I'm pretty sure the Java setup still stores your setup on the web server, so with any luck you won't lose your setup if you use the web based setup.

I'm just guessing though...I don't know for sure.

Yeah, I used the Java setup initially, but yesterday logged onto the web site and it had all my information there as well. I didn't see any difference in the available customization options. Navigation might be a bit easier on the web, but all the same options were there.

Thanks for the quick reply czzer..........

It seems that a slight difference in the software used for the web based and PC based solutions accounts for the difference. I am going to have to redo my setup it looks like using the web based software. I am so glad I have not put too much time into cutsomizing buttons yet, as I assume that would all be lost when I applied the update from the website.

Thanks again for the help czzer!!


Your setup will remain the same, whether you use the client-side software or the website. Your setup information is stored on the Harmony website, so it can be modifed by either piece of software independently.

Just log on to the website using the same ID/password that you specified in the software and you should be ready to go with the customizing you've already done.

Well after using the webbased client all is well in Harmony land!!

FWIW.........the webbased client did not have my setup........nor would it let me log in with my password and user name. I had to start over at the website, registering and setting up the remote. I only set up one "activity" to quickly get to the customizing and options areas to see if there I would be able to fix the problem. THEN they decided to synch, and I lost all I had done on the PC client..........To be safe I did all my work on the web, while the PC software was running, and then they synched correctly.

As mentioned before the web client is alot easier to use, and more complete than the software included with the 520. First time users, please do yourself a favor and start with the web client.

Thanks for the help everyone......

dirk,

Did you update the software to the latest version before attempting to use it? I've used both the Java client and the web-based interface and saw no difference other than GUI presentation. All the same options were available to me in either interface.

Anyway, if it works for you, that's all that matters, but the discrepancy puzzles me.

Hi,
I have the TSU3000 that was programmed for me several years ago. I have changed some of my system.

How does the 880 compare with the TSU3000?

I have 2 Motorola dual tuner DVR boxes
CD Player
VCR
DVD Player
Sony HD TV
Onkyo SR-700

Thanks for any help.

dirk,

Did you update the software to the latest version before attempting to use it? I've used both the Java client and the web-based interface and saw no difference other than GUI presentation. All the same options were available to me in either interface.

Anyway, if it works for you, that's all that matters, but the discrepancy puzzles me.


Yes, it did update.........i just got an email from Harmony confirming the problem with certain device modes.

I have things working by using the web client, Harmony support says they will issue an update addressing the problem.

Thanks again for all the help folks.

Regarding the tilt sensor:

There is no option to turn it on in the software. How exactly does the tilt feature come into play? I've read on this thread that it will activate after the remote is still for an extended period of time, but how does that help anyone?

The tilt sensor causes the remote to light up when it detects motion. Usually if I bump the couch or ottoman when the remote is laying on it, the backlight comes on. I think if you update the remote's firmware to the latest, the tilt sensor is activated, but there's still no toggle to enable/disable it.

thanks for the reply. I have witnessed this in action too so thanks for explaining what is going on with the tilt sensor.

A newer problem I've noticed is when I hit the power button in the top left to shut everything off, sometimes devices I wasn't using turn on. (specifically my Xbox 360 and my DVD player). I've tried configuring these 2 devices' power settings manually by using "Power On" and "Power off" commands with no luck...

Any ideas on how to fix this? It doesn't happen all the time so there is definitely a method to the madness, I just cant place my finger on it...

thanks for the reply. I have witnessed this in action too so thanks for explaining what is going on with the tilt sensor.

A newer problem I've noticed is when I hit the power button in the top left to shut everything off, sometimes devices I wasn't using turn on. (specifically my Xbox 360 and my DVD player). I've tried configuring these 2 devices' power settings manually by using "Power On" and "Power off" commands with no luck...

Any ideas on how to fix this? It doesn't happen all the time so there is definitely a method to the madness, I just cant place my finger on it...

Probably means your remote thinks they were on in the first place. It is supposed to remember what was on/off and will turn them off accordinly. So if you turned it off manually then it will turn it back on. I use the help button when this happens. It walks me through it with no problems.

Probably means your remote thinks they were on in the first place. It is supposed to remember what was on/off and will turn them off accordinly. So if you turned it off manually then it will turn it back on. I use the help button when this happens. It walks me through it with no problems.

Yes, that's exactly the problem.

I just got off the phone with Logitech and they said that the remote will not remember if you turned a device on or off via the "devices" portal.

This is something that could easily be fixed however in a software upgrade. The remote needs to remember (regardless of which function turned it on, Activity or Devices) which devices are on and which are off...

Oh well, maybe in the next firmware update...

Yes, that's exactly the problem.

I just got off the phone with Logitech and they said that the remote will not remember if you turned a device on or off via the "devices" portal.

This is something that could easily be fixed however in a software upgrade. The remote needs to remember (regardless of which function turned it on, Activity or Devices) which devices are on and which are off...

Oh well, maybe in the next firmware update...

I see you point, but I like being able to turn things on/off via Devices so that the remote doesn't know. Just one of my components won't turned back on automatically when the power goes out. By using that component's Device menu, I can turn it back on and everything is in sync. If device mode changes were remembered, though, the remote would think I had turned it off, and would then incorrectly leave it on when I do a full shutdown.

Until the power when off the first time after I got my Harmony, I did feel the same as you.

What I would like to see is an option to specify whether device mode changes are tracked or not. That way, we could both have it our way!

I see you point, but I like being able to turn things on/off via Devices so that the remote doesn't know. Just one of my components won't turned back on automatically when the power goes out. By using that component's Device menu, I can turn it back on and everything is in sync. If device mode changes were remembered, though, the remote would think I had turned it off, and would then incorrectly leave it on when I do a full shutdown.

Until the power when off the first time after I got my Harmony, I did feel the same as you.

What I would like to see is an option to specify whether device mode changes are tracked or not. That way, we could both have it our way!

I agree. I've set up my activities so that the correct devices should be on or off, and added all of my normally used commands to activities. The only reason I go into a device mode is if there is some problem, and then I want it to act like the original remote, not like some weird blend of activity-oriented and device-oriented control.

I have some questions for those with DLP TVs: how does the 520 (or any Harmony for that matter) handle the long bootup time of the DLP TVs? My Samsung DLP takes about 30-40 seconds to boot up; does the remote "know" to wait that long before switching to the right input?

I really like the loook and features of the 520 but would like to learn more about how it handle DLP TVs. Thanks for any help!

Yes, that's exactly the problem.

I just got off the phone with Logitech and they said that the remote will not remember if you turned a device on or off via the "devices" portal.

This is something that could easily be fixed however in a software upgrade. The remote needs to remember (regardless of which function turned it on, Activity or Devices) which devices are on and which are off...

Oh well, maybe in the next firmware update...

The way mine works under the "device" portal I have seperate ON/OFF softkeys. This way the remote knows the status of the device.

I think you can handle this under the power settings for each device....something like "use seperate button for on and off". It was the way mine setup default, and it works fine for me.

I have some questions for those with DLP TVs: how does the 520 (or any Harmony for that matter) handle the long bootup time of the DLP TVs? My Samsung DLP takes about 30-40 seconds to boot up; does the remote "know" to wait that long before switching to the right input?

I really like the loook and features of the 520 but would like to learn more about how it handle DLP TVs. Thanks for any help!

You can set a startup delay in milliseconds for each device. For my CRT TV, it is 16,000 (16 seconds). These delays seem to be the weakest part of the Harmony database; the commands are frequently right, but the delays often need to be tweaked.

Hi everyone:

Probably you read a previous thread I post about getting one of the new URC-R7. Well, I ordered that remote online, but for several problems I had I decided to cancel that purchase and found a very good price for the Harmony 520.

Here is the thing, I already have a H. 680 and got the 520 to control specifically my satellite box, panasonic tv and lutron dimmer (in my bedroom). The problem is: when I try to add the lutron to my "watch tv" activity, the dimmer turns (consequently) on. Is there any way to program the remote not to turn on this device when I start the activity?

Did I make any sense. I hope so. Thanks in advance for your comments and ideas.

Alejandro

Device -> Power options -> This device has no power buttons

You are a genious, Czzer!!! (...or, maybe, I am too stupid :D )
Thanks a lot!!!

The way mine works under the "device" portal I have seperate ON/OFF softkeys. This way the remote knows the status of the device.

I think you can handle this under the power settings for each device....something like "use seperate button for on and off". It was the way mine setup default, and it works fine for me.


For some reason, some of my devices only respond to a "Power Toggle" command. They can't understand a separate command for on and off.

