So I'm relatively new to using RF devices and IR repeaters, but basically I have an mx-810 that controls a stack of components that are right in front of me in my ht room, but occasionally the ir commands get blocked by the legs of my ht rack. My components are not out of sight, but I'd like to install a solution that allows me to operate them without having to point the remote deliberately at them while macros are running.

The mrf-350 seems to fit the bill; however, I have a couple questions being new to this and all:

1. My couch is 10ft away from my ht stack. There's an end table to my left next to where I sit on the couch. This end table is lined up directly with the ht stack on the opposite side of the room. If I buy the mrf-350 and put it on that end table, can I just use the front ir blaster of the mrf and not bother with connecting all the individual wired ir flashers to my individual components?

2. I just want to be able to not have to point my remote at the ht stack. Is there a simpler solution than this? Or a cheaper rf or ir type product? I considered an ir repeater, but that would still require setting up a box near my ht stack, and the box would probably get blocked by the different levels on the stack anyways.

The mrf-350 is going to be your best bet.

Use the ir emitters for the most reliability.

No and no. Buy a MRF-350 and attach the emitters to the front of the equipment.
The system will be much more reliable.

I know this is recommended, but basically my system is right out in the open, and I don't want to have emitters attached to the ir inputs on the front for aesthetic reasons. How bad is the ir blaster on the front of the mrf-350? I just want to have a "no pointing" solution without having to wire up a bunch of additional emitters. My seating position is right in front of the stack, 10ft away.

I suggest you move when you want to use the remote. Purchasing the MRF-350 only to place it it on a table and use the blaster is a waste in my opinion. To make your system reliable, you would HAVE to use the emitters. There is no point otherwise.

you can use emitters other than ones that come with the MRF350.  Xantech makes some nicer looking ones.

if you are brave, you could also open up each unit and bury the emitter.  I try to do this on all equipment that I can.  The only units that give me trouble so far are new DirecTV receivers and Cable Boxes.  Since these tend to be leased, I don't open those up.

My thought is that while I agree about using IR emitters directly on the equipment, there is no harm in trying to do it your way.
What's the worst thing that can happen? The thing doesn't work reliably, and you still have an option on doing it "properly".

Thanks for the responses. I understand it seems like a waste to use the mrf-350 w/out emitters, but I don't see another option out there. I have line of site to my system, but it's unreliable already because I have to occasionally move the remote and angle it around the rungs in my ht stack. Everyone knows how annoying it is to have a macro only fire halfway through. It's unclear to me why the front blaster of the mrf-350 would be such a poor solution? Is there interference?

Because it is still line of site. Although not likely to happen often, what will happen if someone walks between the MRF350 and your equipment while you are triggering a macro? If you want to give it a go, then go for it, and you may very well be happy with is set up like this. I personally would never do this, and would rather have emitters placed on each piece of equipment. It would work a lot better, I can assign the ports, and I wouldn't have a piece of equipment on my side table.

Makes sense to me. Good point. Do I have any other options besides ir emitters and an rf base station to go with them? I doubt my situation is unique, and it seems like everyone just goes with rf and is done with it. However, I'm just not interested in adding yet more wires and more gadgets onto the front of my devices.

Well you can open up your equipment in most cases and place the emitters on the inside of the cases. If you are not willing to do that, than you can usually route the wires under the equipment so you do not see much, or any wire (depending on where the eye is on the equipment). I know you wish to have a clean look, and with a little work you can accomplish that along with having the best functionality as well. Also look for equipment with an IR input on the back. Most receivers have a port, and you can utilize this rather than putting an emmiter on the front or inside the unit.

Bumping this thread back from the dead for anyone who is curious about doing what I propose in the OP. I ended up buying a new MRF-260 off of ebay, and I put it under my couch pointing at my HT stack. I just use the IR blaster to send IR commands to my stack. It worked FLAWLESSLY the very first time I set it up! There's zero lag, and I can finally use my remote without pointing. The only time this setup might be a problem is if someone's foot happens to move all the way over to the very farthest corner of the couch. It's unlikely, but that seems to be the only downside to using just the blaster and at such a distance (i.e. not in the rack itself).

So bottom line: you can use an mrf-260 or mrf-350 this way if you prefer. Down the road when I end up hiding my components, I'll take advantage of the flashers and be done with the front IR blaster. But it's definitely a nice flexible feature that solved an annoying problem for me.