Multi-tuner IR support

[gandalf]

I have a USB-UIRT controlling 2 IR boxes. My other tuners were R5000s. Sadly that hardware is no longer supported by the cable company (Shaw) and I have to upgrade to new tuners. So my setup will now need 4 IR controlled tuners, feeding HDPVRs or Colossus boards.
The capture side I can cope with but looking for advice re the IR side, since the USBUIRT can only control 3 blasters.
Has anyone controlled more IR devices? Can I use two USBUIRTs on the one computer? If so - how? Or can the one I have run more than 3 devices somehow?

[wayner]

In Windows a USB-UIRT can control up to three devices/zones. One out of the blaster on the front and two more out of the IR jack. See this thread. There are other options as well, like a Global Cache GC-100. You can buy these used on ebay or I have an extra one I could sell you. They can do six zones and other folks on here have used them.

If you can still get older boxes with firewire control then that might be an option, especially for Linux/unRAID. I still use firewire with older Rogers Cable boxes like the SA3250HD and SA4250HD. But Firewire does not work with 64 bit Windows.

[JustFred]

I can't speak for Linux/unraid, but if you're running Windows, you can drive (only) one IR blaster from a Hauppauge capture device, and use the USB-UIRT to drive the other 3 blasters.

If you've got more than one Hauppauge capture device installed, use the first one that was installed (or maybe it's the last one?, can't find my notes) to drive the IR blaster.

[emveepee]

On linux I use I use the Iguana blaster with 4 IR ports that work. One of them is hooked up to a tuner that I tune with firewire, but still like to control all the keys (for VOD) with a blaster.

Martin