MRF-350 is 2.5x the price of the MRF-250, MRF-300 is 2x the price. I have a house that isn't too huge, 2100 sq ft. Is the MRF-350/MRF-300 really worth that much more money than the MRF-250?

Yep.

Seconded.

how come? I'm going to buy a MX-900 and the 300 or 350 will increase the price significantly. If you were on a tight budget would you spring for the 350, or could the 300 be good enough? How come? I have a friend with a MX-200 and he says he's never had any problems and been happy.

The MRF-250 is so unreliable that many times it doesn't work. It's extremely sensitive to all sorts of interference, and drops commands a lot. Sometimes you can get it to work by moving it away from equipment, adding ferrite cores, etc, but there's still no guarantees.

Glad you arent even considering the 250. The MRF-300 is a decent receiver. If you are willing to spend 2 or more additional hours of troubleshooting, adding ferrite cores, and slowing down macro's you can get it to work 90%. That other 10% of the time, you'll have to push a button twice before you get the desired result.

From my experience, if you invest in the MRF-350 it just plain works. The only real way to appreciate the difference is to try them both unfortunately. The $50 retail difference is more than paid for in saved labor, IMO.

Chris,
I agree with everyone here that the 350 is the way to go. However, if you want to TRY a 250, I have one that I will "sell" to you for just the cost of shipping + $5. It doesn't have all of the emitters, but it should have enough for you to try it out.

It didn't work for me (I ended up with a 350), but I hate to throw electronics gear in the trash.

-Neil

The MRF350 is a good value for the money. I am currently trying to resolve a volume control problem with a Harmon Karden AVR240. The 350 only wants to "step" the volume up and down instead of controlling it linear. New batteries in both. And it does it whether or not if I use the MRF250. Any suggestions would help.

Nice hijack patsat!
Anyhow, learned commands will work like that - you using learned commands or database commands? Try another HK receiver model, most use the same commands...

Unfortunately I bought my MRF-250 before seeing threads like this. I guess eBay or Audiogon are the only ways out? I hate to toss anything thats nearly new. I havent tried ferrite cores or any of the other tips yet. I havent heard of using an RFX-250 antenna with the MRF-250 before, that may be worth a shot.

I saw this thread a while back, is it still the best place to look for ideas?

[Link: remotecentral.com]

Dave

I thought I'd just add my 2 cents...

I have the MX-3000 and use it with the MRF-250, which most say has issues. My remote and RF base work flawless. I never have a problem with my devices receiving the proper signals.

I guess mileage may vary depending on location, setup and other signals that may be in the area. When and if I ever start having problems, I replace it with an upgraded model.

I have the MX-850 with the MRF-250 and can report the same. I know I had problems initially, but I chalk those up to being a newbie DIY'er. (I did send the remote in for warranty replacement, and am not sure that was necessary, but I got an extra cable out of the deal.)

Now, though, the system is working flawlessly.

I realize that if I were a custom installer I might have a different opinion, but this particular DIY'er is happy with the MRF-250.

I was called in to reprogram an MX3000 for a client because the original installation and programming was a joke. They were using an MRF300 and there is horrible reception issues and I would like to use the MRF350.

My question is this.... given that the serial number of this MX3000 remote (112904-000302) has a build date prior to 2005 (I am assuming 11-29-04), will it be compatible with an MRF350? It is a version 7.8 and has the older style USB cable termination on the remote end.

I have a MRF-200 and would like to know if the MRF-250, MRF-300 or MRF-350 will also work with the MX-800 or in fact any other manufacturers remotes? i.e. Pronto?

They all seem to be at 418mhz.

Just as the MX-800 is for all intents and purposes the same as the MX-850, the MRF-250 is the same as the later model MRF-200s. The MRF-300 will also work with the MX-800. The MRF-350 may or may not work with your MX-800 depending on how close its frequency is to the narrow band that the MRF-350 uses. As such, it's not recommended that you use the MRF-350 with an MX-800. None of the MRFs will work with other brand remotes.

Mike
www.SurfRemoteControl.com