Rating: 
Summary: Does NOT lose data when power goes out
Review: I was skeptical of one of the reviews that said this player would erase all the data entered if the power went out, so I called Sony directly and asked. THE MEMORY WILL KEEP ALL THE DATA IF IT IS UN-PLUGGED.
Rating:
Summary: Does NOT lose data when power goes out
Review: I was skeptical of one of the reviews that said this player would erase all the data entered if the power went out, so I called Sony directly and asked. THE MEMORY WILL KEEP ALL THE DATA IF IT IS UN-PLUGGED.
Rating:
Summary: Virtual Jukebox
Review: I've had my Sony player since Christmas and use it daily. It does take some time to enter the CD titles. I have a little log book numbered to 400 and write the titles; so I can find them quickly. I also enjoy the grouping feature where you can code up to 8 groups of CDs and play the shuffle feature from within that group. I have about 60 greatest hits/oldies CDs on group 1 and often want to hear Carole King or the Association. Then I have an instrumental group that I enjoy when listing to the player while doing project work when I don't want to be distracted by lyrics. I do keep one section for new CDs for first listenings and replace them with my next 15 new CDs. My classic CDs like George Harrison's rerelease of "All Things Must Pass" get coded in for easy access and replay. I've also enjoyed the "hit list" feature that allows you to flag and replay your own favorite tracks from your CDs. I keep changing mine, but do play this frequently when I want to hear my favorites. Most CDs I've gotten are not preprogrammed. The ones that are also show up the titles of individual songs. I would also like to be able to input song titles myself. The changer makes minimal noise and takes minimal time for changing during shuffle play mode. I like the feature of being able to shuffle play all CDs by one artist. Carole King & I spent about 5 hours together this way on New Year's Eve (Love Makes the World, you know)! And the blue light is killer. While there might be improvements possible, I am very pleased with my virtual jukebox 400 CD changer!
Rating:
Summary: Virtual Jukebox
Review: I've had my Sony player since Christmas and use it daily. It does take some time to enter the CD titles. I have a little log book numbered to 400 and write the titles; so I can find them quickly. I also enjoy the grouping feature where you can code up to 8 groups of CDs and play the shuffle feature from within that group. I have about 60 greatest hits/oldies CDs on group 1 and often want to hear Carole King or the Association. Then I have an instrumental group that I enjoy when listing to the player while doing project work when I don't want to be distracted by lyrics. I do keep one section for new CDs for first listenings and replace them with my next 15 new CDs. My classic CDs like George Harrison's rerelease of "All Things Must Pass" get coded in for easy access and replay. I've also enjoyed the "hit list" feature that allows you to flag and replay your own favorite tracks from your CDs. I keep changing mine, but do play this frequently when I want to hear my favorites. Most CDs I've gotten are not preprogrammed. The ones that are also show up the titles of individual songs. I would also like to be able to input song titles myself. The changer makes minimal noise and takes minimal time for changing during shuffle play mode. I like the feature of being able to shuffle play all CDs by one artist. Carole King & I spent about 5 hours together this way on New Year's Eve (Love Makes the World, you know)! And the blue light is killer. While there might be improvements possible, I am very pleased with my virtual jukebox 400 CD changer!
Rating:
Summary: Pretty good
Review: It's nice Sony has a Mega changer. There aren't many products in this space. I just bought this model and am happy with the perfomance but the work to enter info about the CD is overly complex and time consuming. First get to the selection that let's you add the CD title. Then press several more buttons to get to the place where you can type the artist in a file list. Then press more buttons so you assign the artist in the file list to that particular CD. I'm using a keyboard and this is still taking forever. Also, make sure you buy a CD case to put the CD covers in, then label the covers with a sticky that corresponds to the number in the carousel where that CD sits. If you never browse your CDs or don't care about looking at the song list forget this suggestion.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty good
Review: It's nice Sony has a Mega changer. There aren't many products in this space. I just bought this model and am happy with the perfomance but the work to enter info about the CD is overly complex and time consuming. First get to the selection that let's you add the CD title. Then press several more buttons to get to the place where you can type the artist in a file list. Then press more buttons so you assign the artist in the file list to that particular CD. I'm using a keyboard and this is still taking forever. Also, make sure you buy a CD case to put the CD covers in, then label the covers with a sticky that corresponds to the number in the carousel where that CD sits. If you never browse your CDs or don't care about looking at the song list forget this suggestion.
