Congratulations!

You’ve purchased a unique synthesis of hardware and software engineering, the Complete Control MX-450. The MX-450 achieves a magnificent
combination of power and flexibility, simplifying and automating operation of even the most complex system.

MX-450 Owners Manual © 2011 Universal Remote Control, Inc.

The information in this manual is copyright protected. No part of this manual may be copied or reproduced in any form without prior written
consent from Universal Remote Control, Inc.

UNIVERSAL REMOTE CONTROL, INC. SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR OPERATIONAL, TECHNICAL OR EDITORIAL ERRORS/OMISSIONS MADE IN THIS
MANUAL.

The information in this manual may be subject to change without prior notice.
Complete Control is a registered trademark of Universal Remote Control, Inc.

All other brand or product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies or organizations.

Universal Remote Control, Inc.

500 Mamaroneck Avenue, Harrison, NY 10528
Phone: (914) 835-4484 Fax: (914) 835-4532
 Table of Contents
Getting Started: Programming the MX-450 5 Advanced Setup: One-Touch Activities (Macros)

Standard Features 6 Advanced Setup: Hide or Display Pages

Optional Features 7 Advanced Setup: Editing Labels

Tour: Navigating the MX-450 8 Advanced Setup: Erasing

Overview: Setup Screen Overview 9 Advanced Setup: RF Setup

1 Basic Setup: Adding Devices 10 Favorite Channels

2 Basic Setup: Learn 11 User Settings

3 Basic Setup: Delete Device & Review Code Set 12 Display Tips

4 Advanced Setup: Copy & Paste Glossary

Getting
Started
Programming the MX-450
Decide on the position of
each device on the
remote’s page(s).
Once a device is placed in a
TV: position, it may not be
changed and must be
Sony KD-7FS170 deleted and recreated.
Audio:
Denon AVR-2811
Cable:
AT-T Uverse

For the best chance of success,

make sure you make a list of
the devices that you want to
control. This list should include
the manufacturer, the model Make sure the batteries are
number of each device. fresh/new.
 Standard
Features

Unified Remote One-Touch Activities

5
Switch TV to HDMI 1
4
Follow the steps in this guide to Easily record the steps it takes Switch STEREO to CaTV
program up to 20 remotes into to perform your favorite 3
your new MX-450! Power ON Cable Box
activities and record them on a 2
Instead of searching for the right single button. Single Button Power ON Television
1
remote, it’ll be in your hand Next time you hit that button,
Press
Power ON Stereo
already! like TV, all the steps happen
automatically!

Backlit LCD Buttons Favorites Pages

Pressing ANY button, or the Make surfing the channels
LIGHT button located on the right easier by creating up to 8
side of the remote) and both the pages of channel icons that go
screen and buttons illuminate! directly to your favorite
Perfect for uninterrupted control, network!
even when the lights are low!
Light
Button

Intuitive Commands No PC Required

Ensure that device pages contain TV Cable Cable Computer programmed remotes
Page Page Page
the commands necessary when can get complicated, and not
performing that activity. everyone has a computer, or feels
For example, make sure that TV Cable TV comfortable using one!
when using the Cable TV page, Volume
&
Volume
&
Volume
& You have all the tools you need to
the volume buttons control the TV
Channel
Cable
Channel
Cable
Channel program this remote…your
correct device (usually the TV) hands!
 Optional
Features

No Rules Operation Lighting Control

Typically remotes use infra-red light for sending commands to Who watches television or movies with all of the lights ON?
devices, the problem is that this method requires “line-of-sight” to Are you the type of person that likes the lights to be OFF?
the device and DOES NOT work through walls, floors or cabinet Imagine that control, right at your fingertips with URC Lighting
doors. products; just replace your existing lighting with, easy to install,
Use an optional RF base station to eliminate the need to point the URC Lighting and you are ready.
remote and the ability to control your gear through those cabinet Imagine hitting a button on your remote and having the lights dim
doors…or from another room!! just as the movie starts; even if the phone rings or there is a knock
on the door, a simple button press illuminates the surroundings.
Optional RF Base Stations

Optional Lighting Products

MRF-260 MRF-350

In-Wall Lamp In-Wall

Dimmer Dimmer Switch
Tour
Navigating the MX-450
LCD Buttons
These on-screen icons are
On/Off Buttons accessed by using the
By default, these will send an adjoining button
On/Off command to the
device that is displayed

Volume & Channel

Controls LCD Navigation
Convenient volume access These will help you to
and easily scroll through navigate between pages
channels with Up, Down, (PAGE+, PAGE-) or return to
Previous or see a list of the main menu (MAIN)
Favorites.

