Hot Link Pro Remote Control Booster System

To all:
Thank you for your interest in this feedback forum for Hot Link Pro.
Following are some answers to the problems, questions, and suggestions that have appeared on this forum.

We make every effort to make certain clients can contact us with support questions. The web site and phone number are molded into the bottom of every unit. In the case of this forum we have yet to make contact with those who have had less than a stellar experience with Hot Link Pro.

Hiding the Eye:
We intend no holes to be drilled for the Eye to see through. There is a Velcro Kit and a screw tab for mounting the eye. This screw is meant for non-visible, internal surfaces, not the outside of a cabinet.
Hot Link Pro does not work "hidden behind a cabinet door", it works great behind a cabinet door "slot". It also works on the back of flat panel displays, behind speaker grills and cabinets. It does not need direct line of site. The Blue LED is separate from the Eye so that the Eye may be hidden while the LED may be mounted in a visible location.

Compatibility:
Hot Link Pro is the most compatible IR repeater available. Works with all IR remote controlled DVRs, Sat Boxes, DVD players, CD players, Xbox, etc. It works with all the new 58Khz carrier based gear like Scientific Atlanta 8300, the new AT and T VIP1200, Hughes, Motorola, HR20, etc. It even extends IR Keyboards and mice.
Only a few devices that use 455Khz carriers will not work. Some Kenwood high-end receivers and a couple of Sony high-end "ES" receivers. And a few older pioneer Elite Receivers.
Many professional installers prefer Hot Link Pro to multi-piece systems because it is broad band, works better with flat panel displays and does not need to be visible like other IR repeaters.

Reliability/Quality:
Hot Link models have been in the field for 15 years with extremely few failures. When something does go wrong, we repaired or replaced units for free. Even when the customer cut or removed or damaged parts. While Hot Link Pro will not work if an emitter is cut off, the warranty is not void if a client splices and extends the emitter for the purposes of running it to a ceiling mounted projector. (Usually with great success.) Total overall failure rate is less than 1/4%.

Rugged Design:
When the emitter wires peel apart they do not damage the wire. It is our specification that the wires not tear the insulation while being separated. Consider the alternative, 7 connectors which reduce reliability, and 7 individually bundled wire sets. The whole product uses about a ¼ of a watt, lowering the risk of damaged components from heat, over time.

Remove-ability of Emitters:
Emitters on Hot Link Pro apply with high-grade 3M thick clear tape that is easily removable and replaceable and does not harm plastics. Place thumb and finger on opposing side corners at the lower part of the tape and peel up emitter and tape together. Or push sideways to break adhesion. Using foam tape as suggested on this forum has 2 other consequences: Heat inside cabinets often causes these tapes to fail especially "removable" tapes. Also heat and age cause some foam tapes to stiffen making removal difficult, possibly scratching the surface of AV equipment. Much research has gone into the tape selected for Hot Link Pro. We offer free replacement tape on our site.

The plasma/LCD compatibility question:
Sometimes the "noise" causing the blue LED to stay on is from another source in the environment like a laptop LCD screen or compact high efficiency florescent lamp.
Hot Link Pro has worked with almost all plasma TVs with the known exception of 60 and 61 inch Plasmas and the Sharp Aquos 37 inch LCD NTSC model. Even though Hot Link works with the Aquos 42 and 45 inch and the smaller Aquos LCDs. The 37-inch NTSC model emits to much IR radiation for most IR repeaters to function properly. Hot Link Pro will work with the IR and RF- noisy Sony XBR series.
The 60 and larger plasma displays will work if an Eye with Y Kit is used with the Hot Link. Recommended Eye mounting procedures will be on our site. Noise indication during warm-up of LCD TVs is easily mitigated. Turn on LCD TV after cool down. While standing to one side so as to not add local reflection, place the Eye on the back of the TV and roll it until the Confirmation LED turns completely off.

Since an IR repeater must be broad band and many of the frequencies that cause noise are very near the remote frequencies, multiple direct frequency filtering is actually less effective than power vector filtering accomplished by mounting the Eye in a hidden location. The energy in the vector of the remote going forward is greater than the vector of the noise of the TV reflecting back toward the TV.

Doors open and not functioning properly:
The Hot Link Pro does work with the doors open as well as closed, unless noise is not mitigated or if the LCD or Plasma TV are sending out IR noise directly to the AV gear and affecting remote performance.

Remote To Eye Distances enhanced:
Hot Link Pro enhances useful distances of remotes. Comments to the contrary are often because of not mitigating noise or misplacement of emitters. In the case of the Scientific Atlanta 8300HD which has poor IR range to start with, distance is often enhanced when 1 to 5 layers of masking tape are placed between the Hot Link Pro emitter and the 8300HD IR receiver eye.

We make every effort to make installation as easy as possible with the recognition that some installs are easier than others and we provide great customer service to help with the trickier installations. Please call us for help at 800-999-8846.

At your service,
Marcus, Microsmith Inc.

This device allows you to extend the range of your remote controls and stick all those ugly components in a closet or basement. There is a little receiver that sends the infrared signal from the remote to wires that are connected to your equipment in a cabinet or other remote location.

I bought this so I could put a satellite box, vhs and dvd player in a cabinet, out of sight in the bedroom. The IR receiver is quite sensitive and the whole system worked like a charm with very little setup time. A lot of A/V pros swear by this system.

NOTE, many plasmas/LCD's emit a lot of IR (infrared radiation) which can interfere with the functioning of the typical IR extender. However, this device seems to be designed with this in mind and apparently works well with virtually all plasmas/lcd's.

