URC-7955 where to start?

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bugmenot
Posts: 13
Joined: Mon Oct 20, 2014 1:34 am

URC-7955 where to start?

Post by bugmenot »

Hi,
as alternative to the logitech harmony`s i`m thinking about to buy a OneForAll urc-7955.
As i`m new to all this i`ve read some post about cables, extenders, ... but still a bit confused.

Where can i buy a cable that suits to the urc-7955?
If possible i would like to buy a finished cable.
Since i have time, it could be from china (AliExpress??)

What else do i need, beside the remote and the remotemaster-software to start?
mathdon
Expert
Posts: 4725
Joined: Tue Jul 22, 2008 8:53 am
Location: Cambridge, UK

Post by mathdon »

I see that you joined JP1 in 2014, so I presume that you have a cable of some sort. If that is a JP1.2/3 cable with an FTDI chip, that will work with all later remotes even if they are described as JP2 or JP3, including the URC-7955. If it is a JP1.2/3 cable with a Prolific chip, it might work with the URC-7955, as far as I know that has not been tested. The cables that will not work are the original JP1 cables. So you may not need a new cable, depending on what you currently have. If you do need a new cable, others will have to help you as I do not know the current state of the suppliers we have used in the past.

The URC-7955 can also be used with RMIR through Bluetooth, which does not need a cable at all. Unfortunately, though, this needs the installation of Extender 2 for the URC-7955, which remedies some defects in the Bluetooth implementation in the firmware of the remote. You need a cable to install the extender, though this is a one-off task after which you can use RMIR with the remote without any physical connection between the two. To use Bluetooth in this way, you also need Windows 10 on a PC with built-in Bluetooth Low Energy hardware (which is pretty universal unless the Windows 10 is an upgrade on an older machine). You can read more about the Bluetooth support in RMIR in this thread. That also describes a Bluetooth dongle, the BLED112, that can be used with any OS, including Linux, but with a suitable Windows 10 machine that should not be needed.

Once you have the URC-7955, a suitable cable and RMIR then there is nothing further that you need. Even if you want to try the Bluetooth support, the only other thing you need is a newish Windows 10 PC as I have described above. The extender is just software downloadable from our file section.
Graham
The Robman
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Post by The Robman »

Hi Bug, would an OARUSB04G remote suit your needs?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HNIHM5S/

If so, you don't need to a buy a cable to program that remote and it's a USB remote and you can use the USB cable that it comes with to program it using JP1.

Any other JP1 remote that you might purchase today, including the URC-7955, would work with an FTDI Ft232RL USB cable. Some of these comes as regular cables, some come as Arduino adapters, but either will work. JP1 remotes require a 2*3 cable header, whereas most FTDI cables that you will find on ebay come with either a 1*6 header or 6 individual connectors. The ones with individual connectors can be connected to a JP1 remote one at a time, but that's a bit tedious, or you can glue them together in a 2*3 shape. But the best idea is to buy some 2*3 headers and replace the connector.

More details here:
http://www.hifi-remote.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=16360
Rob
www.hifi-remote.com
Please don't PM me with remote questions, post them in the forums so all the experts can help!
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