- Plays DVDs, CDs, CD-Rs, CD-RWs, MP3 CDs, and Video CDs
- Dolby Digital and DTS output
- Coaxial digital-audio output
- Composite-video, S-video, and component-video outputs
- 2 microphone jacks for karaoke
The AD-600A sports a stylish and modern look and delivers a wide range of outstanding features. The most important buttons (open/close, stop, power, etc.) are on the face of the APEX; all other features are accessible via the remote. The DVD picture is crisp and clear, and the sound is exceptional. The greatest “extra” feature on the AD-600A is its ability to play CDRs filled with MP3 files. This allows anyone with a CD writer to playback audio CDs of 12 hours in length or greater on their APEX. Other than the oft-mentioned MP3 abilities, the APEX AD-600A has unique VCD and Karaoke features.Thanks in part to Apex, DVD is now extremely affordable. Aside from being a great value, what separates the Apex AD-600A from most DVD players is its ability to play CD-R and CD-RW compact discs, including those recorded from downloaded MP3 files.
The simple lines of this black box allow it to disappear into your home theater system. Its front panel is dominated by the blue LED readout above the disc drawer, with a power button, two microphone jacks, and twin-level controls to the left and six slanted oval function buttons to the right for open/close, play, stop, pause, skip reverse, and skip forward.
Connect with either composite-, high-performance S-Video, or state- of-the-art component-video cables for the ultimate picture. For the sound, simply run the left/right stereo cable to your receiver, amplifier, or stereo television’s inputs, or connect a coaxial digital audio cable to your Dolby Digital/DTS decoder or audio-video receiver.
Once wired and powered up, the Apex AD-600A provides clear, basic graphics and icons to guide you through setup and operation. The owner’s manual is comprehensive and easy to understand. Disc playback commences quickly and efficiently.
Image quality is excellent in all formats, and outstanding through component video, with a broad palette of vibrant colors. At times, the look is more like film than video. Textures and flesh tones are rendered in all their subtlety, and edges are clean and sharp. The only playback difficulty we encountered was on the seamless branching portions of discs with multiple versions of the same film on a single side, like The Abyss, where the movie would either stop or repeat a scene before proceeding.
The audio performance is equally impressive. Stereo music is crisp and powerful, and 5.1-channel movie soundtracks are amazing, with effortless reproduction even at high volume. This inexpensive player also offers the option of Digital Theater Systems (DTS) playback from appropriate discs, and the increase in detail, dynamic range, and overall punch make the investment in the necessary hardware and software worth your consideration.
This DVD player fully supports the CD-R (recordable) and CD-RW (rewritable) formats, as well as CDs containing compressed MP3 files, which allow 10 hours of tunes on a single disc.
The AD-600A is also a karaoke machine, so if you’ve never tried the popular sing-along, here’s your chance. You’ll need a microphone (two for duets, each with its own sound-level control knob) and a karaoke disc. Trust us; unleashing your inner lounge lizard is a blast, and a real icebreaker at parties.
In addition to the mike level controls on the front panel, there are also keys on the remote control to introduce vocal effects such as echo. The remote is the Apex owner’s best friend, as its many well-organized keys put all of the AD-600A’s advanced features at your fingertips with intuitive navigation.
The AD-600A provides picture and sound far better than any VHS VCR, and does so at a comparable price. It also provides access to all of the current wonders and extras of the DVD format, throwing in high-end features like 5.1-channel digital audio and component video, tech-friendly capabilities like MP3 decoding, and fun stuff like karaoke, too. All told, this DVD player doesn’t seem like much of a risk.
Pros:
- Wide assortment of features at a bargain price
- Exceptionally user-friendly remote control
- Component-video output provides state-of-the-art video performance
- Includes everything you need to get started–even batteries
Cons:
- Onscreen user interfaces not as fancy as some other players
- Demonstrated difficulty reading sophisticated discs with features like seamless branching
The Apex AD-600A DVD player plays DVDs, audio CDs, and CDs recorded from MP3 music files. The player is PAL/NTSC-compatible and will play back DVD, CD, CD-R, and CD-RW sources.
Audio capabilities include two-channel simulated surround sound and an MTS decoder, which filters out unwanted noises and enables the player to perform in stereo sound. Outputs for Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS decoders are included. When connected to a capable stereo receiver, the Apex AD-600A will play any source in Dolby Digital 5-channel and DTS digital surround sound.
As a DVD/CD player, the Apex AD-600A features zoom control and up to 8x rewind/fast-forward. V-chip technology lets concerned parents monitor what their children watch. When it comes to MP3s, however, the Apex AD-600A lacks fast-forward or rewind options, and only supports eight-character file names. Shuffle play is supported in any mode.
Component output jacks maximize digital video source signals for full-color, high-resolution images. Standard audio-video and composite jacks are included. The Karaoke feature and two external microphone inputs let you belt out your favorite songs in front of an audience or in the privacy of your home. The remote control operates all of the Apex AD-600A’s major functions. A one-year warranty covers parts and labor.
