Having a wierd issue with a friend's setup and trying to help him. He has all of his equipment in an entertainment center along with the MRF-300 AND RFX-150 (in the same cabinet). For some reason, all the equipment works EXCEPT for the cable box which is a Scientific Atlanta 8300HD. We have ruled out a bad emitter, a bad port bad IR codes. The cable box works fine with the IR setting only. But once you close the cabinet, the RF settings simply do not work. It only affects the cable box.

I know it has something to do with interference that may be caused by the CI putting the MRF and RFX unit in the same unit (the woman of the house did not want to see the RFX-150 or base unit anywhere), but why the cable box?

Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

THanks,
V

What is the limit of IR modulation frequency of your RF to IR system?

The Scientific Atlanta uses a higher than typical IR modulation (57Khz if I remember correctly). The rest of your devices probably use 40Khz or less. Your RF to IR system might not handle IR modulation over 40Khz.

johnsfine, I've had no problems using URC's MRF300 controlling SA8300HD cable boxes.

vbova, you sure you have the emitter in the right spot on the window? Should be all the way of the left. Try adjusting the levels of the IR output on the MRF300 for the port of the cable box.

i never have any problems either.....hmm....are using port assignments?

There is some kind of interference. I took the 300 out of the cabinet his installers put (along with the RFX 150) and replaced it with an MRF-250 temporaily out of the cabinet and it worked fine. The cable box is definately finicky because it still doesn't work 100% to my satisfaction. Someone suggested replacing the RFX-150 with the new 250 designed for the MSC-400, but I would rather move the base units further apart from the system.

The lady in the house would NOT let the installer pt the unit anywhere else...

As others have said, Scientific Atlanta does use a higher frequency range than URC.

There is a frequency remod device available for this very issue. Its a simple inline module that goes between the emitter and MRF300. Cost about 8 bucks - Russound Remodulator 56k. It requires 12 volts of power, but very little of it. Hook it up to whatever existing 12 volt power you have in the cabinet.

Otherwise I would definately use the MRF300 with a troublesome setup like this if you need it to work perfectly. I would start with the emitter turned down to around 1/4 power and work from there.

It seems simple, but have you turned off the IR blaster on the front of the MRF?

With the door closed and the RF turned on, the IR emitter stuck to the front will be flashing a code at essentially the same time as the MRF's IR blaster. This can cause some equipment to get overdriven or "confused" ... URC also recommends disabling the IR blaster when not needed anyway, so it's worth a shot.

I've never had an IR problems with SA Explorer 8300HD boxes in the NY area - no remod device should be necessary. Actually, URC makes several OEM remotes for those boxes.

You need to turn off the IR blaster, place the emitter to the left of the time/channel display, and put the RFX-150 outside the cabinet to eliminate interference. Be sure you adjust the IR output of the emitter. Start low and move it higher until it is reliable. Check the status light on the MRF when sending commands in RF, just to ensure you are not getting interference.

If you have questions, drop me a line.




Thank you,
Damon DG
= = = = =
http://www.ProRemotes.com - Authorized Dealer & Remote Programming Services

You adjust the output of the emitter on the RF control page in the software correct? I know the RFX-150 also has a dial...

Thanks

No, the IR output adjustment is on top of the MRF-300. There are dials where you can raise and lower the amount of IR you want.

Let me know if that works for you.



Thank you,
Damon DG
= = = = =
http://www.ProRemotes.com - Authorized Dealer & Remote Programming Services

This issue has been resolved putting a piece of electrical tape OVER the emitter/IR eye. Since the box was right up against the cabinet door, it was probably bouncing off and flooding. The electircal tape worked. Thanks for all your help.

VB

Thanks for letting us know how you worked it out!

Thanks. Just curious, does this happen to anyone once or a lot?

I have solved by taking an old nipple from a baby bottle and placing the emmitter in the tip of the nipple and taping the base of the nipple at area of the eye on the device. this gets the emmitter about an inch away from the device

worked for both the cable box and the remote for a PC using a remote for Windows Media Center PC

I use a thin strip of clear plastic to hold the emitter a few inches away from the window on the "new" 8300HD models (there are 2 hardware types using the same model number). It's the only way I've found to control the new boxes 99% of the time. They are also VERY sensitive to being overdriven on the IR port, so an adjustable gain IR port is a must.