rf remote

[zoysia]

Besides the Wireless RF Remote Control Extender mentioned earlier, does anyone else have a rf remote for the home theater that works good? I was looking at remotes made by Universal Remote Control Inc., possibly the urc-100 or urc-200.

Randy

 

[BMXTRIX]

All my Crestron stuff works flawlessly.

www.crestron.com

www.you_will_be_broke_after_this.com

 

[zoysia]

That is really nice stuff, I guess I should have mentioned $100 range.

Randy

 

[MDS]

URC-200 or MX-350 are in the $100 range, but remember that you also need the RF basestation MRF-100/200 and that is an additional $100.

 

[j_garcia]

I installed the URC100 and MRF-100a base for a customer with a 3 story house and 3 zones of speakers and it works very well. You can get them at www.avtoybox.com for about $120. Search for URC100 and both should show up.

 

[Davidt1]

I have the URC-100 and and the RF expander too. They work wonderfully. I got both for less than $100--$45 for the remote at the GG store-closing sale and $40 for the RF expander at Amazon with free shipping. I don't even use the flashers that came with the expander, and I am still able to control my equipments from, guess this, my parked car on the street in front of the house.

 

[zoysia]

sounds like the URC100 is a good choice for the money. I guess I'll go that way. thanks all

Randy

 

[chrisw1]

I have had a URC-200 Automator and MRF-100 for about 6 months now and love them both. They had good written instructions and included a tutorial DVD. Programming the remote was easy and learning commands from other remotes was staightforward and reliable. Also, I have only had to change the batteries once with moderate use everyday. The range of the RF receiver is pretty good. I have it enclosed in a cabinet and I can still control my equipment from upstairs.

I would highly advise going with the URC-200 over the URC-100. The individually programmable control buttons add a lot to the flexibility for programming. You are not limited to what they have decided the button labels should be. Also, I don't have that many components, but when you start adding them up, the 8 available on the URC-100 just doesn't seem like enough. The extra 2 on the URC-200 gives some flexibility, especially if you ever plan on adding lighting or a separate page for Macros.

I just checked and Amazon has the URC-200 for $84.99 and the MRF-100 for $34.99, both of which qualify for free shipping if you don't mind waiting for it.

 

[Davidt1]

Sheeesh. I paid $39.99 for my RF expander at Amazon two weeks ago. Does anyone know if Amazon would refund the difference? I agree that the URC-200 is more flexible than the URC-100. However, as the case of all lcd remotes, you have to look at it when you want to change devices. It's something to think about.

 

[MDS]

URC and MX series remotes

The URC and MX series remotes are not LCD remotes like a Pronto. They are hard button remotes with the addition of an LCD screen. There are hard buttons for each of the commands you put on the LCD. So just like the other hard buttons, you can operate them totally by feel.

Of the URC and MX series, only the URC-300 is a true LCD where you have to look at it to execute the right command.

 

[zoysia]

So when people say hard button remote they mean it is not a touchscreen.

Randy

 

[MDS]

So when people say hard button remote they mean it is not a touchscreen.

Your typical remote that comes with equipment is a hard button remote - there are actual physical buttons to depress.

LCD Touchscreen are the types where you have to actually touch the screen to execute a command. Some of them just allow text labels and advanced models like Prontos and the high end line of Home Theater Master allow graphics and icons. Some touchscreen remotes also have hard buttons (the very old MX-1000 was like that).

The URC and MX series from HTM are hybrids. They have an LCD screen that you can label yourself with 5 characters but they are not touchscreen (with the exception of the URC-300). There is a hard button next to the label on the lcd screen. The URC-300 which is a touchscreen also has hard buttons.

I am partial to the HTM remotes, having owned an MX-500 and now an MX-350. I feel the hybrid approach is the best - hard buttons you can depress by feel and an lcd screen to put commands that don't map nicely to the name of the command on the original remote; eg. in the Cable mode of my remote I have LCD buttons for A, B, and C which control aspects of the cable box's program guide. Without the lcd, you would end up choosing an unused button like say +10 to hold one of those commands. I can find those buttons by feel too because I programmed it and know which button is which. If I want A, I can put my finger on the bottom lcd button (C) and move up two to find A.