Transport Controls 5-Way Cursor

All of the commonly used Easy navigation for your
commands for controlling device (Up, Down, Left, Right
DVRs, DVDs and other & Select)
recording devices
Overview
Set-Up Screen Overview
The Main Setup Menu of the MX-450 is the heart of the remote.
This menu will serve as your guide as you to add your TV, DVD,
Satellite and other devices to the remote.

To enter the Main Setup Menu, press and hold the MAIN button for 3 seconds.
The following are descriptions of each of these submenus:

• Basic Setup: Add all of your devices to the remote by using the built-in library, or
learning commands directly from the original remote. More information can be
found…

• Advanced Setup (only used this section once Basic setup has been completed): in
this section you can edit button names, hide pages, create one-touch activities
(macros), etc. More information can be found…

• Favorite Channels: use this menu item to set icons and channel numbers for your
favorite networks

• User Settings: this option allows you to make adjustments of the remote’s
operation like brightness, contrast, light duration, etc. More information can be
found…

• Display tips: In this section you may enable or disable the Set-Up tips. Although
they are convenient when programming without a manual, you will not need
them for programming if you are using this documentation.
 Basic Setup
1 Adding Devices
Within the Search the Database section of Basic
Setup, we will add each of your devices or
components to the MX-450.

A
B

C
D
A.
Select Search the
Database to search
for device codes. B.
Select an Icon
Position to save your
device by pressing a C. E
screen button to Select the
make your choice. type of device by
pressing the UP or D.
DOWN buttons on Choose a device
5-way cursor the remote’s icon by pressing
5-way cursor. the LEFT or RIGHT E.
Use
buttons to see Type in a name for
Arrows
and other icons. the device using the
Select (SEL) Press select when number key’s
to navigate. finished. alphanumeric
equivalent
 Basic Setup
1 Adding Devices 1

When FINISHED adding devices,

select NO then NEXT when asked to
setup another device.

H
F.
Select the Brand of
your device by
I
pressing the UP and G.
DOWN buttons. Turn ON your device
and point the remote J
toward it. H.
Press the UP or Test the code by
DOWN buttons until pressing the
the device turns OFF. Power On, Vol+ & Ch+ I.
If the device responds When a device is
to this code, press Pass. Pass-ed the MX-450
If not, press Back to will save the device J.
find a better match. (blue progress bar Repeat this process
(repeat step G.) at the bottom of the to add more devices
screen) by selecting Yes
then Next.
 Basic Setup
2 LEARN
Can’t find a code to control your device? Then
learn the commands into the MX-450 from the
original manufacturer’s remote.

B
A

A. B. C.
From the Basic Setup screen use Decide whether you want to save a Select a button where you want to
the 5-way cursor to select Learn. single command or an entire device’s save a command or press a Page
command set. button to navigate to a different page
Select On the Main Menu to learn to find a button there.
commands to buttons like Power On
Make sure to have the or Off.
original remote near by Select Inside a Device to learn an
with brand new batteries. entire device or specific commands
within the device.
 Basic Setup
2 LEARN 2

F E

E. F.
Press the button on the original After the command is learned, the remote
remote that you would like to indicates either:
“teach” to the MX-450. SAVED: blue progress bar indicates saving
RETRY: command did not translate, try
again.

D.
Screen will show READY,
indicating it is prepared to learn a
command. Place the remotes 2”-5” apart
Note: if the button is an on- from one another while learning.
screen button, it will also appear If unsuccessful, try lowering the
darkened in its “ready” state. lights in the room
 Basic Setup
3 Delete Device & Review Code Set

Delete a Device Review Code Set

If you want to delete a device If you would like to review the
use the 5-way cursor to select saved code for each device, use
Delete a Device. Then press the the arrows to select Review
device’s button to delete it. Code Set.

