Easy setup (if You settle for the standard picture quality)

Grainy picture. Boomy bass and lack of detail when playing Audio(CD).

Well, thought I share some thoughts about this DVD player. It's a good product, but far from the best. As above stated the picture isn't perfect, it's grainy with some movement problems when panning sideways. Another irritating thing is the famous lipsync problem. I get it on region-2 DVD's, not region-1 and i don't know why, is it a problem with the actual DVD record or what?

I see that many reviewers gratulate Sony to a good remote, and I agree to some extent. Sony could have come up whith another way to choose from DVD menus. Pushing the cursor must be exakt to get it right, could have been another key for this.

Going to pick up a new DVD player and I'm aiming for the Panasonic H1000 wich by most people is the reference standard. Should be interesting to compare these to, not fair since there is a $XXXX diff, but fun.

Other video related products used:
- Sharp XV-ZW60E LCD-projector
- Monster cable RGB/Component
- Rotel RSP-985

//RT

Similar Products Used:

None

Top notch picture, sound and features. Has an excellent built in Dolby Digital Decoder if required. Has same DSP processing as Sonys receivers.

Won't play CD-R discs. Which in my book is not really a weakness as I have the Philips CDR-870 CD recorder.

Finally bought the Sony DVPS725D after much humming and harring. The Panasonic which I have had for a couple of years does not output a DTS signal and is becoming damn picky about extremely faint marks on disc, to the point where it will just freeze at a certain spot and go no further. Will still keep it and just have it in the bedroom.

Trialled the 525 for a week and despite having no problems with it, and getting a great deal on it, decided to go for the 725. Was it worth the extra cost.....you betcha!!!
The picture is absolutely outstanding with superb colours and contrast, try it with the Matrix, or better still The Mummy. The sound is also quite an improvement over the 525, as it sounds alot cleaner and appears to have greater depth.

The wife was not what you would call keen on getting another DVD player, but she has been very impressed with this one and likes the fact that it plays every single dvd without complaint, compared to the Panasonic. ;o)

I can't really comment much on the on-board decoder, as I use the receivers (Sony STRDB930) decoder, but all the reviews I have read, rate it very highly.

If you purchase this player just for DVD's I guarantee you will be very impressed, but believe it or not, it is actually a very competent CD player as well, the sound delivered is extremely crisp, although the bass does tend to be a bit on the "polite" side. An excellent player nonetheless and I love it.

I Hope this review is of help to someone if they are looking at the Sony. You can't go wrong with it.

Similar Products Used:

Panasonic DVDA350 and Sony DVPS525D

Very good image quality, _very_ good build with aluminum front, all inputs/outputs one could possibly ask for.

They could have made the jog dial on the remote so that it only applied to jogging forward/backward when you have paused the movie; separate buttons for chapter forward/reverse would have been better. As it is now, the jog dial does everything; pause, slow motion forward/backward, three different speeds forward/backward and regular play.

Many buttons on the remote are look-alike.

The joystick pad in the center of the jog dial ring is a little bit imprecise. It is easy to pull it in the wrong direction (and thereby choosing the wrong option or so in one of the menus). Regular arrows (left/right/up/down) and an "Enter" button would have sufficed.

Sony don't supply you with a SCART cable, so make sure you pick one up at the same time as your purchasing the player. The same thing goes for just about anything in their different product lines, e.g. VCR:s.

I had this unit for one day a couple of weeks ago. I really liked the unit, but felt that maybe it was too much money for me ($550-$560). So I ended up returning it to the store.

Now, two weeks later, I regret returning the unit and have ordered another one which hopefully arrives in two or three weeks.

I compared this unit with lots of others (only by checking their build quality etc.) and haven't seen anything that matches it. This unit really looks like a professional high-quality DVD player, which it also is.

A bit too pricey (since it has just about the things that almost any DVD players have nowadays) but I guess that's a price one will have to pay to get a DVD player with an exceptional build quality.

Very good menus.

Anyway, I would definitely recommend this player to anyone who wants a good and (as it seems) reliable player.

Similar Products Used:

None

Built in Dolby Digital decoder.DTS compatible,AWESOME SOUND AND PICTURE QUALITY...on screen menu,set up facilities,silver

Lip sync problems,layer change,rocker dial on remote...

