Remote Hell

[rscheller]

har·mo·ny /ˈhɑrməni/
Pronunciation Key Show Spelled Pronunciation[hahr-muh-nee]
–noun, plural -nies.

1. agreement; accord; harmonious relations.
2. a consistent, orderly, or pleasing arrangement of parts; congruity.
3. maximum WAF.

[topperdude]

Check out this thread.

Hope it helps,
-Topper

[dinki]

I've been using the same One for All Cinema 7 remote for probably seven or eight years now. It's a JP1 remote so I can easily upload (from my pc) whatever device codes for whatever new equipment I purchase. While the Harmony remotes are nice, the JP1 remotes could be a much more affordable alternative.

[flyswatta]

I'm leaning towards the uh, more affordable, remote solution. I can just see (after explaining to my wife why I spent > $70 on a remote) the kids dropping it on the wood floor and jacking it up :eek:

Even without the JP1 stuff, it sounds like a learning remote is really what I need. JP1 does appeal to me, even if it's just to play with it, but it looks somewhat time consuming

Does anyone know if you can "send" signals through the remote via the parallel cable? If it's possible, it sounds like a flexible, affordable alternative for IR blasting.

Also, does anyone know if the JP1 remotes support UHF? (like for TV2 on a dual tuner Dish Network STB?)

[-Oz-]

Believe me, you won't regret spending the money on the Harmony remote. My parents said that was quite possibly better than the mediapc itself

[rscheller]

Believe me, you won't regret spending the money on the Harmony remote. My parents said that was quite possibly better than the mediapc itself

Yep... $70 is an easy price to pay to get a one button solution.

[stustunz]

whats wrong with just using mce remote it can be programed to turn tv on and off (learning not code)
Gbpvr does everything else so theres no need for any other remote is there
i used to have all sorts of remotes but now just have the one
no bells and whistles needed it turns the tv on and off then controls gbpvr which does the rest

[Carlito]

Well, i like the universal for controlling my audio amp and my stb as well...

[stustunz]

yeah well mce remote can control the volume on the amp
and the remote sender will control the stb
Sorry couldnt help myself

[flyswatta]

Just wanted to give an update on my remote woes. Due to budgeting reasons, I ended up passing on a Harmony remote and picked up a All For One URC-10820 for $25.99 at Frys.

I ended up moving my DishNetwork 522 STB from the bedroom to the living room (this removed the UHF requirement for a remote - and I get a better picture since I'm using s-video instead of RF )

I have the remote configured to use:
DishNetwork 522 STB - Dual satellite receiver/PVR
Hughes HIRD E-86 - Direct TV satellite receiver/HDTV - but I just use the HDTV tuner for OTA HD.
Apex something or another DVD Player
MediaMVP
Olevia 37" LCD TV.

I have a VCR floating around, but I haven't hooked it up yet.

I had to use the learning function to get the Olevia TV and the MediaMVP working, but that's the reason I went with a learning remote . I managed to do 2 macros - one to turn on closed caption and one to turn them off (on the Hughes reciever - you have to go through about 8 menu items to do this).

All in all, I'm pretty happy with it - especially for the price. I considered the RM-VL600, but it was missing the "chapter" buttons - these are used extensively by our family for com skipping on the Dish PVR and MediaMVP

Thanks for all of the input and information!!