Hey guys,

Quick coupla questions if you do not mind.

I'm involved in setting up my folks' new HT systems in their new house, and one of the crucial things is the universal remote. The house is all crestron lighting & temperature etc, but not the HT gear, so I thought I might as well try Harmony for that.

Now, the questions I have, what would you recommend for people in their mid 50's? the 1000 or the 895?

The button remote has obvious advantages, you can get used to the layout, you don't have to look at it so often etc.
The LCD has me worried, I don't want them to have to put on reading glasses every time they want to change the channel on the PVR. That said, the LCD seems more intuitive and more advanced.

I read somewhere that if you change to TV preset on the 895 the volume control changes to the TV volume, not the amp volume? Surely this is avoidable?

Have you looked at the URC line of professional remotes? If you parents have a Crestron system, a Harmony remote would definitely be a downgrade in terms of quality and performance.

Have you looked at the URC line of professional remotes? If you parents have a Crestron system, a Harmony remote would definitely be a downgrade in terms of quality and performance.

would you have a link for me? The big problem is importing all this stuff to South Africa. But I'll definitely take a look.

EDIT: Right, found it. The MX-950 is basically the same layout as the Crestron upcomin MLX-2, which i'd rather spring for because i can get support for it here.

and that is easier to use and better than the harmonies? Do you get an RF extender for that?

and what about this thing? Crestron TPMC-4X

http://www.crestron.com/images/products/photos_small/tpmc-4x.jpg

easy to master? an expensive beast, but is it worth it?


EDIT: okay. it seems i can only control crestron devices with these? and I don't see how to control devices inside cabinets like with the 895's RF extender.

That TPMC-4 is a WiFi remote that comunicates with a Crestron processor. If you are going to go to the trouble to link the HT to a processor, then you might as well get an RF touchpanel.

The URC line can communicate with a base station via RF, so that is not an issue.

Here is a link to the professional line:http://universalremote.com/pro/products.php

They have a couple of new remotes coming out: the 810 and 980. Programming these is not as easy as a Harmony, but they are much more capable. Make sure you buy from an authorized dealer so you can get the updateable software.

Edit: Distributor in South Africa: http://www.electronicarchitects.co.za/

right on. you the man. thanks guys, the URC it is.

You gotta love these forums :)

Yes I just also wanted to mention for those who are also considering the Harmony 1000, it does NOT support Z-wave as advertised in many sites. I found this out the hard way.

Yes I just also wanted to mention for those who are also considering the Harmony 1000, it does NOT support Z-wave as advertised in many sites. I found this out the hard way.
For the record: he Harmony 895 does!