URC9910 - first questions

[CollieJim]

Hi

It's great to have a forum like this.

I've just bought a URC-9910 which works fine in its default state.

Is there any difference between the 9910 and the 8910 other than the 9910's RF feature?

The 9910 has an extensive library of codes for the hardware on the market. Is it affected if an extender is used?

Can an extender be removed and restore the remote to original condition?

I find it a bit odd that the 9910 does not have the 3-4 colored or shaped buttons that cable and satellite remotes have for special feature selection. I suppose there is a practical limit to the number of buttons... Would these be implemented with the learning function, or is there another way (assuming no extender at this point)?

TIA
Jim

[Capn Trips]

Is there any difference between the 9910 and the 8910 other than the 9910's RF feature?

No.

The 9910 has an extensive library of codes for the hardware on the market. Is it affected if an extender is used?

No. The code library is in the ROM and is unaffected by the extender. You can access any of the setup codes in the library just the same as in the unextended remote.

Can an extender be removed and restore the remote to original condition?

Yes. At its heart, an extender is just an upgrade that you can install or remove with IR.exe any time.

I find it a bit odd that the 9910 does not have the 3-4 colored or shaped buttons that cable and satellite remotes have for special feature selection. I suppose there is a practical limit to the number of buttons... Would these be implemented with the learning function, or is there another way (assuming no extender at this point)?

The 8910/9910 design is a littel bit dated, so the colored and weird-shaped keys were not quite as prevalent at the time. Even so, the 8910/9910 has PLENTY of buttons, including DOUBLE FF and REW buttons and M1 through M3 and L1 through L4, so you should be able to accomodate all of the one-off type of buttons from any OEM remote. Also, you can define ANY key to do ANYTHING using the extender. Even without the extender, you can define almost any function to almost any key (with a few exceptions, like com/skip) using keymoves. Some (like me) use the L1 through L4 buttons as Red-Green-Yellow-Blue as the colored buttons are almost always in that order.

Read the Extender FAQ sticky post in the Extender forum and it should answer some of your basic questions about extenders.

[The Robman]

I find it a bit odd that the 9910 does not have the 3-4 colored or shaped buttons that cable and satellite remotes have for special feature selection.

The URC-9910 is made for the USA which doesn't use the colored buttons, most (if not all) of the European OFA models have colored buttons.

[MaskedMan]

In this case the extender the OP is posting about is the RF ciruitry and/or the RF basestation included with the 9910.

[CollieJim]

Thanks for the quick replies.

It did not occur to me to look for a European model. As it is, I will have to modify the power supply for the RF unit. Should not be a problem - the circuit board wants 12vac.

It will be 2-3 weeks before I can make an interface cable, but am really looking forward to having a go.

If the 9910 is 'a bit dated', what is current? I got the 9910 based on RF and price ($38). Australia uses 240vac mains power.

Jim

[The Robman]

As it is, I will have to modify the power supply for the RF unit. Should not be a problem - the circuit board wants 12vac.

It's an easy mod, read this...
https://www.hifi-remote.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=2935

If the 9910 is 'a bit dated', what is current?

That comment was regarding the coloured buttons, none of the US models have the coloured teletext buttons, so that's not an issue. The closest we have as far as US models go is the URC-6131 where the Tivo buttons are coloured Green, Blue and Red and the Pause button is Yellow.

[Capn Trips]

By "a bit dated" I mean that it has been around at least three years - so its design may not be the latest, coolest, state-of-the-art, but it works fine for me.