Sony DVP-S7000 Question

[EarlyAdopter]

Thanks, jehill.

I'll take a closer look at my machine.

[EarlyAdopter]

I finally found the manufacture date of September 1997 in very fine print on the back of my DVP-S7000 and I'm told that only those made prior to March 1997 have the little switches and early versions of firmware which permit the easy bypass.

When I push , the Test Mode Menu is displayed. Selecting "4. Other Checks" by pushing shows SW1 OFF and SW2 OFF. Does that refer to switches S001 and S002? If so, I guess I want them both to be "ON" to ignore Region Code and Macrovision or maybe SW1 and SW2 is something else entirely?

In any case, my machine has SYScon Ver. 1.40 which apparently can't be simply switched off mechanically.

Another question is whether I could actually ruin my player's operation by "fooling around" in the test mode. I got a few multicolor displays that sort of scared me but, after I finally got out, the movie I had been watching commenced right where I had left off with everything working fine.

I guess I'm just paranoid about venturing into unfamiiar territory. Case closed for now.

[jehill]

You definitely can goof things up by playing in the service mode.  One real problem is if you somehow eliminate the display.  Since you can't see the menu items, you have not idea what you are doing unless you have an outstanding memory!  My recommendation is stay out of the service mode.  Its intended for service technicians, not laymen.

[EarlyAdopter]

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jehill wrote:

You definitely can goof things up by playing in the service mode...My recommendation is stay out of the service mode.  Its intended for service technicians, not laymen.

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Thanks, jehill. I will definitely take your advice. I got the feeling that I had no business snooping around in Test Mode!

[EarlyAdopter]

UPDATE:

   My beloved DVP-S7000 just passed it's 15th birthday and is still going strong.  It plays all of my Netflix movies beautifully with the exception of one or two that were in an incompatible newer format such as DVD+R or whatever.

   Recently, the front panel has refused to slide up to the closed position which I presume to be a purely mechanical problem.  It doesn't affect the play but it would be nice to have it work.  I've given it a few gentle nudges but I'm leaving well enough alone for now.  I opened up the unit one time to look for the magic Region and Macrovision off/on switches but it made me nervous.

   It cost nearly $1000 in 1997 but it was worth it and I felt a little smug when browsing the then tiny selection of DVDs available at the corner video store while everybody else was renting VHS.  It's a great "old" machine.

[mykyll2727]

As they say "they just don't make em like that anymore"._mykl

[EarlyAdopter]

[jttar]

EarlyAdapter,

I find it remarkable that after 10 years you post a solution to your own problem with the stuck panel door. Appreciate you sharing as it may prove valuable to another DVP-S7000 owner in the future. The way those players are built they could be around for another 10 years.

Joe

[Maxxwire]

The Sony DVP S7000 is definitely an enduring classic among Movie/Music playback hardware.