JP1 Remotes

I had a URC-8910B02 for my bedroom setup and now that we got a big screen TV for the family room with a Sat box and now a Sony home theater system I had to buy a new remote. Because my old one did so well I bought a second one. Well I found out my Sony DVD player works just great had a program in just a few buttons but the receiver did not work with any of the codes. So I just did a learn function over the 4th weekend to get by. Well I contacted and this is what I sent them

recipient --- websupport@ofausa.com
redirect --- http://www.ofausa.com/thanks.php
email_subject --- Please Choose
subject --- URC 8910 - Codes
name ---
address --- .
address2 ---
city ---
state ---
zip ---
email --- om
verify_email ---
model --- URC 8910
Modelnumber_other ---
regarding --- Codes
Manufacturer --- Sony
Model_Number --- STR-K6800P
Device_Type --- Audio Receiver
comments --- I just bought this unit and remote and I can not find a code for it. I have the new codes the 0158 and 0474 the remote will not take. Can you please help me! my mem is full from tring to do the learn.
Submit --- Finish

This is what I got back.

"
Below is the list of codes that we have for your equipment. If you get the NOT FOUND message after you enter the code and press select, then it means the code is not in the memory of your remote control.


RCVR 1758, 1759

If it says NOT FOUND, it means the code is not in the memory of your remote control. If it shows "NOT FOUND," then you will need to call the customer support center at 1-330-405-8616. A customer service rep will be able to walk you through the download (upgrade) procedure to add those codes in to your remote control. Once those codes are in the memory of your remote, you should be able to work these units with your new remote. When you call you do not have to be near your equipment, but you do need to have the remote with you, and you must be on a land line phone. A cell phone will not transmit the signal correctly. If you have a corded phone, or a speaker phone, those usually work the best. We have had some success with a cordless phone, but the others seem to work better.

"

Well the codes are not found and they open after I leave for work and are closed when I come back home. It looks like this remote has the built in modem and I do not need the wire to my PC hookup. What I am wondering is there a way to upgrade my remote with out having to buy the wire to connect it to my PC? I did read the though the posts and all I see is the hardware hookup but I did read about modem but just no way to do it.

Also do you think I should just do a hard reset on the remote before I do this upgrade so I do not have to worry about any conflicts?

Thanks for your help.

Just for anyone who got lost somewhere in that long post, let me summerise the question...

"Is there a way to use JP1 to program a URC-8910 using the modem rather than buying a JP1 cable?"

fwiw, I purchased an 8910 a month or so ago but the primary device I purchased it for (a samsung dvd/vcr combo) was not available on the 8910 code list.

However, I found that their telephone tech support was the best tech support I have received in years... fast, efficient, friendly, patient and they built an update list of that device and several others and downloaded it to the 8910 on the same phonecall.

As others have stated, their code layouts are somewhat ill advised, but a subsequent call talked me through assigning two missed buttons to the samsung pad and it serves me well as I learn the jp1 path.

It ain't perfect, but it's better than most devices... that, and you will have a working device that will give you a couple of months (or more) to learn the jp1 path.

So it sounds like I sould reset the remote then if they can help me get it programed with out having to use all my memory.

I know you don't want to spend $14 to get a JP1 cable (which is still the best solution, by the way) but are you prepared to learn how to use JP1? If so, you can use JP1 to create WAV files which you can use to load upgrades into your remote via the modem.

If you don't want to learn JP1, and you can't call Customer Support during their business hours, your only other option is to mail the remote back to them for an upgrade, but to do that you still need to be able to call them to arrange it.

I do not mind spending the $14 if I knew it would be worth it. Is the cable worth it if I do not see myself upgrading my equipment for a while?

Only you can decide if it's worth it.

The cost is the $14 purchase price.

The benefit is that you will have a universal remote that is truely universal. No matter what kind of device you may buy in the future, you will be able to program your remote to control it, even if the device is so rare that no one else in the JP1 world has this device.

Whenever you're using your remote to work your TV, etc, if you say to yourself "I wonder if I can make the remote do ....." the answer will probably be "yes".

The JP1 cable brings your remote control options into the 21st century and allows you to fully exploit the potential of JP1 remotes. Even if you don't need all the nitty-gritty mods that are explained so well in this site, there is great satisfaction in just manipulating your JP1 remote enabling access to all the buttons of your OEM remote in a sensible manner. The cable not only provides a download capability, but also allows you to upload "learned" information to a PC for backup, and manipulation; this feature alone is worth the the price of admission.

Just seven days ago I was very much anticipating the arrival of my order for my HTPRO remotes and the JP1 cable. My new HTPRO remotes arrived 5 days ago, the JP1 cable arrived 3 days ago. With only about 4 hours investment of reading and playing (sandboxing), I have already set aside 5 different remotes for permanent storage. As soon as I find some good labels, I will identify them, label them and store them all away.

Pre-JP1, I was fed-up with trying to find the correct remote for any one of the three Phillips/Magnavox devices in my house that I might be using at that moment. (By the way, all of which are labeled ONLY with the manufacturer's name, not the model number and look pretty similar.) I was tired of switching my DishNetwork remote unit codes between the two PVR's, depending on which one had the program I wanted. The final clincher was losing my living room remote for 3 months and not being able to watch DVD's!!! Now I can build a profile for remotes in adjacent rooms and it doesn't matter when 'somebody' [insert spouse or child's name here] carries the remote into the other room.

If a remote is broken, I have a backup of the data and just need to obtain another of the same model and restore all the data [remote control settings] in one shot.

Yeah, there is a small learning curve, but we have an apropos acronym in the techie world, "RTFM!!!" ; in more polite terms, just read the help files. The JP1 tools are not really intuitive due to the inherent complexity of IR technology but most everyone has done a GREAT job at being simultaneously helpful and succinct with their hints and documentation. You really only need a basic understanding of technical terms and a willingness to learn.

If you really want to fix your remote control clutter issue, learning the basics of JP1 it time well invested. I'm sure I have only scratched the surface of the JP1 capability this week, but I already feel as though the cost of my JP1 cable has been recouped just in the satisfaction of retiring these OEM remotes and not feeling like I have to "keep them handy" just because the remote had a special button that I might need and isn't mapped or available, as frequently happened with my (old, pre-JP1) so-called universal remotes.

Just purchase the cable!!!


Glenn


Disclaimer: To this date, I have never had any personal or financial interest in any JP1 related business of any type, I just hate remote control clutter!