This was one of the first things I tried... Thanks though :)


My current work around for my previously stated problem is to leave the devices that had the on/off problems "always on". I put their power toggles in the LCD screen for their activities and that's where I keep them on and off. It prevents from accidental on/off problems when its time to shut my system down...

Just got the 520 today and I am busy tweaking w/ all the commands. The activity "power" button is annoying....does anyone know of any way to make that the default power button for the DEVICE that is currently being used? I do not like having to have a custom button for power.

The Harmony is an activity-oriented remote rather than a device-oriented remote. When properly configured, the power button should turn off all devices that are currently on (which will normally include the device that is currently being used), except the ones that you want left on all the time.

Yeah, but say I want to just watch TV, I don't want my receiver or anything else on. I want my power button on the remote to be the button that turns on my TV, not a custom one on the LCD screen. Is that possible???

Yeah, but say I want to just watch TV, I don't want my receiver or anything else on. I want my power button on the remote to be the button that turns on my TV, not a custom one on the LCD screen. Is that possible???

Yes, just create a "watch TV only" activity that includes your TV device and nothing else. When you start that activity all devices that are on (except your TV and anything that is set to stay on at all times) will switch off, and your TV (if off) will turn on. When you hit the power button, your TV will turn off and everything else will stay off.

How does this thing keep itself sync'd up with the input to your TV set when the input button is not discrete? For example I have an input button on my TV remote that toggles from HDTV to DVD to VCR. Seems like this would be hard to keep in sync with an "activity based" remote since you cannot force the TV's input to be anything but the last thing it was set to at shutdown.

How does this thing keep itself sync'd up with the input to your TV set when the input button is not discrete? For example I have an input button on my TV remote that toggles from HDTV to DVD to VCR. Seems like this would be hard to keep in sync with an "activity based" remote since you cannot force the TV's input to be anything but the last thing it was set to at shutdown.

The Harmony is capable of keeping track of what input the TV is on. However, for best results, you need to use the Harmony exclusively. If people change the input manually or with the original remote, then the Harmony does indeed lose track.

If the Harmony does lose track, it has a very user friendly Help button that steps you through a checklist to identify what is out of sync and bring it back into sync.

How does this thing keep itself sync'd up with the input to your TV set when the input button is not discrete? For example I have an input button on my TV remote that toggles from HDTV to DVD to VCR. Seems like this would be hard to keep in sync with an "activity based" remote since you cannot force the TV's input to be anything but the last thing it was set to at shutdown.
if you're lucky, the Harmony database will have a code for discrete inputs and power for your TV and then it'll be a non-issue. It doesn't have to be on your original remote - this was the case on my Panasonic HDTV. Even if it doesn't, it just keeps track on its own internally, with the drawback being that you need to use the Harmony exclusively or else it gets out of sync.

I doubt if my TV will be in the database as it is a Vizio. Can somebody check for me?

I doubt if my TV will be in the database as it is a Vizio. Can somebody check for me?
Actually, I know for a fact that it is, under V, Inc. (which is Vizio's other name). It's a pretty extensive database. Not sure if it has discretes for the Vizio, but it's in there in some form.

But don't take my word for it, go to the Harmony website and do their online trial - you can fully program a virtual remote and see all the options it has for YOUR specific devices.

I tried the test drive but it seems to want to have a remote to communicate with, which I obviously don't have.

I tried the test drive but it seems to want to have a remote to communicate with, which I obviously don't have.
Well now that I *DO* have a remote, it won't let me do the remote-less test drive, but I did it before I bought mine and it worked just fine. Numerous other people here have done it as well. Give it another shot. Don't install their software, or uninstall it if you have already.

Yes, sometimes the manufacturer's names are a little different. My Airlinktek MG-25 is listed under AL Tech. Not too different, but just look through the database and you will find it. If not, It would take about 5-10 minutes to make a "custom" remote uploading all of your current IR codes.

Not always but too often when scanning the Dish Network tv guide to search for some future program the right arrow button on the 520's ring will "stick down" and continue to send the IR signal until I hit some other button which snaps it out of mishaving. Anyone else seeing that behavior? This thing is practically brand new.

Within an activity, the LCD button assignments always seem to sort themselves by device. It messes up the order I want. Is there any way to get the remote to stop sorting the LCD button assignments by device?

Within an activity, the LCD button assignments always seem to sort themselves by device. It messes up the order I want. Is there any way to get the remote to stop sorting the LCD button assignments by device?

I haven't been able to find a way. If someone does figure a way out, I sure hope they'll post it.

It _might_ be possible to change the order of devices associated with an activity, based on when you assigned the device to that activity (for example, add a TV during the initial activity setup, then remove it and finally add it back), but it's not worth the time to me to give it a try. Just wanted to mention it, in case you're feeling up to giving it a try.

I went through the test drive and noticed that there is only one DVR there.

How do I use both the Motorola 6412 III (Comcast DVR) and ReplayTV?

I went through the test drive and noticed that there is only one DVR there.

How do I use both the Motorola 6412 III (Comcast DVR) and ReplayTV?

Anyone?

I went through the test drive and noticed that there is only one DVR there.

How do I use both the Motorola 6412 III (Comcast DVR) and ReplayTV?

With the full set-up, as opposed to the test drive, you can add additional devices up to the device limit (12 for the 520). I have mine controlling two different TiVos.

Can someone tell me where I go to add a macro command

eg Menu/Cursor right/Cursor down 3 times / press enter

What is the procedure. If you search for Macro in the manual there is nothing, yet I keep seeing people say you can add macros.

Thanks.

Can someone tell me where I go to add a macro command

eg Menu/Cursor right/Cursor down 3 times / press enter

What is the procedure. If you search for Macro in the manual there is nothing, yet I keep seeing people say you can add macros.

Thanks.

The Harmony remote provides explicit support for macros only at Activity start and Activity end (although Activity switching invokes implicit macros). There is no general support for macros.

There are some workarounds that people have used. The simplest one is to try to trick the Harmony into thinking the macro is a single command by teaching it in "Raw" mode. This is tricky, usually requires several tries, and doesn't always work. You have to hit the keys in very rapid succession. Sometimes people use another macro-capable universal remote as an intermediary, teaching the macro to that remote, and then using it to teach the Harmony.

There is no general support for macros.

Thanks for letting me know, I can stop searching through the menus now!

From what I have seen, it would be quite easy for them to include the ability to add macros. They could easily modify the existing software so that you could select multiple keys from the list and order them and save to a button. Do other Harmony remotes have custom macro capabilities?

Do other Harmony remotes have custom macro capabilities?

No, all of the Harmony remotes are basically the same in terms of function, although some provide a specialized menu for accessing favorite channels or disks in a changer. Essentially, their design goal seems to be coordinating different pieces of equipment, not compensating for the poor user interface design of individual products.

Considering that the Harmony remotes clearly use macros internally, I don't doubt that they could include a macro facility if they chose. I imagine that Harmony has avoided it because of the additional complexity it would introduce in terms of the user interface and user support. Still, I would certainly be interested in a macro-capable Harmony remote.

I have had my 520 for a couple of weeks now, and after getting used to "activities" instead of just being a single item remote, I absolutely love this thing!

I had to go in and adjust all of the time delays because it was defaulted to like 1.5 seconds in between commands, so it was initially very hard to control stuff.

And it (the manual) says that the database comes from customers. So for those of you who have a device that is not listed, if you teach your remote the device, you can submit it to logitech to be put into the database.

For those that need it it, the manual can be located at Remote Central (http://www.remotecentral.com/cgi-bin/files/dl.cgi?file=harmony/documentation/h520-manual.zip&area=other)

Considering that the Harmony remotes clearly use macros internally, I don't doubt that they could include a macro facility if they chose.

Thanks - its taken a while but finally was able to work out how to do a macro. It has to be on the activity screen and not a button but thats fine!

Just found a nice bug with the Nokia 120T digital box... When switched off, it takes TWO "input next"-pushes on my Panasonic plasma remote to get form AV2 to 3... then from av3 to av1 and av1 to av2 just one push... but then again two from av2 to3. (The box is connected with a scart cable to av2 on my plasma.)
When the box is on, only one push is needed for every av-input change to the next one a.s.o. There is no way to go directly to a specific av-channel unfortunately...
It´s the same both with the Panasonic original remote and with the Harmony, which then gets desyncronized... Just haven´t noticed the problem before.
Anyone had the same problem and worked it out? If possible I don´t want to leave the box on (which would be a solution). The support is currently working on it but haven´t heard anything yet...

I haven't been able to find a way. If someone does figure a way out, I sure hope they'll post it.

