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MCE Remote just won't wake HTPC.

post #1 of 18
4/4/12 at 2:32pm
Thread Starter 
I can not get my original MCE Remote or Harmony to wake my HTPC on a consistant basis. It will sleep it every time though. I would say it only wakes it one out of 20+ tries.
I tried setting the Harmony up as Media Center SE so I could try both the Discrete on/off and the power toggle.

I have confirmed all my settings are right in Device Manager, Power Options, and BIOS.

The kicker is that my wireless IR Keyboard will wake it from sleep every time by pushing any button.
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post #2 of 18
4/4/12 at 3:15pm
Try fresh batteries in the Harmony.
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post #3 of 18
4/4/12 at 4:37pm
Thread Starter 
Definitely not batteries.

I have had this problem for a few years now with both my 880 and Harmony One.

I am in the process of setting up a URC remote, which is why I'm revisiting the issue.
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post #4 of 18
4/4/12 at 11:26pm
I had the same problem. #2 is likely your issue since it sounds like your USB is powered in sleep. Let me know if this helps.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Carl Lewis View Post

I use both the Microsoft Windows Media Center SE and the Microsoft MCE Keyboard. One for general WMC controls, and the other for typing and mouse control. For bringing the computer in and out of sleep I stick with the Microsoft Windows Media Center SE device. I'm assuming you have Windows 7 for the parts below.


1) Make sure your USB is powered during sleep and that the USB can wake it. This may be in your BIOS under power management. You'll also want to make sure the USB hub is not able to be shut down during sleep. See the link below. I also have USB Selective Suspend setting disabled...but I can't remember if I did that for troubleshooting or if it's required.

(start > control panel > power options > change plan settings > change advanced power settings > USB settings > USB Selective Suspend Setting > Disabled)

http://www.ehow.com/how_6854952_disa...anagement.html


2) And this is important...make sure your device profile in the Harmony software for the "Microsoft Windows Media Center SE" is NOT checked for "always on." The easiest way for me to confirm this was to uninstall and then re-install the device with the new settings.

I had intermittent trouble with the "Power Toggle" command for sleep, so I always use the individual "Power On" and "Power Off" commands. I haven't had a problem since.

Hopefully that helps.
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post #5 of 18
4/5/12 at 6:32am
See I would think it would be number 1.

Can you try switching your usb IR to the port where the RF usb is connected?

Are the two far apart, like for example is the usb IR on the front of your case vs. the RF usb on the back?
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post #6 of 18
4/5/12 at 7:03am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Carl Lewis View Post

I had the same problem. #2 is likely your issue since it sounds like your USB is powered in sleep. Let me know if this helps.



I did #2, I also went into the registry and turned off debouncing.

It seems my pwr toggle works now. (I did confuse it a couple times but was able to straighten it out by changing the power state)

The only problem now is that the discrete on still does not work. That is really the crucial command I need for my URC remote.


Thanks for the help so far, guys.
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post #7 of 18
4/5/12 at 7:04am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by FantaXP7 View Post

See I would think it would be number 1.

Can you try switching your usb IR to the port where the RF usb is connected?

Are the two far apart, like for example is the usb IR on the front of your case vs. the RF usb on the back?

I'm not sure what you mean by this? I do not have any RF connected.

Is there a certain usb port dedicated for RF?
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post #8 of 18
4/5/12 at 7:11am
I think he was confused and thinking that your MCE remote was IR and the Harmony was RF.

The other thing you could try would be plugging the IR USB into a different USB port. I had the same issue and fixed it by first changing the power options as already stated, and second, switching the IR eye to a USB port on the back of my PC from the front port.
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post #9 of 18
4/5/12 at 7:16am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Apes View Post

I'm not sure what you mean by this? I do not have any RF connected.

Is there a certain usb port dedicated for RF?

Sorry, I saw wireless keyboard and that it worked everytime. Didn't notice that you mentioned it was IR. I assumed it was RF.

Does the remote and the keyboard use the same IR? If they are different and you have two, try swapping...

Probably not the case but something to check if true.
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post #10 of 18
4/5/12 at 9:48am
Thread Starter 
I have a separate IR that came with both but I only use one of them since they both work through the same. I've tried both with no luck.
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post #11 of 18
4/5/12 at 9:52am
Might help:
http://slicksolutions.eu/mst.shtml
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post #12 of 18
4/5/12 at 11:14am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by SteelWill View Post

Might help:
http://slicksolutions.eu/mst.shtml

Thanks! This didn't help with my 'discrete on' but it did fix some annoyances I had with the sleep/wake.


Do you guys know of any programs floating around that can read the signals being sent from the remotes?

I am curious what is begin sent from each remote/keyboard.
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post #13 of 18
4/5/12 at 10:16pm
Are you using power toggle, or the "Power On" and "Power Off" commands from the Harmony Media Center SE profile? I had problems with the toggle, but Power On and Power Off worked fine after changing the device from always being on.

As suggested above, try plugging the IR receiver into the same USB port as your wireless keyboard is currently plugged into. That eliminates the "USB not receiving power in sleep" aspect during troubleshooting.
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post #14 of 18
4/6/12 at 5:48am
Thread Starter 
I tried swapping usb ports and it never changed.

I also tried adding all the 'discrete on' HEX codes I could find to the Harmony. None of them worked.

So I ended up just compromising by setting the 'discrete off' as off, then the 'toggle' as on...with a toggle soft button in case it gets confused.
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post #15 of 18
4/6/12 at 8:45am
Hi Apes,

I had a lot of sleep/wake issues when I built my HTPC towards the end of last year. I found there were a few steps that needed to be taken to get it all to work as expected. In no specific order....

1 - Make sure USB port continues to receive power in the low power state chosen. (May need to check jumpers on the motherboard.)

2 - Make sure the device, and anything in the chain of execution is allowed to wake the pc. (Device Manager. Not only the IR receiver, but the USB controller as well.)

3 - Make sure the remote sends the correct command and it is interpreted correctly by the IR receiver. (Check the timings on the harmony remote, some commands may be too close together and are interpreted incorrectly by the pc.)

4 - Depending on your video card, you may or may not need to change specific low power states for the video card. (MST was good for this step.)

Best of luck. I know this stuff can be frustrating.
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post #16 of 18
4/6/12 at 5:15pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Apes View Post

I tried swapping usb ports and it never changed.

I also tried adding all the 'discrete on' HEX codes I could find to the Harmony. None of them worked.

So I ended up just compromising by setting the 'discrete off' as off, then the 'toggle' as on...with a toggle soft button in case it gets confused.

So is that working to turn it on now? And why use "Power toggle" at all? Just assign the "Power on" command.
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post #17 of 18
4/6/12 at 5:46pm
It may just be the version of receiver you have.

I have two ir receivers here, a HP one and a newer Microsoft one.

The HP one does not generally respond to the "discrete on" command. "Discrete off" and "power toggle" both work.

The Microsoft one works for everything.

Here is a link to a recent post that discusses the different version receivers.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1386338
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post #18 of 18
7/13/12 at 3:05pm
I have an HP receicer and discrete on does not work at all. I also have a Sony VIA receiver and discrete on works fine.
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