Motorola VIP2250 IR Protocol

Have I got a deal for you - Logitech Harmony Smart Control.

They have three levels. You can use any of the three.

I have the lowest level controlling three TVs, three STBs & a ZVOX sound bar.

The hand held remote does not emit IR. It communicates wi-fi with a hub. There are two mini-blasters off the hub.

You would place the hub in the closet to control the boxes there. You need to wire back to the TV to control it with a mini-blaster.

I believe you could use the wiring portion of the HDMI/IR to connect back to the TV.

Worst case - you have to run another wire.

I am not up on the difference with the two more expensive models. But, the important thing for you is at least one of them transmits IR from the hand held remote, so it can handle the TV without the extra wired connection.

One is also designed to handle the newly introduced house systems like lighting & climate control.

Here is my experience with the smart control. You can get an idea for doing more with it. Post if you have any questions.

https://forums.att.com/t5/Using-your-U-verse-TV/Logitech-Harmony-Smart-Control-Remote/m-p/4028946#M2963

I read your comprehensive post on the Logitech Harmony SC. Nice job, and it certainly sounds like the SC has fulfilled your expections, so that's encouraging. Also, clearly it works with the VIP2250 (the limiting factor in my setup), since you obviously have one, too.

I do like my Harmony 650, but I could give it up if I have to...

I wouldn't be interested in the higher-level Logitech Smart Controls, because I have no (need for) home automation (only A/V), and of course, they're more expensive.

Finally, your idea of reversing the setup and placing the hub in the media closet is very interesting; I hadn't thought about that approach. That avoids using an extender or repeater to control the VIP2250. And, I might be able to use the IR-over-HDMI trick to bring the IR from the media closet back to the living room to control my TV and a Sony HT-CT150 Sound Bar, as I would not want to run a new hardwire connection for the IR emitter(s).

UPDATE...

Well, I think I've finally solved my problem. The issue - as I suspected - was indeed the use of the RC-MM protocol by UVerse boxes, and most IR repeater/extenders' inability to faithfully reproduce it.

The key to the final solution was Infrared Resources {commercial link removed}(IR Resources) which sells a line of quality IR repeater products that work with UVerse and other problematic boxes. I purchased their IRP-BU repeater kit (cost: about $50) which is a simple device consisting of a receiver "eye" and a blaster emitter. It is self-powered, using either the included A/C adapter, or you can use USB power, if available.

Long story short, it works exactly as advertised, and has no trouble whatsoever controlling my UVerse VIP2250 box, as well as my other devices (which use a conventional IR protocol).

Now, my only remaining problem: how to control the UVerse (and DVD) box which are located in a media closet some 30' away and connected only by HDMI cables? As delivered, the IRP-BU is a short-range solution, primarily designed to control equipment located behind cabinet doors.

To solve this last problem, I used an IR-over-HDMI extender (which I had previously purchased at a cost of $25, but which had failed to work with the UVerse box, for the aforementioned reason). I used the adapters, one on each end of the HDMI cable, and plugged the IRP-BU eye and blaster into them, hijacking the HDMI's CEC wire to convey the IR signal.

It works like a champ. So for about $75 (and after a lot of trouble and research!) I have a complete remote solution that works with my Logitech Harmony 650 IR-only remote. I love this remote, and the response is very snappy; commands are executed immediately and accurately. I couldn't be happier with the final result.

Thanks for posting your end result. Always good to hear solutions that work that may help another in a similar situation. Solutions are out there. It takes a lot of looking to find them.

BluesBrother,

WOuld you be able to tell me how you hooked up the Eye blaster kit to the IR over HDMI kit? I recently switched to AT&T and I experienced the same problem. I am just not sure how I need to hookup the IR over HDMI that I currently have to the Eye blaster kit you are talking about.

