Product Description

Sony's CDP-CX355 300 Disc MegaStorage CD Changer was created for the extensive CD collections of music connoisseurs and avid CD listeners alike. Featuring CD-R/CD-RW Playback, this 300 Disc Changer allows you to play your homemade music mixes as well as your commercial CDs. Additional features include Twin Jog Dial for Easy Disc Access, Custom File Memo, CD Text, MegaChanger Control, Optical Digital Output, 2 Repeat Modes (Disc or Track), and 32 Step Program Play, providing all the tools you need to organize your CDs. Take charge of your changer with the supplied Remote Commander Remote Control, and rediscover your own music with the CDP-CX355.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2009 in Consumer Electronics
• Color: Black
• Brand: American Audio
• Model: CDP-CX355
• Published on: 2008-12-01
• Released on: 2008-12-01
• Number of items: 1
• Dimensions: 4.00" h x 7.00" w x 8.00" l, .2 pounds

Features

• 300-disc changer plays CDs, CD-Rs, and CD-RWs
• Fade in/fade out between songs, text display of artist names and CD info
• Analog RCA, digital optical outputs; RCA input syncs unit with other changers
• Jog dial control; repeat, random, and programmable play, recently played search
• Measures 17 x 7.5 x 19.38 inches (W x H x D)
• Extra Long Cable
• Metal Chassis
• Extended Bass
• Ear budin ear headphones

Amazon.com Product Description
The CDPCX355 300-disc CD changer puts hours upon hours of music at your fingertips with features like cross-fade sound, text display, and an organization feature that makes it easy to find your favorite songs and albums. The CDPCX355 plays audio CDs, CD-Rs, and CD-RWs, and you can program it to play CDs or tracks one by one, in random order, or in your own customized track order. You can create up to 8 different groups of CDs to quickly jump to certain styles of music or a favorite collection of songs. A hit list memory feature allows you to return to your 32 most frequently played songs instantly. You can browse through all of your CDs by name, so you'll never lose track of what CDs are in the player or what order they are in. You can also custom-label CDs stored in the CDPCX355 for quicker retrieval. The CDPCX355 includes a jog dial control that gives you quick access to individual CDs or tracks. With the jog dial, you can listen to snippets of music or skip tracks you don't like quickly.

For power users or music lovers with a deep library of CDs, the CDPCX355 can synch up with another CD changer. You'll never have to wait for a disc to change to keep the music playing, thanks to a cross-fade feature that brings the audio of one CD down at the same time that a new disc starts to play. By adding a second changer, you can expand your instant access to up to 600 CDs total, and both changers can be controlled by a single remote.

The hybrid pulse digital-to-audio converter reproduces a warm, natural sound from your CDs, making you feel like you were there when the music was recorded. You can easily connect the CDPCX355 to an audio receiver with both analog RCA-type and digital optical outputs. An analog connection instantly synchs the CDPCX355 to another changer, and a Control A-1II cord links the CDPCX355 to any other Sony components in your audio system or home theater. A headphone jack is also featured.

What's in the Box
CD changer unit, RCA audio cord, ControlA-1II cord, remote control, two AA batteries, owner's manual.

Customer Reviews

Same problem(s) as the 200 Sony disc changer I gave up on.
Having owned 150 and 200 disc changers over the past few years, I figured the engineering problems must have been worked out by now... why else would Sony keep making them? Unfortunately, I guess that the service centers don't ever communicate to engineering.

Here's my experience with this unit... Day 1 - I dutifully loaded ~230 Cds into the carousel, careful to match the slots with my reference book I use to find my titles fast. Day 3 - The unit dropped the first CD somewhere in the back of the unit, whirr - click - chomp - carousel will not move (been here, done that), unscrew the screws, unjam the Retail purchased CD, check for damage and reload it into the unit, put all the screws back in. Deja Vu. This looks like the beginning of a terrible relationship. Day 7 - Occasional skips, sometimes the song will start to play and then just quit altogether, moving on to a different disc entirely.I respectfully utilize the CD Lens Cleaner CD although I secretly doubt that it has any real effect whatsoever. Day 10 - Same problems as Day 7 except more frequent... This is not a good sign at all. Day 12 - Troubleshooting begins, I move a disk from one slot to another to see if maybe the slot has something effect on the behavior, funny enough, the same cd will play fine if requested from a different slot!? Confusion ensues. Day 13 - Some discs just refuse to play. I tried the Power Off, rest and Power Up routine. I have made sure the player is fully leveled. A decision is made... I'll be calling for an RMA in the morning. I am sure glad that I tested the unit enough in the first 30 days, to really get to know how it will operate over time. I could have lived with the single dropped CD, but coupled with disc access problems, this will not do. Not even at this price.

The last unit I bought from a local nationwide retailer was taken in for service 3 times and returned each time with a note saying they could fine nothing wrong with it... My old 200 CD Sony unit still sits around virtually unused, I'm ashamed to sell it even though it could pass for new. I only hope I get better customer service from our trustworthy on-line merchants.

The fix for skipping
I've had this unit for about a year now without any problems. It was originally on a shelf with my 40lb amplifier sitting on top of it. Once I removed the 40lb amplifier away, the CDs start skipping. So I put in this tweak which I learned from an audio forum. Put 4 round glass marbles under the cd player using a small bottle cap or something to under the marbles to keep it from rolling away. This stopped the skipping.

Conlusion: The skipping is due to the vibration of the unit when the CD player is spinning and the problem is amplified by unit being so lightweight. By either adding more mass to the unit like putting something heavy on top of it or isolation using the marble trick or buy one of those audiophiles component spikes or damping feet.

Update: 9/24/2009.
After 5 years, this CD player still works beautifully. I'm not a fan of Sony products but this player has been with me for a long time and will still be my primary CD player. I do not notice scratches on CDs like others have mentioned. If you have skipping problems please try the suggestion I mentioned above. If you have CD loading problems, make sure the CD player is leveled as this is a vertical loader not the horizontal tray type typical found in smaller players.

CD Destroyer
At first we were delighted with this Sony CD player, but it was not long before we determined that it was destroying our CD collection. Fortunately, we read a review on Amazon from another customer that lost many of his CD's to the same Sony unit. Over 20 of our CD's were damaged before we pinpointed the problem to the changer and replaced it with a Pioneer 200 disc changer (which we've had only two weeks but so far it appears OK). I am disappointed that Sony continues to market this defective equipment and as a result, we generally try to shop for other brands. If you value your CD collection, a Sony CD changer is likely to disappoint you.