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15-2117 RF problems
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Agix



Joined: 24 Sep 2003
Posts: 16

                    
PostPosted: Tue Oct 07, 2003 12:58 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Heya,

When you plug in your IR/UHF box into the wall, do you see the LED constantly blinking? Mine is always blinking and goes brighter when a button on the remote is pushed.

I took the batteries out of the remote to try and elimate the bad remote possiblity.

Interesting enough, when this is constantly blinking any other normal IR remote in the room (Particulary my TIVO remote) only works once out of every 3-4 button presses.

Or is it just my luck I get the last bum device. Sad
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Lenroc



Joined: 05 Oct 2003
Posts: 60

                    
PostPosted: Tue Oct 07, 2003 1:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Agix-

Actually, I have the same problem, sometimes.

I haven't really looked into it yet, and honestly the RF base station is on top of my entertainment armoire, so I can't see it (I use the IR blaster thingie).

When I first plugged everything in, it all worked (including the original non RF remote). Then, a few hours later, the original remote didn't work anymore. When I moved the IR blaster out of the way, the original remote worked.

I left it alone for a while (since I haven't made my JP1 interface just yet, the new remote only knows a few of the Tivo buttons anyway), and tried it again last night, and it all works fine.

I wonder if the RF base station is just getting too many spurious signals from somewhere...
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jwcldwll



Joined: 15 Sep 2003
Posts: 39
Location: Connecticut

                    
PostPosted: Tue Oct 07, 2003 2:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Interesting....My Tivo remote also began to act squirley (sometimes) especially when in the view of the 2117 IR box. I blamed the Tivo which had been acting up at times even when alone. After your post Im wondering if the 2117 has aggravated the situation. The led on the IR output box does seem to flicker continuously also. I bought a second 2117 (at this price why not?) and this one doesnt seem to have the flickering led. Now Ill have to do some experimenting to see if I can isolate the Tivo remote problem to one or both of the 2117"s. I'll keep you posted.
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Agix



Joined: 24 Sep 2003
Posts: 16

                    
PostPosted: Tue Oct 07, 2003 6:12 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

This is odd. My parents bought the 2117 rf package and their's does not blink at their house or at mine!

Oddly enough though, when they took it back home it blinked and I thought I broke it. They messed with the antenna and placement and it stopped???? Mine keep doing this no matter where I put it.

Ya I bet your Tivo remote problems are related just like mine. I am just glad I remembered what changed within the past week.

Maybe time to find that receipt and exchange the base station.
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Lenroc



Joined: 05 Oct 2003
Posts: 60

                    
PostPosted: Tue Oct 07, 2003 11:44 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

After some experimenting, it seems that the LED on my base station flickers most of the time, especially when it is close to an exterior wall.

I'm going to try to place it better...
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scottedge267



Joined: 07 Oct 2003
Posts: 4

                    
PostPosted: Wed Oct 08, 2003 11:18 pm    Post subject: RF problems as well. Reply with quote

I had the same problem with the 15-2117 and the URC 9910 but it wasn't with a Tivo it was with an HK AVR320 (reciever). When I put an IR blaster on the HK the original remote wouldn't work and the RF remotes would only work some of the time, many times repeating the ir signal sent several times (that wasn't to kind on the ears with the volume button). I had to use a Leapfrog Lfuniv which actually worked the best of the two (of course its probably the same RF base) When i used the leapfrog I was able to cotnrol my cable box which was not possible with the 2117 or 9910 and it cleared up the problems with the HK. The system has never worked better. I hope the Remote Range extender with AAA insert works just as good as the Leapfrog that way I can get rid of the silly device on the front of the remote that you need to attach to get it working.
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Lenroc



Joined: 05 Oct 2003
Posts: 60

                    
PostPosted: Thu Oct 09, 2003 1:12 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I finally fixed my own problem, by lowering the antenna on the base unit, and also keeping it away from exterior walls.
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jwcldwll



Joined: 15 Sep 2003
Posts: 39
Location: Connecticut

                    
PostPosted: Sat Oct 25, 2003 11:11 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ive been trying different things with both my 15-2117 "Command centers" (the IR emmiting box) and have just about decided that they create more problems than they solve. Even with the IR extension located right in front of the Tivo window they definitely confuse the Tivo with their IR noise- so that it responds to the remote well, ok, poorly or not at all at various unpredictable times. After taking the Command center and extension away the Tivo leaps to life with every button push - even when it can only see a bounced signal. Its a great remote- especially with the JP1 feature but I think the Command center still needs work. Ive inquired at RS support about possible fixes and will post any useful reply that I might get.
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Lenroc



Joined: 05 Oct 2003
Posts: 60

                    
PostPosted: Sat Oct 25, 2003 11:16 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

jwcldwll:

Keep in mind that the location of the IR extension cable is irrelevant (assuming that there is LOS between either the IR/RF Bridge [you call it the 'command center'] or the IR extension cable and your target unit).

