What exactly are JP1 Cables and what are ther funtions and how do they work and with what do they work?

Mark

They're for use with certain Radio Shack universal remotes and remotes made by One-For-All. They connect between a computers parallel port and a 6-pin connector inside the battery compartment on these remotes. This allows programming these remotes with IR codes that aren't found in the pre-programmed database of the remote.

The association with the HomeTheaterMaster remotes is that many people use a One-For-All/Radio Shack remote with a JP1 cable to obtain specialized codes which can then be learned to the MX-500 and others.

Drop by [Link: hifi-remote.com] for all of the details!

David
www.BlueDo.com

Mark,

If you're asking this question because of your MX-500, you probably don't need the JP1 cable.

Your regular TV remote has a "power" button. It sends a signal that tells the TV to "toggle" power, either from on to off, or from off to on.

However, many TVs will also accept separate (discrete) "power on" and "power off" commands. These are helpful when you program your remote to turn a bunch of devices on or off at the same time.

Discretes are more powerful because there are less problems where one of your devices might get "out of synch" from the rest. Imagine if you sent a "power" command to turn off four devices, and one of them didn't get the message. If you hit the button again your device might get the signal the second time, but in the meantime your other three devices all come back on.

With discretes, this is never a problem. If one of your devices doesn't respond, you just send the power off command to everything again. The three devices that turned themselves off the first time will all stay off. (And vice versa for "power on.")

The reason you need a JP1-type remote is because your original TV remote only has a "power" button. It just so happens that JP1 remotes are the cheapest way to generate the "power on" and "power off" discretes that you want to teach to your MX-500. In addition to the JP1 interface, those remotes also happen to be able to generate some pretty arbitrary commands, which is the feature you're really after.

The JP1 cable is used for programming the JP1 remote. Since you're going to be using the MX-500, you probably won't need to use a JP1 cable -- in most cases, it isn't really necessary for teaching discretes to an MX-500.

Now, if for some reason your JP1 remote didn't have the necessary codes in its library to create your discretes, then a JP1 cable could be used to upgrade it. But that probably won't be necessary.

I believe WalMart sells a model called the 6012w, and Radio Shack has one called the 15-2103. These remotes are about $17. I don't even think these models have the actual JP1 connector, but either one should be able to generate the discretes you're going to need.

How old is your television, and your other devices? Most devices made within the last two years can accept discretes. If your devices support discretes, someone around here will know how to get a JP1 remote to transmit them.

Thanks guys

All my devices were purchased within the last 2 years.

So I should get a JP1 remote, but I shouldn't need a JP1 cable??

Or do I need neither because all the remotes are fairly new?

I don't know why this concept is so difficult for me. I am very computer literate and fly my way around using all the remotes separately (which is probably more complicated) but am having the darnest time catching on to this.

Thanks for sticking with me.

Mark

The MX-500 is a good remote "as is." You can use it to replace all your other remotes.

If you want to set up one button that turns everything "on," and another that turns everything "off," you will need to teach some special codes to your MX-500. That is one of the benefits of a good universal remote, and something most users here have done with theirs. When you use it like this, the MX-500 no longer just "replaces" your original remotes; instead it can do things above and beyond those individual remotes.

If your original remotes only have a single "power" button, then they will not be able to teach the necessary codes to your new remote. That is usually the case with most OEM remotes, even though the latest devices are capable of more precise control.

Cheap JP1 remotes have the ability to generate custom IR codes. That's a separate feature from their JP1 interface, but very useful if you're programming an MX-500. You can use the JP1 remote to teach custom "advanced" codes to your MX-500 that your devices will respond to -- codes that even the original brand remote can't transmit. Unless you're trying program the button layout on the JP1 remote (not necessary unless you're planning to use it as your everyday remote) you won't need the cable.

Hi Mark,

There is a plethora of JP1 info on avsforum.com in the ReplayTV area. The Replay remotes have JP1 pins in the battery compartment & can be programmed.

One thing to consider is that there are two levels of obtaining the discrete codes mentioned above. First, let's assume that there are discrete On/Off commands for a particular component. If so, you may be able to find "advanced" codes for your One for All remote that can be programmed to the remote without JP1. Advanced codes are "tied" to specific setup codes, so if the setup code for your particular component doesn't have advanced codes, you would need JP1 to obtain these codes from other sources. Advanced codes for specific setup codes can be found at www.hifi-remote.com. The dilemma is that you don't know which setup code works with your particular components without trying them out (or if someone else has the same component and can confirm which code works). You might also visit the JP1 forum at hifi-remote.com and see what you can find out there.

