# Tivo Roamio with Harmony 900 RF remote



## najenagold (Mar 15, 2013)

Since the new Tivo Roamio supports RF, I decided to buy a Harmony 900 that also supports RF. Problem is 2 fold:

Logitech doesn't have the Roamio yet in their database and when it wants you to program it, it uses IR....

Am I missing something? Do I have to wait on Logitech? I don't want to connect all the IR/RF dongles and such since they wouldn't be needed.

Thanks.


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## consumedsoul (Jan 13, 2013)

najenagold said:


> Since the new Tivo Roamio supports RF, I decided to buy a Harmony 900 that also supports RF. Problem is 2 fold:
> 
> Logitech doesn't have the Roamio yet in their database and when it wants you to program it, it uses IR....
> 
> ...


Related question - how do we know when a device is added to Logitech's 'database'? I'm using the Logitech Harmony Remote Software on the Mac.


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## fdisker2000 (Nov 27, 2006)

najenagold said:


> Since the new Tivo Roamio supports RF, I decided to buy a Harmony 900 that also supports RF. Problem is 2 fold:
> 
> Logitech doesn't have the Roamio yet in their database and when it wants you to program it, it uses IR....
> 
> ...


I don't have a Roamio but I have years experience with Harmony remotes (especially the 900). There is no standard for RF, the 900 is compatible with the Z Wave protocol(lights, etc.) and I doubt the Roamio uses that protocol. The 900 is supposed to be used with the Harmony RF Extender, that receives the RF signal from the remote and uses IR blasters to control AV equipment.


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## Kolenka (Jan 2, 2013)

consumedsoul said:


> Related question - how do we know when a device is added to Logitech's 'database'? I'm using the Logitech Harmony Remote Software on the Mac.


Can't really know without checking. Kinda sucks.

However, as fdisker2000 points out, RF isn't standard. There's really not any benefit to waiting for the model to show up. The existing IR commands should work just fine.


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## Beryl (Feb 22, 2009)

I'd think almost any TiVo model would work. I didn't change my definitions and my harmony remotes worked with the Roamio. I used the same definition for the Premiere, HDLX, and now the Roamio.


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## najenagold (Mar 15, 2013)

Well now I'm totally bummed. For some reason I thought the 900 had RF support built into it, not through an adapter that still uses IR 

The new Tivo RF remote is super responsive. I just can't replace my Harmony


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## Kolenka (Jan 2, 2013)

najenagold said:


> Well now I'm totally bummed. For some reason I thought the 900 had RF support built into it, not through an adapter that still uses IR
> 
> The new Tivo RF remote is super responsive. I just can't replace my Harmony


RF is not a cure-all for responsiveness. The TiVo IR remote is very responsive as well, and doesn't need RF to achieve it. The main benefit of RF is not needing visible line-of-sight to the sensor more than any other reason.

As a former 900 owner myself, it is a pretty laggy remote if you are using the RF->IR blaster. Straight IR is the better option, despite the main feature being the RF->IR blaster. I replaced it a while back with an Ultimate for a few different reasons, and was happy when I found out that despite using a hub, it was very responsive. Fast enough to keep up with the TiVo remote no sweat. May not be terribly helpful in your situation, though.


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## brianm729 (Jul 11, 2013)

Has anyone been able to add a Roamio as a device to their account yet? I am using my 900 programed with a series 3 but still missing the a b c d and the new back buttons. I would rather the 900 use rf to the Roamio directly, but it sounds like Ill only be able to do rf to ir. I like the responsiveness of the new TiVo remote over rf, but I've had a lot of commands dropped and it is frustrating. It seems the range isn't as good as the 900.


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## Kolenka (Jan 2, 2013)

brianm729 said:


> Has anyone been able to add a Roamio as a device to their account yet? I am using my 900 programed with a series 3 but still missing the a b c d and the new back buttons. I would rather the 900 use rf to the Roamio directly, but it sounds like Ill only be able to do rf to ir. I like the responsiveness of the new TiVo remote over rf, but I've had a lot of commands dropped and it is frustrating. It seems the range isn't as good as the 900.


The only new button on the S5 is the back button. The other buttons are on the Premiere line as well. You can configure the TiVo as a premiere and get 99% of the way there that way.

I wonder if the Roamio remote can be used in IR mode to learn the back button command... hmm.... (EDIT: Probably not, ugh. Can try tonight when I get mine, but that'd be a bummer to have to wait to find out what the IR code is for that button). But it also makes me wonder if the Ultimate will eventually support straight BT connectivity to the TiVo like it does for the Wii (U) and the PS3.


