this problem?

i found a great deal on this unit. a brandnew sealed but refurbished unit at sony outlet with factory warranty for 109 dollars. i can probably get extended warranty for 20-30dollars for 4-5 years.

I have DVD Copy 6 plus for DVD cloning. i am planning to copy my dvds and store them into this unit and keep the originals in their original box. i can copy double sided discs onto 2 seperate discs so i dont have to get up and flip them over(i wish there was a player which could play 2 sided like laserdisc players lol) so it sounds like a great idea.

my concern is what type of discs should i use with this player? DVD-R? DVD+R? what brand? and will it accept DVD Copy 6 plus(www.corel.com) copied discs(i will do 1:1 copies)?

should i stay away from the refurbished units even though they are backed with factory warranty? (the guy told me the warranty on refurbished units are better and cheaper, i wont even have to pay for shipping for repairs and if they cant fix it they replace it)

is 777ES much better dvd changer than this unit? I have a Sony XBR2 LCD.
i replaced most of my movies with blu-ray versions and still replacing them as new titles becomes available. so i will be storing titles that are never going to be available on blu-ray(at least not soon) and they are usually low-quality b movies or discontinued tv shows with poor transfers such as earth 2, battlestar galactica (original 1978) ,V , screamers etc.. i dont really expect miracles out of these prints. would 777ES 218mhz video dac improve considerably or it could be neglacted and 995 for 109 is the best deal for buck?

thanks in advance

I have played lots of -R, -RW (unfinalized), and +RDL discs, made on my Pioneer 640 DVDR on my 995, and all have played fine. I am not familiar with DVD Copy +6. I prefer Verbatim discs. I've burned several hundred, with only one coaster.

...

I have DVD Copy 6 plus for DVD cloning. i am planning to copy my dvds and store them into this unit and keep the originals in their original box. ...

If you're really going to rip all your discs, then I would suggest that you use Titlewriter (http://www.softpedia.com/progDownload/TitleWriter-Download-80070.html) to add title info that the 995 can actually read.

Unfortunately, using Titlerwriter means a few extra steps since it only works on folders.

Personally, I use DVD Fab HD Decryptor to rip to a folder (since it handles all the Sony protection nonsense).

Then I use DVD Shrink to make sure that there is about 300 MBytes of unused space at the end of the disc (this has made more difference in my success rate then anything else I've tried since the very edge of the data layers often have "issues" and since the "wobble" at the very edge of the disc is the worst).

Then I use Titlewriter to add the title info (you can search through this thread for info on using Titlewriter).

And finally I burn at a relatively slow speed (usually 4x) to minimize vibration.
In my experience, not burning to the very end of the disc and changing to a different drive has been more important than -R vs. +R.

Can the HDMI input be replaced on/in the back of the unit?

I have damaged the input to the point I cannot insert a HDMI cable.

If it can be replaced, where can I find one?

Can the HDMI input be replaced on/in the back of the unit?

I have damaged the input to the point I cannot insert a HDMI cable.

If it can be replaced, where can I find one?


It looks like that might be Sony part # 181808641

And if it is, you can buy it direct from Sony parts for $14.61
And they do show it as being in stock.

http://servicesales.sel.sony.com/web/productSearch.do

(It will not show up just by using that link to Sony parts. You will also need to enter the above part number and pick then option of using a part number to search for it)




You can also buy it from partstore.com for the same price of $14.61

http://www.partstore.com/GetModel.aspx?MfgName=Sony&BrandName=Sony&ModelNumber=DVPCX995V&PartCategoryName=&Keywords=hdmi&x=0&y=0

http://www.partstore.com/Part/Sony/Sony/DVPCX995V/Sony/Sony/181808641/New.aspx

I understand the CX995V loses saved disc information when a disc is removed for other use.

Does it still lose the information if you put a disc back in the same slot (i.e., if I removed a disc and put a blank disc in its place, will that allow the data to be preserved?)?

Thanks,
Chris

It doesn't, IF it doesn't scan that slot, and note that the disc is missing, or changed. So, you can take some discs out, replace them later, and not lose data, IF you don't let it go past the slot.