fgarib Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 Hey there! Trivial, but interesting. While shifting my HT into the other room in order to be able to have a dedicated listening area for my Khorns, I somehow ended up with my Marantz HT receiver sitting next to an Arcam A80 that I was testing on the Horns. I was quite freaked out when, upon turning the Arcam off with the remote, the Marantz turned on! I found that all the many remote controllable functions common between the two were able to be controlled by each others' remotes. Is that common? I would think there are so many thousands (if not more) of frequencies that IR can work on, how would this happen? -F Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myhamish Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 Hi fgarib, Interesting little phenomenom you have happening there. Reminds me of about 20 years ago, down in Toronto, over North York, people's garage doors would mysteriously open in the middle of the night or during the day. After a while, they figured it out. The jets coming in to land at the airport were setting them off. Other story is years ago, in the '60's, when my Uncle's Oldsmobile (not my father's) was parked next to my Dad's Chrysler. Each set of keys would open the other car. Take care and have a great Holiday. Hamish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WMcD Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 Hmm, I have not seen that exactly. But something like it. It is correct that different component boxes use different codes, rather than frequencies. They all use the same "frequency" of IR. For example, some friends bought an aftermarket remote to replace a lost one. It was necessary to go through a number of tests to get it to control the TV. I.e. try a number of settings (of codes) and see which one will trigger the IR controlled set up on the TV. In that case the test was what turns the unit on. Then the rest of the codes are the right ones. So I'd infer there are unique on-off settings. There are also "learning" remote controls which can copy the output codes of an existing remote, and thereby replace it. I have seen one behaviour like you issue. That is when you have a remote which can control several components. I.e. amp, CD, TV. There is some switch or buttons to set the remote to the codes for each component. But there is also what I'll call a "system on key" which is meant to power up (or shut down) all components at once. This was a cable box controller, specifically. In any event, it actually seems to toggle the components from off to on, and vice versa. Just to change the "state" of the components. Therefore is one is on and the other off, it changes both to off and on, respectively. Maybe that is what you're experiencing. As usual, checking the instructions may help. They're often on a website. Best, Gil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boom3 Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 IR remotes all work on a narrow band of frequencies, which in the case of near-light energy, are specified as the wavelength, since the frequencies are up in the TeraHertz region and the notation gets unwieldy. IR remotes work by sending a series of pulses of a given frequency to the IR phototransistor on the receiver, which are then decoded to execute the desired function. This is why many remotes can 'learn' the functions of another remote by counting the pulses from the originating remote and associating them with a given function. In thsi case, a given series of pulses meant ON to one component, but meant OFF to another. Remote control has an interesting history. Low Frequency RF, visible light, ultrasonic, IR and UHF RF have all been tried for remote operation. IR's non-interference with RF devices and its containment within the boundaries of aroom is the main reason it was adopted in the 1970s as the mode of choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dodger Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 It can be more common than thought, a short simple answer. It's similar to running into someone that looks either like you or someone you know. As long as it does not cause problems, it's a neat quirk to own. With my McIntosh MC-60s, the only person that I would let work on them also owned a pair. I was over one night and he looked at the serial number of one of mine. In the pair he owned at that time, one of his was the next consecutive serial number. dodger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fgarib Posted December 23, 2004 Author Share Posted December 23, 2004 Hmmm... I think I may not have clearly showed what was happening. ALL the controls of the Marantz (i.e., volume, source, power, etc.) were able to be controlled by the Arcam remote, and vice versa. I would imagine that manufacturers would have a number of different "combinations" of frequencies or signals for the different operations of the remote. How is it possible that two very different manufacturers from two different countries would end up with all the same signals for all the same functions of two very different amps? I would imagine the answer is no quirk of nature, but perhaps testament to the fact that a lot of manufacturers are now using generic pre-assembled components to their products. I wouldn't be surprised if the insides of the two remotes are actually generic Asian components bought from the same source. -F Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dodger Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 About 15 years ago, you could have a wireless Passive Infra-Red Detector (PIR) for an alarm system. As long as it was made in the U.S., there was ONE company that made them. It's changed. Wouldn't doubt that the same Company made both. dodger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fgarib Posted December 23, 2004 Author Share Posted December 23, 2004 ---------------- On 12/23/2004 10:32:58 AM dodger wrote: In the pair he owned at that time, one of his was the next consecutive serial number. --------------- Wow! Do you get more "small-worldly" than that!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.