Rating: 
(out of 20 reviews)
List Price: $ 399.00
Price:
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July 3, 2010
#1
Review by
Rating:
I had originally bought this DVD player for the Region and CSS circumvention features. By the time that I got mine though they had replaced the chipset and this was no longer a feature. I am, however, very satisfied with this DVD player and have found it to be a real bargain when you consider all the features that it has. My favorite is its ability to play my mp3′s that I’ve burned to CD. all in all I highly recommend this product.
July 3, 2010
#2
Review by Michael Kerner
Rating:
Apex is a fairly new company, that came out in early 2000. The Apex AD-600A was their very first DVD player to hit the market. It was also the very first of its kind, to have the MP3 compatability that a lot of players didn’t have for some time.Although they are not as expensive as more know name brands like Sony and Panasonic, this DVD player is very dynamic for the price. It has all the usual features, plus one of the very first DVD players to have a guideline similar to the V-Chip on the latest television models.Although Apex only makes DVD Players on the market, the first model that came out is well worth the buy. If you want to buy a DVD player that is very cheap, but not all that hastle, Apex has DVD players that are worth it.Secret Bonus Menu for AD-600A:
1) Turn DVD player on, and make sure that the on-screen display says no disc.2) Press “setup” button, and highlight preferences under the setup menu.3)Once you’ve highlighted the preferences, press the “step” button on the remote control.4)Then, press the “previous track” button, below the button marked “A-B”. 5)Hit “Next Track” button, next to the previous track button. After following these steps, you’ll see a bonus “loopholes” menu on the display. On this menu, you can change the CSS Encryption, Macrovision, and Region I.D.
July 3, 2010
#3
Review by R. Williams
Rating:
Absolutely the best DVD player for the money! Awesome picture & sound. Mine plays anything that I throw at it. How many DVD players can actually read CD-R and CD-RW? How many do Karaoke as well as have the ability to play MP3 files you’ve burned to CD? This one does it all! It even plays VCD’s. Why spend $300-500 on a machine that won’t even do half of what this one will? The Apex 600A had notoriety for awhile since it was able to circumvent region coding and copy protection. Unfortunately those machines also were riddled with playback issues, most notably the problem with seamless branching noted above. But not anymore! None of the newer 600A’s have these problems, making them, in my opinion, probably the best DVD player on the market. If you’re going to be playing VCD’s a lot, you may want to go with the Apex 703, as they have a 3 disc tray so there’s no need to get up and switch discs during playback!
July 3, 2010
#4
Review by MtnBiker
Rating:
If you think these DVD players offer too much for the price they’re asking – you’re right. I got the 3 disc version of this player for christmas. It did play CD-R’s CD-RW’s and mp3 CD’s (which is the reason I looked at this unknown brand in the first place). It did not play DVDs well at all. It would skip frequently even on brand new DVDs that I just opened. When I took it back to the store where I purchased it there were already 3 apex DVD players behind the return counter that had been returned that day. When I returned mine I asked the clerk and she said they’d been getting tons of Apex players back since they started selling them (all models). After I went and bought a sony DVD player (see reviews on the sony DVP-S360) I saw 3 more people standing in the returns line taking back Apex DVD players on my way out of the store! Apex is an unknown brand offering DVD players for 50 bucks less than everyone else. They don’t have the quality control or the engineering experience of a company like sony, toshiba, panasonic, or jvc. While it’s tempting to have a very low price DVD player with mp3 capability it’s not worth blowing 150 bucks or more on an unknown brand with severe reliability issues. Buying one of these is risky. Ask the returns department of any store that sells this brand and they’ll tell you to stay away.
July 3, 2010
#5
Review by
Rating:
Although my 600A doesn’t have the much sought after “loophole menu” (i.e. the “secret” feature on older units which allowed you to make all sorts of tweaks including Region Free and Macrovision Off), I was lucky enough to have gotten a Canadian version with FlashROM (firmware v.”600-E”), which allows for firmware updates via CDR. This is simply a matter of popping the firmware CD into the tray! For the uninitiated, the firmware chip is basically where the player stores its behavioral data, which dictates things like user settings, features, graphics, menu selections, and most importantly, in older versions of the 600A unit, it contained the elusive loophole menu!What this all means, is that if I wanted to turn my DVD player into the version with the loophole menu, I need only burn the loophole-enabled firmware to a CD, place it in the CD tray, and press Close! A much better alternative to the loophole-enabled firmware, is to use a hacked version of the *latest* firmware which defaults to Region Free and Macrovion Off anyway, yet is free of many of the bugs that plagued the loophole-enabled version of the firmware (eg. seamless branching problems), plus it has RCE turned off. For 600A units without FlashROM-enabled players (mostly US-based units), adding the hacked firmware is still pretty simple, but requires opening up your unit and replacing your EPROM with one that contains the “enhanced” firmware. You could do it yourself or pay somebody to do it for you, but it’s much easier and cheaper to try to buy the Canadian version of the 600A in the first place (if you’re lucky, sometimes you can find them on EBay, with the firmware CD included).For the money, it’s an excellent unit — I know people who’ve paid $600+ for the Karaoke feature alone! (And have you *seen* what they charge for legit Region Free DVD players?!)