Won't play copies or MP3's

Not that I am some kind of audio pirate, but this high end machine doesn't play some of my low down copies and MP3's. The copies by the way are from friends and licensed manufactered ArkivCDs (for you who know classical know what I am talking about). I found that it just wasn't worth the money I paid. I donated mine to a church. Maybe god can find a better use for this player.

First Two Units Defective; Third Unit is Fine

I received two separate units (from [...]) that were both DEFECTIVE (wouldn't read any CD-- regular or SACD). Finally I have received the third unit, and it works normally. Sound quality and ease of use are outstanding. I've had it less than a week. Output for SACD CD's must be done via analog RCA cables. Output for regular CD's can be either digital (optical or coaxial), or analog RCA. Controls on the front are easy to master, as is the remote. The CD tray seems well designed and responsive. It's nice to be able to reload the tray while a CD is being played. Having a big button to open the tray is convenient.

2 units failed

I have owned two of these units. Both failed the same way. It is a wonderful machine when it works well, but it doesn't for long. For no reason The machine will produce two elongated, very grainy, side by side images on the screen and most of the feature (such as shuffle play) quit working. It still plays audio CDs one disc at a time.

New to ES

Most of my equipment thus far has been Denon. I recently purchased the DCM 380 which had fantastic sound reproduction, but the changer mechanism was awful and needed repairing. After 6 weeks of waiting to get the player back from Denon, I was upgraded to the SCD-C2000ES (black).

Out of the box, this player was solid. The CD changer mechanism was virtually silent and had a much better build than the Denon. Set up was easy from the front of the machine or from the remote.

The sound reproduction is great! The trebles are clear and sharp, but not overstated. The bass is also well reproduced, not muddy or too crisp. It is playing my CDRs quite well with no problems. I am only using stereo output, so I am sure the potential of this player will not be realized until I hook it up to a surround sound system.

There is no mention on Sony's site or in the manual about being able to play back MP3 CD's, but there are a few advertisements on the web and say it can. I will have to try this to see what  more