I am using MX-850's and an MRF-300 with RFX-150 RF unit. I have never had range problems with these units (I get about 75 ft through walls) until now. I have just started trying to utilize the addressable output function from the MRF-300. To do this, I have changed the MRF-300 address from the default "0" address to "1" (I have also tried several others-8,F, etc). When programming a device to utilize only one output in the software, the working range of the system is severly limited (to about 10 feet). Of course if I go back to address 0, the range is restored to about 75 feet.

I have tried adjusting the RF range on the front of the RFX-150 unit as well as the output levels of the individual MRF-300 unit with no improvement.

Is this a known issue with the MRF-300/MX-850/RFX-150 system? Any ideas on how to correct or work around?

Thanks in advance,
Karen

It almost sounds as if you have the ir ports addressed wrong and the only reason its working is because of the ir from the remote itself.

i would do the following.

1) verify all codes work with ir from remote to component first IMPORTANT

2) then set mrf to "0" to check for rf interference

3) then pick a channel, say 1

4) set software to use channel 1, turn off ir output

5) turn up gain on antenna

6) get someone to help and walk around house hitting any button and look for the indicator light to flash. Position antenna so it works all the time. if you get interference with antenna gain all the way up, turn it down until it goes away and/or relocated antenna.

7) Once you have the mrf300 getting reliable signal from the remote THEN connect the flashers to your components and route the ir in the software to the ports that the flashers are connected to.

8) Verify flashers are flasing on the proper components. (ie Volume changes are actually flashing reciever, play on DVD actually flashing DVD)

9) At this point you should be in good shape.

It's important to go 1 step at a time when troubleshooting these things. Solve 1 variable at a time to keep from going nuts.

Let us know how you make out

Hi Kevin,
Thank you for your very detailed response. We must think alike. I had followed your procedure almost exactly before asking for help. The good news is that it seems I may have found a solution today. I downloaded from Universal's website what appears to be a newer version of software than what I was initially using. With no changes to the configuration in software, a redownload using the new software seems to have resolved the problem. The range is back to normal now, even using the addressable mode. I had downloaded numerous times using the old software to two different remotes, and every time the same issue (with addressing on). Some day I need to revert to the old software and see if the problem returns. For now, all is well.

Thanks again,
Karen