This feature is for

custom install
professional use only.
 Advanced Setup
4 Copy & Paste
Ever wish you could lower the volume or better yet change
your television input without having to switch your audio
receiver or television remote? Now you can.
Groups

Power Power
ON OFF
only only
A B

Volume Channel
Group Group

Menu
Group
A. B.
From the Advanced Setup Select a group of commands to copy:
screen, use the 5-way cursor to Volume, Channel, Play, Menu, Play
select Copy & Paste. Power ON or Power OFF groups. Group
(in this example: Volume Group)
 Advanced Setup
Copy & Paste 4
The process ends here if
To All Devices or Main & Fav
was chosen.
If To One Device was chosen go to Step E.

C
D E

C. D. E.
Decide where you want to paste the Select a device to copy the Select a device to paste the
commands. desired group FROM. desired group TO.
Select To One Device to use the (in this example: Volume Group (in this example: Volume Group
commands in one device. FROM Audio) FROM Audio TO Cable)
Select To All Devices to use the
commands throughout every device.
Select To The Main & Fav to save the
commands only to the main page or
 Advanced Setup
5 One-Touch Activities (Macros)
One touch activities allow you to “record” multiple steps on
a single LCD button, like all of the commands necessary to
watch TV. Once programmed, a single button press will
execute all of the commands to complete the activity.

What’s an ACTIVITY?
an action the end-user wants to perform but
requires multiple steps to accomplish

A B
What’s an MACRO?
programming these steps, in advance, so the
activity requires a single button press

example:
Watch Cable
TV ON A. B.
TV to HDMI 1 From the Advanced Setup screen Select whether you would like to
use the 5-way cursor to select Setup a New Macro
Cable Box ON Macros. or Test/Edit Existing Macro.
AVR ON
AVR to SAT/TV
 Advanced Setup
One-Touch Activities (Macros) 5
Add Delays End On A Page?
Pressing the Pause button inserts a .5 sec A recorded macro will also save its last location.
delay between commands. So, make sure you hit DONE on the page where
you want the macro to end.

If Inside a
Device is
C chosen, D
select the
device,
before
selecting the E
button.

C. D. E.
Decide where you would like the Select the button where you want Record each step by navigating to
macro button: to RECORD the macro. the command (using the MAIN
On the Main Menu This starts the recording process button) and PRESSING it.
or
Inside a Device When finished recording the
Press Next. macro, save it by pressing Done.
 Advanced Setup
6 Hide or Display Pages
Want to hide a page of unnecessary commands?
What about hiding a device from a loved one?
If Inside a Device is chosen,
the next screen will give a choice of
Covert operation anyone?!
Hide or Display Pages
or Hide or Display Buttons.
CQ Humor

B C
A

A. B. C. D.
From the Advanced Setup Decide where the page to be hidden Select Hide or Display Pages or Navigate to the button, page
screen use the 5-way cursor is located: Hide or Display Devices. or device to be hidden and
to select Hide or Display On the Main Menu- go to Step C select YES to hide.
Pages. or
Inside a Device- see tip, above.
 Advanced Setup
7 Editing Labels
Make life easier by labeling buttons to say what YOU want! How about
renaming a button to a newly created activity? (i.e. TV to Watch TV)
Or, simply change the LOOK of an icon.

B C
A

A. B. C.
From the Advanced Setup screen Decide on the location of the Navigate to the button in the location
use the 5-way cursor to select button or device you would like to provided in the previous step and
Edit Labels. rename by selecting On the Main PRESS it to rename.
Menu, Inside a Device or Edit
Main Label (the title that appears
on top of the MAIN menu).
 Advanced Setup
Editing Labels 7
These steps are only available if On the Main Menu is
selected in Step B.

F
D E

D. E. F.
Select a device type, for the Change the device icon by Type in a name for the
icon, by using the pressing the left or right device using the number
5 way cursor and select cursor. Press Next to move key’s alphanumeric
buttons. one. equivalent. Press Next
when done.
 Advanced Setup
8 Erasing
Quickly erase unwanted activities (macros) and
learned commands anywhere on the remote.

B C
A

A. B. C.
From the Advanced Setup screen Decide whether you want to Select how you would like to
use the 5-way cursor to select erase Macros or Learned erase : One Button, All on 1
Erasing. Commands. Device or All Everywhere.
 Advanced Setup
Erasing 8

If Inside a Device is chosen,

select the device that
contains the button to erase.

