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Topic:
IR543 problems with sunlight
This thread has 24 replies. Displaying posts 1 through 15.
Post 1 made on Monday June 2, 2003 at 22:12
BEK
Long Time Member
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March 2003
40
I've had my IR543 for a few weeks now and it's become clear that it won't work during the day but works fine once the sun starts to set.

I read in a recent post on this forum that IR543 is known to be sensitive to sunlight (though I could find no reference to this fact except in the aforementioned post). This certainly seems to be true for me, or at least sunlight is my best guess to the problem, though I can't say I've scientifically ruled everything else out.

What seems strange to me is that all the rest of my components (TV, DVD, Receiver, etc...) do not seem to have any trouble with sunlight. Consider if you've ever had trouble using an IR remote on a TV in a room with windows (I certainly never have had trouble like this).

So I'm left wondering what is so different about the IR543's IR reception that a certain amount of ambiant sunlight (i.e., NOT direct sunlight) would cause it such problems. Anyone have any ideas? (and of course, solutions for this issue are extra welcome)

BEK

Some details about my IR543 experiences: Room w/ windows w/ southern exposure. I keep (wood) blinds down to shield light. During day, my IR remote (MX500) seems to send the signal correctly, causing IR543 LED to blink (twice) as usual, however the correct x10 signal does not seem to be sent. Pushing the IR543 buttons directly works fine, so the problem seems to be with the IR reception during the day. As the sun starts to set everything works again.
Post 2 made on Tuesday June 3, 2003 at 16:18
equium
Long Time Member
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February 2003
134
BEK, i feel your pain. i have posted my share of ir543 troubles here. i am about to order another one 'cause i think this one finally gave up. my family room has a western exposure so i would get the setting sun everyday and that would cause hell with my ir543. i hope my next ir543 will be better. if not, i will have to label it as a POS. yo're lucky, my ir543 doesn't even get the signal when i transmit and i know damn well my mx500 is sending it. you are right about other remotes not having trouble. i never thought of that. well, let's see if any one else has some insight to our troubles. peace :)
OP | Post 3 made on Wednesday June 4, 2003 at 13:24
BEK
Long Time Member
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40
Thanks for the support equium. A few more days of experimenting have seemed to show that it is not simply a matter of sunlight, though things do seem to work significantly better at night. Some nights it just works great and other nights it is very flaky. Once a few commands get received correctly, things often seem to improve either somewhat or completely, but very often when I first sit down in the room all the commands I send via IR fail and I just keep trying and trying (sometimes for minutes) until it works.

I'd appreciate it if you could respond if your next IR543 unit solves your problems. And if other people have had IR543 problems which were all solved by getting a new IR543 unit, please reply as I'd like to know if the unit I have is as good as it's going to get or if I can (try to) do better with a replacement.

Are there more reliable IR --> x10 solutions available than the IR543? I assume the IR543AH is no more reliable in its IR reception since as I understand it that unit is just a modified IR543.

I intended my HT lighting (x10) setup to be mainly controlled via IR. Unfortunately, the flaky IR reception of my IR543 is threatening to make the system unusable.

BEK
Post 4 made on Wednesday June 4, 2003 at 19:24
ONEAC
Senior Member
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September 2002
1,059
Just a thought, where is your IR543 located? Besides being sensitive to sunlight, some people have reported that the rising heat from the receiver or sat/cable box the IR 543 was sitting on was effecting its performance.
OP | Post 5 made on Thursday June 5, 2003 at 03:06
BEK
Long Time Member
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March 2003
40
I usually have it on top of my 57" RPTV, though I've tried it off to the side in various locations as well with no better success. It usually doesn't work well when I first enter the room (and the TV is off). If anything it seems to work works better after the TV has been on for a while, but that's just a rough observation and hardly scientific. The most accurate thing I can say is that some nights it works like a charm and others it doesn't work at all (and it rarely works well during the daytime).

BEK
Post 6 made on Thursday June 5, 2003 at 06:19
ONEAC
Senior Member
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September 2002
1,059
I'd replace it.
BTW X10 stuff has a one year limited warranty.
For repair service:
Pack it carefully and send with proof of purchase and a check for $4.00 to:
X-10 (USA) inc.
91 Ruckman Rd.
Box 420
Closter, NJ 07624-0420

Don't forget to tell them what problems you're having with the unit.
Post 7 made on Thursday June 5, 2003 at 12:25
equium
Long Time Member
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February 2003
134
hey BEK, you must have my ir543! i might take oneac's advice and return it to x10. but, check out the
han-01 ir interface on this page:
[Link: homeautomationnet.com]
it's a little pricey but it just might be the answer for us. personnally, i'm not all that confident that another ir543 will be any better.
OP | Post 8 made on Thursday June 5, 2003 at 18:28
BEK
Long Time Member
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Posts:
March 2003
40
Thanks for the advice ONEAC and equium.