It _might_ be possible to change the order of devices associated with an activity, based on when you assigned the device to that activity (for example, add a TV during the initial activity setup, then remove it and finally add it back), but it's not worth the time to me to give it a try. Just wanted to mention it, in case you're feeling up to giving it a try.

I tried this but it didn't work.

I sent Logitech an email about this:

Here's the text of the email I sent:

"Within an activity, the LCD button assignments always seem to sort themselves by device. The result is that the button assignments are not in the order I want.

It would be nice to be able to get the remote (or the software) to stop sorting the LCD button assignments by device, and just leave them in the order I entered them.

Also, when the user adds an LCD button assignment to one activity, it is sometimes automatically duplicated to other activities. Usually, this is NOT desirable, so it would be nice to be able to turn off this automatic duplication "

Here's the response I received:

"Thank you for your recent inquiry about your Harmony Remote

I am sorry to inform you that at this moment we are not supporting Russian; however it might be supported in the future. Furthermore if you have any problems, questions or concerns you can contact us via email or telephone in our supported languages: English, French, Spanish, Dutch, Italian, and Danish. We apologize for the inconvenience and look forward to working with you. "

Then I received the following email:

"We have not heard from you concerning your request for support in the 120 hours since we sent you a response. Consequently, we have changed the status of your question to SOLVED."

Nuff said.

II am sorry to inform you that at this moment we are not supporting Russian

Maybe they meant they dont support 'rushin' ;-)

Just found a nice bug with the Nokia 120T digital box... When switched off, it takes TWO "input next"-pushes on my Panasonic plasma remote to get form AV2 to 3... then from av3 to av1 and av1 to av2 just one push... but then again two from av2 to3. (The box is connected with a scart cable to av2 on my plasma.)
When the box is on, only one push is needed for every av-input change to the next one a.s.o. There is no way to go directly to a specific av-channel unfortunately...
It´s the same both with the Panasonic original remote and with the Harmony, which then gets desyncronized... Just haven´t noticed the problem before.
Anyone had the same problem and worked it out? If possible I don´t want to leave the box on (which would be a solution). The support is currently working on it but haven´t heard anything yet...


Problem fixed thanks to the guys at the support. They programmed the RC to send 2 presses when the digital box is off and switching from av2 to 3. Still got desyncronized sometimes and seemed my plasma needed 5500 ms to warm up. Now it seems to be working.
Hopefully the calls are toll free also from Finland, been spending some time on the phone... Nevertheless, A+ support service! :)

Hi!


The XR55's remote has input select buttons for six sources (Tuner, TV, DVD rec, DVD play, VCR, CD). It does not have a selector for the "Tape" input in the remote.
You have to use the buttons on the receiver to select a tape input.

I am controlling it using a Harmony 520 remote. In the "listen to tape" activity,
Harmony does not list "tape" as an input selection.

Has anyone else run into this limitation? If so, how did you work around it?

Thanks!
-jjsc

Need Help!! Harmony Remote & Panasonic Plasma

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I have the Harmony 520 remote (love it) and I just got the Panasonic TH-42PX60U Plasma tv today. Before I had another tv and the remote would work with no problems. Here is the dilemna:

Right now I have two activites programmed, WATCH TV and PLAY XBOX. When I switch to a particular activity, i.e. Play XBOX or Watch TV, the Input screen for the TV shows up and it scrolls thru each input till it gets to the desired input that should correspond with the correct activity that I placed with it. The problem is majority of the time it scrolls and stops on a different input and when I use the Help button on the remote to tell it to go to the correct input, nothing happens. My other tv never had the problem and it would NEVER show the input screen when it was switching to another input, it would just automatically go the the particular input request.


So to sum it up,
1) for a panasonic plasma and harmony 520 remote (or probably any harmony remote) how do you switch between each activty and corresponding input without having the main TV input screen show up.
2) How do I make it go to the correct input each time that I request an activity because sometimes it skips over the correct input and ends on a wrong one?
3) Should I have every input shown in the TV main Input screen or just the ones that I have cables connected to?

You guys have helped me in the past, and I need some assistance again. Thanks.

Yeah, the harmony and Panny don't seem to get along when it comes to changing inputs, such as from TV1 to DVD, etc... on the Panny. I have tried various permutations on the Harmony website to try to get it to better switch input modes on the Panny without success. I just put the "switch input" button on my custom LCD on the Harmony so I can manually do it...

It has something to do with the odd way the Panny scrolls thru its choices which is unlike most other TV's...

THIS JUST WORKED WITH HELP FROM CZZER. THANKS.

Here is what I did. Under TV

A) Went To More Options
B) then Adjust Input,
C) then the last button "I press a button to bring up an on screen menu of inputs, and a button (or buttons) to directly (no cycling) select the input I want"

D) Next screen: keep the inputs the same

E) then at this screen "We need to know which button on the original remote control is used to display the on-screen menu"
Put in TvVideo

F) then at the next screen "What command do you use to get your device to go to this input (each individual input, i.e. TV, Component 1, HDMI 1)
Put in the corresponding numbers 1-9 for each individual input when asked

G) When all done, this will work.

When all done, this will work.

I'll try it tonight. Thanks! Hope it works...

it worked for me, if not PM "czzer", he helped me out. The is the thread that I listed:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=658405

Hi!


The XR55's remote has input select buttons for six sources (Tuner, TV, DVD rec, DVD play, VCR, CD). It does not have a selector for the "Tape" input in the remote.
You have to use the buttons on the receiver to select a tape input.

I am controlling it using a Harmony 520 remote. In the "listen to tape" activity,
Harmony does not list "tape" as an input selection.

Has anyone else run into this limitation? If so, how did you work around it?

Thanks!
-jjsc

If the original remote doesn't support it, and Harmony's database doesn't list an entry for it under the customize buttons window, you're probably out of luck. My Denon receiver's remote doesn't support the video select function, but the receiver did support an IR signal for it, which Harmony's database did include - thankfully. I don't have a clue how Harmony knew about it, though.

Hey all - I bought my 520 at a Walmart in Las Vegas. I had to go to two stores before I found one (plus I tried a store in San Jose, CA). Most workers just look at you like you're crazy. "What do you mean a $100 remote - we don't carry stuff that expensive", "All our remotes are over there on the hooks". I told them it was expensive and most likely locked up.

The store that had them in stock, also had some smarter than normal sales people. They clued into what I was asking for and led me right to the locked door. I got one then decided to take two - just cause it might be a while before I found some more.

I own a Harmony 880, so I can add some comments. I love my 880 in many ways. The rechargeable batteries are awesome - I own a Kameleon that eats batteries every week or two. The tilt sensor is a little weak and the transport buttons are a little low. The 880 is much faster than the 520 when updating via USB. I was very annoyed with this aspect.

I actually prefer the setup on the 880. The new simple programming screens are for total beginners and slowed down my progress. The 520 works very well when programmed and it does a lot for $100. The buttons on the 520 are very squishy and give little tactile response. The 880 buttons are not perfect and require pushing more than once - specially with TiVo, but they are much better than the 520.

There are more programming options with the 880. I can't get rid of the A, B, C, PageUp and PageDown on all activity screens on the 520 (although I only spent 15 minutes programming 8 devices and 5 activities). The 880 has an online screen that lets you control what shows up on those screens. I don't want my TiVo "List" button on page 2, when there's no reason it can't be on page one.

One more thing, I had to remove the 880 software to install the 520 software. The programming is not compatible between the two.

Anyway, for $100 you can't beat the 520.

I own a $1,000 ProntoPro and it's cool, but so much more work than these new Logitech remotes.

Have a Sony dvpcx995v. HAve the Harmony 688 which I would assume uses the same set up for this megachanger. Were you able to have it choose the movies? HAve tried the MEDIA set up on the site and have my movies on the remote, but I cannot call up any movie. Also, is there any macro or procedure that would stop the autoplay at Power Up?

Have a Sony dvpcx995v. HAve the Harmony 688 which I would assume uses the same set up for this megachanger. Were you able to have it choose the movies? HAve tried the MEDIA set up on the site and have my movies on the remote, but I cannot call up any movie. Also, is there any macro or procedure that would stop the autoplay at Power Up?

Are you sure that it is the Sony that is responsible for autoplay? Remember that the default behavior for a Harmony remote is to issue a play command on activity start. This can be turned off in activity options.

I have that turned off in the activity. This is a known problem with this Sony. You also seemed to have success calling up movies right from the remote. Was the player in standby? Pause? Stop? Any help would be appreciated.

Does anyone know if the 520 was discontinued? I was on Logitech's web page and couldn't find the 520 anywhere. I saw they have a new model called the 550 for another 50 bucks. Not quite sure what the difference is, other than price.