D
E

D. E. F.
Choose whether the location of Press a hard or soft button to An Erased confirmation will
the button is On the Main Menu erase. indicate the macro or learned
or Inside a Device. command is no longer
programmed in the remote.
 Advanced Setup
9 RF Setup
Tired of leaving the cabinet doors open, just to control the
cable box? RF travels right through those doors, and even
An optional RF base station floors and walls! Add an optional RF base station for “no
such as a MRF-260 or MRF-350
is necessary for this option.
rules” operation.

B C

A. B. C.
From the Advanced Setup Decide whether you would like to use RF These four options are important as
screen use the 5-way cursor control for EVERY device (All Devices Set they determine how communication
to select RF Setup. Same) or decide IR or RF for each device occurs between the remote, your
(Each Device Differs) devices, and the RF base station. The
If IR routing (see glossary) is required, you next page has more details regarding
must choose Each Device Differs each option.
 Advanced Setup
RF Setup 9
To use a RF base station, the following options should be addressed:

IR or RF Signal: Turn OFF IR Signal (no need to point) and turn ON RF Signal (communicates with
base station.)

RF ID# (Address): Select an ID# between 1-F. The ID# identifies the base station to the remote. It is
important to select the same # on the RF base station. DO NOT SELECT ID# 0, as any RF remote can
control the base station. See next slide for further information.

Emitter (IR) Routing: Select an individual emitter number, by pressing the UP or DOWN soft
buttons, for each device selected. If All devices were selected leave as All lines.

Blaster On/Off: Decide whether the front-facing IR “blaster” should be ON or OFF. The Blaster On
option blasts the IR signal from the front of the RF base station.

Press Save for each modified option.

IR/RF signal RF ID Emitter Blaster

 Advanced Setup
RF Setup (base station) 9
Adjust the RF ID# dial to
reflect the selection made in
the remote’s RF Setup.
Plug the emitter
Note: DO NOT SELECT ID# 0, as for each device
any RF remote can control the into its designated
base station. IR OUTPUT.
10 Favorite Channels
Hate relying on the cable channel guide to find your favorite
channels. Have trouble keeping track of cable’s ever-changing
lineup? Use the Favorite Channels option to showcase multiple
channels, up to six per page.
Favorite Channels

B
A

A. B. C.
From the Main Setup screen Choose between Select a button position
use the 5-way cursor to select Adding/Edit Favs or Delete Favs then favorite channel icon
Favorite Channels. (previously created). to save the channel.
Create up to 8 pages of
favorite channel icons, Note: If Delete Favs is selected,
each page holds up to 6 you will have the option to delete
icons each. One Favorite Channel or All.
 Favorite Channels 10
D
D.
Select for each category:
Label: rename the channel icon
Device: select the device where the favorite
channel is found
Channel: enter the channel number
(See below for details of each)

Label Device Channel

Enter the channel

number using the
Enter the channel number pad.
name using the Press Next to
alphanumeric return to Step D.
keypad.
Press Next to
return to Step D.
Select the
source device
containing the
channel to
add.
 11 User Settings
Like creature comforts? Modify your preferred
settings with the User Settings option.

B.
From the User Settings screen
use the 5-way cursor to select
A a preference.

A.
From the Main Setup screen
use the 5-way cursor to select Color Screen Button Lighting
User Settings.

Automatic On: ON
when LCD is ON, or
Always OFF
Auto Turn Off Timing:
Brightness: Change the level How many seconds the
between 0% - 100% light stays ON.
Auto Turn Off Timing: How many
seconds the light stays ON.
 User Settings 11

B.
From the User
B
Settings screen use
the 5-way cursor to
select an option,
one at a time.

System & Battery Info. Factory Reset

Power Remaining:
Change the level
between 0% - 100%
System Info: Displays
the memory usage.

This option sets the remote to

the original factory program.
(All programming will be lost!)

Press Next then select Yes to erase.

