Xbox 360 Slim Hidden mount - IR?

[tomtoth]

Guys,
Installing TV on the wall and wondering if anyone has hidden mounted the xbox 360?. Either behind the tv (to give a clean look) or in another room (using HDMI over cat6). The question is, is this possible? Where is the IR receiver on the xbox? Can I glue a repeater on it and do it that way? Waiting for echo (smaller footprint), but who knows when it will get release. Anyone done something similar, or have ideas? I didn't want to open the xbox and hardwire anything..

Tom

[Danno100]

I put my XBOX 360's close to the TV's. OTOH, I have a 35 foor HDMI cable to another TV from my HTPC. In addition, I used a USB extension so that the IR receiver can be placed under the TV. Works like a charm and I don't have to deal with any noise. Cheaper than another XBOX as well.

[erkotz]

I was considering doing this for a while at home. Between logistical issues (wall was not studded like I expected) and it being no longer necessary (Echo) I never did it though. You should be able to attach an IR repeater to the 360. On the original Xbox, the IR receiver is the small maroon (almost black) window on the front panel, about 1.5" long and 3/8" high. On the slim Xbox, it is either next to the controller connect button, or the controller connect button itself (I don't quite remember offhand, and I'm not home to look at one)
If you are using a Slim especially, be conscious that the 360 has air vents on the top and I would not recommend blocking these.

[SinisterEngr]

erkotz - along these same lines, can you comment on what you've done to hide your echo? Specifically, I am wondering if there is an IR input jack on the echo, or if I would need to use an IR repeater in order to flush mount a TV with an echo crammed into the wall behind it. I unfortunately require IR control (and not just IP control) since I need to have a remote lying around that anyone can pick up and use.

Thanks for any info. you can share

[makryger]

If i remember correctly, the echo will have HDMI-CEC, so as long as your TV's IR is in line of site, it should work fine. Not sure if the echo is wall-mountable, though. Erkotz will need to answer that one.

[SinisterEngr]

Unfortunately, I have zero experience with HDMI-CEC. Most people seem to talk about it in this context as allowing the echo to be able control TV power/volume via it, but if the other way worked as well (meaning, I can pass through all echo remote commands to it through my TV's IR receiver), then that would be perfect. Alas, my experience has typically been the more awesome/perfect I think something is, the less likely it is to materialize :-/

Whether or not the echo itself is easily wall-mountable is not a problem; I will make it so

[aeblank]

I plugged a wireless media (Lenovo) keyboard/mouse into my xbox, and it worked!

Makes me wonder are there any usb IR receivers that would work on an xbox? Bonus points for a slim/small/low profile/hide-able one.

Thoughts?

[barnabas1969]

Unfortunately, I have zero experience with HDMI-CEC. Most people seem to talk about it in this context as allowing the echo to be able control TV power/volume via it, but if the other way worked as well (meaning, I can pass through all echo remote commands to it through my TV's IR receiver), then that would be perfect. Alas, my experience has typically been the more awesome/perfect I think something is, the less likely it is to materialize :-/

Whether or not the echo itself is easily wall-mountable is not a problem; I will make it so

I can tell you from experience, that your TV (if it supports CEC) will be able to control basic playback/record functionality on the playback device (Echo, BluRay player, etc). So, you will be able to use the arrow keys, transport keys (play/pause/rewind/etc), number buttons and other normal things. However, there won't be a "green button" on your TV remote, nor some of the other handy buttons that take you directly to various menus in Media Center.

I have my PC connected to the RCAware HDMI-CEC USB bridge. I can control all the things listed above on my PC by using the remote that came with my TV. I did this to make it easy for visitors to use my Media Center rig without having to teach them to use my programmable remote control (plus it allows me to automate some other stuff via HDMI-CEC).

I primarily use my programmable remote, but it does come in handy to be able to use the TV remote when my wife has possession of the programmable remote.

[SinisterEngr]

So I think you're confirming what I expected with regards to HDMI-CEC in that I can either:

a) Use the echo remote with the echo's IR receiver and control limited TV functions (of which power/volume are probably the only ones I would care about)
or
b) Use the TV remote with the TV's IR receiver and control limited echo functions

Obviously a) doesn't work for me since the echo is hidden behind the TV and b) is too limiting because the users in my household have grown accustomed to all the media center specific buttons.

So, it looks like an IR repeater is in my future, unless the echo has an IR input jack, in which case I would just need an external IR receiver. An IR repeater isn't a deal killer just more "stuff" to hide and something else that needs to be plugged in.

Can anyone recommend a good/cheap/simple IR repeater?

[bmblank]

If its behind the tv, what about a small, inconspicuous mirror right over the edge of the TV? Nothing big enough to see behind the TV, but just dime sized, or even smaller, just enough for IR.

[barnabas1969]

Yes, SinisterEngr, you assume correctly. That is, if your TV supports CEC. And... it's only fair to mention that each manufacturer has their own implementation of HDMI-CEC, so your mileage may vary.

As for IR repeaters and such... there are many available. Just google it.

There was some talk about being able to connect an IR dongle to the Echo when Ceton was asking for feature requests. I don't know if they implemented anything like this. It might be wise to post your question in the echo forum here on this website.

[tombardo]

While this won't help with an XBOX360: If the IR receiver for the echo is on the front (where else would it be?) you might be able to use velcro and attach the echo to the back of the wall mounted TV (near the top) such that the IR receiver points up. I did this with a Linksys DMA2100 and it works pretty well. The DMA 2100 is completely hidden. I have to aim a little high (sometimes bouncing the signal off the ceiling), but it works pretty well.