And equium, thanks for the info about the HAN-01. At ~$80 it's roughly the same cost as an IR543AH. I wonder how those 2 items compare in functionality and more importantly, RELIABILITY. Anyone have experience with these units?

As I hinted earlier in the thread, if an IR543AH would solve my problems, I'd be willing to go with it, and thus, for the about the same cost, the same goes for the HAN-01. But I'd like some info on whether their reliability is any better than the IR543 first.

I'll probably try to exchange my IR543 first, though I must say that the advertised "error-correction" or whatever they call it on the HAN-01 sure sounds nice "on paper".

BEK
Post 9 made on Friday June 6, 2003 at 11:43
equium
Long Time Member
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Posts:
February 2003
134
the only thing that bugs me on the han-01 is the limited commands (27 i think). the way i read it, to turn on a-1, that's one command; to turn off a-1, thats another command. thats two commands for one unit. the other item i was looking into but don't get the grasp of it is the OCELOT. well, i just ordered an ir543 off of ebay for 14.99 + 8 for shipping (brand new). i will let you all know if the new one works or if it's time to upgrade.
Post 10 made on Sunday June 8, 2003 at 09:03
Bill E.
Founding Member
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Posts:
July 2001
947
The HAN01 should always be anyone’s LAST choice. It has very limited target market, that is those whose remote do not have X10 and can not learn. The reason is that the 27 commands are a total, and all commands are discrete. By this I mean A1 ON, A1 Off, A1 Bright and A1 Dim, are a total of 4 commands, so you end up using up 27 commands real quick. If you have scene products and multiple house code it's fine, but always chose the IR543 or IR543AH first. In general the IR543 is very reliable, we get about 1 in 100 returned for problems. Most of the time when a problem is reported unit location (temp/magnetic interference) signal coupling or noise is the real problem. I would take your chances on another IR543, odds are in your favor. As far as Ebay that price is below distributor cost (even in vast quantity) so they are making up for it on shipping problem is you then have to deal with X10 on warranty issues which can be a real treat. For a couple of bucks I would buy from an authorized dealer. But then again I am not impartial.

Bill
www.homeautomationnet.com
Post 11 made on Monday June 9, 2003 at 12:01
equium
Long Time Member
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Posts:
February 2003
134
thanks for the scoop on the han-01 bill. i hope my next ir543 works better. i had never heard that magnetic interference was an issue with the ir543. so that means that i wont put my new one on top of my powered sub like my first one. you're right about the ebay deal. i didn't think about the shipping until afterwards. the good thing about our sponsers is that they respond and help the rest of us. my apologies to the sponsers.
Post 12 made on Monday June 9, 2003 at 12:49
jazzman
Founding Member
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Posts:
December 2001
365
My ir543's are hidden in cabinets with ir flashers stuck to the fronts of them. That way you can use certain products that perform better in sunlight such as Xantech'ss "cfl" friendly" products. There are filters available for their regular eyes that work although range is limited by them somewhat.

David H
Post 13 made on Tuesday June 10, 2003 at 08:47
Bruce61
Long Time Member
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Posts:
April 2003
21
I have a different IR543 problem. I am on my second unit that seemingly will not accept direct commands over 10 ("0" is 10)! I have tried everything, including play, rew, ff, as suggested. It works fine otherwise, including all lights on and off.
Post 14 made on Tuesday June 10, 2003 at 11:40
equium
Long Time Member
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Posts:
February 2003
134
well, i just got my replacement ir543 and it works great! get a new one, BEK. hopefully you will have the same luck as me.
Post 15 made on Tuesday June 10, 2003 at 12:34
ONEAC
Senior Member
Joined:
Posts:
September 2002
1,059
Bruce61;
Since you didn't say what brand/model of remote you're using, maybe this list of advanced codes for a Cinema 7 by OFA will help:
Advanced Codes for One-For-All x-10 Home Automation

CD Group

Device Code 0167

HOME AUTOMATION:

Adv. Remote
Code - Button - X10 command
------- -------- -----------
655 1 1
397 2 2
398 3 3
652 4 4
334 5 5
588 6 6
591 7 7
333 8 8
463 9 9
717 0 10
718 REWIND 11
460 PLAY 12
526 FFWD 13
268 RECORD 14
271 STOP 15
525 PAUSE 16
558 POWER All Lights On
238 MUTE All Off
303 VOL UP Bright
495 VOL DN Dim

Put code 0167 on the CD key, or re-assign the the CD key: SETUP(2 Blinks) 992 (to this key) CD CD SETUP(2 Blinks)

For unit # 11 use the REWIND key on the Cinema7

Just a thought
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