Does anyone know if the 520 was discontinued? I was on Logitech's web page and couldn't find the 520 anywhere. I saw they have a new model called the 550 for another 50 bucks. Not quite sure what the difference is, other than price.

According to the Harmony web site, the 550 supports 16 devices, whereas the 520 is limited to 12. The 550 also supports more buttons, in this respect being more like the 360, and it restores the Pic and Sound buttons which are not present on the 520 (although they are pretty useless in my opinion).

Hi all. :)

For those of you who had the chance to compare the 520 to the 880, could you let me know if the buttons' layout/feel is any better on one compared to the other?
I have just acquired a 525 (UK equivalent to the 520) and find the whole "Activities" concept pretty good.
However the size and feel of some of the buttons is a bit of a letdown. :(

TIA. ;)

How hard is it to set up a commonly used task on the remote to be quick access. I like to switch between surround modes on my receiver which is just one button on the remote that cycles through them all. How hard is it to do that with the Harmony meaing how deep do I have to go in menus to get to that or can I set that up at the press of a button?

edit - screw it I just bought one. I'm sure it will do whatever I want.

How hard is it to set up a commonly used task on the remote to be quick access. I like to switch between surround modes on my receiver which is just one button on the remote that cycles through them all. How hard is it to do that with the Harmony meaing how deep do I have to go in menus to get to that or can I set that up at the press of a button?

edit - screw it I just bought one. I'm sure it will do whatever I want.

You can assign it pretty much to any button, so it's only a single click away. You will, however, need to assign it under each activity you want it for. There isn't a way to "globally" assign a function.

Thanks. I got online and looked at the setup and it looks cool. I have pretty basic stuff. HDTV, Receiver, DVD player, cable box all bought since November so things shouldn't be that tricky. I just can't stand having 4 remotes anymore. The receiver and the TV are "universal" remotes but not learning so I always have to go to the others for the advanced options and switching between DVD and TV with the wrong remote is a PITA to say the least. Really looking forward to one click and go. :)

I've been scanning this thread and haven't seen any complaints on battery life. How is it?

I've been scanning this thread and haven't seen any complaints on battery life. How is it?
I'm looking into the 550 and I am wondering about this as well.

Also, excuse my ignorance but are there programable buttons? I'm coming from a learning universal remote, and I know this remote can do the basic stuff like turning on all the components with the touch of a button, but I was confused if it can do what a learning remote does as well.

Thanks

Can't comment much on battery life as I've only had mine for about 3 months (but haven't had to change the original batteries).

As for programmable buttons - yes - virtually every button is prgrammable (i.e., you could have the fixed-label "Record" button actually send a "Volume Up" command or the "Volume Down" button send a "Dolby Pro Logic IIx" command if, for some reason, you wanted to). In addition to the labeled buttons (which you will probably use for their labeled functions whenever possible) there are 4 purely programmable and label-able buttons beside the LCD screen (and the ability to cycle through many different 4-command screens, so not limiting the custom-labeled commands to 4). With these buttons, you program whatever command you like, and label it however you like.

I'm not sure what specifically you hope it can do like a universal learning remote can do -- but to be clear, in addition to turning all coimponents on with one touch (if that's what you wanted) it can do more specific tasks. Harmony uses an "activity" concept. As an example, I might program my "Watch DVD" activity to do the following: (1) turn on TV; (2) turn on DVD player; (3) turn on A/V receiver; (4) set TV input to proper input; (5) set A/V receiver to proper input; and (6) open DVD loading tray. These tasks are then completed with one press of the "Watch DVD" button on the LCD screen (and the remote leaves off unused components like a cable set-top box or a VCR player). Once the activity is underway, the "hard" (labeled) buttons would operate as I programmed them to -- for instance, the typical DVD / VCR buttons like "play" "stop""FF" etc. would send those commands to the DVD player, the volume buttons would send volume controls to the A/V receiver, and perhaps I have programmed the LCD buttons to display commands such as "Dolby PL IIx" (engaging pro logic on the A/V receiver), "Open" (open disc loading tray on DVD player), "subtitle" (opening subtitle options on DVD player), etc. Pushing the "power off" command turns all these components off. If, instead of playing a DVD, I wanted to watch TV I'd click my "Watch TV" button which would (1) turn on TV; (2) turn on cable set-top box; (3) turn on A/V receiver; (4) set TV input to proper input; (5) set A/V receiver to proper input (again leaving untouched components not in use, such as a DVD player); and then I might have different commands in the LCD screen such as "Aspect Ratio" (going to TV's aspect ratio selector), "PageUp" (scrolling the on-screen guide from the cable-box listings, etc).

It's really quite versatile, and once you get the hang of the programming interface (web-based), it's pretty easy to set-up one touch commands for even demanding tasks involving multiple components.

Edit: To be clear about your "learning" question (since it now seems clearer to me after reading my own response), you should be able to teach the Harmony remote just about any command that any of your original IR remotes can send. There are occassional difficulties (I had one with a command that the original remote required a "press and hold" approach), but by and large it can learn just about anything -- you would typically teach the Harmony the command, and then use it as an LCD-screen based custom command -- as an example, my Oppo DVD player has a hard button command "DVI" that allows the user to set the DVI's output resolution; the Harmony doesn't have a "DVI" hard button, so I use (if I need it) a custom label "DVI" on the LCD screen; Harmony's database is huge, and I've only come across one or maybe two native commands that weren't already in the database -- in those cases it's fairly easy to teach the Harmony the proper command. If the "DVI command for my player wasn't already in the database (I'm pretty sure it was) I could teach it to the Harmony by pointing the original remote at the Harmony receiver during the "learn IR commands" aspect of the web-based set-up process.

Thanks that answers my questions, finished placing my order.

To clear things up, I knew about the 1 touch does it all functions, which will be really nice. I was asking specificlly about the "learning" which you answered. The LCD screen is used for programming commands instead of buttons.

Example: My receiver, a Yamaha, has multiple sound modes to select button 1 for Stereo modes (2 speaker, 6 speaker, etc.) select button 9 for surround sound modes (DTS, Pro Logic 2, Enhanced, etc.) And I'd like to program them in the remote for when listening to a CD vs. watching a DVD (same player). From the sounds of it, I can do that on the LCD.

Thanks that answers my questions, finished placing my order.

To clear things up, I knew about the 1 touch does it all functions, which will be really nice. I was asking specificlly about the "learning" which you answered. The LCD screen is used for programming commands instead of buttons.

Example: My receiver, a Yamaha, has multiple sound modes to select button 1 for Stereo modes (2 speaker, 6 speaker, etc.) select button 9 for surround sound modes (DTS, Pro Logic 2, Enhanced, etc.) And I'd like to program them in the remote for when listening to a CD vs. watching a DVD (same player). From the sounds of it, I can do that on the LCD.

Yes. My receiver has a series of different surround modes, for example. In my "Watch DVD" activity I have LCD buttons programmed for Pro Logic, DTS, receiver-specific "surround effects for movies" and the "surround off" command. In my Listen to CDs I have the same pro logic and DTS modes, but instead have "surround effects for music" coded for the LCD buttons.

There are some quirks in getting the LCD custom commands laid out in the order and screen-location spots that you want, and there is a hard-coded issue that including one command (i.e., "surround effects movie") in one activity makes it show up in certain other activities where you don't necessarily want it - there are workarounds, though, and if you encounter any issues in getting it set-up the way you want, someone in these forums can probably solve it for you.

Got the email mine arrived today. Can't wait to play with it.

I have spent the better part of 4 hours trying to get the 550 remote to control 3 devices correctly. I can get the remote to turn everything on correctly but it is not switching the correct inputs on my Philips plasma. In fact it appears not to even get a signal to change the inputs. When I use the HELP button I can work through the different steps and make changes to the inputs. Then the 550 will ask "did this correct the problem" I answer "YES" hoping that the 550 will retain the correct code. Once I shut down the entire video and audio gear and bring everything back up using the 550 the damn remote will not switch the input on the Philips plasma.

I know this thread is for the 520 but the 550 is its replacement and nearly has the same button with the exception of the 550 having a few more buttons. Can anyone point me in the right direction to correct this issue?

I have got to say the software SUCKS!!! and this DAMN remote is about to flying out the door and into the street....

FIrst off, I suggest going straight to the website www.logitech.com and look for the Harmony Remote Member login link under Products. I find it much easier to use than the software.

The problem your experiencing is due to a delay time not being set correctly, either the Power On, Input, or Inter-Device Delay. You can access these settings online and I believe there is a FAQ entry that described what each delay is.

Have you tried the online troubleshooter?