To be safe, you may want to actually call the manufacturer to check as to whether the device will work with your particular tv set. As others have noted in their reviews, when I called the manufacturer, I was shocked to find that you can easily get ahold of the inventor. He expressed a rare enthusiasm for his business and his customers and was willing to answer lots of questions about his products. (Quite a surprise for those of us used to computerized voicemail "help" systems or the typical overseas tech support.)

The comment in one of the reviews regarding the short cable between the eye and the box is a fair one. I believe there is another cable that you can buy to fix that although the accessories do run on the slightly more expensive side. Microsmith may also have a new model coming out (fall 06) that addresses this issue.

Note there are a lot of variables governing how well your IR extender system will work--including the kind of equipment you have and how reflective your room surfaces are. So while this is a great product, you may still have to do some fiddling to get it to work out.

I have no idea what other people are complaining about. This is idiot proof. The cords were plenty long. Customer service A+. The unit is so sensitive that you almost have to put it behind a speaker grill to cut out IR noise. What more do you want. Measure your runs before you order and if neccessary order some extensions.

Hot Link Pro works well,as advertised. I was attracted by the product, the price (1/2 to 1/3 the cost of competing products), and by another reviewer's comments on the great customer service he got from Microsmith in dealing with a problem. My unit failed after 2-1/2 months. Sent an email to Microsmith at 9:30PM Friday before Memorial Day weekend outlining the problem and what I had tried to solve it. Got a reply in 15 minutes telling me the unit would be replaced and giving me a phone number to call with my address. Called and talked to Marcus. Replacement arrived the following Tuesday and works. Microsmith paid shipping both ways. Great service that all companies should learn to provide!

I purchased this product based upon the reviews. After installation with my equipment in a closet behind a 52" Sony Bravia XBR everything worked well...until I turn on the TV. The IR receiver becomes completely jammed with spurious IR from the television. Adjusting the location of the eye does not help. It might work in one location during the evening but during the day it does not. It's basically a complete waste of money if you have a late model large LCD screen.

I'm an electrical engineer, and why it does not come with an IR noise filter is beyond me. It seems that the design is too sensitive to be useful with large LCD or plasma screens which are known to radiate IR.

This thing DOES work, let me say that up front. However, the design didn't work well with my entertainment center.

The main box was too big to fit through the hole in the back of the entertainment center and the "eye" cable is way too short to run it out the back of and into a good position. Contrary to the
manual you can't really set the eye inside the cabinet hidden behind a door.

The ribbon style cable (with the sensors) was annoying to position. You have to pull the sensors apart and then I worried about the fragility of the individual strands. Since it is built into the main box you have to worry about them breaking.

It took me three days to get the eye positioned in such a way that it worked reliably with my harmony remote.

Overall, I rate it a three because for the price I found myself frustrated and constantly worried that I was going to ruin the unit while trying to get it setup. If you notice the accessory price on the companies website its expensive if you need to replacement parts.

Obviously I'm no expert with this stuff but the one thing I learned is that I should have run the sensors for this thing before I ran any other cables. That might have made it easier to deal with. The biggest problem I have is the length of the cable for the "eye". Its too short to run out the back of your entertainment center to a convenient spot and the eye wasn't sensitive enough to work reliably trying to place it in the places recommended in the instruction paper.

Finally, I want to emphasize that this item does indeed work, my rating has nothing to do with that fact.

I've had this for over a year and it's been working wonderfully. I recently had an issue that turned out to be caused by interference from my LCD TV. The support given to resolve this issue went above and beyond what you would ever expect from customer service. I now have all of my equipment (except for the LCD) in another room and I can easily control everything from in front of the TV. Just great!!!

I recently set up the Hot Link Pro to use with my components in a closet. It works great. I have a plasma TV and do not experience any difficulty from stray IR/RF/whatever emissions. The IR eye picks up my remote signals from all angles of my wide living room.

I had an issue with my Motorola cable box, but an email to Microsmith quickly resolved the issue. They replied quickly with the solution (turned out to be a Motorola issue where the remote is labeled on one side of the box but the receiver eye is on the other) and also gave me their telephone # in case I needed further assistance.

Great product and great support.

It just works! It does exactly what it's supposed to. No tweaking, no fiddling, no hassle. Very nicely designed, great reception, no setup hassles, just an all around A+.

I wish more products worked as well, and as simply as Hot Link Pro. If you're debating about the value @ 80-100 bucks, I can tell you that in my mind, it is with out question worth every penny to have everything tucked away behind closed doors.

A small, but useful detail- In addition to the six IR leads, there is a 7th lead that is connected to a tiny bright green led that you can stick somewhere handy. It gives you great feedback that the system is receiving IR.

Love it, love it love it!
By the way, this is the first really positive review I've written because I'm extremely picky about my products.

Enjoy-

I had a Hotlink Pro for FIVE YEARS and it worked so well, I would forget that it was there. It allowed me to keep my Receiver, VCR, PVR, and DVD Player behind closed cabinets and still operate them with the IR remote controls. It was the perfect solution for keeping gear out of site.

Three months ago my 5-year-old hotlink began having some issues on one of my components. I figured I'd just by a new one. After all, it worked great for 5 years. It was worth every penny and I wouldn't hesitate buying another one. But when searched the web to purchase another one, I noticed some of the reviews raving about Microsmith's support. So, I decided to email Microsmith. Marcus replied within a day (on a weekend) with his phone number and told me to call him. After some very thorough troubleshooting, he decided to send me a new Hot Link Pro (and even included a prepaid return envelope for the failed unit). I'm back up and operating now and will probably be for many years more.

If you need something like this, buy it! You can not go wrong. Thanks Marcus!!!