Sound quality, looks good, 400 disks!

Can only sort disks by 1st character, cannot store track names, remote is occasionally flaky

I'm very happy with this unit but more ways to access tracks/disks would be good. I found the remote would not pick up and display CD Text data occasionally. Also the remote did not always respond when selecting disks/tracks from the lcd screen.
Still I would definitely recommend this unit - its way cool.

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Pioneer 6 disc changer

400 disc capacity
2-way LCD remote
Excellent price to performance ratio

I purchased this unit for two reasons.
The large capacity and the two way LCD remote.
My unit has not shown any of the problems
written about in the other reviews.
It does have a June 2000 manufacture date.
Perhaps, Sony fixed some earlier problems that
were surfacing.
One thing...when first hooked up and played,
it exhibited some rough, stringent sound in the
upper midrange and lower high end...after a couple
days and a few hours of play, this has mellowed
considerably. It is appearing to sound a little warmer
in the mids and highs.
I can highly recommend this unit.

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I currently also use two Sony 5-disc carousel units.

Capacity, artist/grouping features, aesthetics, remote

linking two units together produces some problems

I posted an earlier review that discussed firmware (software) problems with these units. I have since replaced my CX450 and can confirm that Sony has resolved the problems and the new units work correctly. There definitely was a bug, but it depended on how the units were loaded and required the units to be at least close to their full capacity.

Note that my first CX450(with bugs) was produced in April of 2000 and my newer unit(s) in July of 2000. they apparently fixed the problem somewhere in that span of time.

I have also added a new CX400 to my 450 (also July 2000) and can report some problems using the units together. First, the master unit does not load group or artist info from the seconnd unit. This is not a bug, merely a design flaw in my opinion. It prevents you from being able to select a single group or artist to play on both units at the same time (switching back and forth to utilize the no-delay feature). Instead, you need to select an artist or group on each unit individually. Not a huge deal except...

The 2-way LCD remote does not load artist or group info from the second unit, whether it is a CX 450 or CX400. In order to select an artist from the slave unit, you need to use a separate remote or select from the front panel. Very poor design in my opinion. Also, there does not appear to be a way to advance to the next track on the non-playing unit when using the no-delay feature. To do this you need to use a button located only on the Master's front panel. The no-delay feature is excellent, but you should be able to advance (skip the current track) via the remote.

Also, when in the Mega Control mode, the Master switches it's display to the slave unit automatically and does not switch back to itself without user intervention. This seems silly, since it would be nice to be able to see the upcoming disc/track info on each separate unit.

Finally, if you attempt to load disc name/artist info in the second unit while it is connected to the first (via the S-link II style interface), the info on the first unit is corrupted. It interprets the entry based on it's own Artist file database if it is connected. This makes adding a new disc to the second unit a pain, since you need to disconnect the interface cable prior to entering the new discs info.

Overall, if you can deal with the units' shortcomings, the features that they provide are excellent. I will probably try adding an Slink-e (http://www.nirvis.com/) sometime in the future to handle management, which should take care of my problems.

The obvious reason to own: this player puts 400 CDs at your fingertips via the remote, w/expansion to 800 available. Luxury central.

BUT the existing data entry option is far less than optimal -- too time consuming and not particularly useful. What I really wanted, and ultimately purchased, was software that would "read" my CDs and organize them into a database, after which I could then load the jukebox per my database. Fortunately, some sharp person in Norway has created such software, CATraxx, which you can download from the web for an AMAZINGLY reasonable price ($39, w/30 day shareware option)(go to www.fnprg.com). With CATraxx, you put a CD into your CPU's CD drive. The software then "reads" your CD. The auto scan option will eject your CD within an interval that you choose (e.g., every 6 seconds), so you can go at your own pace. Once you've scanned your CDs, you can connect to the net, click on "download", and your CDs will automatically be identified by the internet CD database (www.cddb.com), with all the relevant data downloaded to your PC (including track data and more) and organized by a choice of options. From there, you click on "transfer", and this data is then transferred into one or more databases of your choosing.

The CATraxx software is what has made the Sony jukebox functional for me. I took my CATraxx generated document, then transferred it to a Microsoft Access database, from where I could manipulate/reorganize the info to my heart's content. The CATraxx software has flexibility, and may even be easier than how I proceeded next, but by transferring my CATraxx db to MS Access (a program I already knew), I didn't have to deal w/another learning curve (i.e., I didn't have to figure out how to get CATraxx to organize the data the way I wanted it).

Once I organized my CDs within the db into categories of my choice, thereby creating a new db, I loaded up the Sony in the order I'd created on the latest db, which I cross-referenced to my alphabetical (by Artist) CATraxx db by adding the disc "location" (i.e., the numbered slot in the jukebox) to the alphabetical db. Then I printed out both dbs (8 pages each), put them into a neon-colored file folder w/an acco clip on each side (alpha order on the left, numeric on the right). Armed w/my folder (or my PC) & my remote, I can find & listen to whatever I want whenever I choose (Where's Whiskeytown's Faithless Street? I look at the alphabetical db -- and see it's at #319 If I want to know what would play next [w/out any intervention on my part], I just look at my numeric db and discover that #320 is Wilco's Mermaid Ave. Of course, I have to update my dbs and files whenever I add new CDs, but that's a relatively simple task. Also, w/the CATraxx database, I can locate a particular track at the click of a mouse (love that search function).

I'm going to add a second Sony jukebox soon (probably the CDP-CX400, since I already have the visual remote w/the CX450), as I'm up to 391 CDs now (Christmas will easily take care of that space). When that happens, I'll probably reorganize the locations (e.g., all my Classical music will move to the last 100 slots of #2), but I expect that to be easy thanks to CATraxx. In all, I spent about 10 hours to bring order out of chaos, time well invested, IMO. I now listen to much more of my collection because it's so easy to see what I have (esp. all those CD I'd forgotten I even owned) and easy to play what I want.

As for liner notes, I use the Caselogic notebooks (in which I'd previously stored both the liner notes & the CDs, tho I'm hoping to find a "rolodex" type organizer -- I'd welcome any suggestions.

All in all, I'm happy. Without CATraxx, tho', I don't know that I'd ever have taken the time to organize my collection. But w/the software & the jukebox, I'm in sound heaven!

As noted above. Buy the CATraxx software & make it easy on yourself. N.B., I have no personal or financial interest in CATraxx -- I found it by a websearch, read other folks' reviews, and have to agree that it's great! The software's not as user-friendly as I'd like, but I figured it out well enough to suit my needs.

Spacesaver &, w/CATraxx, WONDERFUL. If this product included the CATraxx software (Sony, are you listening?), I'd give it 5 stars. Without it, only a 3.

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Technics "jukebox" -- only held @110 CDs, not enough!