Customer Reviews

Onkyo DV-CP706 6-Disc DVD Player (Black)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

As previously posted, this unit will NOT play rental (or even mildly scratched) DVDs. Which is a problem because a number of our DVDs are kids movies and they get scratched with repeadted use. All the problematic DVDs play perfectly fine on a cheapo ($20) DVD player but this "high-end" unit is too much of a prima donna for these DVDs.
---------See Update Below
January 2010 UPDATE:
Took the unit to an authorized repair shop and they honored the warranty (I originally purchased it from Amazon). After the repair, the unit is AMAZING! No problems whatsoever and the sound and picture quality is far superior to cheapo DVD players! Repair center said some parts with laser, etc. tend to come loose with shipping and handling from online retailers. Took them a week to get the required parts and repair... all for free and worth the wait! If you're having problems with this unit definitely try taking it to an authorized repair shop! Would give it 5 stars if it came this way out of the box!

We've had this product just a few weeks, but are quite pleased with it. The only snag was when we hooked it up to both our receiver (with RCA analog jacks)and our new HDTV (with an HDMI cable)so that we could play our CD's through our receiver and our DVD's through the television. The problem was in hooking up the TV. We received a picture but no sound. Talking to our tv technician was of no help. We figured the problem out through trial and error, namely that the Onkyo's menu had a variety of sound options, to include some that we had no idea what they were for. One option, I believe it was the "PCM" option, did the trick when we turned it on. Apparently this option lowers the kHz frequency of the output so that it is compatible with the television (whatever all that means). Once I clicked that option on, the sound came through the TV. These instruction booklets all assume that consumers understand these technical terms, so you have to be something of a detective to finally figure it all out. Now everything (finally) works.

Purchased for parents who are not tech-savvy (was somewhat of a worry with setting this up), and are huge movie fans. (They like movies so much, they even sleep to them...) I wanted to make sure the DVD changer supported both their new TV (HD) and their old, CRT tube TV. And this certainly fit the bill.

The setup is very easy. (I was able to help with the setup over the phone in minutes.) However, the ease of setup doesn't mean that it is lacking options; there are plenty of options that are available to tweak the sound, the picture, etc. But for just getting the machine playing DVDs (maybe not optimally, but playing nonetheless), it's simple.

When visiting, I was able to see and hear this player in action. It's mostly silent itself, and had a picture/audio quality that was adequate for how it was hooked up - using the composite cables ("RCA cables" - red and white for audio, yellow for video.) When using an HDMI connection, everything really came to life, stepping into the modern world.

On a side note (in regards to some negative reviews here) - Amazon.com *is* an authorized seller of Onkyo products (the "refurb" version part - Warehouse Deals or whatever, likely is not.) If there's a problem, I can't see how you wouldn't be covered by either Amazon or Onkyo. I had actually purchased this same unit from another online vendor, and the DVD sounded like it was going through a meat grinder when it was playing. Returned it, bought from Amazon and the new one is working great... bottom line: Onkyo is a very quality and reputable brand, but no brand is going to be perfect 100%.

Would definitely purchase again.

****************UPDATE, September 2009*********************
This unit is now receiving "Cannot Read Disc" errors pretty randomly. It may not work on a disc, but the next time you try, it works fine. We tried cleaning all the discs, but after purchasing a few brand new DVDs and having the error, it's going to head back to Onkyo. Meanwhile, the $30 backup cheapie DVD player still works... bummer.
****************UPDATE, November 7, 2009****************
We finally got around to taking this in for warranty work. The nearest authorized service center was King Audio/Video (Redmond, WA.) The service folks were very pleasant and professional... after about 10 days, they called us up to come pick it up. (Apparently, Onkyo also covers shipping charges once the item is repaired, but we decided to just pick it up.)
Now, this is back to being a fantastic player. It's quieter than it was before, and it plays ALL DVDs, even if you can see some visible damage (scratching and such) on it.
If others are experiencing the disc read errors on older/scratched DVDs, I'd recommend getting it repaired while under warranty. (The problem eventually gets worse to where it won't even read a brand new DVD.) Yes, it's unfortunate that you have to get it repaired. But on the other hand - that's what the warranty is for, and now this this is working GREAT.

This was the best changer ever - it read every single disc, some that Sony would not, and worked excellent from August until March. Now it won't read anything and when I opened and removed the discs, shut off the power for a while, turned back on, it won't open at all. Luckily I got my discs out beause even after leaving unplugged for 30 minutes, it won't open or even let me see the setup menu. It appears to be in a loop that won'tr allow any functions.

When it worked, the only problem I actually had was the memory - it rarely remembers where you were on a disc. I cam set it to an episode or a spot o the movie, go to next disc and then go right bak to the previous to wath it and have to start over with all the dv menus fro the disc. Every disc ir read as if you just put it in. You can type in memory for ever disc, with a label and everything but this is not necessary for a 6 disc changer. There are so few discs, I change them out allthe time. It's not like my whole library is in there.