Thank you,

Nirmall

Hi, Nirmall,

The IR-over-HDMI extenders are relatively inexpensive, made in China, and sold in the US under various brand names. They're all pretty much the same, and consist of a pair of connectors with a switch and a mini phone jack. You insert one connector in each end of the HDMI cable, between the cable and the HDMI device. Basically, the objective is to give you access to the HDMI cable.

The extender kit comes with its own IR repeater, but this won't work with AT&T equipment (which is the problem we're trying to solve). So I purchased a special IR repeater ("blaster") that is designed and guaranteed to work with AT&T equipment.

The HDMI pin-out spec includes the following:

Pin 13 - CEC, a reserved line used for command-and-control of HDMI devices

Pin 17 - GND

Most equipment doesn't use Pin 13. The purpose of the switch is to disconnect Pin 13 from your HDMI equipment, so that you can use Pin 13 for whatever other purposes you desire. In my case, I use it to connect the IR blaster's receiver (which receives signals from your IR remote) to the IR blaster's repeater, which relays these signals to the remote HDMI equipment to be controlled (in my case, and AT&T Motorola VIP2250 Receiver).

So, essentially, you hijack Pin 13 of the HDMI cable to connect your repeater's receiver and transmitter. You gain access to this pin using the connector's mini-phone plug. 

Hello, thanks for sharing your experience.  I'm running into the same dilemma.  I was previously using the Sewell InjectIR Pro, IR over HDMI cable with a different cable provider.  Worked just fine then, but switched to U-Verse and no longer works with the VIP 2250.  

I am considering doing the same thing you did, as I imagine the Sewell IR/HDMI product is similar to the Monoprice one you are using and would pair fine with the IRP-BU repeater.  I'm looking at the IRP-BU product now, and I have a few questions for you.

Did you use both ends of the IRP-BU, the receiver and the transmitter?  If so, how did you connect the receiving end to the IR/HDMI adapter.  It doesn't appear to have a plug on that end, so if you used it, did you splice wires together?  On the transmitting end, did you just unplug from the IRP-BU and insert that existing 1/8" plug into the IR/HDMI adapter?  

What about the power supply that comes with the IRP-BU product?  Did you need this, or did you simply use the receiver and/or transmitter and discard the rest?  

ClemsonTiger:

I used the power adapter that came with the IRP-BU, and yes, I just plugged it into the IR-over-HDMI extender.

You are correct about the receiver end, however. I was forced to open it up and do some splicing, as I didn't see any other way of using it. The case took some effort to "open" (I had to slice along the seam with a utility knife) and the circuit board inside is tiny, so it required some fine soldering to "patch" into it.

As an aside, I switched from UVerse to DirecTV about a year-and-a-half ago, and so I no longer have the Motorola VIP-2250 (and the IR protocol issues that came with it). Instead, I now have a whole-house Genie, but I'm still using exactly the same setup for remote IR, and it works fine.

Here is a diagram of my hook-up using the IRP-BU over an HDMI cable:

BluesBrother:

Thanks a million!  Your explanation and diagram are extremely helpful. 

I went ahead and purchased the Sewell BlastIR Pro, which they guarantee will work for RC-MM signals (i.e. VIP 2250). Similar to your setup, I plan to use that in conjunction with Sewell's InjectIR over HDMI, which I already have.  Assuming I test the BlastIR Pro by itself and that it works, I see no reason why inserting HDMI into the middle of the line wouldn't work (basically using InjectIR/HDMI as an extension between the receiving and transmitting ends of BlastIR Pro).

Anyway, I figured I'd keep with the same brand in hopes that the 3.5 mm connectors allow me to "plug and play."

Thanks again!  I'll keep you posted on how this turns out as I'm sure you're curious by now, even though you've moved away from needing this setup.   

You're welcome; glad it was helpful.

Sounds like a plan to me: test the IR setup by itself first, to rule out any potential issues with RC-MM. Then, if that works, passing the signal over HDMI should introduce no issues whatsoever. I know for a fact (based on my own setup) that I can faithfully pass the IR signal over 30' of HDMI cable.

Good luck! (and yes, let us know if it worked for you)