Rating: 
Summary: Bitter Disappointment Regarding Cracker Distribution
Review: Sure this is capable and clever audio component . . . when it comes to CDs. However, it is not nearly as versatile as it would have you believe! When you remove the musical discs and replace them with let's say, crackers, it fails miserably! I carefully lined up my favorite snack squares, alphabetized by name, and when I tried to have the supposed "changer" distribute them to me in an orderly manner it crumpled within that task, very much like the crackers. So be warned, this audio component is a one-trick pony! You would think with 21st century technology they could put together electronic equipment that adapts to the consumers needs!
Rating:
Summary: Losing the memory
Review: Thank you for contacting SONY Online Support. I had read reports that some people lost what they had spent hours typing in, and some had not, when unplugging the unit. I was one who lost everything...probably 10 hours of work. I contacted Sony and you can see their response below. Be careful
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The Sony CDP-CX400 CD changer has an internal rechargeable power supply which powers the memory that holds the user entered data or custom file names. If the unit is left unpowered for over a month, the internal power supply runs down resetting the memory. We suggest that you keep the unit powered all the time to preserve manually entered data.
Rating:
Summary: Put it on shuffle!!!!!
Review: There are two different types of people who will buy this machine: those who need somewhere to store their discs and those who will fill the machine up and continue to periodically swap discs in and out of the player. I am the latter. Knowing that, here are my pros and cons to this unit... CONS - I have one major gripe: The CD insert booklet, or rather the lack thereof. A few years back, I bought the Sony 200-disc changer. One of my favorite things about it was the two booklets which came in the box. You stick numbers on the clear plastic slots to correspond with the same numbered slots in the actual player, then you slide the insert from the CD's jewel case into the booklet. This gives you quick access to finding out what cd's are in which slots. THERE ARE NO CD INSERT BOOKLETS INCLUDED WITH THIS PLAYER! Oh, that made me mad! Maybe it's just me, but I need those booklets. I called Sony to gripe. Their stance is that all the Mega-Changers come with the new indexing feature, so one can type the cd title right on the unit's display. No need for the booklets, right? Okay, so can a person type all the lyrics to songs on the display? No. Can one transfer the CD cover art onto the digital display? No. Like I said, maybe it's me. PROS - I put these after the Cons, because the Pros greatly outweigh the Cons. First, there is that indexing feature I mentioned above. Now, I wasn't bashing this feature, just the lack of the CD booklets. There are different ways of indexing the CD's, by artist, title, groups, etc. It may take a little bit of time to type this stuff in, but for the person who uses this player as a storage unit, it may just be worth it. You can store your favorite songs, and even delete the songs you hate. And, contrary to one of the other reviews, if the power goes out, Sony has assured me that it has to be out for at least 30 days for the unit to forget what you programmed.
There are other cool features as well, such as the X-Fade button, which fades the song out which you are listening to instead of just cutting it off. I have only owned the CDP-CX400 for two days, but i can't wait to play around with it more. And, oh the joy of filling it up with 400 discs and pressing "Shuffle"!!!! So, whether you are a serious collector or just want somewhere to store your 400 discs, I recommend buying this machine. I also recommened buying some kind of extended warranty, as there will be plenty of motor use put into this unit. But if, like me, you LOVE those cd-insert booklets, be prepared to give Sony about $20 for just one of them.
Rating: 
Summary: Great features, not always reliable
Review: This CD changer has great features but does not always work. Fortunatly, its usually a minor inconveience. Lets get the bad news over with. Sometimes I turn the power on and push the play button and nothing happens. Usually this is fixed by turning the system off, waiting a second and turning it on again. Once in a great while I have to unplug it and plug it back in or struggle with turning the power on and off repeatedly before it works. Its inconvenient but it is not a major problem (except I always worry about the player finally going caput). The other bit of bad news is the sound quality. If you use the standard RCA (red and white) connection the sound lacks presence and clarity, especially in the midrange. If you have a good amplifier with a digital in jack you can connect the CD player that way(it has a digital optical out) and the sound improves (since the amplifier does the conversion work). Most casual listeners probably wont notice a difference that concerns them. The changer is bulky and the CD slots are very small. You cannot fast forward or rewind within tracks, only the remote can perform that operation. Finally, it takes a bit for the player to change discs (especially in shuffle mode). However there is some good news. The keyboard input is very helpful for labeling CDs. You can categorize CDs in 8 main groups or up to 200 artist files. Once categorized, you can play all the CDs continuiously or "shuffle" the tracks within those groups or files. So if you want to listen to only your jazz CDs or your Britney Spears or Judas Priest CDs you can do it. If you hate one song on an otherwise good CD, you can use the delete bank so that you will never hear it again (unless you take it out of the delete bank). There is a "hit list" of up to 32 of your favorites and three program slots that save when the player is turned off (or, yes, when the power goes out. The power went out and all the memory remained). In conclusion, a CD changer with great features and flaws that are inconveient but can be overcome.
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