Beam IR sensor stopped recognizing remotes

They are replacing mine. Will let you know if it solves it.

I updated my Beam last week - now running 13.1.1 (build 63289260) and no longer have ths issue that has plagued me for nearly six months. Works flawlessly now. Nervous to say so in case I jinx it but I was all about ready to get rid of the damn thing so hope this is indeed a permanent fix. 

Hi @ScottyNic 

Thanks for sharing that, and I’m glad to hear it!

I tested it again as well today -- version 13.1.3. No luck here.

Set up everything using IR, watch TV, increase/decrease volume via IR remote worked, switched to playing something on Spotify using the Sonos app, and then turning on TV again (which outputted TV sound to the Beam) stops the Beam from receiving any IR commands from the remote. Very reproducible..

Hi @Nvc 

Earlier, you mentioned using a nVidia Shield remote. Although the Shield itself has an IR detector (so it can be used with other remotes), the Shield remote doesn’t transmit IR. Therefore, the Beam cannot detect it. CEC will be needed for remote commands to function in this case, and CEC is only available via an HDMI connection, not the optical connection.

As CEC is being used, and it sounds like the remote functions until the TV goes off and on again, I first recommend you unplug the TV from power for at least 30 seconds. If that doesn’t help, then please repeat but while the TV is off, disconnect all HDMI devices apart from the Beam and Shield. Test and if all goes well, connect the other HDMI devices back to the TV one at a time and test each time until you’ve found the device causing the problem. Disable CEC on this device. If you are unable to disable, you will need to get a CEC-less adaptor to strip the CEC channel from the connection.

If, however, you’re not using the Shield remote but a IR remote instead, then the IR commands are being blocked by the active HDMI connection, by design. In other words, when the TV is on and the Beam is connected to it via HDMI, IR commands are ignored by the Beam. You could connect the Beam to the TV with the optical adaptor instead - this would result in the Beam never ignoring the IR commands, but you would lose voice control of the TV’s power in this case (unless the TV has it’s own voice control, of course). There would be no reduction in TV sound quality from the Beam while using the optical connection, but you may need to tell the TV not to use it’s own speakers.

I hope this helps

Hi, thanks for the explanation! But I’m not sure you’re right -- I have the latest Nvidia Shield and the remote does indeed have an IR blaster:

SHIELD Remote
> Microphone for voice search and commands
> Motion-activated backlit buttons
> Bluetooth connectivity
> IR blaster for control of volume and power on TVs, soundbars, or receivers
> Remote locator for finding a lost remote 
> 2x AAA batteries included

It works initially, I see the light on top of the Beam blink when I press volume up or down. But when I play music through the Sonos app and then turn my tv back on, the Beam switches to TV audio (so it seems it detected the sound coming from the optical port) but the light on the Beam no longer blinks if I press volume up or down.

I’ll try with the TV remote, maybe it has a stronger signal.

I still believe the Beam is at fault -- when I do a power cycle, it received IR commands again...

Hi @Nvc 

Apologies -  as I had checked the Remote settings on my own Shield and didn’t find any IR reference, I presumed there wasn’t an IR function. It turns out it’s in the Display & Sound section, for some reason.

So your Beam is already connected via optical? That would negate the rest of what I said previously.

I can only recommend you get in touch with our technical support team and make all of this clear to them at the start. I wouldn’t expect an immediate fix, but as it’s an unknown situation it will at least get flagged for investigation. If the Beam IR function doesn’t work even at very short range, be sure to mention this early. I would test it myself, but I don’t have a Beam here at home.

Given that only the Beam and remote are involved, I’d be inclined to agree with you.

Hi again @Nvc 

I’ve had a discussion with a colleague on this since my last post.

We recommend you connect your Beam to the TV with HDMI, if that’s an option, so that IR is no longer relevant (though I guess that would prevent volume control of music via the remote while the TV is off - it really depends on the TV).

Also, or alternatively, you could try programming the Beam to use a different remote - see if that works more reliably or differently. If you like the Shield remote as much as I do, this less than ideal, but it will at least let us narrow down the possibilities.

Note that if you do both of these - connect Beam to HDMI and program it to use another remote - you’d only need to use the alternate remote when the TV is off (probably).

Please keep me updated on how you get on. Thanks.

Same issue. Happens almost like clock work every few months.
 

I found that toggling the “use IR” button in the app then running “remote control setup” worked. 

Hi. I’ve recently purchased a Beam. Software 13.1.4. Same issue. IR sensor just stops responding. Tried all usual fixes. Only a power cycle works. Any update anyone? It’s really annoying