JVC XV-N40BK Progressive-Scan Slim DVD Player , Black

The model's 10-bit, 54 MHz video sampling frequency ensures detailed images and clear, pure colors for DVD movies. And, with seven parameters to adjust, the unit's Video Fine Processor (VFP) provides exceptional versatility in fine-tuning images to personal preferences. The player gives a choice of either optical or coaxial digital-audio output for routing Dolby Digital or DTS 5.1-channel surround signals to a compatible audio/video receiver.

A high-resolution onscreen graphical user interface (GUI) allows Windows-like interactive operation with tool bars superimposed onto the TV screen for simple, point-and-click operation. Other conveniences include AV CompuLink (which optimizes performance when using the player in conjunction with other JVC equipment), Quick Start, 1.5x playback with sound, 13-step zoom, and screen fill (which zooms in on a DVD image to eliminate letterbox "bars" on the TV screen).

Product Description
The JVC XV-N40BK introduces a new slim and stylish design for a "all-in-one" player that people are looking for. Not only does it play DVD and CD; it also plays the CD-R/RW recordable CD formats, DVD-R, DVD+RW, DVD-RW SVCD, VCD, JPEG and MP3 formats. Don't let the slim design fool you, the XV-N40BK is packed with many exciting features such as Express Play Start, New high-resolution GUI (Graphical User Interface), 3-D Phonic sound, variable and slow search, 6-Step zoom play, digest and strobe play, angle list and resume function. Optical and Coaxial digital audio outputs with Dolby Digital and DTS pass-through are provided for easy connection to any system.

I've read some complaints about this player being light and cheaply made. It is a pretty slim machine, but come on, it just sits there! How rough can you be with a piece of electronics? One last feature I like is the remote. I can easily switch control back and forth between my JVC TV and DVD player. The buttons are well placed and easy to follow.

I'm still looking for some negatives with this player, but have not found any yet. If you don't need a 5-disc changer, then buy this model now.


great player for the price   June 1, 2004
jokah (Missouri City, TX USA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful

Picked up a refurbished model from eCost for under $50. Plays my Nero-burned VCDs with no problem, and more importantly to me, it has built-in PAL-NTSC conversion. The remote might not be the easiest to use, but given the dirt cheap price, I am quite satisfied.


Excellent Player with Few Flaws   March 21, 2004
Tyler (Denton, TX)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful

I got this player new for around $100. It matches my Sony receiver just right and is awesome for music CDs and DVDs. I also read that it was the top-rated Consumer Reports DVD player.

The picture and sound quality so far have been superb with it hooked up through component. However, I have seen the stuttering problem occur on this player in panning scenes, but it only happens if I start pause the movie a lot. I can play movies from start to finish and pause a couple of times and never see it stutter. Another thing is that I have never seen the 4:3 PS mode work to stretch a widescreen movie to fit the whole screen. Isn't that what it's supposed to do on some DVDs (if any)?

It does read all kinds of discs and supports Pro Scan too. I really like how any disc will begin to play after only 2-3 seconds on this player. Coax and Optical audio outs are also a definite plus. I recommend this as an excellent DVD/CD player.


Great Picture, Great Sound   December 25, 2003
Phobos (Montgomery, Texas United States)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful

I have had this JVC unit now for about two weeks. It replaced my aging high-end, at the time, Toshiba which was having trouble playing DVD-R's CD-R's etc. I am very impressed by this unit. It plays any disc I put into it, including MP3's - a big plus.

The picture and sound are outstanding. I use it soley in 480P and it is jaw dropping on my 65" HDTV.

A really happy customer.


What Can I Compare it To?   December 2, 2003
I. Gross Georg (Edmond, Oklahoma USA)
23 out of 25 found this review helpful

This is my first DVD player. I've had it since June 2003, and it still works. It lives here with me, and there are no kids around to destroy it, and it gets played once or twice a week. Why wouldn't it work? It's extremely slim, has a cool blue light when it's on, and I've been able to play everything I've ever gotten from Netflix. So, as far as I'm concerned, this player is great!

There are a couple of things I've noticed about it, and I don't know if this is common practice with VCRs or not. But not all my reviews are for ranting or raving; I like to inform, as well! So here's what I know:

I don't have cable, and I've noticed that if I sit the machine on top of my TV, the reception on the TV gets very snowy. It took me a while to figure out why my picture got so bad, when I had a powered antenna that usually brings in a great picture for me. This problem went away when I moved the DVD player off the TV and onto its own shelf.

I think the machine is very quiet. Mind you, I live in an apartment, and I watch my TV with stereo headphones, so machine noise as I'm watching a movie is not an issue for me. So if the DVD player is making noise, it's not enough to bother either me or the neighbors.

The remote has more buttons on it than I will ever use. Six months later, I still haven't figured out what they all are. All the important buttons that actually play the DVD are in white. If you switch to TV, you can turn the sound up and down and channel surf with the blue buttons. Other than mute and video, I've never touched the gray buttons, and frankly don't understand why there are so many. On the other hand, I've bought more DVD player than I need, so it's not that surprising that the buttons are a little daunting.

I have a JVC television (which I've reviewed some years ago), and that colored my decision to buy it somewhat. It ended up being a choice between the Panasonic and JVC, but ultimately, all other things being equal, I bought it for its looks. Being JVC, I knew it would be a quality device, and a delightful result of my decision is that it is already programmed to work with my three-year-old JVC 20" TV! I didn't have to program it or anything.

I could have bought a ridiculously low-priced machine from APEX, but I'm old school and I don't like buying things figuring I'm just going to toss it later. I buy quality and I expect it to last. So far, the XV-N40BK is just what I need. If, heaven forbid, I'm ever crazy enough to spend more on a TV than I do my car, then the machine will be ready, since it is already progressive-scan. I don't know what progressive-scan is, and I cannot use that feature anyway. You don't have to use it to use the machine.

Part of me wanted to wait for DVD recorders to get real cheap, because I have a lot of videotaped TV shows I'd like to convert. Well, I figured why wait for what could be years down the road, when you can enjoy DVDs now. Tomorrow isn't promised to anybody! And I was a die-hard convert, too. I didn't jump on the DVD bandwagon; I had to be thrown! But I'm glad I made the move. I love the fact that you get extra stuff besides the movie on the DVD; audio commentaries are the best thing since movies started talking, in my opinion. And when you pause the DVD, it's perfectly still and will stay that way forever until you un-pause it. (My VCR only paused for 3 minutes, and you had some flicker with it.)

So, all in all, I think I've made a great decision on two counts: one, jumping on the DVD bandwagon (and if you rent you never really have to own any...no more bulky tapes! Imagine the storage space you save...); and two, choosing the JVC XV-N40BK, a beautiful little black machine that says hello to you when it's activated and shows every indication that it's going to be around a long time.