Bump...

:) LOL

I asked for this to be a sticky thread a while back.

Does anyone have a link to Philips' recommended routers? The link in the original post is down.

Also, I would not recommend the Netgear WNDR4000 for the Pronto 9600. Wake-up times, even on WEP, with fixed IP, fixed wifi channel, etc., are unacceptable. Perhaps we should keep our own database of personal experiences with router/Pronto relations for future and current routers that are out there

I use a WNDR3800 for a client without a problem....
Setting the pronto on the guest network, wep128bit.

I cannot enable WEP on the guest network unless I lower the main network WiFi speed to 54Mbps

You could always add an xtra access point just for the pronto ..

A lot of people seem to do this and I do not understand it. I need my Pronto to have full network access, so if I set up another access point just for the Pronto's sake and that access point uses WEP... even if I don't broadcast the SSID and lock down the MAC address of the Pronto, anyone who really wants in to my network will be able to break that WEP encryption and spoof the Pronto's MAC. Does this mean there's no way for Pronto's to have quick network access without creating a security hole in the network?

I still have the same issue as I did months ago. I followed all the advice on this post and others like it that I have found.

People that use both of the 2 TSU9600s are pissed because of "command failed" errors.
I have all the latest versions of firmware on the two TSU9600 units and the RFX9600.
I have strong signal my dedicated WAP set to no security, and using MAC filtering. Network is good and works about 80% of the time.

When I get the "command failed" errors, the busy light on the RFX9600 lights up solidly for 30-45 seconds, during which time no commands can be sent to the base.
Once that clears, all starts working again for 1 minute or 1 hour.
I'm the only one in the house now, no other devices active except for a cordless phone and my laptop. Neighbors too far to worry about.
WiFi analyzer on my Droid doesn't show any other SSIDs in range.

I'm running both DirecTV HR24 receivers thru the serial ports as well as Denon AVR3311CI.

D-link DIR625 is used as a router with it's own SSID and WEP security), but wireless communication for the prontos is handled directly thru WAP.
I tried few different WAPs, always setting them to no security, using MAC filtering only.
TSU9600 is set to:
Wireless Timeout: 24 HRS
Roaming Strategy: Default
SSID: ProntoWAP
Encryption: Off
IP Settings: Fixed IP
IP Address: 192.168.0.160
Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway: 192.168.0.1 (also tried 192.168.0.2 WAP IP)
DNS: 0.0.0.0

RFX9600 set to DHCP

Router: 192.168.0.1;
DHCP Range 10-99;
Channel 11
WAP: 192.168.0.2;
Security off, MAC filtering used for Prontos;
Channel: Auto (tried 1 and 5 as well).

Like I said, I can connect, just can't seem to stay connected.
Keep getting 0405 Extender 0 didn't reply

Mario, do you have matching firmware on the extenders? And also, please be aware that the Prontos communicate with the extender using UDP and sequence numbers. There is a handshake up front when Pronto wants to use the extender. If the extender is busy, it should report such.

However, based on the design of the communication protocol between TSU and RFX, the RFX9600 and RFX9400 were never really intended to support more than a single Pronto. That's the only way I've ever run the setup with a single exception. My lighting controller is on a single RFX but I can safely say that I have never used 2 remotes on same extender at one time as I'm either in the living room or the bedroom.

Lyndel, it's good to hear from you again; it's been too long.

The firmware is the same on both TSU and RFX; whatever the last release was. I can get you the versions when I go back there on Thursday.

In mentioning the UDP protocol, is there something I can try to adjust on the WAP side of things?

The issues I'm having are not necessarily related to two units fighting for a single RFX.
Last night as I was typing the post I was the only one in the house and still had the problems with the RFX9600 being busy. I occasionally get the "busy by another user" but that happens rarely.

Major issue is with one TSU sending a few commands to be base unit.
I'll be changing channels on the DirecTV box (RS232) and 5 or 10 presses will go thru and then the base will stop responding; busy light lit, and RFX9600 for 30-45 seconds. No other functions lighting up on the RFX9600. I don't use any 2 way communication with the connected devices.
Something is causing the RFX9600 to over-flood or just get stupid. Or the network (WAP?) is flooding the RFX, not sure.

If you guys think it's the dedicated WAP, I'll get one that you recommend.
If you think it's the router, I'll swap that as well.

These people spent too much money on the system for it not to do a simple thing like switch channels.
I'm pissed off for them, and with them.

if dlink, then try linksys wap. however, before you do, try setting the DNS in pronto to the gateway address.

Since you mention a DirecTV box, I thought I should mention a few things. I've used both the HR21-700 and the HR24-100 with the recommended USB/serial adapter (IOgear GUC232A) on an RFX9600. This is on RFX serial port 2 and a Panasonic plasma is on RFX serial port 1 (so, not the ports that are known to conflict - 3 and 4). While the DirecTV box is rebooting, commands from the remote to the Panasonic plasma report "command failed" about 90% of the time, as do commands sent to the devices on RFX ports 3 and 4.

If you're not using 2-way communication, you might want to re-wire your serial ports to only have ground and the serial data from the RFX to the device connected (disconnecting serial data from the device to the RFX and any control lines).

I'm using a D-Link DAP-2553 set to a fixed channel, no encryption, fixed IP on DAP / RFX / TSU, with a crossover cable to the RFX (no other connectivity). I only get a failure (which varies - didn't reply / didn't acknowledge / execution error) a couple times a week.

If you try the DAP-2553 and won't be mounting it completely out of sight, you may want to black out one of the LEDs which continually blinks. For the ones I've used, I actually opened the AP and put electrical tape over that LED (which, of course, voids the warranty).

Terry, I'll try lifting the Rcv wire as I don't use 2-way. We'll see if that helps.
Next step is new WAP.
I was going to totally disconnect teh Pronto Network from the rest of the house, but the owners like the HAI control, which I would loose if I went the solo route.
I may also play with RS232 ports to see if I can find a combination that conflicts less.
The thing that pisses me off a bit if that for the money that RFX9600 was selling for, you would think there would be a way to buffer commands like the RTI and URC does; oh well...

Let me know if that helps. Try disconnecting any control lines if present, leaving only transmit data and ground. However, some devices may want to see certain control lines present - a discussion of that is probably outside the scope of this topic.


Unfortunately, the settings (at least in my case) that give the best RFX results are ones with no security, and because of that I don't recommend connecting the access point / RFX to the main network when used in that mode. In theory, the risks can be mitigated using a combination of access controls and firewall options. If I ever connect my RFX to the rest of my network, I'll post whatever Cisco IOS config I come up with here (which may not be particularly helpful, as there probably aren't that many commercial Cisco boxes in home installations).


There are probably 2 underlying RFX9600 issues:

1) The RFX9600 doesn't have a lot of CPU power
2) Processing some commands is time-critical, while for others I'd prefer a retry, and for others silently ignoring a failure. But there's no way to specify this in the config, so the TSU/RFX processes everything in a "must happen immediately or report failure" mode. Plus, the TSU itself has a very short timeout when sending commands to the RFX.