Logitech Harmony v HDR FoxT2 remote

RobH1

Well-Known Member
The remote for my Onkyo TX-SR608 amp controls most of the features of the Fox remote with the following exceptions, a couple of which are commonly used functions.

Skip fwd/back in set increments in recorded programmes.
Skip fwd/back in two hour increments or advance by day in EPG.
Opt+
No coloured buttons.

Does anyone have these features on their (modestly priced) Harmony by default or can they be "learned?" (with the obvious exception of the coloured buttons.)
I have TV, BD,Tuner/amp and PVR to control and at present the Onkyo remote does a fair job with all of them but I'd like to create "Harmony" with the OH!
 
I have had a play with a Harmony 300, it has to be programmed by connecting it to Logitech's Internet control panel (by USB connection to the PC) and then you just tell it to be a HDR-FOX (but you have to point the original remote at it so it locks on to the control channel currently in use). It has the colour buttons (although the colours are difficult to see).

As far as I can see it is difficult to get the Harmony to completely replace the Humax control - there are not enough buttons to cover everything (or if there are they are not appropriately labelled). The are four unassigned buttons which I have assigned to OPT+, Media, and Wide, and you would need to assign one to TV Portal if that was important to you. I had to teach it "Guide" from the handset - for some reason that was not in the library definition.

The FF/REW and skip buttons replicate the Humax controls, so do the same thing.

A big plus is the volume and mute controls automatically control the TV rather than the Humax.
 
Thanks BH, I am thinking I still may have to programme the OH! (glad she doesn't read this!)
The plus side with the harmony is that it will switch on the relevant receivers required when varying our viewing/listening habits, the downside maybe not remembering what the former unassigned buttons do when assigned.

At the moment we use just the two remotes, Onkyo for almost everything, and the Humax for the aforementioned missing features. A big plus for us, as most of the audio is through the amp, the volume control obviously operates that, but there are separate TV on and volume controls for the times when only the TV is required for a quick BBC view, thus negating the need to switch on the Fox T2 or amp. With the Onkyo remote I can access the TV Portal too.

As you say, I think the button labelling would be the stumbling block but thanks for taking the trouble to play around with your remote.

The Humax remote doesn't do too badly on all our receivers, but the problem here is the audio button. The volume button together with nos 1-4 operate the various receivers, but it's a beggar remembering which number you're on, and it doesn't do for me to get it wrong if you comprende!
 
Oh, I didn't take any trouble for you especially - I am supporting a non-tech user who I rationalised by replacing the digibox with a HDR, and all the remotes with one Harmony 300 specifically so there was no confusion over volume control. The non-mapped buttons would be beyond her ken anyway, and the Humax remote is in the cupboard if I need to do something deep.

It has been suggested that the Humax remote might be programmable if we get into it, so it might be possible to "punch through" the volume/mute to the TV regardless of which mode it is in. That's a job for a hardware man to look at (when I get around to it).

Beware of macro buttons which operate several bits of kit - eg "All On". Unless they use a specific "ON" code rather than the usual "Toggle ON/OFF", it is possible to get out of sync.
 
Tip Humax kit will normally boot by sending 0 00 or 000 instead of using a power toggle command in the start activity set up. Very handy to use 000 for the Foxsat-hdr which can easily miss a single power on command.

That's a very good tip and works well on the HDR-Fox T2 as a Power-On only command, I'll add it to the WiKi
EDIT
Now it the WiKi HERE
 
You have been promising this for some time, so I won’t hold my breath

Dead right. There is a chain of things to be fulfilled before I can play like that.

Off to rake & mow the lawn (again), one day soon I need a spell of dry to cut a huge hedge...
 
I find my Harmony 300i fine for the Humax, I've set:

Teletext - OPT+
List - Media
Live - Portal
E - Aspect
-+ - Subtitles
1 - Slow play
3 - Add bookmark
4 - Bookmarks

And everything else is on the standard keys. The teletext button is a nice central one near the top that works well as OPT+.
 
Thanks. I was in a bit of a hurry when I set mine up, good enough for what I needed at the time.
 
To help the OH I would need the following power ons;

TV/PVR/Amp.
TV/BD/Amp.
PVR/Amp (for freeview and Portal internet radio.)
Tuner amp only on/off (for FM)
TV only on/off.

These look doable to me plus some of af123's mapped buttons.
I am really looking for experiences from those members who have the same problem as me. Has the transfer from own make remotes to Harmony made life easier. I believe that if the OH's of techies actually programmed the remote, then it wouldn't be so hard for them to grasp the fundamentals. ( I could have phrased that better!) ;)
 
The Harmony has made life easier, yes. You will need something more expensive than the 200 or 300 to programme more than one power-on macro though.
 
Harmony 900 woks well - not cheap but works a treat.

The Good:
Its RF, so boxes can be hidden, supports custom buttons on the LCD, plenty of hard buttons so LCD is a last resort ( good for usability ), has all of the colored buttons.

The Bad:
Its activity based, so it'll turn all the right boxes (AMP, BR, TV etc ) on and off as required ( good ), but you cant create your own macros or sequences :(
 
OK, thanks for all the imput, but no one has yet said if the harmony remote has helped the OH! Is it because you're all single or that the zappers are all next to you on the settee? ( My problem!)
The choice for economy seems to be the 300i @£30 or the 650 @£40, any more experiences?
The 900 OTT in price for me.
 
I thought so (close enough surely?):
I am supporting a non-tech user who I rationalised by replacing the digibox with a HDR, and all the remotes with one Harmony 300 specifically so there was no confusion over volume control.

I think the 300 is adequate, if four items of kit is sufficient. I used a labeller to annotate the "favourites" buttons.
 
My OH is fairly technically minded anyway. She prefers the Harmony to the previous OFA Kameleon though. We don't have a complicated setup though, mostly just the Humax and TV are on when we're watching and the 300's Watch TV button does a good job of that. It can get out of sync though because it doesn't know any discrete power codes for my devices (even though the Humax supports 000 as a discrete power-on and NOP if already on - may have to raise that with Logitech)
 
My 300i price was a slip of the keys. Thanks af123, I'm coming to the conclusion that I will have to persevere with our current set up for the sitting room devices. However I'll try a 300 for an old technics amp and tuner where the remote is failing. ( yep, I have stripped and cleaned)
Can someone log in to Logitech to check if the following are in their list please?
Technics tuner ST-X999L and integrated amp SU-X955.
 
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