12 Display Tips
The Display Tips is your personal MX-450
programming tutorial.

A A

A. B.
From the Main Setup screen Use the 5-way cursor to turn
use the 5-way cursor to select the display tips on or off.
Display Tips. Press Save when done.
 Glossary
Term Definition

"Hard" Button A button that is physically ON the remote; it can be touched, pressed and is tactile

A button that is represented by an on-screen representation, making it customizable to various levels. This button
"Soft" Button may be activated by pressing it (if remote is a touchscreen) or the hard button that is adjacent to it (LCD, non-
touchscreen)

Backlit LCD buttons An Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) screen with "soft" buttons that are backlit for easy viewing in low light conditions

A code set is a series of commands (usually using infra-red) put together to control a single device. The MX-450
Code Set will automatically assign all commands in a code set to the appropriate "hard" buttons and create "soft" buttons
for the remaining commands in the code set.
Also called PUNCH THROUGH, this is the ability of a remote to allow the user to access commands from one
Copy & Paste device when on the page of another device. A common usge is to place the TV volume commands on the CABLE
page to allow easy access of volume without returning to the TV page.
When a one-touch activity is created, there may be reason to add a pause before the following command is sent;
Delays (Pause) for example, when a Power ON command is sent to the TV, it may take 2-3 seconds for the TV to start and be
ready to accept another command. Using the PAUSE button will add .5 seconds, per press, to the command string.

Devices (Components) Devices, or components, are considered to be any object that is, or can be, controlled by a remote.

Like an electronic assistant, Display Tips on the MX-450 will make suggestions or give instruction for certain steps
Display tips
of the programming process.
When a code set is programmed onto the remote, some of the buttons may be inexplicably named with
Edit Label
unfamiliar terms. Use this feature to rename those buttons to more familiar sounding names.

Favorite Channels An icon, or text field, that has the channel number of the network represented within it.
 Glossary
Term Definition

A page, or series of pages, with network names, or icons, representing favorite channels; when a channel is
Favorite Pages
selected, the remote will automatically send out the numeric commands to switch to the chosen network.

When a code set is programmed onto the remote, some of the buttons/pages may be deemed unnecessary. Use
Hide or Display Pages/Buttons
this feature to hide buttons, or pages of buttons, to the user.

These are pages that are found inside a device that has been added to the remote. By default, these are
Inside a Device populated by commands forTHAT device, however, with programming, these buttons can be made to perform
macros or commands from other devices.
Also called PUNCH THROUGH, this is the ability of a remote to allow the user to access commands from one
Intuitive Commands device when on the page of another device. A common usge is to place the TV volume commands on the CABLE
page to allow easy access of volume without returning to the TV page.

IR, or Infra-red is a low frequency of the non-visible light spectrum. Even though it is not visible to humans,
Infra-Red (IR)
devices can "see" IR and be programmed to react to differennt IR strings.

The ability to record the infra-red (IR) signal from one remote (usually the manufacturer's) and place it on a
Learn
button on the smart remote.

Also called One Touch Activities, these are buttons (hard or soft) that trigger a recorded sequence of commands;
Macros typically to perform a common function that would normally take many button presses (i.e. Watch TV, Watch DVD,
Listen to CD)

The MX-450 has different screen views. On the Main Menu are the screens that show devices or activities. Once a
On the Main Menu
device is chosen, the remote will typically jump to a page that is Inside a Device

Also called MACROS, these are buttons (hard or soft) that trigger a recorded sequence of commands; typically to
One-Touch Activities perform a common function that would normally take many button presses (i.e. Watch TV, Watch DVD, Listen to
CD)
 Glossary
Term Definition

Some menus like the Main Menu, Device Menu and Favorites may have more than one page associated with
Page button
them. These buttons, found to the left, and right, of the Main button will navigate between those pages

This statement will appear on the LCD when the remote is ready to move on to the next step in the action or
Ready
programming

The record function is the first step to creating one touch activities (macros). While in record mode, every button
Record press is saved and added to the string of commands; once the SAVE/DONE button is pressed, the entire command
string is stored in the location determined by you.

This suggestion appears when the action you just tried to perform has failed. Usually retrying the step will solve
Retry
the problem

The MX-450 has the ability to control device via direct IR, or route the IR commands through an RF base station.
RF Setup Using an RF base station allows commands to be sent through walls, floors and doors. RF also allows for native
command of URC lighting.

This acknowledgment will appear during some programming procedures to let you know that the action has been
Saved
completed

Smart Remote A unified remote that has capabilities to make its use more efficient, intuitive and automatic

A single remote control that combines other controllers into a single interface. Does not imply any intelligent
Unified Remote
control, just combined control!