Remotes....

McLoki

As we head into the christmas season and I get to make out a list for Santa, I have a question for all of you. In your HT system, what remote do you use?

I currently use my TV remote to control my tv, dvd, and AVR - but it only does a marginal job of it.

I have looked at the harmony remotes before and wondered if they are worth the price. What do you use and are you happy with it? I would like the best option available for under $100-$150.

Control of functions rather than components would be nice. (choosing dvd would turn on AVR, TV, DVD player - volume would adjust avr, forward back would control the DVD, off would turn off all components, etc.)

Thanks for your help.

Michael

Willow

I just bought a Harmony 659 last week, the only down sound was that I had to download 25 megs of new software for it on dialup...
It works really well. There are some minor kinks I must work out. Can't seem to leave the cable box on and it doesn't choose the right TV input right away. I must call CS and I heard they are amazing.
I find it very easy to use and would recommend it.

kberg

I just put in a request for my wife to get me a Harmony 688 - my kind of remote! Can be had for about $125.

okiepolkie

+ another one for the Harmony

I've installed the 659 for a system and just received a 688 from my neighbor last night. It seems his distributing company deals a lot with Logitech and he gets them for free once in a while from his boss. I told him to get an 880 for himself.

If you can swing the 880, that would probably be the "best" one. I want one of those, but haven't been able to afford it yet.

Zach

PhantomOG

RadioShack/OneForAll remotes do all that you describe and very well. They are never taken seriously because they cost <$50 and don't have big fancy touchscreens to break.

My radioshack remote does all that you mentioned, even has an RF transmitter so I can use it in any room in the house. I think I paid $29.99 for it.

My vol buttons always control the recvr volume. My pause/play/ff/stop buttons always control the DVD player. The Chan Up/Dwn and number keys always change the cable box channel. I have macros setup to each device key that sets all the devices up (TV/Recvr etc...) for viewing/listening to that device.

Its a learning remote and has ALL backlit keys. LCD status screen w/low battery warning.

But I'm sure the Harmony fans will convince you to shell out $200 on a remote...

cmy330go

I have been through a number of different remotes. So far my favorite and the one I am still using is the Universal Remote Home Theater Master MX-600. In my opinion nothing beats hard buttons. I also love the RF feature of this remote.

I have a couple Philips Prontos and I will admit the customization of these is unlimited, but I can't stand looking at the remote everytime I need to press a button.

Well that's my 2 cents worth.

BTW here is a link to a site that was very helpful to me. They have many thorough reviews on a variety of remotes.

Remote Central

PhantomOG

cmy330go wrote:

I have been through a number of different remotes. So far my favorite and the one I am still using is the Universal Remote Home Theater Master MX-600. In my opinion nothing beats hard buttons. I also love the RF feature of this remote.

I have a couple Philips Prontos and I will admit the customization of these is unlimited, but I can't stand looking at the remote everytime I need to press a button.

Well that's my 2 cents worth.

BTW here is a link to a site that was very helpful to me. They have many thorough reviews on a variety of remotes.

Remote Central

I agree... hard buttons the best. I *hate* having to look at my remote to do stuff. I want to watch the TV, not the remote.

Very good site recommendation as well.

Ricardo

Harmony 659 here; love it; cannot think of anything I would like to have in a remote and it''s not in it.

Willow

I say stay away from the Kameleon, it's crap and the CS is even worse.

mantis

Umiversal makes the best Dollar to Dollar remotes in the bussiness. I have found there remotes to be solid and very relieable. Customers learn them very quickly.

Check them out. This is where you want to be.

http://www.universal-remote.com/

I own the Mx850 and now I'm upgrading to the Mx950 with the mrf300 rf control unit. Sweet control.

Dan

jafdc

I have the original Harmony remote (745) and it works well. But my wife, kids, and parents won't use it because, except for the top-level Choose Activity menus, the menus are too small and cluttered. If they had stuck throughout to the one-item-per-screen approach that they use on the top-level Choose Activity menus then I would have been able to throw all the other remotes away.

BrentMcGhee

I second the vote for the mx-950.... great remote with some great features.

I really like the fact that is can sense when you pick it up and turns on the screen, it will even turn on the backlight at the same time it it senses that it is dark in the room.

Grimster74

I have two remotes that I think the world of. I myself use a Philips Pronto TSU7000 color touchscreen downstairs in my room. It controls everything I could ever want it to control. I use it to control lights, ceiling fans and of course all my H/T gear. My wife on the other hand has a Harmony 659 which she is very pleased with. Lets just say she really isn't electronic savy but if something isn't working properly, all she does is hit the help button, reads and answers the questions the remotes asks her, and problem resolved. Sure does help me out by not having to run upstairs every 30 minutes.

Toxis

I have a Universal Remote "Customizer" (URC-300) and love it. Will be getting the RF unit soon to make things even better. For the money, can't be beat!

McLoki

Picked up a Harmony SST-768 from Hoosier21. (thanks russ)

Should meet all the needs I set forth at the beginning and for a great price. I will report back how it goes.

Michael

PolkThug

+1 more for Harmony. I love clicking on the "Demo Polks" button.