Home Theater (such as MX-700) or Harmony remote?

[WarlordBB]

Excuse my ignorance and no offense if this is like asking what the difference between a Ford and a Ferrari but should I be researching an MX-700 (or other in the family) if I already have the top of the line Harmony?

Just wondering.

[lovingHDTV]

I personally think the Harmony is the best remote I've ever owned, seen or used. Therefore, I'm not sure why you would look further.

my $0.02

[Fluffdaddy]

Ditto

[Djc208]

I swear there was a similar question around here a little while ago but I can't find it right now.
In any event I do like the Harmony remotes for ease of use and nifty features, but when I went looking for mine I ended up with a lower version of the MX-700 because it was more flexible than a Harmony, especially on the lower end models. They both offer computer programming but the URCs let you assign macros to any key.

My favorite feature is that you can assign a macro to a function key without changing the function. So if you press the DVD button you'll access the DVD remote, if you assign a macro with a pause as the first command then holding down the DVD key for a second will run a macro you can use to set up your system for watching a DVD.

I don't think I'd replace a high end Harmony for the MX unless the Harmony isn't doing something you need. Setup isn't as easy as a Harmony but a lot of flexibility.

[PLUCKYHD]

I am done with harmony Abd like urc. Sorry harmony but $300 remotes should last longer than 2 years ( had 2 harmony 890 buttons stopped workif and wear out on both). The newer harmony one model is better but burn me once shame on you, burn ne twice shame on me. I also have yet to see a 880 or 890 series that buttons didn't wear out in a year or two. I talked many people in to buying themin the past and the buttons just didn't last. I realize buttons wear out but these out expensive remotes and should last longer. Also the contact point for charging those models what idiot came up with that? Check your battery as well babgvant did at missing remote and many others found they were swelling up pretty badly.


Off soapbox.

[stanger89]

Originally Posted by lovingHDTV

I personally think the Harmony is the best remote I've ever owned, seen or used. Therefore, I'm not sure why you would look further.

You obviously haven't tried a URC

In all seriousness, I tried a Harmony (Xbox 360 model, basically the 550) a while back, was not very happy with it, and took it back. I found the "guided" programming to be frustrating, and the physical remote to feel "cheap".

I've since got a URC MX-880 and an R50, and I like both of them a lot. I really like the MX880 paired with an RF base station. But I'm still very, very curious to try out the MX5000. It's theoretically capable of two-way IP communication with Sage

[gplasky]

Originally Posted by stanger89

You obviously haven't tried a URC But I'm still very, very curious to try out the MX5000. It's theoretically capable of two-way IP communication with Sage

But you would have to be $1,200-curious to get that remote. And I thought a Harmony was expensive. No doubt the URC are higher quality, better feel. But I've been getting my Harmony remotes refurbished with a full warranty. So I paid $125 for the one Harmony 1000 touchscreen I use in the living room. There's no way I can qualify needing/having a $1,200 remote with the wife unless it also did the dishes or something.

Gerry

[Tomahawk51]

I bought a Harmony One and liked it so much that I bought a 650 as well. Overall they are pricey (but check out Slickdeals/Dealnews sites), but having a remote (like this) has made life so much better. I now actually use my nice AV Receiver, can do sleep timer with Sage and the TV with 1 button, so on and so on.

That URC does look like a nice option as well, but I'd say it "looks" clunky and maybe not as ergonomic. It certainly looks like a big improvement over the default Sage remote though in that respect. Oddly, my wife supported spending much more on the One because it looks good. But function over form would make sense. My wife vastly prefers using the Harmony One, instead of what she calls the "ghetto" 650 that lacks a touch screen. She's not a tech snob, but maybe I'm rubbing off on her .

My major annoyance with the Harmony series: Custom Macros are limited to 5 steps. This is just stupid and very limiting (I did take a Logitech survey to lambast them). Now there is a workaround, which I use, where you learn a "raw" IR command. You essentially hit "learn IR Code" then go ahead and hit a number of button presses to end up with a sort of nested action that you can string together (up to 5 times). A kludge that works fine for me.

Also, you can only have 1 remote tied to 1 account. I had to make 2 accounts. Stupid Logitech! Very Stupid. Overall I'd consider buying Harmony's again (I didn't know these limitations at purchase), but I'd check out the URC a bit further.

[stanger89]

Originally Posted by gplasky

But you would have to be $1,200-curious to get that remote. And I thought a Harmony was expensive. No doubt the URC are higher quality, better feel. But I've been getting my Harmony remotes refurbished with a full warranty. So I paid $125 for the one Harmony 1000 touchscreen I use in the living room. There's no way I can qualify needing/having a $1,200 remote with the wife unless it also did the dishes or something.

Gerry

Let's just be clear, URC makes remotes a lot less expensive than that. My MX-880 was maybe $500, but I control a lot of stuff with it. I think the R50 is like 150, and the R50 is still built far, far better than a Harmony.

As far as the MX5000 goes, actually I've got CCP so I can play with programming it. I've been meaning to go through the programming guides and seeing what it would take to make a SageTV module.

Originally Posted by Tomahawk51

That URC does look like a nice option as well, but I'd say it "looks" clunky and maybe not as ergonomic.

I really like the feel of my MX880, and the R50 is pretty nice as well.

My major annoyance with the Harmony series: Custom Macros are limited to 5 steps. This is just stupid and very limiting (I did take a Logitech survey to lambast them).

FWIW, URC supports 255 steps per macro, and macros can call other macros, and so on..... The "better" remotes (the Complete Control line) also have much better programming IMO than Harmony's, it's completely unhindered, but at the same time you do have to be able to think through an come up with your own macros from scratch.

[samgreco]

I have had an MX-700 for, must be at least 7 years now. It is excellent. As Stanger said, the custom programming is key. I too bought a Harmony before the URC. Took it back. I could not, at the time, get it programmed to do all of the macro steps I wanted, the way I wanted. With the URC, it's fairly limitless.

Also, I like the feel of it. Very substantial.

All in all, a great investment.

[Opus4]

BTW: This 2007 topic was brought back to life by a spammer this morning.

- Andy

[Fuzzy]

Originally Posted by Opus4

BTW: This 2007 topic was brought back to life by a spammer this morning.

- Andy

Hey, look spam IS good for something.. ;-) I will say that I've used my brother's harmony (cheapo 300 i think) with my sage system, and the button layout is just NOT good for a sage setup. I've been using a Home Theater Master MX-500 (the ancestor to the MX-700/800 devices). I am almost NEVER away from the center area of the MX remote. It's got D-Pad, Select, and all transport controls clustered together. The old MX-500 isn't really programmable from a computer, but even the on-board programming is easier than the harmony's software.

Not to mention I've been using it for over 6 years now, and it's still kicking strong. Can't say that for most/any Logitech remote.

[korben_dallas]

While I agree the Harmony One is somewhat pricey, and the programming is not necessarily intuitive.. I haven't found anything that I could not get it to do for all my home theater devices.