More important is the position of the IR/RF bridge (or command center) itself.

The symptoms that you are experiencing are all about interference, and eliminating the interference is the only thing that can help. So far, I've had success just moving the box around until I found a good place for it (away from walls, in my case).
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plyons10



Joined: 20 Sep 2003
Posts: 28

                    
PostPosted: Sun Oct 26, 2003 9:25 am    Post subject: 15-2117 Interference Reply with quote

Add me to the list... I have verified with an IR detector that my "base unit" is basically constantly streaming IR noise. This noise interferes with the normal reception of IR signals only on my cable box (which makes my Replay unable to control it and change channels to record).

Lowering the antenae or moving the box around hasn't helped me at all, so I basically just don't use it unless I'm on the deck listening to just music.
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The Robman
Site Owner


Joined: 01 Aug 2003
Posts: 21210
Location: Chicago, IL

                    
PostPosted: Sun Oct 26, 2003 10:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

The design of these RF extenders is a long way short of perfect, and that's true also for the little pyramid shaped "powermids" and other RF extenders.

There are some locations where they just don't work and there's not much you can do about it. If there is excessive RF noise in this location that uses a close enough frequency to that used by the RF extender, it can cause it to continuosly emit meaningless IR signals.

However, there are plenty of other locations where they work just fine, so for people reading this who are thinking about getting one of these things, these bad reviews here don't necessarily mean that the RF extender won't work for you, it's a case of YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary).

Personally, I couldn't use the 15-2117 in my location either but for a different reason. The RF signal had to pass through a couple of walls that were covered in mirrors and the metal in the mirrors was sufficient to block the RF signal. If I took the remote to a different location it worked perfectly.

So, I went with a hard wired solution.
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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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Lenroc



Joined: 05 Oct 2003
Posts: 60

                    
PostPosted: Sun Oct 26, 2003 11:41 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

The Robman wrote:
So, I went with a hard wired solution.


How much did that cost? Wink

Seriously though... my 15-2117's RF/IR bridge works most of the time now, but if a reasonably priced wired solution would work _all_ the time, that would be worth investigating.
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The Robman
Site Owner


Joined: 01 Aug 2003
Posts: 21210
Location: Chicago, IL

                    
PostPosted: Sun Oct 26, 2003 7:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

How much? $50!

I'm already running a coax cable from my ReplayTV units to the upstairs TV (which I wired up when I got fed up with the wireless Wavecom, Sr that I had previously beed using), so all I had to do was by the HCIRREMKITX kit from www.homecontrols.com and connect it to both ends of the coax, and I was all set!

Here's a pic...

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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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Lenroc



Joined: 05 Oct 2003
Posts: 60

                    
PostPosted: Sun Oct 26, 2003 10:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

$50 ain't bad. No problems with the various signals being caried by the Coax, I gather?

It seems a little odd to me that that site seems to charge $50 for the entire kit, or $50 each for the various parts...

Regardless, that certainly seems like it would fit the bill Wink
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jwcldwll



Joined: 15 Sep 2003
Posts: 39
Location: Connecticut

                    
PostPosted: Mon Oct 27, 2003 2:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I havent been able to find a location for the "Command Center" (Radio Shack's name for the RF/IR box) that can eliminate the rf noise that causes the IR confusion- so I guess I'll just use the remote alone- it has a powerful IR signal and is darn good on its own.

BTW - here is RS support's reply to my inquiry about the problem-

"Thank you for your email, John,

In checking, the reference IR noise is caused by band interference.
The radio band that this device operates in is a shared band with other
license free devices and interference can happen. We regret that
there is no simple fix for the problem. We would recommend that you
try moving the command center further away from the equipment that is being effected.

Thank you,
Carla
Radio Shack Support"
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