When I first set this up I used the on board digital decoder to a Dolby Digital ready Yamaha amplifier using 6 phonos as a connection from dvd to amp.The picture quality is simply awesome,blacks are deep with no grain and contrast is exceptional.The sound from the onboard digital decoder is absolutely fantastic in DD.I now have a new Sony 940 receiver and have it hooked up to the dvd using an Ecosse producer 1 metre coaxial lead.
I have seen picture quality on the Wharfdale 750 and Toshiba 100e and other models but the sony outshines them all.I read that it has a picosecond reading of below 160 better than its higher model 7700 brother(i.e.state of the art audio).
It is not all good news....a lip sync problem has occurred in my model as a result I will probably need to get a software upgrade costing approx $70 or more to take this problem away.The layer changing in dual layer dvds is often sluggish.The remote must have been stolen off the jolly green giant it is so big but what is more difficult to get use to is the rocker while on the remote when navigating through the various menu or operational functions.
Having said all that,if it is picture quality and sound together with a built in decoder your after within a dvd....then this one is top drawer.
The overall ratiing takes into account the negative side of this player.

Similar Products Used:

none....first dvd player

Video quality, lots of functions, video and audio out options.

Won't ply any CDRs

Have had this unit for just over a week now and I can honestly say that I will never go back to using my computer to play DVDs again. Once I plugged it up to my Sony 930 amp and TV and started to watch Pleasantville I was stunned by the clarity of the image and the detail of the sound stage. My only gripe with the unit and it is only a small gripe is that it won't play any CDRs. No lip sync problems as yet though I have only played 6 disks on it and have been forwarding and rewinding through chapters to try and get it to appear. All in all a great player. If you can live without CDRs then this is the best DVD money can buy.

high quality picture , superb dts decoder , good value for price

lip sync sometimes occurs (dissapears when pressing stop then play again)

an overall good dvd player connected to my sony str d830 delivering an awesome sound over my infinity 5.1 setup and widescreen sony wega tv

was impressed with the quality of playback of video crystal clear picture and awesome sound

Similar Products Used:

pioneer / philips basic dvd players

Solid built, wonderful audio

Can it play CD-R? (YES!)

This is just to tell you that besides from Princo brand which is rare in Europe, Infodisc and above all Vivastar from Switzerland can be burnt and play excellent on the Sony 725 D. I would´nt be surprised if it plays on any DVD player with dual wave pickup.

Similar Products Used:

None

Very good DVD player

None

The image that this DVD reproduce is clear, sharp and rich in colour. Compared with Pioneer DV717, i see that it is more sharp but less real.
There is a great colour dinamic and this is very important with LCD videoprojector.(I use it with a Sharp XVZW60E, see my review).
It's possible to change black level from menu, i think that's a great possibilty that other do not have.
With my videoprojector i prefer sometime Pioneer but i like Sony shapness with some films.
Another important difference between Sony and Pioneer is that the first present video component output. This is a grea advantage with videoprojector and state-of-the art monitor.
In general the Sony is very well built: Aluminium front panel, Gold rca and a good built-in dolby digital decorder, that Pioneer don't have(it,s a great possibility).
Think on it!

Similar Products Used:

Pioneer DV717, Sony Dvd 715, Philips DV 950....

Brilliant Picture, DTS and Dobly output.

No CDR play?

I got this DVD player already modded up, so it plays all regions. Also it had a fix for the lip sync problem as part of the Mod, well worth it.

This player is fantastic, im using it on a 32" Sony Wega at 100Hz and it always looks amazing the detail is just excellent.

The co-ax sound output to my Sony Db940 is also fantastic and the units work well together. Don't forget that the co-ax will give you a better resoloution and all that stuff.

The buttons on the front tend to go to sleep sometimes, but i can live with that.

Also note that the unit has a seperate laser for playing standard Cd's and that the output on the player for this 2 channel playing is of a very hi standard. Most people don't seem to realise this and for a player that can be picked up for a good price right now.

I personally think that this player is better then the 735 which replaced it, but do it modded up front so you don't need to do it later, make sure the mod works with RCE encoded disks.

Similar Products Used:

Samsung 709

This is all I ever wanted,the menu's are perfect and it is almost self thinkingthe included manual is abselutly clear and answers almost every question. All connections to other equipment is completly provided.I have it connected to the sony str-db925,I am telling you it sounds superb even with only 3speakers.It has also an seperate audio en DVD laser and transport.So go to a shop and ask for a demo.