You can buy a One for All/Radio Shack remote that doesn't have JP1 capability, keeping in mind that if there are no advanced codes available, then you're out of luck. OTOH, a JP1-able remote will enable you to obtain these discrete codes from other sources if needed. I hope that makes it a bit clearer.

Mike
www.SurfRemoteControl.com

This message was edited by MikeSRC on 10/28/03 20:49.

Mike,

It's been my experience that once you've identified the correct setup code (which includes protocol/mfr ID/dev ID info), then you can get the JP1 to encode any 8-bit OBC by keying the corresponding EFC. They don't have to be specifically "built in" to the setup code.

The only reason we work with individual EFCs when creating an upgrade is to map them to specific keys. The protocol itself includes a set of rules for building the IR signal, and those rules can be used to encode any valid EFC, regardless of which keys are actually defined in the upgrade.

At least that's how it worked when I wrote my own upgrades. My JP1 remote will create codes, on demand, that I never specifically put into the upgrade file. Perhaps one of the IR.exe experts can better clarify that.

Mark should be okay unless a matching setup code for his device simply isn't in the JP1 remote, if his device requires multiple setup codes that are not all in the remote, or if discretes for his devices haven't been found.

Maybe I'm confused on this, but I thought that you needed a JP1-able remote to do what you're saying. Will that work with any remote that can accept advanced codes as long as the corresponding setup code is available with that remote?

Well, you're talking about a whole bunch of remotes, all built on the same technologies. They all use subsets of the same command set and subsets of the same code library from UEI. Some support learning.

All of these remotes can generate codes the same way, within the limits of which setup codes may be in each particular model's ROM.

The actual physical JP1 connector is something of an option. They don't all have the pins, and some models may not even have a pad upon which to solder pins. The most limited ones don't even have an EEPROM. But this only affects the ability to put new upgrades into the remote -- not much of a factor when you consider how strong the UEI code library is. As long as a matching setup code is in the remote no upgrade is necessary for barebones operation.

Most JP1 upgrades are not done to overcome deficiencies in the library, but because the user wants to optimize key mapping for his situation. It takes memory to override the key mapping of a setup code, so we build setup codes that don't need to be overridden. There's only enough memory for a couple dozen key translations, and you can free up most of it with good programming. That, in turn, leaves more memory for macros and extenders.

Those are not concerns for an MX-500 programmer who's just trying to burst a signal one time so he can record it -- and that's why they don't usually need the actual cable.

Lest I get in over my head on this, one of you JP1 experts please feel free to step in and correct me wherever I might be wrong on this.

That sounds logical to me. While there are some setup codes that don't accept advanced codes at all, there are some that would accept advanced codes that have been generated, but aren't currently listed on hifi-remote.com. I guess my point was if you want to be sure you can program your OFA/RS remote with any discrete code, my understanding is that you need a JP1-able version.

Since I can think of some setup codes where function IDs are longer than 8 bits, I've posted a question at hifi-remote asking for clarification.

I know for certain that, in the case of my own upgrade codes, the remote can make the signals for arbitrary EFCs without my having included them in the upgrade.

We'll see what the JP1'ers have to say.

I may be way off base here but looking at Mark's original post describing what he wants to do and the difficulty he's having - "Help requested from the pros" - it looks like what he wants to do could be done quite simply with macros and without JP-1 remotes or cables.

I've programmed much more complex setups on the MX-500 via macros and have never needed to use my JP-1 remote or cable. It is possible that with his system he would need discrete codes but it's also quite possible that he may not.

The way to find out in advance would be to try and program the appropriate macros and see if he runs into any trouble. But based on what he said I think that he's having trouble with the earlier step of figuring out how to program and label a macro so I imagine that all this talk of JP-1 programming (interesting and useful as it is) may be confusing the issue even further for him, and may not be necessary for what he wants to do.

If I'm misreading the situation, I apologise :)

Trockman

You are not misreading it at all. If I don't need a JP1 remote that would be great. Yea I'm having a little trouble with the macro concept and procedures. I plan to read all the manuals and posts again when I get home tonight and just clear my mind and give it a try.

I appreciate you going back and trying to figure out what help I actually need.

A thanks still goes to ALL of you. Please continue your discussions and I look forward to reading them when I get home.

I also think I will try and look for a glossary and try to understand all the lingo and buzz words. I think then perhaps I won't feel like we are all talking a different language. If anyone knows of a great glossary or beginners guide for my review, please list it.

Once again thanks.
Mark