URC-6430 One For All Simple 3 Universal Remote

[darkdreamingdan]

Hi Guys

Like many others I suspect, I've got a Vu+ Solo2 connected to an old sattelite feed, and have the Blue-HD theme to keep things as familiar as possible. I needed to replace my remote, but thought it would be an idea to try an alternative remote instead of the VU+ remote - the layout of which i was never a fan of.

The objective was to find the most sly-like "wife-proof" remote that could work well with my Vu+ Solo2. This rules out the excellent Logitech Harmony. I did some research, and the best remote i narrowed it down to two:
URC1660: This looks a LOT like a Sky+ remote, and would be perfect. Unfortunately discontinued and lack of good support
URC1666: New version, it doesn't look like Sky+ as much anymore, and key buttons like "Back" are moved and menu buttons are far away. Also doesn't support Vu. Not a fan of the layout.
URC6430: Doesn't look much like a Sky+ remote, but is quite similar in layout. Supports VU Duo, but not Solo2 - has a USB interface for upgrades.

I bought URC6430 because One-For-All had told me it supported VU Duo - this is Remote Code Channel 1. It's a nice meaty remote and feels great in the hand. It did work out of the box after programming for VU Duo, but not very well (some bad choice in key assignment, and it would mean i have to change the channel of my old remotes). For my Solo2, I ended up going to the excellent forum over at hifi-remote.com. They've released some excellent tools to programme the remotes in great detail (much better than the pathetic official website) - in particular a tool called Remote Master which let's you do Harmony-level customisations.

Anyway - tldr, i've developed a profile for Vu Solo2 which works great for this remote, with the following features/notes:

• The "Setup" button discrete powers on my TV, VU+, and sets my TV Channel. This is programmed for Samsung TVs and HDMI1, but could be modified for any tv. Note the challenge here was making sure the VU/TV always powers on, and doesnt just power toggle.
• "TEXT" button has been mapped to Subtitles. Who even uses Teletext anymore?
• "Info" button mapped to "Help". Useful for any uncommon functions missing on the remote (TV, RADIO, AUDIO)
• "List" button maps to recordings.
• "Return" (PrevCh) key has been mapped to Zap <
• Volume keys always operate the TV volume, not Vu+'s.
• Power button turns the TV off, not Vu+. I use HDMI-CEC to turn off the box when the TV turns off.
• AV button always operates the TV's AV, and is not assigned to a Vu+ function.

The key thing is the 'Setup' button being able to forcefully turn on the TV and Vu+ box - this took some trial and error since there aren't any discrete power on codes for Vu+.. The discrete power code only works for deep standby, so i use the STOP key as an alternate power on key by making the following /usr/share/enigma2/keymap.xml changes:
Under <map context="GlobalActions">

		<key id="KEY_STOP" mapto="discrete_on" flags="m"/>

Under <map context="StandbyActions">:

		<key id="KEY_STOP" mapto="discrete_on" flags="m"/>

Additionally, to navigate categories in Graphical EPG (since there are no < > Zap keys) we use Rewind/Forward. Under <map context="EPGSelectActions">:

		<key id="KEY_REWIND" mapto="prevBouquet" flags="m"/>
		<key id="KEY_FASTFORWARD" mapto="nextBouquet" flags="m"/>

Anyway, I realise I've written an autobiography here, but I've posted this for anyone else looking for a Sly-like remote that works well with Solo2. You can download my Remote Control configuration - View attachment settings.zip - simply copy it into the remote control flash memory with the USB cable. Note, this was programmed for my personal setup - which is a Samsung TV and Vu+ Solo2. You can easily replace the TV programming using instructions in the manual - however the magic "Setup" button which force powers on the TV, HDMI1 will need hacking to work for your TV, but it's really not hard for anyone semi-tech savvy.

I thought this might be useful to anyone wanting to achieve something similar to me. I've also made lots of tweaks using Vix's own button configuration and Multi Quick Button plugin, but that's up to you. I hope this helps someone.

Next challenge would be to try and reprogramme the Sky+ remote itself...i think it should be possible

 

[twol]

Have to say I bought the one-for-all original URC Xsight remote with colour touch screen and rechargeable battery some 8-9 years ago (it made the Harmony look like some stone age brick...and still does).. Too advanced for its own own good unfortunately.
I only stopped using it when all our lounge gear went behind closed doors and I changed to the Ipad app Roomie remote using the IP interface on most devices to control them.
URC unfortunately never matched logitech,s Marketing clout ... Which is why they ended up on top... Another case of European( I think Dutch) innovation losing out.