The Help mode does not teach the Harmony remote anything; it is designed for bringing your system back into synchronization if a command fails to register or if anybody changes the power or input settings "behind the back" of the remote.

When the remote fails to correctly set an input and the problem is corrected by help, it is almost always a timing issue, usually caused by the remote sending commands too close together for your equipment. Most components "go deaf" for a period of time after seeing any IR command, even one they don't recognize. The Harmony remotes use default delay times that work with many components, but it is a compromise, because long delays also makes the remote seem less responsive. The Troubleshooting routine should lead you to the appropriate adjustment, but if you want to skip to it directly, you can find a link "Adjust delays" under "More options" for the problematic device on your Harmony web site home page.

If the problem only happens when the device is turning on, you likely need to lengthen the Power-On delay. Some devices are very slow to start up. My Philips TV requires a delay of 16000 ms (16 seconds!) after power up before it is able to reliably accept an input change. If the problem happens any time you switch activities, even if the device is already on, then you probably need to lengthen device delay, input delay, or both.

The Help mode does not teach the Harmony remote anything; it is designed for bringing your system back into synchronization if a command fails to register or if anybody changes the power or input settings "behind the back" of the remote.

When the remote fails to correctly set an input and the problem is corrected by help, it is almost always a timing issue, usually caused by the remote sending commands too close together for your equipment. Most components "go deaf" for a period of time after seeing any IR command, even one they don't recognize. The Harmony remotes use default delay times that work with many components, but it is a compromise, because long delays also makes the remote seem less responsive. The Troubleshooting routine should lead you to the appropriate adjustment, but if you want to skip to it directly, you can find a link "Adjust delays" under "More options" for the problematic device on your Harmony web site home page.

If the problem only happens when the device is turning on, you likely need to lengthen the Power-On delay. Some devices are very slow to start up. My Philips TV requires a delay of 16000 ms (16 seconds!) after power up before it is able to reliably accept an input change. If the problem happens any time you switch activities, even if the device is already on, then you probably need to lengthen device delay, input delay, or both.

Problem appears to be solved. A 10 second delay needed to be added to the input giving the Philips Plasma time to boot up. Now the inputs are changing to the correct devices. I may add the remote is not very friendly to those that do not have a clue how to use it. My wife and kids I can see are going to have problems with this remote. The biggest problem I see is a device being turned off without the other devices being turned off and then bringing up the activities list to turn on a group of devices when the remote thinks everything is off when it’s not. This remote can be very confusing to inexperience users.

The Harmony remotes work extremely well for inexperienced users, if you can break them of the habit of turning things on and off by hand. Also, hide all of the old remotes!

The Harmony remotes work extremely well for inexperienced users, if you can break them of the habit of turning things on and off by hand. Also, hide all of the old remotes!

Yes! A key benefit of my Harmony remote is that my wife, kids, the babysitters, etc. have no trouble using it after one initial 2-minute tutorial (conservative -- I think my "first-timers" tutorial is like 1 minute). Make sure it is well programmed; make sure when people want to power down the system they use the "power off" button in the very upper left; make sure they don't use the manual on/off buttons on the components themselves; hide the old remotes; and make sure if they have any problems they use the "Help" button -- boom! inexperienced users are up and running like a pro. Seriously - the ease of use for inexperienced users is one of the great features that these remotes bring to the table!

My father-in-law came for a few days to help with some painting -- he is not technically savvy or technically confident. Showed him the Harmony; demonstrated a few activitiy power-ons; deliberately set-up an out-of-sync issue and showed him the Help feature; told him to use the remote at all times - no getting up to turn the TV off, etc. He was a champ switching from TV to a DVD to later listening to some AM talk radio.

I saw a remote at Best Buy that looked like the 520/550, but it had a full color screen like the 880. I can't remember what the model was and I can't find it on any website.
Anybody know what this is?

That was probably the HK TC30 Activity based remote. It looks like a Harmony 520/550 with the screen of an 880.
HK remote at Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FDTRW4/sr=8-10/qid=1147647348/ref=pd_bbs_10/104-6436960-9628760?%5Fencoding=UTF8)

I saw a remote at Best Buy that looked like the 520/550, but it had a full color screen like the 880. I can't remember what the model was and I can't find it on any website.
Anybody know what this is?

Although it says it's a Harmon Kardon remote it’s made by Harmony. It's noticeably different though.

The HK has 4 additional buttons around the screen, but below the EXIT & Menu the up and down arrows are not present on the HK. The MUTE & PREV have been moved to below the EXIT & MENU on the HK, while the entire bottom row of buttons do not exist on the HK of which are SOUND, PICTURE, A & B. Those additional 4 buttons around the screen just gives you more devices showing without having to flip to the next page.

Also with the color screen battery life will suffer... Between the two there's not much different outside of the price. I purchase my 550 new on Ebay for $75.00 and shipping was $11.00.

The big drawback on either of the remotes are the size of all the buttons. The buttons are all on the small side. They both are very atractive remotes though.


http://www.logitech.com/lang/images/0/10856.jpg

http://www.harmankardon.com/images/product_large/TC30.jpg

Although it says it's a Harmon Kardon remote it’s made by Harmony. It's noticeably different though.

The HK has 4 additional buttons around the screen, but below the EXIT & Menu the up and down arrows are not present on the HK. The MUTE & PREV have been moved to below the EXIT & MENU on the HK, while the entire bottom row of buttons do not exist on the HK of which are SOUND, PICTURE, A & B. Those additional 4 buttons around the screen just gives you more devices showing without having to flip to the next page.

Also with the color screen battery life will suffer... Between the two there's not much different outside of the price. I purchase my 550 new on Ebay for $75.00 and shipping was $11.00.

The big drawback on either of the remotes are the size of all the buttons. The buttons are all on the small side. They both are very atractive remotes though.


http://www.logitech.com/lang/images/0/10856.jpg

http://www.harmankardon.com/images/product_large/TC30.jpg

The HK button layout (Mute / Prev instead of Up Down) is the same as my 520. The 520 doesn't have the Sound, Picture, A, B (as the 550 does). My 520 has the CD/DVD fixed buttons labeled (like "Stop" "Play" etc.) on the case underneath the actual buttons. Also, on the 520 (mine anyway) the Vol +/-, Chan +/- and Glow buttons are silver instead of black. This looks exactly like a 520, with the black vs. silver as noted above, and a color screen with 8 LCD buttons instead of the 520's 4 LCD buttons.

Looks like a mix of the 520 layout and 550 layout, with a color LCD and more LCD buttons, and removal of all Harmony references (but including the HK logo at the bottom). I guess Logitech / Harmony is pushing hard with OEM offerings to expand its market.

That HK remote looks like it could be it - at least it's pretty close. I'm pretty sure the remote was Harmony though. - at least it said Logitech on the box and the packaging was similar to the other Harmony remotes. Also it came with a cradle. It seems like there were only three buttons on either side of the screen. I may be wrong about that though.
Thanks for your replies.

It might have been a 780. See here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=653607)

It might have been a 780. See here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=653607)

Thanks man - that is definately it. I can not remember what the price was on it - seems like it was less than the 880. I need a new remote and was planning on getting a 880, I may wait a couple weeks to get some more info on this one.

Edit: I looked at the thread you linked again - the picture had "720" on the remote. I remember that was the model number on the box. I thought I remembered wrong yesterday because I tried to google "harmony 720" and got nothing. Seems strange considering the product is on store shelves.

Recenly purchased an Harmony 550 and I love it and so does the wife. My mom was over on Saturday and I told her, to watch TV all she has to do is press this button. She was like, okay, I can baby sit at your house and watch TV no problems. My brother's house and sister's house, for get it it's way to complicated. She asks them to turn it on before they leave. :)

Figuring out how the menus and programing works was a little tricky for the more advanced stuff, but once you understand what it's doing, it's a piece of cake.

Thanks man - that is definately it. I can not remember what the price was on it - seems like it was less than the 880. I need a new remote and was planning on getting a 880, I may wait a couple weeks to get some more info on this one.

Edit: I looked at the thread you linked again - the picture had "720" on the remote. I remember that was the model number on the box. I thought I remembered wrong yesterday because I tried to google "harmony 720" and got nothing. Seems strange considering the product is on store shelves.

I saw one of these at walmart the other day for $198. I am considering getting one as I like the shape of the 540 over my 880. I too have searched all over the internet for some info on it, but no go...

550 vs 520.

Target currently has the 520 $20 off the retail price. At this price, does anyone feel
that the 550 is really worth the $60-$70 difference? I am leaning toward the 520.

C Snyder

Thanks man - that is definately it. I can not remember what the price was on it - seems like it was less than the 880. I need a new remote and was planning on getting a 880, I may wait a couple weeks to get some more info on this one.

