Looking to Control Sky and Humax signals in Conservatory from living room.

Need IR extender.

Powermid or DIGIEYE, is their any latency?

Which one is the best, or is their better?

Thanks

[dnrc]

Theres going to be latency with any of them as the signal has to be converted 3 times befor it gets to the other end.

This is hardly noticable though.

I would not of thought that there would be any difference between the systems. I eventuall went for the one from argos, for no other reason than it was easy to get hold of.

[Robst]

I have a similar problem as I have just moved my AV amp into a conservatory and no longer have line of sight access for IR signals.

I was looking at the Keene Electronics remote extender

http://www.keene.co.uk/system/keene.htm

check out the remote control section.

Any one used this device? It would appear to be a little less conspicious than the powermid type devices as the unit itself can be tucked away out of sight.

I got the PowerMid Xl from Satcure and it works great, very little latency, Humax 5400 remote does not work well with it though (because the remote itself is weak IR).

Now just got bundles of scart leads/connections to think about

[BigAde]

Robst - Are you talking about the Keene IR distribution amplifier?I've recently puchased this kit from Keene and have been very happy with it, it works perfectly. As you say, the receiver itself is fairly inconspicuous and can be hidden somewhere quite easily. You can still use it with a Powermid or similar...

Even though the unit itself has recently developed a fault and had to be returned, Keene very quickly sent out a replacement unit without a problem. Their customer service is superb and highly recommended.

[Robst]

BigAde, Thanks for your comment. It was the same Keene distribution box that I was refering to. I wonder if you can help me out as it is not clear on their website as to how long the leads are?

I assume that you need to separately purchase the input lead (a standard IR Receiver would suit my purposes), but how long are the connection leads on both the emitter wands and the input devices?

Thanks
Rob

[BigAde]

You're right, it's not clear is it? I phoned them in the end to clarify... worth doing if you're at all unsure - they were very helpful and knowledgeable.

Anyway, yes, you do need to buy either the standard or wideband receiver unit (includes lead) as well. The standard receives most IR remote signals and has good sensitivity while the wideband receives all IR remote signals but has not as good sensitivity. I went for the wideband receiver because I have a Yamaha amp and apparently some Yamaha kit works at higher IR frequencies. It works fine anyway.

The leads are not over-long. At a guess, I would say the lead from the receiver to the amp is approx 5 feet and the lead from the amp to the wands is approx 4 feet. For my needs this is fine. You can buy extension leads quite cheaply though for longer runs. You can also make your own up quite easily, or get them cheaper elsewhere (e.g. CPC, Maplin etc) - they are only standard stereo jack leads. You can always run a Powermid or similar into the input as well as/instead of the standard or wideband receiver.

I have been using Keene's IR kit for some while now with a 10M extension from the receiver to the disribution box - No problems at all. (The AV Toolbox imageMAX would only work with the 'high power' wand stuck to it's front)

Make sure that if you have a Plasma screen though, the IR receiver can't 'see' the screen as it picks up IR? interference from the plasma display.

Current System:-

Panasonic TH42PW5B Plasma
AV Toolbox-imageMAX video scaler
Denon AVR3802 Amp
Toshiba SD120E DVD
Sky + Satellite receiver
Bose System-10 surround satellite speakers
Gale 60w Sub-Woofer
Keen Electronics IR Remote extender system

[jasona9393]

I've just bought a Powermid Remote extender for tenants in a flat we rent out so they can watch satellite TV in any room (kitchen and two bedrooms).

The satellite box is in the lounge with the Powermid receiver looking at it and there are Powermid transmitters and TVs in three other rooms. The one in the room nearest the lounge works just fine, but the two in the bedrooms don't - the unit doesn't seem to have enough range to reach from the bedrooms.

Is there a way of boosting the range of these units? OR:

Is there a similar product with longer range than the Marmitek Powermid?

Many thanks in advance for any replies.

[rafsalim]

I have a plasma tv on the wall. Can someone please tell me if the powermids or digieye can be concealed behind the screen as i dont really want them on display next to the TV.

Or is the Keen system a better choice as i guess i wont have to plug a receiver into a socket?

thanks in advance
Raf