Single device with some buttons having different protocol?

[tomfreeland]

I have a question about how to create a device update
when some of the original device remote's buttons use
a different protocol than the other buttons. I can't
see any way in key-master to have some buttons use a
different protocol than the others.

I am creating a device upgrade for JVC HR-XVC18BUS
DVD/VCR Combo. This uses protocol NEC1, Device 110,
and <nothing> for SubDevice. Most of the buttons
are as shown in the example below:

Button Protocol Device SubDevice EFC

TV/Video NEC1 110 <nothing> 120

However, some of the buttons I want to map use a different
protocol and even a different set of values for Device and
SubDevice as shown below:

Button Protocol Device SubDevice EFC

Disc Menu NECx1 45 45 043
Select DVD NECx1 45 45 145

I could not figure how to deal the different protocol and
device settings for these two buttons I needed, so I just
learned these two buttons from the original remote after I
created the device upgrade in KM and IR. This works OK,
but involves a manual step after the device upgrade is
created.

Is there a better way?

Thank you,
Tom Freeland

[Capn Trips]

You need to use the "NEC 2DEV Combo" protocol in KeymapMaster.

From KM's NEC Protocol Help worksheet:

NEC 2DEV Combo:

This protocol allows you to combine 2 device/sub-device pairs using
NEC1, NEC2, NECx1 and NECx2 signal styles.

Enter the 2 device/sub-device pairs on the Setup sheet (leave the
sub-device blank if there is no sub-device). You can also define the
default NEC signal style in the 'NEC Style' input cell. Enter '1' for
NEC1, '2' for NEC2, 'x1' for NECx1, or 'x2' for NECx2.

When entering functions, in the 'byte2' column enter '1' for device
pair1, or '2' for device pair2. Then enter a space followed by the NEC
signal style using the same syntax described above. For example, to
use the 2nd device/sub-device pair and NECx1 signals, th 'byte2' entry
would be: "2 x2"

[johnsfine]

I am creating a device upgrade for JVC HR-XVC18BUS
DVD/VCR Combo. This uses protocol NEC1, Device 110,
and <nothing> for SubDevice. Most of the buttons
are as shown in the example below:

I think things are a bit more complicated than you have found.

You have said that most of the buttons use the VCR code set and some of them use the DVD code set.

That might be true, and when the combo device is in DVD mode it might respond to many VCR commands. But most similar combo devices don't work that way.

For most such combos, the original remote remembers whether you have switched to DVD mode or VCR mode. Many keys send a VCR command in VCR mode and a DVD command in DVD mode.

To be sure your learned signals are correct, you should switch the original remote to DVD mode and relearn a bunch of the buttons for which you now have VCR signals (NEC1:110). See if they still send VCR signals, or if they send DVD signals.

I could not figure how to deal the different protocol and
device settings for these two buttons I needed, so I just
learned these two buttons from the original remote after I
created the device upgrade in KM and IR.

Capn Trips described a good method (that I had forgotten about) for building a combination upgrade assuming you want a significant number of DVD commands mixed in with your VCR commands.

If you only want a few DVD commands mixed in, it may be better to use an empty upgrade (just setup sheet, no buttons) or built-in setup code as the source for KeyMoves, and use a few keymoves to insert the desired commands.

The learned signals are also an acceptable way to patch a few DVD commands into VCR mode. But having done that manual step once, you should download the eeprom image back to the PC and save that file. When you later want to change things in IR.exe and reupload, start from that saved file including the learned signals, so you won't need to relearn them after upload.

BUT, if you discover that your original remote is significantly modal (sends different signals in VCR mode vs. DVD mode) you'll probably need to make the JP1 remote modal as well, most easily done by using two device buttons (one for VCR and one for DVD) with teo different upgrades.

[tomfreeland]

You need to use the "NEC 2DEV Combo" protocol in KeymapMaster.

Thank you, Capn Trips. I will try that.

To be sure your learned signals are correct, you should switch the original remote to DVD mode and relearn a bunch of the buttons for which you now have VCR signals (NEC1:110). See if they still send VCR signals, or if they send DVD signals.

Thanks, johnsfine. I had thought about this before I started doing the learning. I made a spreadsheet, with each original remote button listed down the first column and then separate columns for the EFC when in VCR mode and another column for EFCs in DVD mode. Once I got started, the full two-mode learning seemed like a lot of work, so I thought I would just get the codes for one mode and then see how well that worked for running both both devices. With the exception of the two buttons I had to learn, it worked well. Now I think I should revise my spreadsheet to include protocol, device, and subdeivce for each button in each mode (VCR and DVD). Then I will have an accurate and complete inventory of the functions. I am hoping at that point that I will be able to use the "NEC 2DEV Combo" approach from Capn Trips and get it all working with no learned keys.

Thanks

[Capn Trips]

You can certainly get it working with no learned keys.

Whether or not you can (and choose to) cram everything into a single upgrade, depends on how many Dev/SubDev combinations you have, but John's advice above is valid - you may want to have separate upgrades for the DVD and VCR devices, even though they happen to be in a single box.

This might even be MORE desirable, if you use different video outputs from your DVD-VCR for each mode (i.e. use Component or S-Video output for DVDs, but the Composite Video output for VHS tapes). By this, I mean that as you build/refine your remote image in IR (device selection macros, etc) you may WANT the DVD and VCR functions assigned as separate devices.