Customer Reviews

Universal Remote Control MX-350 Osiris IR/RF Remote Control ( 8056 )

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I bought two of these remotes with a pair of base stations for the two home theatres in my home. I have multiple components in each system, and custom built-in cabinets hide all the components except for the TVs. Since these remotes use radio frequency (RF) instead of (or in addition to) infrared (IR) pulses, I now can use my theatres while keeping the cabinet doors shut for a tidy appearance. They have multiple channels so it's possible to use many systems in the same home without interference. No PC is necessary for setting them up. There are some tips on the remote control forums online if you have a question not answered in the user's guide. Overall, worthwhile for an average user with multiple components -- especially if you need RF capability.

I am a gadget person and own two URC remotes, a Harmony remote, plus lots of other universal remotes. This is by far the best.

Setup is not super easy, so if you are not very technically inclined, you might have some problems, but if you follow the instructions and spend the time to set this remote up correctly, it will work great. I have a very complicated setup with a TV in one part of the room and a receiver for sound and cable box in a closet. I tried other RF remotes and IR senders, but they all "over blasted" the equipment in the closet. Since the Osiris lets you specify which blasters fire for which command, it works nearly flawlessly with all my hidden devices. You can record macros and rename the soft buttons to simulate activities, like "WatchDVD" or "CableTV", etc.

For Dish Satellite customers: this remote is NOT compatible with remote 2 RF (i.e. sending Dish commands to the set top box via radio waves). It is compatible with remote 1 Infrared (IR). You can use this remote if you are in the same room as the Dish set top box, but if you are several rooms away and use the original Dish RF remote (usually labeled 2) to control the Dish set top box, you will probably be out of luck.

We've been using this remote for nearly two years, and it works quite well. It's flexible, reliable and does everything we want it to do. The backlight works well, making the display and the buttons perfectly legible in a dark room. This (to me) was one of the most significant differences between the more-expensive MX-350 and several other models from the same manufacturer with the same basic button/display layout.

The range is more than adequate for our (very average) needs. I've tested it at nearly 30 feet with well-used batteries, and it works fine. Battery life is quite good, though I have little to compare it with besides the older MX-500 that we replaced with this unit. And we don't use the backlight very often, as we have the button positions memorized for the most frequently used buttons.

We use our MX-350 to operate our plasma TV, A/V receiver, cable box, BluRay player, an old VCR, and even a remote-controlled dimmer switch that controls the lights inside our entertainment center.

Macro programming on the remote is a bit tedious, and would no doubt be easier if it could be done using a computer, but for me it's not much of an issue. I knew quite well what I wanted the macros to do when I bought the remote, so there wasn't much need to experiment. Just follow the directions, and it works perfectly. Once done, it's done. I haven't had to go back and mess with programming again since we added the new BluRay player -- and even that was simple.

We have not used the RF capability at all, so I can offer no comments on that.

This remote is a good remote. I was able to sync this remote with all my components which was quite a few. I like all the options it has. I did have to go through all of the codes to sync up some of the components. Don't give up just keep trying. It is a little time consuming to get quite a few components synced up.

The only thing I didn't expect and the reason I rated it 4 stars... I had to purchase a rf/ir signal booster(an extra $25) which takes in a rf command and translates it to ir. It was placed in my closet with most of my compnonents. After the signal is translated through the booster, it shoots a signal which bounces of the (closet)walls and commands the other components. That's why I say it needed a little help. If this was talked about in the description of this product, I might have went with a remote/booster combo which is available or I would have atleast known that I needed this so I wouldn't have to then research this and order and wait for delivery.

My daughter owned one of these remotes and recommended it to me. This is the best remote that I have ever had. The setup was extremely easy and works excellent with all of my equipment. The layout of the buttons is a little bit for me not too good but that could be that I need to get use to it because of being use to all of the other remotes that I was using before. Overall I love the remote.

Great little remote.

An older model yet does basically everything you need with a 5-7 component system. I didn't bother plugging in/searching remote codes, just rather performed the direct "learning" function using all the equipment remotes. Went fast and easy. Everything worked the first time. Both selectable IR and RF work great. I paired with an MFR-350 and it works through-out the house.

Works just as advertised!

top level w/o using computer program. Can be difficult to program, very flexible but tedious. Will operate w/ RF.

The MX-350 is a great remote control,easy to program,good feel and the rf feature works great.The remote works with my old Radio Shack remote extenders.You have to go to the top of the line of Harmony to get rf.

I was able to set up this remote in about 15 minutes. It was extremely easy and has gotten rid of the regular evening hunt for 15 remotes. It allows you to program shortcuts so you can tailor it to how your entertainment system is configured. Glad we bought it and can keep our umpteen other remotes stashed away in a box in the closet now.

I bought a more expensive MX-900 which is computer programmable. I would prefer a Harmony in the Osiris price bracket.