URC MRF100B PowerBlaster For Use w/ MasterControl RF Series Remotes

by Universal

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 5 x 3.5 x 0.8 inches ; 5.6 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B000FYZ33A
• Item model number: MRF100B
• Batteries: 2 AAA batteries required. (included)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,165 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: September 14, 2004

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

When used in combination with PowerBlaster™, a MasterControl™ RF series remote control (RF10, RF20, RF30) becomes an amazing remote control powerhouse that sends multi-directional RF (Radio Frequency) signals that pass through walls, doors and floors – both indoors and outdoors. It enables you to control components that are completely out-of-sight, up to 100’ away. The PowerBlaster picks up RF remote control radio frequency signals from any direction, regardless of distance, so the remote doesn’t need to be pointed directly at any component. Just imagine – no more pointing. Now you can close your entertainment center doors, hide your components, and still control them with ease. Control outdoor speakers on your patio. Control your components anywhere!

RF Remotes are Ready to Go
One of the best things about this is — nothing has to be done to the remotes themselves for this feature to work. Every time you press a button on one of the MasterControl RF series remotes, it sends both a standard IR (Infrared Command) AND an RF (Radio Frequency) signal. When you install the PowerBlaster kit, it will automatically receive radio signals from RF series remotes and translate them into the infrared commands that control your components.

Quick Setup DVD Guide Makes Installation Easy
The Quick Setup DVD Guide will assist you in setting up PowerBlaster to work with your RF series remotes by guiding you through an easy step-by-step process. This Owner’s Manual is designed as a companion reference source to the DVD Setup Guide, should you need to refer back to a particular section, or review certain instruction detail not covered in the DVD. However, if you are unable to watch the DVD Guide for some reason, everything you need to know about setting up PowerBlaster is contained in the included manual.

Product Description

PowerBlaster is the RF power base used with all MasterControl RF remotes. Picks up RF signals through walls, doors, floors - indoors and outdoors. Hide your components in the entertainment center or a cabinet. Use your remote outdoors on the patio, deck or porch. Up to 100'.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Base Station Not Addressable, October 27, 2009

By 

R. Davidson (Chappaqua, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

The device seems to work reasonably well if you play around to position it. One big problem I encountered - the MFR100B device isn't addressable. So if you have two rooms on the same floor, each with its own compatible remote and base station, you may see cross-talk where the remote in one room changes the TV in the other room. You'll need the MFR350 or MFR260 devices which have "addressable" base stations to assign a channel to a single remote.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Here's a bit more info..., April 5, 2009

By 

Tim Naff "Tim" (Huntsville, AL USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: URC MRF100B PowerBlaster For Use w/ MasterControl RF Series Remotes (Electronics)

I'm sure you understand that the way these things work is that the RF10, 20 or 30 remote sends an RF signal that is picked up by the PowerBlaster. It blasts out a very strong, very wide beam of IR that can bounce around and operate your IR-controllable equipment. It also has these little plug in flashers that you can tape to your equipment.

You might be scared off by the one reviewer who said he taped the little plug-in flashers onto his equipment items' IR windows. Of course, if you do that, the remote that came with your equipment will be blocked. The good news is that I've been using PowerBlasters for years and never had to do that. In all but one case, I could just put a PowerBlaster BESIDE the equipment, and it would generate enough IR to bounce off virtually anything in front of the equipment and do its job. I've had it bouncing off glass, a curtain, a door, and even a wall that's 14 feet across a room. Talk about ease of installation! All you do is plug these things in and they start working.

I'm not saying a single PowerBlaster is going to completely flood a large room or bounce IR around corners or whatever. It will normally work within a closet or cabinet or enclosed part of an entertainment center or with one bounce off a wall without a problem.

I've had situations in which these things were too good. I've got a home theater upstairs and a regular flat-panel in the den, and both are set up with URC RF remotes. My bride was turning on and programing the cable DVR box downstairs, and the PowerBlaster upstairs was doing the same to the box upstairs. For awhile, I couldn't figure out why All My Children kept showing up on recorded shows upstairs! My solution to this was to plug the two PowerBlasters upstairs into a switched outlet on the receiver. That way, they would be out of commission until I turned on the receiver, which I normally do manually anyway. Now the recorded Soaps stay downstairs where they belong. I'm happy to say that the IR will not go through curtains. If it did, I'd have another conflict like that one.

I should explain why I needed two PowerBlasters for the upstairs theater. I have one on the equipment rack behind the curtain. I have another sitting under the screen facing back toward the projector. The projector has a box that moves a lens back and forth in front of the projector. The box is only controllable by an IR remote. The sensor in the box is recessed, so I needed to get IR from the front of the room. This was the one time that a wall bounce wouldn't do the job. I tried bouncing off the screen in front of the projector, and it didn't work. I have to say however that the little box in question is pretty insensitive, even to its own remote.

So there it is. I'm a great believer in the URC system. I've got much more expensive remotes that I don't use, because The URCs are so reliable.

I have four remotes and four blasters in play right now, and I'm about to expand again. I'm going to use them to control the theater lighting, which is already set up with z-wave technology. No, these particular URC devices aren't z-wave compatible, but I can buy an IR remote for my Lutron z-wave system, use it to teach a URC RF-30, and let the PowerBlaster take it to the Lutron IR sensor.

I can't imagine that you'll be disappointed with the PowerBlasters. They are a solid capability at an outstanding price.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Works great with the RF10 remote, January 26, 2009

By 

BaileysMom (CNY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: URC MRF100B PowerBlaster For Use w/ MasterControl RF Series Remotes (Electronics)

My husband loves gadgets, I hate clutter. This was the perfect solution, however neither of us expected it to work. Well...we were wrong. All our components are hidden in a closet about 15 feet away from where we use the remote. We even went outside (about 30 feet away and through several walls) and it still worked great. We didn't need any of the probes, the powerblaster transmits the signal to all the components perfectly. I am so glad we tried these before buying the Logitech.