I've got a Pioneer 563a currently - its getting a bit flakey on me, so was thinking of this sony. I was wondering if it is capable of playing back PAL discs like my Pioneer does. has anyone tried this? PAL region free discs is what I'm wondering about more specifically.
thanks

Most of the reports are that it will not, though the people who have posted this might be confusing PAL conversion with region-free (I'm pretty sure this player can't be made region-free).

You could also look at the widely-available Philips 5960, which does PAL nicely and can be made region-free in seconds, or the Oppo 970 which should be a PQ step-up from the Philips (at least on non-pal disks). - DR

Hrm. I guess I'll have to try it out at the store. PAL region 0 is a must for my needs.

Sony NS75 will NOT play PAL and is very difficult, if at all, to make region free. If you want these capabilities you would do better with a Philips, Yamaha, Toshiba or Oppo. All can easily be made region free and have PAL-to-NTSC conversion.