Onkyo Remote for Kindle Fire

Yesterday I was researching to find out how to use the Onkyo Remote 2 on the iPod Touch when I can across the updated Remote App page on the Onkyo website. At the bottom of the page was a link to the Onkyo Remote App for Kindle Fire.

Here is the Onkyo page about this app.

Here is the Amazon page about this app.

According to the data provided on the Amazon page this app was first available on May 7, 2012. So about 5 days before I found it there. There were 2 reviews and the Best Seller Rank was 3,971 in the Free section of the Appstore and 25 in the Music Player section of the Appstore.

It was easy to download the app to the Kindle Fire. It was no different than downloading any other app. What was not working was the app could not find the receiver on my network. I confirmed that my receiver was connected to my network by checking the USB input that showed the UWF-1 was connected to my Wi-Fi. Then I went to my computer and brought up my router's web interface to see what devices were connected. There I could see that the Kindle Fire, iPod and Nintendo 3DS were connected but not the receiver.

I turned the receiver off with the remote waited one minute and turned it back on with the remote. Nothing changed. I went to my PDF copy of the Instruction Manual for the TX-NR609. On page 58 under the Hardware Setup section regarding the Network there is a reference to Network Control and Control Port. You have to set the Network Control setting to Enable. In the On Screen Display you go Main Menu >> Hardware Setup >> Network >> Network Control.

Two notes; I did not change the Control Port setting at all. After you Enable the Network Control feature and Return to the Hardware Setup screen you will be asked to Save Changes. Doing so enables Network Control.

After this I turned off the receiver with the remote and noticed, as the Instruction Manual says, the NET indicator was dimly light when the unit was powered off. When I turned the receiver back on with the remote the Remote App still could not find the receiver.

As frustration started to set in I tried one last thing before going to the internet to find out how to fix this. I powered off the receiver by click the power button on the front of the unit. I then unplugged the UWF-1 from the USB port on the unit. I waited about 1 minute and then inserted the UWF-1 back into the USB port and powered on the receiver by clicking the power button on the front of the unit.

Before trying the Remote App I went back to the computer and refreshed the web interface to the router. Finally there was my receiver on the network! I turned on the Kindle Fire and loaded the Onkyo Remote App and there was my Onkyo TX-NR609 on the device selection list.

The coolest feature to me so far is the internet radio selection process. I use Pandora a lot and the album information displays on the Kindle Fire. You can easily change channels and move between services very easily. Much easier than with the On Screen Display navigation.

I will test it out over the next few weeks and maybe write a follow up on my impressions.

iPod Touch 8GB 4th Generation

As a Mother's Day slash Birthday gift I purchased an Apple iPod Touch for my wife. She was lacking in the new device area and really needed a new toy to play with. The purchase was a smashing hit!

The iPod Touch I learned is in it's 4th Generation and comes with some very cool features. In short and quoting the sales person at the Apple Store in the Arden Fair Mall, it is basically an iPhone without the phone aspect.

I was excited to give this to my wife because I thought the coolest feature was the ability to use Pandora as your music source while at home. No need to load the device up with MP3's or AAC's, just stream Pandora from the net. All the memory on the device can be used for apps, photos, video, etc.

Once I get to play with it I plan to use the Onkyo Remote App to control my AVR. There are some positive and negative reviews on this app so I will do a complete review here based on my listening style and usage patterns.

This purchase brings our wireless connected device total to 6. The other 5 are Kindle Fire, Nintendo 3DS, Kindle Keyboard, Panasonic Blu-ray player DMP-BDT210, and Onkyo Receiver TX-NR609.

More to come as we live with and play with this new toy.

System Notes 04/21/2012

So it has been a month since my last post. Man how the time flies when you have a family and work that takes you away from the things that you enjoy. For the past thirty days I have been settling in with the new Klipsch HD 500 speaker system. To date I have installed the front left, center, front right and subwoofer speakers. I am still waiting on how to best position and use rear sounding speakers.