Anyway, it doesn't matter that it was the best changer I've had because it didn't even last a year. I switched from Sony because of the very fact that I ould only get about a year from their hanger before it stopped reading discs.

If they will fix it for free or replace, I'll change my rating but for this money - it's and outrage. However, that outrage is not left for Onkyo - I had the same vcr's for a good 5-8 years and used them to tape literally the entire day I was at work and then many night time shows every night with no breakdowns, never used a warranty, never had to have them repaired. Every dvd player and recorder I have had (14) had ladted less than 2 years, the warranties are useless because they charge so much to send it and get it back, I could buy another one, and the service is one star on every one of them. The people on the phone have never used themachines. The entire electronics industry is a total scam. Dvd players should be called "disposable disc players".

Does a nice job upconverting DVDs to HD, plays data CDs and DVDs as well; it's nice to have a few dozen hours of MP3s on a DVD and an on-screen menu to navigate them all. My only complaint is that the Onkyo set-up menus are somewhat low-tech in look and feel, but they do the job. All in a all a great little machine at the price.

One thing to keep mind with my review: I've been an Onkyo owner for quite some time and am partial to the brand and in addition, I am using this component in a set-up with all Onkyo equipment (including the Onkyo 876 AV receiver), so that set-up might improve the performance I get.

Reduces the number of components you need, plays everything you thow (I've thrown) at it (DVD+/- R, DVD DL+R). Interfaces with my Onkyo Receiver seamlessly. Picture quality is top notch. Just double check the spec this player is lot deeper that most components.

I've had this player for about 2 years and it works well - never experienced a disk that won't play. I only rated 4 stars because it has a few quirks:

1) Every DVD player I have owned - and even my DVD recorder - has the FF & F-rev buttons flanking the play button, but Onkyo put the chapter advance/retard in these spots. I get tired of scanning to find my place after unintentionally hitting one of these.
2) Resume function is VERY iffy. If I switch disks without hitting stop first, it won't remember where it left off, but if I hit stop and then switch, I have to press play or it won't start the new disk. I compare this with my 4-year-old Sony 5-disk changer - which has 6-disk memory - ALWAYS remembers the spot. The Sony - even though it only up-converts to 1080i - gives better picture quality! (this could be because my TV (Mitsu DLP) up-converts everything to 1080P (Plush 1080))

3 advantages over the Sony: Can switch disks in both directions, Sony can only switch forward (from remotes) better zoom/stretch feature. Onkyo has a horizontal stretch, vertical, and both, while Sony just has 2x & 4x. And, Onkyo has a more informative display: position, total time, and time remaining; 2nd press shows progress in current chapter. I guess you could count the 1080p - if your TV doesn't up-convert ;o)

It's a good player. With a few changes - most of which would have been popular with focus groups - it could be great...

..

I mainly bought this player because I have an Onkyo receiver. I had to return the first player I received. I had the same problem as some of the other reviewers, it would not play dvds with minor scratches. I tested 4 rental dvds and only 1 would play. All 4 would play on another dvd player. I do not think this is a "high end" component issue but a "low end" quality control issue.

The replacement player has been working fine so far with cds and rental dvds. I have also tried dvds with jpeg pictures. It requires the right file size and using the hd jpeg setting. It seemed to work best with photos that were 4x6 size at 150 dpi. The full size (2 to 3 megs) photos were displayed smaller, possibly compressed to fit the screen size.

I would say if you already have an Onkyo receiver, this is worth considering. Try a few rental dvds in it to see if it is working correctly. If not, return it for another one, Amazon makes this a pretty easy process.

The first day I got this, I tried playing two mildly scratched DVDs from the video store. Neither would load. I found that my pristine DVDs played nicely, as did CDs, but most of the DVDs I want to play are rental discs from the video store. This player will not play them. I have heard that many higher end DVD players have similar sensitivities to imperfect discs. This seems silly. You would think a quality player would be able to play pristine discs well and imperfect discs at least competently. Not the case.

The unit I purchased from Warehouse Deals (June 2009), advertised as having "cosmetic damage" was DOA. It did not recognize any dvd I attempted to load and made loud noises every time it tried to spin up. Onkyo will not honor the warranty for WD purchases, so I returned it. Amazon subtracted shipping from my refund. After I asked Amazon why they deducted return shipping for a defective item, they issued a refund.

I really wanted this player, so I bought a new one from Amazon in July 2009. Over the last few months the number of "bad discs" has increased until it will read about one out of six in a random pattern. All of the supposedly bad discs can be read by any other dvd player I own, and I own several. I wanted the convenience of loading an entire TV series, or several movies, but this is obviously not the player for the job. It will go back to Onkyo, and I'll post again if I ever get one that actually works.