Monster AVL300-S Remote Control Review
Monster Cable has ventured into hardware manufacturing from specializing in audio and video cables. They now manufacture headphones, speakers, and IPod accessories. It seems natural for Monster Cable to manufacture a universal remote control to go along with their home theater products. It should come as no surprise that the remote control commands hefty premium like other home theater products from Monster Cable. The remote control is priced around $300.00 at most internet retailers.
Features
Monster Cable’s AVL300-S boasts both IR and RF with 130 ft range. Monster cable has opted to license the programming set up software from Logitech. Which makes sense since Logitech’s programming set up is one of the easiest and convenient way to program the remote control. The inclusion of RF is especially nice for people that want to hide or tuck away most of the home theater devices. Monster goes step further with ability to control lighting with the optional lighting module that works with this remote control. The 300-S comes with rechargeable battery and can be charged via docking station. Similar to Harmony 890, the 300-S comes with RF base module to control up to 4 IR devices. If you need to control more than 4 IR devices, you can purchase additional bases.
Design
Monster Cable sticks to rectangular shape for their 300-S remote. Unlike some other remote control with dumbbell or peanut shape, 300-S goes for slicker look over ergonomics. The button layout is similar to many Harmony remotes. Top is dominated by the color LCD with 8 corresponding buttons. Menu buttons are right beneath the LCD. The middle of the remote houses the playback function as well as channel and volume control. The bottom of the remote contains the numerical buttons. Monster has chosen to forgo the directional buttons that are present in some of the other remotes. The buttons are raised up from the remote instead of flush fitting. The buttons provide good tactile feedback which helps you with familiarization of the remote.
Ease of Programming
Monster has taken the best feature of the Harmony remotes, namely the programming. Although Monster has chosen to tweak the software, it essentially remains similar to the Logitech’s interface. Once you connect the remote to the PC or Mac, you are connected to the web interface program that takes you through the programming. If you have used Harmony remotes, you know the drill. You enter model from the database and how it functions in your home theater. You set the activity and the remote configures itself to achieve the activity like “watch TV” or “play DVD.” As with Harmony remotes, you can hard configure the buttons to operate a specific device such as channel for television or cable box. I did not test the lighting function as the optional lighting base was not used during the review.
Ease of Use
Once the programming is done, using the remote is fairly simple. The activity based control is very easy to use. You simply select the activity. The good layout helps with the familiarization of the remote. Also, the backlight helps in the dark environment. Like Harmony 890, the motion sensor allows you to save battery by turning on and off with motion. The battery life is rated at two weeks but most users will most likely charge the unit whenever it is not in use.
The Harmony 890 offers very similar functions at lower price. However, the lighting function on Monster’s remote seems to be more robust than the Harmony 890. If you have no need for lighting functions, than Harmony 890 might be a better bang for the buck. Otherwise, 300-S is a solid remote control.
Pros
- IR and RF
- Lighting control
- Rechargeable battery
- Good button layout
- Easy programming
- Good battery life
Cons
- Expensive
- Only 4 IR devices per base
Buy Monster AVL300-S now and save 30% or more!
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Monster MCC AVL300-S Home Theater and Lighting Controller with Omnilink List Price: $399.95 Sale Price: $74.99 Used From: $79.95 Average Rating:   |
This site contains the personal opinions of various authors and contributors to this website. The opinions in these articles and reviews are offered in good faith, but also come with no guarantees or warranties.
Does what it’s supposed to once you get over the hassle of programing and synch.
The remote is what you would expect. The set up process for me was more difficult than I expected, I had an issue with getting the remote to synch with the omnilink. After an hour of playing around with the non-user friendly, slow software, I gave up. There are no manuals or particular instructions/guide provided on the website or with the remote. Next day I called the folks at Monster and after a good wait, I was plesantly surprise with the service and the attention. They were great, walked me through the confusing process of linking the remote with the omnilink throug the lights control portion of the software (I’m not using it for lights, but audio/video components I store in a closet). Everything was operational within 15 minute of the call. They asked me to call again if I wanted more help personalizing the button functions to fit my needs. Stated that they expect to service the product in person and that’s why they don’t put out extensive instructions anywhere. That seemed a little funny, but my problems are resolved. Happy over all with the purchase despite the price tag.
terrible product
It’s such a great idea, but it simply doesn’t work as an RF device. It will work as IR device, but is much too expensive as a universal remote. I was very disappointed because I had high hopes and monster is well known company. It just won’t work in cabinets and through walls as advertised. The software is even worse. There are no instructions and the manuals will not open up on-line and support is available only 8-5 Monday thru Friday, so when does a working person call? Oh well, a $300.00 dollar lesson. Please don’t but this product.