Edit: I looked at the thread you linked again - the picture had "720" on the remote. I remember that was the model number on the box. I thought I remembered wrong yesterday because I tried to google "harmony 720" and got nothing. Seems strange considering the product is on store shelves.http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspx?Prodid=11121630&whse=BC&topnav=&browse=

I have owned a Cinema 7 learning remote (wife hated it--L1 is actually this, L2 is actually that, pah)

and currently a Kameleon 7 (nicknamed "flashie" because of the annoying flashing mode it goes into when it’s eaten up another set of batteries)(wife loves it-does what the button says it does)

and now I own the Logitech Harmony 520 and we all love it (after much "sighing" from the wife in the purchase stage)

My audio/video system has plenty of different inputs etc;

TV- JVC (AV-36FA54)
VCR - Toshiba VCR (W-522)
DVD - Philips DVD (DVP-642)
AV Receiver - Kenwood AV Receiver (VR-407)
Satellite - Bell ExpressVu Satellite (2700)
CD Player - Kenwood CD Jukebox (CD-424M)
PVR - Toshiba DVD Recorder (RD-XS34)

And the 520 controls them all and all the input changes with ease. YOU HAVE TO TAKE THE TIME TO REALLY DIGEST THE SOFTWARE. Understanding what you're doing and how to do it is really important. It took me around 5 hours to get everything set up the way I want (didn't mind the time at all) and now the remote does everything me and the wife want.

I hit Watch Satellite TV--The TV comes on, goes to Video 1, audio receiver comes on and goes to Video 1, the satellite comes on and goes directly to the guide

I hit Watch PVR--The TV stays on, and stays on Video 1, audio receiver stays on and goes to Video 3, the satellite stays on, and the PVR comes on and goes to Video input 1

I hit Watch VCR--The TV stays on, and stays on Video 1, audio receiver stays on and stays on Video 3, the satellite stays on, the PVR stays on, but changes to Video input 3, and the VCR comes on.

Then I can go back to Watch PVR--The TV stays on, and stays on Video 1, audio receiver stays on and stays on Video 3, the satellite stays on, and the PVR stays on, but goes back to Video Input 1.

The remote remembers where you left off with video inputs, so as long as you hold the remote at your gear during it's macro functions, it should be perfect. Plus if there's a problem, my wife can hit help and it can decypher the problem. "Is the TV on? Is it on Video 1?", etc.

Also in each "activity mode" you can bring in button presses from other devices.
In Watch Satellite TV mode, I have hard buttons for "change audio rec volume" "change Sat. channel" and I have LCD buttons for "change audio receiver listen mode" "change TV aspect ratio", "audio reciever bass boost", etc.

And you can go into each device mode and delete the LCD buttons that you don't need or are not applicable to your device. I got my audio reciever from 26 pages of LCD buttons down to 2.

Plus I love the layout of the buttons. In "watch satellite mode" I have page up and page down instead of the channel + & - buttons, etc. It's easy to do what you want the remote to do, with one hand.

And you can re-name the buttons to anything you like. There's enough room for characters on each of 2 lines, so a little tweaking here and there can get your remote set up perfectly. I could not be happier in my purchase. It looks great and works like a dream.

Best Learning/multi function remote under $100.

Picked up a 520 for $29 a few days ago, new. I gotta say, the software for this thing sucks the big one, even with the upgrade from 5.0 to the 5.3.2.6. Not a bad remo, but if it would have cost more, I'd be very disappointed. Great for beginners with simple needs and "normal" requirements, but setup can take hours upon hours upon hours if you need any specific power settings or any other special configurations.

Picked up a 520 for $29 a few days ago, new. I gotta say, the software for this thing sucks the big one, even with the upgrade from 5.0 to the 5.3.2.6. Not a bad remo, but if it would have cost more, I'd be very disappointed. Great for beginners with simple needs and "normal" requirements, but setup can take hours upon hours upon hours if you need any specific power settings or any other special configurations.

I found it quite simple and quick, once I got out of the mindset of my previous remotes(JP1) and into the mindset of this one being "activities based"(and I have a pretty detailed setup).

Also, I ONLY used the webpage interface, to do programming, for a couple reason. It's less overhead and actually quicker than the ridiculously bloated java interface. And second(and this is the big one), the webpage has the option to set up media conten for the media button(on my 676 remote). For the life of me, I cannot find this option in the java based software.

Overall tho I do HATE the software interface. They need to make it STANDALONE and get of the web based system they have now.

Harmony 550

picked up cheap off of dell and controls my system (denon 3806, 1920, mits3000u, hughs htl-hd, lutron maestro IR), but i have 1 question:

Can I set an activity to simply turn off the lights? I don't want to have to hit device/lights/off. I'd like to simply add a "hot key" off the main menu.

Thanks

edit: in activity it wants to turn things on/off instead of just leaving in current mode

Hi! Got the Harmony 520 a couple of weeks ago. I love the thing. There's only one thing I can't figure out. I don't even know if it's possible. Here goes: Is it possible to re-order the devices on the display screen of the remote? I have 7 devices so it takes 2 "pages" on the remote. I have VHS on "page" 1 but I don't use it often. I would like to put it on "page" 2, if possible.

I know you can re-order ACTIVITIES (both thru the web page and the software) but I can't find a way to do it for DEVICES.

Thx!

Hi! Got the Harmony 520 a couple of weeks ago. I love the thing. There's only one thing I can't figure out. I don't even know if it's possible. Here goes: Is it possible to re-order the devices on the display screen of the remote? I have 7 devices so it takes 2 "pages" on the remote. I have VHS on "page" 1 but I don't use it often. I would like to put it on "page" 2, if possible.

I know you can re-order ACTIVITIES (both thru the web page and the software) but I can't find a way to do it for DEVICES.

Thx!

I do not know the answer to your question about re-ordering the devices on the lcd screen.


I am curious why you need to go to the devices. The whole concept of the Harmony line is to use the Activities to set up all the circumstances you would ever need. You need to set up an activity that utilizes the VHS and have it show up on the second page. If you are programming the Harmony in this fashion, youi should never have to go to the Devices page excet maybe to learn some commands that are not in the data base.

I do not know the answer to your question about re-ordering the devices on the lcd screen.


I am curious why you need to go to the devices. The whole concept of the Harmony line is to use the Activities to set up all the circumstances you would ever need. You need to set up an activity that utilizes the VHS and have it show up on the second page. If you are programming the Harmony in this fashion, youi should never have to go to the Devices page excet maybe to learn some commands that are not in the data base.

You're right! I needed to think "out-of-the-box" so to speak. I was so used to my previous remote (press this, then that, etc.) that I didn't explore the possibilities of the Activities. I did take a quick look when I first got it but not enough it seems. I just spent an hour going deep in the things it can do and programming it accordingly and it's working like a charm. Everything is now the way I want it to be... Thanks a lot... :)

Anyone that owns the 520 ever have problems with the LCD screen going blank? Its never gotten wet nor been dropped. I even put in new batteries. Nada. I called the Logitech hot line, they had me reset it, then redownload and install the software and firmware updates. Still nada. The only answer they had was that the LCD was bad to begin with. Saying it might have barely passed inspection and that normal use, not misuse, might be causing the failure. They put me on a list for the warranty dept, but they are down until after 8/2. It sounds like I'm going to be getting a whole new unit from them after the warranty dept. contacts me. We'll see if they stand behind their warranty's.
I was just wondering if any other owners of this model has had issues. Also just wanted to let this issue be known in case anyone else has the same happen to them.

Anyone that owns the 520 ever have problems with the LCD screen going blank? Its never gotten wet nor been dropped. I even put in new batteries. Nada. I called the Logitech hot line, they had me reset it, then redownload and install the software and firmware updates. Still nada. The only answer they had was that the LCD was bad to begin with. Saying it might have barely passed inspection and that normal use, not misuse, might be causing the failure. They put me on a list for the warranty dept, but they are down until after 8/2. It sounds like I'm going to be getting a whole new unit from them after the warranty dept. contacts me. We'll see if they stand behind their warranty's.
I was just wondering if any other owners of this model has had issues. Also just wanted to let this issue be known in case anyone else has the same happen to them.

:) I just got an email from Logitech. They are sending me a whole new remote since mine was under warranty. Should be back in business in about 5 days. I just have to send back the old remote in the pre-paid postage box. That easy. I am very impressed with the way they stand behind their products warranties and reaching customer satisfaction.

Have had a 520 for about 6 months and found that when I press watch TV, unless the thing is set to a high def channel (Comcast Motorola box) then the tv will start any standard def channel as a bunch of horizontal lines. Only turning TV, cable box or to HD channel clears it..

