H655, does exactly what it says on the tin, even my PWD6

[spook]

had my 655 for a week or so now,
was a bit clunky to begin with, with a basic devices setup, but after a week of tinkering and fine tuning I have to say I am hugely impressed.

I even found a way for the unit to select the correct inputs on my PWD6 plasma even though the inputs are selected sequentially and not directly, as follows:
the key to this is the fact that the PWD6 will allow you to select the "pc in" input directly,

on the harmony site (PWD6 setup) it asks if you can select the first input in the sequence directly (it can then send the appropriate number of "input next" signals to find the input of your choice,

now the "pc in" input is actually the "last" in the sequence, but as that's the only direct selection available, it's only one for us to use.

all you have to do from then is setup your device inputs out of sequence by 1, and although your device input settings will appear incorrect on the Harmony profile for the PWD6, it will actually work properly with the screen.

I was considering the new kameleon to replace my one4all 6, but I have to say the harmony 655 makes controlling my setup a breeze in comparison.

if you use SKY+, after a little fine tuning the 655 is actually easier to use than the original sky remote
highly recommended.

Spook

[hornydragon]

Excellent stuff spook glad you are pleased.....

[ndenbow]

Hmmm, I'm not convinced. I have tinkered with my 655 for about a week now, but I'm still having problems with my Panny Viera and getting it to select the correct input, especially after powering up.

Essentially the way to select an input is to press one of the four coloured buttons, BUT, three of the four have multiple options, depending on your physical connection. For instance AV3 can either be S-video or VGA, AV4 can either be S-vdeo or Component. I get very mixed mixed results. If anyone has a Viera and can shed some light on this I would be grateful.

[kevH]

hi spook
ive also had my 655 a couple weeks now and it controls all my AV equipment
very very well plasma,sky+ dvd playstation etc and have even got it to
control my remote blinds and light dimmers after a bit of fiddling and must say excellent help from the harmony support team.
Still having problems with the "watch movie" "watch tv" settings tho as my plasma,as yours is multiple function to select the input altho im sure with a little perseverance ill get that cracked too.
For £100 this has got to be a great allround performer and for controlling individual devices is excellent with added bonus of hard buttons and great support from harmony.
cheers
kevin

[Richard46]

Originally Posted by kevH

hi spook
ive also had my 655 a couple weeks now and it controls all my AV equipment
very very well plasma,sky+ dvd playstation etc and have even got it to
control my remote blinds and light dimmers after a bit of fiddling and must say excellent help from the harmony support team.
Still having problems with the "watch movie" "watch tv" settings tho as my plasma,as yours is multiple function to select the input altho im sure with a little perseverance ill get that cracked too.
For £100 this has got to be a great allround performer and for controlling individual devices is excellent with added bonus of hard buttons and great support from harmony.
cheers
kevin

Hi Kev
dont know if this is relevant to your problem; but I was having difficulty getting a clean switch between "watching movie" and watching tv". Solved it by using the commands on exiting an activity option. Used these to ensure that when I exited movie (DVD) the settings on the TV were back to where they where when I first turned on the system (to watch TV). I did not notice at first that you could give exit an activity as well as start an activity commands. Sorry if this is not relevant or you have already tried it or it makes no sense.
Have to say that having had a number of learning remotes including a pronto this is by far the most practical. e.g. My eighty year old mother just picked it up and started using it. Some can only be used by the person who set them up. If you want a remote that friends and relatives can use this is a good universal remote.
My previous universal remotes have either done everything (pronto) but been incomprehensibly to anyone else; or required going back to the original remotes for anything complex. I have also had an Arcam; similar to a Sony Commander; and a One for all digital).
The Harmony has made even my rather complex system (combining a stereo amp with a 3 channel amp surround sound amp/processor (Yamaha DSP-800) for five channel sound) a one buton job. Just love it.
Regards Richard

[jom]

Originally Posted by ndenbow

... three of the four have multiple options, depending on your physical connection. For instance AV3 can either be S-video or VGA, AV4 can either be S-vdeo or Component....

My Panasonic TV isn't a Plasma but the AV control sounds similar. I use a similar method to Richard46 to make sure I'm always using the right input. As long as you have a known starting point you should be OK. On my TV at power on it always defaults to the internal tuner, so all my activities that use the TV have a start activity action of [AV toggle] and an end activity action of [AV toggle]. That way I always know I'm using the scarts sockets on the TV rather than the internal tuner.
The [AV toggle] button also causes on OSD to appear which enables you to switch between the inputs: press red for AV1, green for AV2 etc.
Like your tv AV2 can be either RGB or s-video, and selecting it when it was already selected will toggle it between s-video and back again. To make sure I get the right input I pick the AV1 input first (which is RGB only) followed by AV2. That way I select the AV2 input without the risk of toggling to Svideo. You may be able to use a similar method to sort out your system.

[Richard46]

Originally Posted by ndenbow

Hmmm, I'm not convinced. I have tinkered with my 655 for about a week now, but I'm still having problems with my Panny Viera and getting it to select the correct input, especially after powering up.

Essentially the way to select an input is to press one of the four coloured buttons, BUT, three of the four have multiple options, depending on your physical connection. For instance AV3 can either be S-video or VGA, AV4 can either be S-vdeo or Component. I get very mixed mixed results. If anyone has a Viera and can shed some light on this I would be grateful.

Hi ndenbow

Not familiar with the Viera but have a Panny CRT which accesses the AV inputs in a similar way.
If the output from these AV connections (S-Video; VGA; Component; etc) is dependant on the kind of physical connexions available (as you say) then it is not dependant on the kind of remote being used. If the original remote can specify the format of the output then the Harmony can learn the relevant commands.
I suspect this is unlikely and in that event your problem lies elsewhere. For what it is worth I think part of your problem is making sure you are starting from the the right input.
Perhaps if you make a note of how you 'watch TV' with the original remote and replicating that on the start an activity (watch TV) menu might help.
Hoping this is more helpful than confusing. I nearly gave up last night but since then realised this is the best universal remote I have ever seen regardless of price.

[Richard46]

Originally Posted by jom

My Panasonic TV isn't a Plasma but the AV control sounds similar. I use a similar method to Richard46 to make sure I'm always using the right input. As long as you have a known starting point you should be OK. On my TV at power on it always defaults to the internal tuner, so all my activities that use the TV have a start activity action of [AV toggle] and an end activity action of [AV toggle]. That way I always know I'm using the scarts sockets on the TV rather than the internal tuner.
The [AV toggle] button also causes on OSD to appear which enables you to switch between the inputs: press red for AV1, green for AV2 etc.
Like your tv AV2 can be either RGB or s-video, and selecting it when it was already selected will toggle it between s-video and back again. To make sure I get the right input I pick the AV1 input first (which is RGB only) followed by AV2. That way I select the AV2 input without the risk of toggling to Svideo. You may be able to use a similar method to sort out your system.

Jom
You have mastered this great piece of kit. Understood every word you said.

Regards Richard

The Harmony is a cult item in IMHO.

[ndenbow]

Thanks guys. Some good points here. I guess it takes a little time and logical thought to get this right. I'll dedicate some time this weekend.