AVL 300-S
I like this remote and it works very well. It looks and feels like a quality piece of equipment. I set it up in about an hour and it worked
without a hitch! Pretty good for the first day of ownership.
The next day, I wanted to tweak some settings. OOPS! That is when frustration set in. The Omnilink quit communicating with the remote control because I pressed the connect button, go figure.
As I tried to find answers in the supplied user guide and in the on-line software it became very apparent that Monster had dropped the ball.
It took about an hour of trial and error to resolve the RF network glitch and the remote works great.
Unlike all of my home theater components the AVL300 does not come with a comprehensive user manual. What you get is a quick start guide that could almost fit inside a CD jewel case. The guide has absolutely zero information about lighting control. Now that is pretty sad considering what you pay for this remote.
If the supplied users guide was more robust and contained advanced information on setting up and troubleshooting a system I would have no problem giving this product a 5 star rating.
I would recommend that if you purchase this remote control and have a problem that you cannot solve with the on-line troubleshooter the first time around, call the support line to avoid prolonged frustration.
MCC AVL300-S
Not being a techno wiz, I had someone program the remote for me. While it may be somewhat pricey, it does everything it’s supposed to do, and I finally put away 6 other remote controls. What a joy to have this item on my theater armchair.
Thank Goodness For This Monster!
My husband and I were about going crazy with all the remotes. We did not even look for a “one size fits all” because we thought we would have to spend a thousand dollars or more. Low and behold, I found the Monster when I decided to shop for one to give to my husband for this past Christmas. We have now used it for 6 months and we love it. It is definitely user friendly. This is the only remote we use. Be prepared to spend some time setting it up, but after all that, we have had only one issue with it: after we shut off the system subsequent to watching a DVD, when we go to turn the system on for just regular TV viewing, the right video number does not come on. We then have to turn the system off and then turn it back on. Everything is great after that. A minor inconvenience when we think about all the frustration we experienced with the handful of other remotes. We simply have not had time to reconfigure the settings and after all the reviews regarding the customer service, I am very encouraged to contact them and feel confident that this minor problem will be fixed. I highly recommend this remote.
Major hassle – does not consistently work
I have programmed and reprogrammed this device to watch TV, DVR, DVD with a stereo for sound. I choose the radio signal option instead of the infrared and it DOES NOT WORK with any consistency. My family no longer uses it. I have been on the phone with support at Monster. They are nice but the problems do not get fixed. It works for awhile for some things and then other times it just doesn’t turn the volume up, turn the TV off, etc.
After about 12 hours of time spent on it over a few days, I have come to hate the thing.
The best remote out there
After using this remote for a while I’m finally ready to post a review. The reason it took so long is because it also took me a while to set it up properly. Once I got it working though, it delivers. I’ll share some of my experiences and see if any of them help you decide.
First of all, the remote is used to control several AV components, including a Blu ray player, AV receiver, video projector, music server and more. All of them are concealed inside a closet with wooden doors, so having an RF (radio frequency) remote was mandatory. Out of the box you get the Remote, an RF extender (called Omnilink), cables and software. The remote looks great, except for the center select button which feels very cheap and feels it will break easily. Installation is quite easy, and after you plug in the remote, the setup program will completely guide you adding each component and setting up different `activities’ for you to use. For Example, if you set up and activity called “Watch movie”, you will control de DVD player, receiver for volume without having to switch back and forth. Sounds easy right? So far yes, but chances are, you won’t get it right the first time, so you will have to go back and redo some settings, or even customize the buttons to your needs. Whatever the reason, every time you choose update be prepared to spend about 10 – 15 minutes in front of your computer. Another feature is the built-in help from the remote: it ask you basic questions of current connected equipment and fixes the problem for you (e.g. Is the Cable Box on?, is the TV set to HDMI 1? Etc).
One of the nice features is the ability to control lights wirelessly. Of course, this comes with an extra cost, and you will find yourself adding around 100 extra for each dimmer you choose to add. Granted that you probably spent a fair amount of money in the home theater itself, its something you don’t want to miss out. After adding each dimmer, you will have to add it with the software and can choose different light settings (% of light you want to dim).
If any problem should arise, you can always reach tech service and they will help you out. I consider myself tech-savvy, and I still had to call. Fortunately my problem was an easy fix but was not listed in the help files. After spending time you will learn to fix problems yourself, but I guess the ultimate objective is that anybody in your household can use it without needing help.
