Sony RMAV3100 Fully Editable Remote

Rating:
Summary: Disapointed
Review: I should have researched this remote better, but being a BIG Sony fan I trusted in their description. This remote is a nightmare to program! The manual is complicated and hard to understand, and online support is not much help.
The screen freezes while programming, it's hard to clear and it's complicated to use.
Figure I'll try it for a month If my wife can't use it I'll be selling it on EBay!

Rating:
Summary: A master controller for the multiple gear Media room.
Review: I spent alot of time with this remote and its instruction book.
I found it to do everthing I asked of it. I was easy to program non-Sony gear(I dont own any Sony Gear). I found it faster and easier to program each command button exactly how I wanted it.
I adjusted it for multiple tasks on a single button push.
Example, push (SYSTEM1) button and it goes into my theatre mode.
The single one button command..turns on monitor, switches monitor input, turns on DVD, turns on Amp, adjust amps volume, adjust amps sound field, dims lights. It would do more but this is all I needed it to do in this single command. It was easy to program this multiple comand.
Reading the "Instruction Book" from cover to cover, first, was the key to understanding how this flexable remote worked.

Rating:
Summary: MR-AV3100 Review
Review: I was disappointed. I should have spent more time searching for user reviews of this model and its predecessor. Briefly, pre-program commands were limited, the unit froze occasionally during programming, the buttons were not backlit, and the touch panel, although adjustable, didn't have sufficient contrast.

While the remote can be programmed to handle almost any piece of equipment, the pre-programmed equipment codes are limited. For those that are present, common commands were sometimes missing for my non-Sony equipment. For non-Sony equipment, no separate on and off commands were included.

The component selector buttons are pre-programmed with Sony codes. If your piece of equipment is not listed, it is best to clear the equipment selector button completely before learning the commands from your equipment's remote, as apposed to replacing the Sony commands on one by one basis using the learning function.

The manual is tedious but thorough. An overview of the steps needed to program the remote would have reduced frustration. If you haven't programmed a remote, plan on investing some quiet hours reading the manual.

Occasionally, the unit completely froze while erasing learned key commands or groups. Freezing was common during erasure of learned commands assigned to the remote's volume up and down buttons or the buttons in the ring shaped grouping. Battery removal/re-insertion cleared the freeze. Repeating the operation repeated the freeze. Erasing an entire group, such as TV, without erasing all the learned commands within the group sometimes froze the unit. Erasing all the learned commands within the TV group individually, before clearing the TV button, eliminated the freeze problem but the TV button then refused to accept a new equipment code. Clearing the ENTIRE remote proved necessary to resolve the problem.

On one occasion the unit froze when a button for a learned command was pushed. Clearing the entire remote was required was required to eliminate the problem.

After finding these defects, I found a user forum where users of earlier Sony models had complained about the same things. In my opinion, this new model is truly defective and should be taken off the market until fixed. Alternatively, these defects should be included in Sony's product literature so the public knows before they buy. If you buy one, I suggest you write your planned key assignments and macros down first. Do not attempt do to anything "on the fly" or you won't know what to avoid if the unit freezes.

Rating:
Summary: Satisfied, despite the reviews
Review: I was hesitant to purchase this product based upon some of the reviews that I read about it being buggy and freezing and things such as that, but I did anyway because it seemed that it would do exactly what I wanted for a good price.

Before making my purchase, I read reviews on this site as well as a troubleshooting forum and determined that most of the problems being experienced were user error and could be avoided.

When I received the package I immediately opened it and started looking through the manual for the portions that pertained to me and how I was going to use the remote. I entered the codes given for my listed devices and tested them. My TV however didn't have a listed code, but the instructions on how to find a devices frequency worked flawlessly and my TV was programmed with basic functionality within minutes. I had all of my devices (Technics receiver, Sony DVD, Phillips Tivo, and Sansui TV) all working on the remote within an hour.

Since I have had the remote about a month I have continually tweaked the functions of the devices controlled, often times using learning from my OEM remote to the Remote Commander (RMAV3100) and and continually satisfied with it's performance.

I upgraded my receiver to a Harman Kardon AVR series and have changed the AMP functionality over to it instead of the Technics. Just entering the code for the device didn't give me everything that I wanted to control with the remote, but with a little thought, tweaking, and remote learning I have programmed it to do everything and I no longer use the OEM remotes unless it's to learn a buttons function.

Information that I gleaned from forums to avoid problems:
When you change the batteries, remove all of the old ones and throw them away. Wait at least 20 seconds before installing any batteries. Then replace the batteries with all new and fresh AA's.

I did have the remote freeze up when I hit a newly learned button from the new receiver. When this occurred I removed the backing, removed the batteries, and waited 2 minutes before replacing them, just to be safe. Then I started the remote back up, deleted the offending button, relearned it, and have had no problems whatsoever since then.

Rating:
Summary: good remote
Review: I'm not sure why alot of people are complaining about this remote. It's actually really easy to use the learning function to program your components. If you can read a picture book you can use the manual to program this thing. All you have to do is press "commander off" and "muting" at the same time to go into setup mode. Click on "learning", then click on the component you want to program (tv, cable, whatever). Then press the key (power) on the touchscreen and hold your remote facing the commander and press "power" on your old remote. Do that for each function you want your commander to learn. I have no sony components, but I programmed 5 devices in like 15 minutes. Yes the instruction manual is lengthy, I think it's like 80 pages. However, half of the pages are taken up with diagrams and whatnot. So.......if you can read a picture book you can program your sony commander. I think alot of reviewers just like to complain. I bought a 42 inch samsung plasma and one of the reviewers complained that the power light was too bright. Kept him up all night supposedly, meanwhile it was no brighter than the time on any normal alarm clock.

Rating:
Summary: Good Remote - Lousy Documentation
Review: The remote works fine for my mostly Sony systems. Programming does take some time and will require supplemental advice beyond the provided manual (go to remotecentral.com for manual corrections and elaborations). If you own a late-model Sony receiver, you need to change the receiver to AV1 mode before the remote will communicate with it.

Lots of flexibility in programing and assigning alias functions to the controls. One button to turn all systems on/off, volume controls can be set to only operate your receiver volume control. My family loves the fact that this remote is very simple to operate once programmed - only 27 hard buttons vs 50+ on most programable remotes. The rest of the functions (infrequently used) are on the touch screen. Good design, lousy manual.

Rating:
Summary: Broke after three months
Review: This remote worked fine until shortly after three months from purchase. One day it simply stopped working without warning. I've changed batteries and still it will not operate. Stay away from this product.