Help Request: USB Receivers, Universal remotes

[JasonMaggini]

This will be kind of long-winded, so my apologies.

Currently I have my GB-PVR 1.3.11 set up and working happily with a cheap RCA universal remote. A serial IR receiver, WinLIRC and Autohotkey.

Current goal: replace fragile, eventually-obsolete serial receiver with USB, and still use one inexpensive universal remote for all home theater components.

Research has yielded no satisfactory answers to the following.

1: I want to still be able to control my TV, audio receiver, cable box, and GBPVR with a single remote. Is there no such thing as a universal MCE remote that doesn't cost $50+?

2: I have seen HP receivers on eBay for about $15. Can a USB MCE Receiver receive signals from a standard universal remote?

3. WinLIRC (as far as I can tell) doesn't work with USB, only serial. If #2 is possible, which software would work best for interpreting uni-remote signals? EventGhost? HIP?

If you have endured my ramblings this far and have any workable solutions, I thank you in advance.

[mattyb]

I suggest getting a universal remote with a learning function, then you can teach it the codes to all your devices. You can then get a standard MCE remote with receiver and teach your universal to replicate this as well.

Also suggest using IR Server Suite for translating remote signals - quite easy to setup and use.

This is what I use and it works well.

[kayak4ever]

Currently I have my GB-PVR 1.3.11 set up and working happily with a cheap RCA universal remote. A serial IR receiver, WinLIRC and Autohotkey.

Can't answer the question but you have raised my curiosity. I too have the RCA remote but didn't even consider how to get it to control the GB-pvr. How did you do it? I apologize if the answer is obvious. I have the Hauppauge IR receiver but I don't know what WinLIRC and Autohotkey are.

[JasonMaggini]

The serial IR receiver I bought on eBay. There's plans on the wiki (http://gbpvr.com/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Hardware/WinLirc), but my soldering skills are not up to snuff.

WinLIRC (http://winlirc.sourceforge.net/) runs in the background and receives the signals from the remote. The program will learn codes from your remote (I think I just used the default RCA DVR codes). You program each button with whatever name you want.

Autohotkey (http://www.autohotkey.com/) is a cool program for writing macros and automating Windows events.

I modified this script, matching up the names learned by WinLIRC:

http://www.autohotkey.com/docs/scripts/WinLIRC.htm

to grab whatever codes WinLIRC puts out and translate the codes to keystrokes. So, for example, pressing rewind key on the remote causes WinLIRC to send the REW (or whatever you name it) signal. Autohotkey grabs that signal and sends a keystroke (CTRL+D, in this case).

Only slightly less convoluted as I think I'm making it sound.

[gazoo]

You could also try eventghost, real good addition to winlirc.

[wtg]

I've been unsatisfied with every solution until I finally bit the bullet and bought a Harmony remote. Wholly cow... awesome.

I bought a refurbed unit from NewEgg.com, the 686, for $39. The 800 series are identical with color displays, but about double the cost refurbed and I didn't think it was worth it. It looks and acts like new and has full warranty and works great. I use it now for controlling my TV, DVD, VCR, cable box/DVR, Audio Receiver, Popcorn Hour and PC. It's macros for switching everything with one button work great and are fairly easy to setup, and it's so highly configurable and functional you'll wonder how you lived without it.

I took a long time before I finally decided to bite the bullet, but wish now I'd done it a long time ago. The buying refurbed saves a lot of money.

[soccerdad]

The Harmony (mine is an xbox version with the colored buttons just like a hauppauge) coupled with an MCE USB receiver is awsome for me. Very high WAF and you can make it do anything you want if you couple it with the other add on programs talked about above.

[JasonMaggini]

wtg, soccerdad: Do the Harmony remotes have codes for MCE remotes, or do they learn by pointing the remotes at each other?

I'm curious, because I think I can get a receiver by itself.

[fering]

I have a similar setup to Soccerdad. MCE receiver, harmony remote, I use IRServerSuite to translate into actual GBPVR commands. Basically I set up my Harmony remote to behave as a Hauppauge remote and set IRServerSuite to translate the harmony commands to GBPVR.

I happen to have Hauppauge cards, but you wouldn't actually need to have one to get the above to work.

[carpeVideo]

If you really want to get in depth - start here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JP1_remote and at the forums at the bottom. You can program nearly any remote with a JP1 plug and many cheaper ones have the plug. It takes a bit of learning but there is a decent amount of codes and programs out there. I got on of these http://shopping.yahoo.com/p:One%20for%20...1991238634
and then built the programming interface for a few bucks (the cheapest uses a parallel interface). I use an MCE transceiver and for GBPVR I have all the MCE remote keys programmed in.

Of course if tinkering isn't fun for you at $40 bucks the harmony remote is pretty attractive since its much easier to program.