In summary, this is an awesome remote once you get all the settings right, but it will take you a while to get there. Four stars it is.
Excellent Remote
I bought this remote after my son’s friend sat on my Harmony 890 which was a great idea that did not quite deliver. Since I loved the concept and the Monster remote had similar software, I took a chance on the higher priced Monster AVL300 and have not been disappointed. Setup was easy – one button did not get the correct code and I easily used the learning function to fix that. The omnilink feature actually works perfectly. The “joystick” controller is a little quirky – however, it works consistently so you just have to adjust to how it behaves.
This is a great remote – easy to program and customize, works well, and is easy to use.
Best Product on the Market, Great Customer Service
Now that the price is down out of the stratosphere (I paid $500!), this is a must buy. The programming interface is easy and intuitive. It works more effectively and most simply than any other programmable remote, and I’ve owned several.
Not to be overlooked, the customer service at Monster is great! The hours are a bit stingy (M-F working hours on the Pacific Coast, so I always have to call from my office), but the people are friendly, knowledgable and quick to do the right thing (when I had a problem with the remote, of my own doing, they didn’t hesitate to send out a completely new one free of charge).
This is the best product on the market. Now you can afford it. Buy it.
great remote!
I was looking for a remote and was thinking about a control 4. I came across this remote and thought I would take a chance. It does take time and patience to set up and the intructions are not at all helpful. I had to call tech support and they did a great job setting up the remote. Once I figured out how the whole thing works I was able to tweak the system to my needs. My wife and 6 year old son are able to use the remote with ease. Just don’t get frustriated with it just call tech support and let them set it up for you.
MONSTER AVL300
I purchased this remote as a transition remote until I can justify buying an automation system. However after owning this remote, I think I may be able to do simple automation to my home for a fraction of the cost. Yes I will compromize customize-ability. However in keeping it simple it will be reliable, and user friendly.
I have never set up a multi room remote before, infact I purchased a very expensive marantz remote with a touch screen, but I was never able to figure it out so it sits in my attick. Maybe Ill put it on ebay. Anyway, this remote did take some time to set up and reset up because I made mistakes, but after some trial and error and patience it works beautifully on my theater room (jvc dla rs1, speakercraft inwall surround, marantz reciever, dish 622, and ps3 blueray), living room (vizio 32 inch lcd, dish 211, oppo dvd), and master bedroom (pioneer 50 inch plasma, dish 211, and sony dvd). I have just the one remote for all three rooms, and I just carry it from room to room as needed, but I would like to buy 2 more, they do communicate with each other so as not to over lap if certain components are on and dont have discrete off, the #2 remote wont mistakenly turn off something that remote one has turned on, in an attempt for remote 2 to turn that device on. another feature
Cheaply built, EXPENSIVE, poor customizing abililty, poor interface
Pros:
Lighting control
Cons:
Flimsy. Internet connection required to program. poor interface for programming control
Full user opinion
I bought this remote (at a premium) thinking it would be the best universal remote available, and inexpensive compared with RTI, Crestron, or Universal Remote. That couldn’t have been farther from the truth.
First of all, the remote is not built well. The buttons are the flimsy, “raised” hard plastic type, not the firm plasticized or rubberized type, and the center “joystick” control protrudes much to tall–enough to where you could accidentally snap it off. The remote’s plastic creaks when you press certain buttons. Not what I’d expect for $350!
If you are an A/V enthusiast, and you want complete control of your multiple components, consider a remote by Universal Remote Controls (URC), or if you have the money, Remote Technologies Inc (RTI), but not this. Although you have a cute color screen, the appearance of the “soft buttons” cannot be customized. You can simply change the text in them, that’s all.
You MUST have an internet connection to program your remote because the software (and your configuration) resides completely on their website. If their site is “experiencing difficulities” (which I’ve had occasionally) or your connection is down, you can’t program the remote.
The “programming” of the remote is very rigid. You cannot assign whatever you’d like to the soft buttons, nor macros, nor delays. The programming website asks you a series of questions about your components and it pretty much sets up the remote how it believes you need it based on what components you have and what are called “activities”. “Activities” seem to be the dumbed down way of programming many of these remotes (such as those by Logitech & Harmony) where you answer a few questions about which A/V imputs are used by your components (to watch TV for example), and it figures out all the component switching and assigns it all to a button titled “Watch TV”. This is great for grandpa and grandma who have no idea of how to work remotes, but when you want to control other components briefly, then return to “Watch TV” it becomes problematic.
