JP1 Remotes

[VTHokie]

I am brand new to this forum and an absolute 60 year old rookie to this stuff. I have read with interest the previous posts regarding Comcast's remotes turning on, then off, Pioneer AV receivers assigned to the Aux button when the 'All On" button is used. I have this same problem and want to make sure I understand the solution as it relates directly to my situation. I recently traded in my Comcast SA Explorer 3250HD set-top so I could get HDMI connectivity with the newer boxes. I kept the remote that originally came with the SA which worked fine in all regards. Comcast gave me the new Cisco RNG150 with a new remote. I programmed the TV button on this new remote for my Sony KDL-40XBR9 with code 11100. I programmed the Aux button for my Pioneer VSX-1019AH-K with code 31023. Both the TV and Aux buttons work fine in controlling the devices when pressed individually with the Power button. In the All-On mode the Comcast/Cisco set-top works fine, the TV works fine but the Pioneer turns on, then off. The buttons for the Cable and TV illuminate very quickly in sequence, however the Aux illuminates lastly for a solid, longer duration (there is no break in the illumination). The remote provided with the Cisco set-top is RC1475507/02B. The previous remote provided with the SA is 1067BC3-0002-R. I'm curious as to whether I should reprogram the earlier remote to recognize the new Cisco RNG150 set-top and, if so, how do you go about getting the code into the cable button and what is the Cisco code? (I've tried it using the same protocol for the TV and Aux buttons but I suspect it's locked as it will not accept any code). Or, should I stick with the new remote and try to eliminate the apparent double signal it is sending? Any help would be very much appreciated. Thanks.

[3FG]

The easy way out is to reprogram the old remote to the new cable box. I believe that the code for the RNG 150 is 01982. But you can find out for sure by doing a setup code blink back from the new remote. Use these instructions for 990 blink back. Once you have found the CBL setup code from the new remote, you'll need to do a 982 (instructions also in the link) to disable the CBL lock. [Note that 4 answering blinks means the lock is disabled; 2 blinks means the lock is in effect.] Then you can enter the setup code in the normal way.

All of my silver remotes came from Comcast with 2 upgrades loaded: 01877 and 01376, for SA and Motorola respectively. The remote also had the hidden 4th device programmed to 30331. I find that if I do a full reset using 981, the upgrades are erased and the 4th device is set to 31023. So I speculate that these remotes are made at the factory to have the 4th device setup for 31023, but the silver edition (at least for this part of CA and Seattle, too) had the upgrades loaded later, and the 4th device was rerouted to 30331 during the upgrade.

The All On button executes a macro which apparently fires all 4 devices in order. A workaround for the new remotes is to make a 994 keymove to assign the AUX power key to some innocuous function. That way only the 4th device sends a power command to the receiver from the AllOn macro. This leaves you no way to indvidually toggle the power of your receiver, but it is possible to assign the power function to <shift> power, if you like.

[VTHokie]

Thankyou for the info. I have just tried updating the Cable button on the older (silver) Comcast remote to reflect the code on the new Cisco RNG150 set-top. I checked the code using the 990 query on the new remote as you suggested and you were correct; it is 01982. Unfortunately, when I unlocked the old remote (I got the 4 blinks) and then attempted to enter the 01982 code it would not accept it (no blinks after the 5th digit was entered). It must not be in its library. Thoughts?

Regarding the newer dark remote and your thoughts, I have assigned an AUX code for a Pioneer (31384) that I know intentionally will not control the Pioneer AVR with a correct code of 31023. When I hit All On it cycles correctly but I can't use the Comcast remote to control the volume on the AVR. It cycles off correctly as well with the red All On button. I'm beginning to think that trading the new Pioneer AVR in on some other brand may be the secret! As you have explained the issue I suspect this Comcast problem is unique to Pioneers and this discrete remote control. Is that a fair conclusion?

[3FG]

Does your silver remote have a red OK/Select button? If not, it won't have 01982, but if it is red, it should, and I would try some more.

Regarding the newer remote, I didn't mean for you to change the setup code for the receiver, but rather assign a different EFC to power using the 994 command. That will affect only the power button.

One possible EFC to use is the one for Exit. According to the Lookup Tool (link at the top of this page) Exit for 31023 (Audio 1023) should be 71715 or 71815.

[VTHokie]

Thank you, thank you!! I tried entering 01982 several more times unsuccessfully and on the fourth try it mysteriously worked!! The old remote now controls, in the All-On mode, the set-top, TV and AVR. YEAH! You have really helped me as I thought that old remote was just wasting space when, in fact, it is the perfect solution to this problem. It does have the red OK/Select button and black lettering for the word "Comcast" on the bottom (that's how Comcast identifies the remote over their helpline). The new remote has white letters for the word "Comcast". Given that this worked I'm not going to mess with modifications to the newer remote. Many thanks again. My suggestions to anyone else with this problem is to call Comcast and request a remote with black lettering and then sync it to your set-top. I'm sure they haven't thrown them all away yet.