IR and RF Remotes in MDU

[DirecTv Chicago]

I have a building where a tenant has an HR20 receiver and the channels, power, etc keep changing on him. I have confirmed that his remote is IR and that his receiver it set to receiver IR signals only.

It obviously sounds like someone with a Universal or RF remote which is programmed to the same frequency as his receiver/tv. But if his receiver is set to IR only why would this happen?

From what he is explaining to me it doesn't sound like it is random actions where the box may just be flaking out. He sees the numbers being punched on the screen and the receiver switching to that station. He sees the guide being checked, etc.

Has anyone else had this problem in the past and what may be the solution.

[carl6]

An RF remote should only work with a receiver that has the specific last 6 digits of the Receiver ID Number (RID) that were programmed into the RF remote.

IR interference can come from a variety of sources, including back light or mood light from some TV models, flourecsent lights, etc.

It could be a defective HR20.

Perhaps the easiest "fix" would be to switch that customer to an RF remote if you have one available, and see if that addresses the problem.

Carl

[swaptech]

There is a way to change the frequency of the RF remote. the RF are shipped with a factory setting and the reason I know this is that I awned 2 and the kept changing both tuners. D* walked me through a simple remote setup that changed the frequency of the main reciever and it took care of it.

[RobertE]

There is a way to change the frequency of the RF remote. the RF are shipped with a factory setting and the reason I know this is that I awned 2 and the kept changing both tuners. D* walked me through a simple remote setup that changed the frequency of the main reciever and it took care of it.

The only way it was changing both boxes in RF mode if by some freak of nature, you had two boxes with the same last six digits of the RID. Should have bought a lotto ticket that day.

More likely, you had the remote in IR mode.

[DirecTv Chicago]

The only way it was changing both boxes in RF mode if by some freak of nature, you had two boxes with the same last six digits of the RID. Should have bought a lotto ticket that day.

More likely, you had the remote in IR mode.

Thats what I thought at first but I checked to see what his box was set to and it is set to IR only. So the RF shouldn't be working at all. I recommended that the customer get his own RF remote and kit so he can set it to a different frequency.

[AntAltMike]

There are certain fluorescent lights that emit a harmonic of light frequencies used by some IR controlled devices. Either Popular Science or Electronics now had an article on the subject back in the mid-1990s. The ones they identified as troublemakers were branded LOA (light of America).

Last year, I had trouble with DISH Network Model 2800 receivers changing channels in a headend. The cause was the non-standard 4' ceiling light fluorescent tubes. I didn't note the manufacturer or model, but they were narrower than the industry-standard 4' bulbs.

It turned out that when the lights were turned off and on, the receiver took it as a single digit channel number entry, and if no successive channel number entry was made within a few seconds, the receiver then defaulted to the lowest channel in the guide, which I think was Home Shopping Network on channel 86.

I've had more trouble with background lighting locking up IR extenders. Apparently, if there is a low level of offending-frequency light present, one can sometimes send a single command through such a device, but the extender receiver can't process a new command until the background level light is interrupted.

Last time I checked, there were a lot fewer companies making IR extenders, and I suspect that those who exited the business might have done so because of a high incidence of phantom problems that they couldn't remedy to the customer's satisfaction.