I have been through a similar situation. I bought an MX900 and MSC400 from a brick and mortar dealer going out of business. He provided me the software to program it. I learned how to use the software from the help guides included. I use a combination of IR and RS232 to control several components of my home theater.

Having done this, I can say I like to tweak the program occasionally and sometimes make changes when I update one of my components (usually a new blu-ray player). So, I am glad I have the live update software.

However, I can also say that there was a rather steep learning curve to the whole thing, and if I were to contemplate a new remote system, I would stick with URC to avoid learning a different system.

I would only recommend doing this yourself if you LIKE spending the time and effort to do so. If you find it tedious, life is too short and hire a pro.