JP1 Remotes

I was bobbling along with two or three remotes until just recently when I purchased a Harman Kardon A/V receiver which came with a sort of universal remote. I tried to set it up to do everything and discovered that it has a fatal flaw. You can program macros, but the one thing that you can't program into a macro is telling the receiver to change to a different input. For example, you can create a macro to turn on the TV and turn on the reciever, but if the reciever was last set for the DVD input, you can't have the macro tell the receiver to switch to the TV input. Doh!

So I started looking around for a truly useful universal remote. Hmm, Harmony remotes get generally good reviews, but $150?? Then I found the JP1 site and forums and I've been reading and downloading and trying things in the software, even before getting a JP1 cable. So before I buy a remote and order or build a cable, I was hoping someone could help me answer a couple of "am I going to be able to do this" questions.

Equipment:
- Panasonic TV, not too new, but it has 2 inputs plus the TV tuner
- TiVo, Philips, series 1
- GoVideo dual deck VCR/DVD player
- Harman Kardon AVR 235

That's it -- nothing too fancy in the video department. We're very Tivo-centric in our viewing, so transport controls are very important in the remote and need to be well-placed (that is, not down at the very bottom). We also didn't want a huge remote. The One For All 6131 looks like it has a nice layout, and I see that I can buy one that is modified for JP1 use. I'm open to other suggestions, though.

First question: does the 6131 modification (EEPROM, JP1 connector) bring the 6131 up to the capabilities of most other JP1 remotes? I was reading some of the .txt files for the 6131 extender and it sounds like the remote does some things differently than others.

Second question: will I be able to program the device select buttons to actually carry out commands? If yes, do I need the extender to do that? I thought I saw in a FAQ that you can't program the device select buttons because by default they only change the mode of the remote and don't actually send out any IR. I'd sure like to not waste those buttons for just that function!

Third question: where do I learn about some of the abbreviations and terms used in the .txt files that accompany the 6131 extender? I was trying to decide if I need the extender, but I'm having trouble interpreting the documentation.

I really appreciate all of the information that I've read so far and the friendly atmosphere on these boards. Thank you also for having a forum where newbies can post basic questions (like mine) without having to feel too stupid.

About your equipment, by looking the the Files Sections I have verified that:

THere are lots of upgrades for Panasonic TVs, you're good to go.
TiVo is well known, no problem controlling it.
There are GoVideo VCR/DVD device upgrades also.
There are a number of HK AVR upgrades also.

I think the JP1 enabled URC-6131 is the way to go, especially since you are a heavy TiVo user. I use it with a Samsung DLP, 2 TiVos, a Panasonic DVD, TViX, and Onkyo A/V receiver. I have input selection macros on my device keys, a global power on macro on a short (normal) press of Power, and a global power off macro on a long press of Power.

In order to have macros on the device buttons, you must install the extender. This is not a big of a deal, although people seem to get intimidated by this.

I'm not sure what abbreviations you are talking about. Maybe these?
VPT - Volume Punch Through
LKP - Long Key Press (assign different behaviors to short and long key presses)
DKP - Double Key Press (assign different behaviors to single and double key presses)
ToadTog - Toggle Only Activated Device Toggle, some device only have power toggle functions, and this can be used to have the remote keep track of the power state of the device, and only send the power toggle command when it is not on the state you want to end up in.
DSM - Device Specific Macros. Normal macros are global, but you can create DSMs with the extender.

gadgetgeek2 wrote: The One For All 6131 looks like it has a nice layout, and I see that I can buy one that is modified for JP1 use.

Since Rob stopped selling those, I haven't kept track of that. So I don't know who (maybe still Rob) is doing the mod's for whoever is selling those. Anyway, check which size eeprom it is. When the original manufacturer makes JP1 capable 6131's they use a 1K (byte) eeprom. An after market mod SHOULD be 2K. Without the extender, there's little if any difference between 1K and 2K. But with the extender, 1K is at least a problem and maybe a total block. Make sure it's a 2K eeprom if you will be using the extender.

gadgetgeek2 wrote: First question: does the 6131 modification (EEPROM, JP1 connector) bring the 6131 up to the capabilities of most other JP1 remotes?

With extender the 6131 is a fully capable JP1 remote. If you like it's size, shape, button layout and button labels then it's the best JP1 remote.

gadgetgeek2 wrote:I was reading some of the .txt files for the 6131 extender and it sounds like the remote does some things differently than others.

Those differences aren't too serious to begin with and if you use the extender it removes some of those differences.

Thank you both for the great information. Regarding the modified 6131, somewhere on the forum I found a link to Surf Remote Control (also seems to be the forum sponsor) where they sell the modified version. I hope they still do. I could do the mod myself, but my time is kind of tight right now.

Greg mentioned ToadTog, which sounds intriguing from the little bit that I've read so far. The state tracking feature sounds like it can be used to do some of the fancy stuff that the Harmony remotes can do. Sure, it takes a little planning and configuring, but I like the idea!

-Steve