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## nyctwc (Apr 6, 2010)

The Harmony 900 is super slow compared to Tivo's new RF remote. Tivo's remote is instantaneous and you can fly through menus. Every press of the 900 adds about a half second delay. I just uninstalled my 900 last night.


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## Kolenka (Jan 2, 2013)

nyctwc said:


> The Harmony 900 is super slow compared to Tivo's new RF remote. Tivo's remote is instantaneous and you can fly through menus. Every press of the 900 adds about a half second delay. I just uninstalled my 900 last night.


I did the same months ago, although I swapped it out for the Ultimate when I saw reviews on how much better it performed. And it does blow the 900 away... but so did the Harmony One's IR. There is definitely something wrong with the design of the 900's RF bridge that is adding the lag.

EDIT: After a little playing, I had no trouble learning the "Back" button from the new remote. It will re-send a failed RF command via IR, and so if you get the remote far enough away from the Roamio, or turn the Roamio off, you can force it to send IR commands to your Harmony to learn. Worked like a charm.


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## joneric (Sep 1, 2013)

Kolenka said:


> I did the same months ago, although I swapped it out for the Ultimate when I saw reviews on how much better it performed. And it does blow the 900 away... but so did the Harmony One's IR. There is definitely something wrong with the design of the 900's RF bridge that is adding the lag.
> 
> EDIT: After a little playing, I had no trouble learning the "Back" button from the new remote. It will re-send a failed RF command via IR, and so if you get the remote far enough away from the Roamio, or turn the Roamio off, you can force it to send IR commands to your Harmony to learn. Worked like a charm.


I've got a Harmony Ultimate and I can't get my Roamio to respond to it. Since I didn't find it in the database, I switched the TiVo remote to IR and programmed every button. Any tips?


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## Kolenka (Jan 2, 2013)

Add the TiVo as a premiere to get the IR codes, and then learn the back button. Learning the whole remote is painful.

Also, I might make sure the activity is working correctly by confirming you can control the TiVo in device mode. If it isn't, it is probably IR blaster placement. The TiVo is my pickiest device on that front.


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## Bierboy (Jun 12, 2004)

Beryl said:


> I'd think almost any TiVo model would work. I didn't change my definitions and my harmony remotes worked with the Roamio. I used the same definition for the Premiere, HDLX, and now the Roamio.


Along those same lines, I just used the profile for my original S3 for the XL4, and it works actually better than the XL4 profile.


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## joneric (Sep 1, 2013)

Kolenka said:


> Add the TiVo as a premiere to get the IR codes, and then learn the back button. Learning the whole remote is painful.
> 
> Also, I might make sure the activity is working correctly by confirming you can control the TiVo in device mode. If it isn't, it is probably IR blaster placement. The TiVo is my pickiest device on that front.


Thanks for the tips. I got working.


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## ghpowers (Sep 2, 2013)

Kolenka said:


> I did the same months ago, although I swapped it out for the Ultimate when I saw reviews on how much better it performed. And it does blow the 900 away... but so did the Harmony One's IR. There is definitely something wrong with the design of the 900's RF bridge that is adding the lag.
> 
> EDIT: After a little playing, I had no trouble learning the "Back" button from the new remote. It will re-send a failed RF command via IR, and so if you get the remote far enough away from the Roamio, or turn the Roamio off, you can force it to send IR commands to your Harmony to learn. Worked like a charm.


You can also set the Roamio remote to IR by pressing TiVo + C on the remote.

Edit: To switch the remote back to RF, press TiVo + D


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## pshivers (Nov 4, 2013)

I was able to add my Tivo Roamio Pro to my Harmony 900 by entering the Pro's model number into the Logitech configuring software, the only missing function was the 30-Second advance button which I was able "Learn" from the Tivo remote and then added it to the 900's configuration.

The 900 seems to work pretty well albeit a tad slow at times compared to the Tivo remote. It's "6 of one and a half dozen of the other" as far as preference goes. The 900 makes controlling my Entertainment system a lot easier for all members of the family, so it will get used a lot, no one has to worry about which Remote to use!


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## mtsmylie (Apr 18, 2013)

So has the Harmony database gotten any better when it comes to the Roamio? Just bought a Roamio Plus, and will be setting it up with my Harmony One remote.


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## mchief (Sep 10, 2005)

I initially set up the Plus with the 848 codes in the Logitech database for the One. Had problems with the 30 SS and repeat. Then set the One up with 748 codes and all is well. Everything works as it should.


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