I lived with the speakers in their natural form with no Audyssey room correction in place for about 3 weeks. After that I ran the Audyssey room correction and have been listening to that setup for about 1 week. I can say that the bass and mid-range are in more control now. The natural out of the box presentation was very sharp and quick. Now the sound is much more muted and consistent across the entire frequency range. I can say that I think I will bump up the subwoofer db reduction as it is too soft for my liking.

As I progress through my research on the next phase of my system upgrade I think I will go with the Clean Power and Surge Protection I have outlined previously. The start will be an A/C receptacle that is built with audio considerations in mind. This will be either Shunyata SR-Z1 or the PS Audio Power Port Classic.

Once that decision is made the receptacle has been installed in will come down to what Surge Protection option do I want to go with. Various reviews and articles talk about the pros and cons of Surge Protection and Power Line Conditioners. Specifically people seem to like to throw the "snake oil" and "marketing" and "voodoo" words around with these products. Since most of these products come with a money back guarantee period and people also say they experience a positive return on these investments, I think they are worth considering.

For now I am not sold on whether I want a component style Surge Protector or a Strip style. I can see the advantages to both and right now I think I want to use a component style. This will help me see a clean updated look to my equipment rack.

Also on the table right now is an equipment rack cooling system. We are entering the Summer months and the ambient temperature will rise so I want to make sure that I keep my components within a safe operating range. I will be looking to have a system that will be controlled by a thermostat and also display the temperature within the cabinet.

Hopefully before the month is out I will post some new pictures of the setup. This will show the new Klisch HD 500 speakers. That is all for now.

Cheers!

Firmware Update Saturday

Saturday March 17, 2012 was a busy day for updating firmware on system components. In reviewing releases from vendors I found that several of my components had new firmware versions to install.

The following components were updated. You can click on each component listed below to see more specific information about each firmware update.

D-Link Xtreme N Gigabit Router DIR-655 Version B - Firmware released on 02/29/2012

OBi100 - Firmware released on 03/15/2012

Onkyo TX-NR609 - Firmware released on 03/16/2012

OBi100 Firmware Update

On Saturday March 17, 2012 I found that OBi had release a new firmware update to the OBi100. The release is version 1.3.0 with build version 2690. Click here for the official release and information on previous firmware updates. Per the release issued by Obi version 1.3.0 build version 2690 addresses the following:

- Improved audio-path synchronization on call establishment. Also fixes certain conditions where audio path is not initiated on incoming calls using the Google Voice communications service.
- Fixed: If the Caller ID coming from PSTN has a dash '-' inserted between the number(s), the Caller ID cannot be displayed on the telephone connected to the PHONE port.

Just like the update preformed last month, and posted about here on this blog, I will update using the web interface. There are multiple options for applying firmware updates to the Obi100 but I prefer the web interface because it gives me a sense of control over the process. The steps for applying the update this way are provided by OBi in the link provided above. I'll provide them here for future reference:

Firmware Update Instructions:
1. Download the file to your computer.

2. Access the web page of the OBi device:
- From a phone attached to the PHONE port of the OBi dial * * * 1
- The IP address of the OBi will be read to you.
- Open a new browser window on your PC and enter the IP address of the OBi. (E.g. 192.168.1.110)
- When prompted, enter "admin" for username and "admin" for password.
If you have previously changed the password, use that instead of "admin."

3. Now that you have accessed the OBi web page, go to the "System Management" - "Device Update" page. From there, "Browse" to the firmware file you just downloaded above and click Update.

4. Wait for the OBi to restart (approx. 30 seconds) and you will be good to go.

D-Link Xtreme N Gigabit Router DIR-655 Firmware Update

On Saturday March 17, 2012 I found that D-Link had released a firmware update for the Xtreme N Gigabit Router DIR-655 Ver. B. This firmware update was released on February 29, 2012. The version is 2.07NA. This firmware version is only applicable to units in North America.

