Pioneer PD-F958 101-CD Changer

Other products by Pioneer

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 17 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B00000K1RM
• Item model number: PD-F958
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #235,900 in Electronics (See Bestsellers in Electronics)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: September 4, 1973

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

Despite the complexity of its motorized carousel movement, the robustly built Pioneer PD-F958 operates without a hitch. And robustness is a good thing, because with 101 discs spinning around inside, this player will see a lot of action.

We were actually pleasantly surprised at the flexibility of the PD-F958 once we programmed seven-letter title lines and classified each disc under three custom-file categories of our choosing. If you don't take advantage of the PD-F958's labeling options, you can't appreciate most of its clever little features--all you have is a player that plays all 101 discs, either straight through or randomly. However, programming 101 discs in a single evening ranks among the most boring and frustrating tasks we've ever undertaken; be sure you're up for it before you start. Also, be warned that data entry comes with the territory. Until a greater percentage of CDs employ CD Text (many now do, and the PD-F958 is one of the CD changers that can read CD Text), entering CD Text will be a manual process for any megadisc changer.

Once you've told the player what you've fed it, you can select any disc by typing its title line, or you can play only the music within a certain category (either straight through or in random-disc or random-song order). You can even listen to every disc in the order which you installed it. The bottom line is, you're in control.

The player sounds robust through the analog output from its single-bit digital-to-analog converter (DAC), and it also features a Toslink optical digital output in case you have a more sophisticated DAC in your home theater processor--or in case you want to make digital recordings to minidisc or CD-R/CD-RW. This option may become even more useful as audio technology continues to develop.

Our only real complaint is minor: the remote is small and crammed with tiny buttons all the same size and shape. (The three different control groups, however, are segregated by color.) Also, the remote's gold lettering on its gray background is practically invisible, even in bright daylight.

Overall, we were impressed with the unit's ease of use. Whether playing programmed sequences of tracks we'd chosen in advance, sorting through file categories, or even playing our latest acquisition in the single-loader slot, the PD-F958 worked like a charm. To find this level of well-thought-out, reliable, musically distinguished performance in a player under $300 is a pleasure. --L. V. Phillips

Pros:

• Flexible operation
• Superb-sounding analog outputs
• Custom-file categories make it convenient to play specific musical genres
• CD-deck synchro simplifies cassette taping
• Single-load slot convenient for listening to new CDs
• Reliably and robustly built

Cons:

• Lengthy data-entry required for full usability
• Remote control is cramped and hard to read

Product Description

101 CD jukebox style changer w/new "roulette rack" design. Optical digital output. One single load slot, 1 bit digital to analog converter, text and title input, 3 custom mode functions, best selection memory, memory hold, cd deck synchro, remote control

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

143 of 147 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Adds much more to the stereo than expected, December 11, 1999

By A Customer

I was deciding between this one and Pioneer's 25 CD changer -- I'm glad I went with this one. Having 100 of your favorite cd's playing in random mode gives a 1,200+ song mix without the reception problems, bad album choices, and long commercial breaks of FM radio. Plus, you can press "Random" again to skip a bad song. The cd title display is nice when you don't know what cd the current song is from. Of course you can also listen to any individual cd(s) you want or program a mix (see below). You can mark up to 20 songs while playing by pressing the "Best" button.

Missing features that kept it from being a 5 - a "Delete" button to mark lousy songs while playing to skip in the future. Volume buttons to control a Pioneer receiver (the receiver's remote only controls a small subset of the cd player's controls, so I still have two remotes when just listening to cd's). Programming should be improved -- except for "Best", it forgets your programmed track lists any time you switch modes (you can shut off the power, but if you want to listen to a cd outside the program, you either have to stop and add it to the program or else lose your program) (there are also three "Custom" lists that are remembered like programs should, but these can only list full cd's, not individual songs).

Overall, the track programming costs it a star, but it's made my stereo much, much more enjoyable, completely blowing away the single cd player I had used. I'm enjoying cd's and hundreds of songs I'd been pretty much ignoring for months or years.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Mechanical Problems Notwithstanding, Great Player, December 21, 2000

By	Mr. Mike - See all my reviews

Let me start this review by saying that I had the send the cd player back to Amazon because the arm that retrieves the CDs for play did not retract completely and would hit each CD as it went by. It would also jam the machine. After a few plays, I realized the problem was not going to go away. I sent it back but I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of my replacement.

Loading the CDs was a snap, entering the titles was a little tedious(fortunately, I had only loaded only a handful of CDs before discovering the problem), programming the various custom modes was a breeze and the random play was great. The single play slot was easy to use, although you have to remember to use the separate controls for that.

The remote is a little small, but I really did not use the remote very often, other than to program the custom modes, which as I noted was easy.

The player could use a delete feature to skip over bad tracks, but of course, the beauty part of the player is that you are always going to hear a song out of the blue that is totally unexpected and even the bad tracks sound better like that.

All in all, I was very happy with the player and can't wait for the replacement to arrive.

4.0 out of 5 stars Good "JUKE BOX" Style CD Player, July 6, 2002

By	Douglas R. Caldwell "mxyztplk302" (Taylor, PA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I am happy this 100 + 1 CD Juke Box style player overall. It plays really well & I have had no mechanical problems thus far. It is somewhat cumbersome to program & I have to refer back to the manual not infrequently. But in general this a nice unit & I am glad I have it, the remote is easy to use once you understand what you are trying to accomplish from the directions.