The lighting control is a nice touch, but the in-wall dimmer I replaced in my master bedroom RARELY receives its commands from the remote, and it’s not more than 40 feet, through a few walls (which they claim RF is supposed to allow for up to 120 feet).
This remote simply isn’t worth the money or aggravation. If you are an A/V enthusiast, consider RTI, URC, Pronto, or if you have the money, Crestron.
Monster AVL300 is the way to go
I looked high and low at reviews of dozens of remotes. I previously used a Logitech Harmony 688 remote that was good, but didn’t give me the flexibility I wanted. Also, I needed RF capabilities for my home theater. The Monster AVL300 has exceeded my expectations once I got it setup. I would buy another if I needed it.
Pros:
-RF works great and has made a huge difference in reliable control of my components
-I like having hard buttons to press, instead of touch screen. Easy to find your way around the remote without looking at it.
-Nice to have a charging cradle, and it lights up when you pick it up…no need to touch a button, like some other remotes
-Supports Z-Wave lighting, although I haven’t tackled that yet
-Comfortable feel, easy for the whole family to use
-You can setup Favorite Channels with icons of the channel. The only issue is that it’s not well documented where to go setup the favorites. I just had to hunt around to find the option to assign the channel and a small graphic (You can download graphics for many channels out on the Monster website)
Cons:
The documentation is too simple, and doesn’t go into detail. It gives you the first layer needed to setup the remote, but not a lot more. Luckily, it’s pretty straight forward to set the remote up for use. Key Issue I Found: If you have a Harmony Remote, uninstall the software and delete and folders associated with the HArmony Remote before you install the Monster Central Control software. It looks as though Monster licenses the Harmony software, and it will get confused if the software is associated with a Harmony remote before you setup the Monster remote.
[...]
The one big issue I had was setting up the Omnilink RF-IR bridge that’s included. It’s easy to setup, but there are options for each component on how the Omnilink talks to the components, which is confusing: The options are All Ports, IR Blaster, Port A, Port B, Port C and Port D. I assigned each component to the appropriate port, as it seemed the best thing to do. There is no documentation for this feature that tells you anything but that you can assign a port. I got it working and didn’t play around with it to exactly figure out what all the port assignments do.
Issues with software but customer service was excellent
Previously I used a Harmony H659 remote. Even though all of my AV equipment is outside of cabinets and generally in the line of site for use of a conventional IR remote such as the H659, I would occasionally get the equpment out of sync with the remote. So I bought the AVL300 more for the RF capability.
Monster apparently licenses Logitech’s software so I expected setup to be simialr to the Harmony. However, I spent several frustrating hours last weekend and could not get the remote to work properly. No help from “help” on the software or Monster’s web site. On monday called Monster. There tech support was excellent. I was only on hold 2-3 minutes before getting someone. Since the software is web-based and all remote settings are stored on their server, he was able to see exactly what I
was doing. Turns out, the Monster software was conflicting with the Harmony software that was still on my PC. Once I deleted that (and turned off my firewall and ant-virus) everything worked perfectly. I was able program the remote easily.
My major complaint is the lack of good online help. I would have had a less frustrating weekend if Monster had simply stated somewhere in their help or FAQ that you need to do these things. The tech support guy knew immediately what the problem was so it can’t be that rare. In addition, there is very little little documentation for the software so you basically have to play with it for a while in order to figure out how to work all the features. But the good side of this is that the software is very intuitive and helpful.
I especially like the ability to program macros (which wasn’t available on the H659). For instance, I have a macro soft key that goes through a series of steps to turn closed captioning on and off (normally requires 5 steps on my cable box). I am going to program in soft keys for my favorite channels. Next step is to get some light controllers.
In summary this is one cool remote. Some frustration initially but Monster’s telephone support was excellent. I chose it over the Harmony 890 because I liked the styling and button size and layout better and over the Harmony 1000 because I prefer to have more hard keys and the conventional look and feel.
Pretty good product, I need to get into it more.
This product worked pretty well, it downloaded the appropriate info for my components, and the settings for the various activities worked pretty well. The only thing is, you really want to use this thing exactly the way the software wants to be used. If you want to customize the commands you have to go through this wizard deal and it is not all that intuitive.
AVL 300 Takes the Place of All My Old Remotes
I have to say that I was a little bit skeptical because of the large price tag but found out through research that this product was actually fairly priced due to the custom programming features it had. I quickly found out that this remote was better than other universals out there because it used RF and was able to control multiple AV systems in my house.
I have not done it yet, but I plan to buy the Lighting products so I can turn off all of my lights at once from bed each night!!! Very cool.