The release states that the firmware update addresses the following:
Fixed: IPv6 status not display DNS address.
Fixed: Multi save bug.
Fixed: IPv6 Autodetect mode bug.

Keeping with the D-Link instructions for applying the firmware update, I loaded the update through the web interface on the router. You can also run a firmware check from within the router. To do this you need to log into your router and click on Tools and then select Firmware from the side menu. You then click on the Check Now button next to Check Online Now for Latest Firmware Update.

I prefer to download the file from the D-Link website and then manually load the file from my computer to the router. The first step is to download the zip file for the D-Link website and save the file to your computer. You then need to unzip the file and place the folder/files in a location you can find through the web interface.

You should back up your configuration so that if something happens you can reload it after the firmware has been applied. You can do this by logging into your router and clicking on Tools and then selecting System from the side menu. Click the button Save Configuration to download a configuration file to your computer.

To install the firmware update click on Tools and then select Firmware from the side menu. Click the button Choose File to locate where you unzipped the firmware software zip file. Then click Update. There will be a prompt to save configuration file and then a warning about updating the firmware. Once the process starts a screen will tell you not to reload the page as it loads. When I ran the process it took 4 minutes to complete.

The second set of screens prompts your wireless password which you need to reenter exactly as it was before so your connected devices do not lose connectivity. There is also a screen prompting you for an Administration password to the router if you don't have one. This is a must for security.

Once you have entered that information the router will reboot automatically in about 2 minutes and you are good to go. In all it took about 15 minutes for me to install this firmware update.

This update will be the second firmware update that I have applied to the D-Link Xtreme N Gigabit Router DIR-655 Ver. B. The first one was version 2.03NA that was released after my router had been manufactured and before I purchase the item.

I applied this firmware update in keeping with my opinion that it is best to have the latest firmware loaded to all the components in my system.

Onkyo TX-NR609 Firmware Update

Today, Saturday March 17, 2012, I came across the latest firmware update for the Onkyo TX-NR609 posted on the Onkyo website. The release date for the update is March 16, 2012. The official release posted says that it addresses an "Improvement of WEB Setup Menu accessibility when using UWF-1". Click here to read official release. Notes about how I installed the update are below the picture.

I downloaded the firmware update zip file. I then searched the internet for additional information on the release and I came across a post from the Onkyo Asia and Oceania website that listed the update as addressing "Stabilizes video output when using HDMI/CAT5 Extender on HDMI OUT MAIN terminal". This creates some confusion in my understanding what the update actually addresses.

Another oddity is on the Onkyo website the firmware update is listed under the product information for the TX-NR609 but not under the support section of the website. This is not a major deal since the release is only 1 day old and might be added to the support section of the website in the coming days.

I unzipped the files and copied them to a 8GB USB drive (make sure the drive is only has the files on it and that the drive does not password protection on). Following the instructions from the manual, and also repeated in the official release noted above, I made sure RIHD was turned off. Powered down the AVR. Removed the UFW-1 from the front USB input. Plugged in the USB drive with the files copied to it. Powered on the AVR and TV. Selected the USB input on the AVR.

At this point the USB input will be initializing. Once complete you can press Setup on the remote. On the Menu select Hardware Setup. On the next menu select Firmware Update. On the next menu select Via USB. Finally select Update.

The process will then write the new firmware to the AVR. It takes a good 45 minutes to run. When the process is done the front display of the AVR will display Completed! At this point you press the power button on the AVR (not the remote). Before turning back on unplug the USB drive from the front USB input. I reinserted the UWF-1 at this point.

After the AVR powered on I went in the Setup menu and checked the firmware version. The firmware version now reads 1131-1400-0010-8106.

Keeping with my practice of always having the latest firmware updates on my components I installed the update after I was comfortable about the information being released on the update.