Minor thing but an annoyance. Ideas??

Earlier in this forum there is mention of a limit of 13 (or14? or 15?) characters per line when naming custom activites, etc.
However, no matter what I do I can't seem to figure out how the 520 handles character spacing and word wrap; I have factory set activities that have 8 or more characters on the first line, but when I try to name other activities I often get only 4 or 5 characters on the first line, or characters dropped altogether.
Has anyone figured out exactly how to input titles to make full use of both lines?

How many activities does this remote support? Been searching this thread for about 30 min. Thanks.

How many activities does this remote support? Been searching this thread for about 30 min. Thanks.

Pretty sure it's 255. All other Harmony remotes do, so I assume the 520 would be the same

Not sure if anyone intested but there are a few used but new Harmony 550 remotes on E**Y right now.

Has anyone used their Harmony 520 to access the service menu on their TV. I have a Samsung HLS 6187 and wanted to get a remote so that my calibration tech could program the remote to open the service menu and turn off overscan. Unfortunately, he did not know how to teach this remote, since you have to be online and I was not familiar enough at the time to do it myself.

Is this function available through Harmony's database? Anyone with experience with Samsungs or other TVs? I have emailed tech support, but since this is a non-standard type question, I'm concerned that I'll get a simple "No you can't do that." when in fact someone at the company does have the info.

anyone know what the 7.01 update download for the 520 is on the Logitech site? It doesn't seem to be one that my update software knows about (it's given me 5.xx).

anyone know what the 7.01 update download for the 520 is on the Logitech site? It doesn't seem to be one that my update software knows about (it's given me 5.xx).

that would be the latest firmware update. i updated mine when i thought it was froze up. turns out the #3 button was stuck. stupid me.

Link to the firmware page?? How do you update the 520? if it doesn't return 7.01 link?

This is the link to the 520 update page: http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/downloads/software/CA/EN,CRID=2109,contentid=11026
I noticed that when my interface software was running yesterday that it updated one aspect to 2.xx and another to 5.xx but nowhere did I see a 7.01 update. So, I was wondering what the 7.01 update was...

Anyway, has anyone installed 7.01? How does it differ from version 5.xx?

Ok...it now shows in my interface software. I updated it to 7.01. Can't say that I can really see any difference...just as quirky as the previous version...

Ok...it now shows in my interface software. I updated it to 7.01. Can't say that I can really see any difference...just as quirky as the previous version...

sorry I didn't respond quickly enough. i just checked my email and it had your reply. i didn't see much difference either.

First time poster here, needed help, didn't know where else to turn really, so I'm hoping someone here can help.

Bought the Logitech Harmony 520 last night, picked it up for $70 Canadian which wasn't too bad on price I don't think.

I'm having a great deal of difficulty setting it up with my Home Theatre in a Box, the Sony Dream System HCD-DX250 (i've read around the forums that the Sony DreamSystem is a pretty temperamental system, being a bit of a difficulty to set up on universal remotes). I set up the TV and the Cable Box with no trouble, but this HTiB is giving me some trouble.

For starters, I don't know which device I should list the HTiB under...Receiver, DVD, or Mini System. It seems that when I add each type of device, sometimes the HTiB receiver will respond for Mini-System but not for the others. It starts up fine, but doesn't switch from the Video/TV input to DVD input when pressed. I also don't know what order to place the inputs in, assuming that they have to be in order, I don't know where the list starts given that one normally cycles through the inputs and a cycle doesn't necessarily have a beginning or end, while an ordered list does.

I dunno....its a nifty little remote, I don't want to have to return it, hopefully someone can offer some advice in getting this sorted out. Thanks in advance.

Just bought the remote, and before opening it up was hoping someone could answer a few device questions...since I'm upgrading my system this weekend.

1)Will it operate the new Onkyo HT-S990THX home theater system? From my reading the receiver is similar to the Onkyo TX-SR703, so if that's supported then I'm sure I'll have no problem.

2)What about the Oppo DVD player? I'm buying the Oppo 970HD (the HDMI one) and want it controlled as well.

3)Can you program your Xbox 360 to turn on with this remote as well?

4)If I program a "Watch TV" key, can I have the TV turn on and program a delay before the other components turn on (say 30 seconds)?

Other then that, the only other components are the Sony KDS-R50XBR1 SXRD display and my Motorola 6412 Phase III DVR. The former shouldn't be an issue and the latter I've read in the thread.

The reason I'm asking is that if this remote won't work, I might have to push my wife a bit to allow the Harmony 720 purchase instead. Please help!

Thanks!

Just bought the remote, and before opening it up was hoping someone could answer a few device questions...since I'm upgrading my system this weekend.

1)Will it operate the new Onkyo HT-S990THX home theater system? From my reading the receiver is similar to the Onkyo TX-SR703, so if that's supported then I'm sure I'll have no problem.

2)What about the Oppo DVD player? I'm buying the Oppo 970HD (the HDMI one) and want it controlled as well.

3)Can you program your Xbox 360 to turn on with this remote as well?

4)If I program a "Watch TV" key, can I have the TV turn on and program a delay before the other components turn on (say 30 seconds)?

Other then that, the only other components are the Sony KDS-R50XBR1 SXRD display and my Motorola 6412 Phase III DVR. The former shouldn't be an issue and the latter I've read in the thread.

The reason I'm asking is that if this remote won't work, I might have to push my wife a bit to allow the Harmony 720 purchase instead. Please help!

Thanks!


1. likely it will... you know you can go to the website and create your "virtual setup" to see if they have your componenets. That's what I did before even buying my 880.

2. see #1.

3. yes. And see #1.

4. yes.

I've had my 520 for a year plus and love it. Last night I encountered a new issue regarding system shutdown that I don't know how to repair.

My HD-DVD player takes a while to startup and shutdown. When I start the HD-DVD activity, everything starts OK.

The problem: When I shutdown the activity or switch activities, the receiver switching away from the HDMI input causes a break in HDCP handshake and instead of processing the PowerOff IR command, the HD-DVD player sits there with the "HDMI Link Broken" error. A subsequent PowerOff command from the devices list turns the HD-DVD player off properly.

The questions: Is it possible to change the order the devices are shutdown so that the HD-DVD player shuts down first, then the receiver siwtches/shuts down? Are the devices shutdown in the same order they are started for a given activity?

The questions: Is it possible to change the order the devices are shutdown so that the HD-DVD player shuts down first, then the receiver siwtches/shuts down? Are the devices shutdown in the same order they are started for a given activity?

As far as I know, only tech support can do this for you. Give them a call and they should be able to sort it easily.

The questions: Is it possible to change the order the devices are shutdown so that the HD-DVD player shuts down first, then the receiver siwtches/shuts down? Are the devices shutdown in the same order they are started for a given activity?

I think you "might" be able to do this by customizing the options of what to when when ending the activity. For example, when my Watch DVD activity ends, I tell it to send extra commands to lower the subwoofer output by 2 levels. Similarly, you could tell it to send an IR command to Power Off your player. The only part I'm not sure about is whether the extra IR commands are sent before the other commands to switch inputs etc. I think (hope) they are...and unfortunately I'm not home so I can't check this for you right now.

I think you "might" be able to do this by customizing the options of what to when when ending the activity. For example, when my Watch DVD activity ends, I tell it to send extra commands to lower the subwoofer output by 2 levels. Similarly, you could tell it to send an IR command to Power Off your player. The only part I'm not sure about is whether the extra IR commands are sent before the other commands to switch inputs etc. I think (hope) they are...and unfortunately I'm not home so I can't check this for you right now.

I am unaware that the Harmony software even has his capability, so your indication that you are using it gives me hope, I'll dig through the software when I get home.

I am unaware that the Harmony software even has his capability, so your indication that you are using it gives me hope, I'll dig through the software when I get home.

I think I have good news for you too. When I switching from watching DVD to watching TV, it FIRST lowers the sub volume by 2, then switches the TV input. The TV input is associated with the activity, whereas the sub volume adjustment was the extra IR command I told it to send when ending the Watch DVD activity. So theoretically, I think you could trick it by having an extra IR command to Power Off the player first, before ending the activity (which would technically try to power it off again). I can't remember where the menu is to add extra IR commands, but I think you can find it when you go through the customize activity, and at the very end, it will ask you if you want to customize it more (when it shows you the summary of things it will do). Good luck, and let me know if you need me to look through the web interface to find where to set this...

Hey guys,
Using the 520 for several applications and its working well. I do have one question though. I have the Dish 508 PVR which is both a satellite receiver and a pvr. When I want to watch something that's recorded on the pvr, the only way I have been able to get to that function is to select devices, then the pvr device, then the pvr function from the lcd screen. Is there a simplier way? Can I assign one of the unused hard buttons on the remote to go directly to the recorded pvr programs? Could I make watching a recorded pvr program an activity? Any other thoughts?
The remote that came with the pvr has a button that says "pvr" which takes you to whatever you have recorded. I'm looking to do something like that with the 520.

Thanks very much,
Rick

I have my PVR feature in my "Watch TV" task. So I can control my cable box, PVR, and if I need to change anything on the TV. My first button on the LCD screen is "Recorded Shows" and I also made the * button bring it up.

My problem is that when I use the "Watch TV" task it doesn't switch the Input to HDMI on my Westinghouse. I've gone over it again and again thru the Software, but just deoes'nt. Also it does'nt change the input when I use "Watch DVD" task

Has anyone used their Harmony 520 to access the service menu on their TV. I have a Samsung HLS 6187 and wanted to get a remote so that my calibration tech could program the remote to open the service menu and turn off overscan. Unfortunately, he did not know how to teach this remote, since you have to be online and I was not familiar enough at the time to do it myself.

Is this function available through Harmony's database? Anyone with experience with Samsungs or other TVs? I have emailed tech support, but since this is a non-standard type question, I'm concerned that I'll get a simple "No you can't do that." when in fact someone at the company does have the info.Create an activity (such as 'Access TV SM') and have it send the following commands to your Samsung TV...
If TV is already On: Power(Off), Mute, 1, 8, 5, Power(On)
If TV is Off: Mute, 1, 8, 5, Power(On)

For Sony SXRD it is: [Power(Off),] Display, 5, Volume Up, Power(On)

Every time I power on My Toshiba LCD goes to the wrong input. I have run the set up wizard several times, what am I missing or what can I do? Thanks

Every time I power on My Toshiba LCD goes to the wrong input. I have run the set up wizard several times, what am I missing or what can I do? Thanks

If it's only a problem when powering on the TV, then increase the Power On Delay.

hey guys i just got my Harmony 520 and i love it. i just have one little issue that i do not know how to fix. ex: when i chose an activity everything turns on except the tv always goes into the wrong input. i tried to go seting it up through the computer but it doesnt help. i have to click "help" on the remote and go through the steps for it to adjust the inputs accordingly. there are only 2 inputs that need to be used on my tv for my setup but my tv has like 7. what can i do so the tv skips all these inputs and just switches between the 2 i need? i didnt see an option to disable any inputs on my tv. someone please help me out. thanks

I just purchased this remote... I haven't set it up or anything yet, but I wanted to ask - does this remote feel REALLY cheap to others? like, it bends really easy and makes a rickety/creaking sound pressing buttons. The worst are the top buttons, like devices/help -- the whole remote just makes plastic creaking sounds that you get using a 10yr old RCA remote or something. Hopefully after setting up the remote and using it I'll have a different impression of it

I just purchased this remote... I haven't set it up or anything yet, but I wanted to ask - does this remote feel REALLY cheap to others? like, it bends really easy and makes a rickety/creaking sound pressing buttons. The worst are the top buttons, like devices/help -- the whole remote just makes plastic creaking sounds that you get using a 10yr old RCA remote or something. Hopefully after setting up the remote and using it I'll have a different impression of it

Mine is the same way like if you held the top and bottom and twist it it makes some cracking sounds. I noticed it at first but after you use the remote for awile it kind of breaks in and you wont hear it unless you try and make it happen. No big deal for me anymore. It's a nice remote.

I use my Pioneer receiver for audio with my HD DVD player, with the analog inputs. On the Pioneer, the analog in can only be accessed via a hard button on the front of the receiver. Since I don't use the receiver for anything else, is there a way to program the 520 to only turn on the receiver and not switch to an input at all.

hey guys i just got my Harmony 520 and i love it. i just have one little issue that i do not know how to fix. ex: when i chose an activity everything turns on except the tv always goes into the wrong input. i tried to go seting it up through the computer but it doesnt help. i have to click "help" on the remote and go through the steps for it to adjust the inputs accordingly. there are only 2 inputs that need to be used on my tv for my setup but my tv has like 7. what can i do so the tv skips all these inputs and just switches between the 2 i need? i didnt see an option to disable any inputs on my tv. someone please help me out. thanks

Contact the TV's manufacturer and see if that device has that option. If it doesn't then there won't be anything that your remote can do.

You could also try increasing your Input Delay to something a little longer and see if that works.

You could also try seeing if the discrete commands in device mode work. Press "Devices" on the remote, select your TV from the list, and scroll through the pages of commands until you see things like "InputVideo1" and such. Try them all and see if any of them work.
If none of them work, you're out of luck.
Hope that helps.

Harmony Dude

hey guys i just got my Harmony 520 and i love it. i just have one little issue that i do not know how to fix. ex: when i chose an activity everything turns on except the tv always goes into the wrong input. i tried to go seting it up through the computer but it doesnt help. i have to click "help" on the remote and go through the steps for it to adjust the inputs accordingly. there are only 2 inputs that need to be used on my tv for my setup but my tv has like 7. what can i do so the tv skips all these inputs and just switches between the 2 i need? i didnt see an option to disable any inputs on my tv. someone please help me out. thanks
If "help" button helps, not all lost. Go to your device (TV) -> more options -> adjust inputs. There are number of options there. Play with them and find the right one.

Has anyone had a problem with their 520 where it freezes up? This is happening with mine quite frequently. The only thing I can do is take out a battery, wait a few seconds, and replace. I used to think this was due to weakened batteries (especially when the kids would leave the remote wedged between seat cushions), but it's happened with brand new batteries, and I got a multi-tester to verify the batteries were still strong. I've also verified that I had the latest firmware, which I've re-downloaded just to be sure. Do I have a lemon?

Has anyone had a problem with their 520 where it freezes up? This is happening with mine quite frequently. The only thing I can do is take out a battery, wait a few seconds, and replace. I used to think this was due to weakened batteries (especially when the kids would leave the remote wedged between seat cushions), but it's happened with brand new batteries, and I got a multi-tester to verify the batteries were still strong. I've also verified that I had the latest firmware, which I've re-downloaded just to be sure. Do I have a lemon?
If you haven't done so already, I'd suggest that you exchange it. I've had my 520 for 10 months and haven't had any problems like you describe.

If you haven't done so already, I'd suggest that you exchange it. I've had my 520 for 10 months and haven't had any problems like you describe.

I actually wanted to return it very early on (I find it very flimsy) but lost the bill. I guess I have a lemon.

I have a Toshiba HD-A2 and an Oppo 971 in the same rack, being controlled by a Harmony 520. The A2 is the new addition. I set up a new activity to watch the A2, with the same receiver and projector I was using with the 971 previously. When I send an activity-power-off signal by pressing the left-side power button, the Oppo turns on.

I can control all the other components separately with the 520 in "device" mode without toggling power in the 971, but if I use "activity" mode, I get the errant power toggle when I press the black button.

Any ideas what it is?

Is there a way to view and/or edit the list of commands directly in the 520?

Later: Never mind, I solved this myself by deleting all devices and activities, and then reprogramming them. I think the Harmony software sucks, because it doesn't allow edits to the program, or even viewing it.

Please. I'm a newbie and a female. WHERE EXACTLY AGAIN is the 520 manual. I can't find it. Please explain in BLONDE terms. LOL !!! :) :confused: :o ;)
HELP

Please. I'm a newbie and a female. WHERE EXACTLY AGAIN is the 520 manual. I can't find it. Please explain in BLONDE terms. LOL !!! :) :confused: :o ;)
HELP

Will this link (http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/440/371&cl=us,en) help? Unless there is a manual on the included cd, the software should walk you through.

C Snyder

Has anyone had a problem with their 520 where it freezes up? This is happening with mine quite frequently. The only thing I can do is take out a battery, wait a few seconds, and replace. I used to think this was due to weakened batteries (especially when the kids would leave the remote wedged between seat cushions), but it's happened with brand new batteries, and I got a multi-tester to verify the batteries were still strong. I've also verified that I had the latest firmware, which I've re-downloaded just to be sure. Do I have a lemon?


Yes... I've had this happen too.. The other odd issue is that in the middle of the night I'll find the thing lit up (back light on) - obviously discharging batteries.

My first remote did that and I was able to get it replaced.

Is there a way to run a particular windows command using this remote? I want to launch boxee using this remote.

Edit: Using eventghost you can assign one unused remote button to a particular command. I am using the Info button to launch boxee. And I didn't disable the HID commands.