How many different remote controls do you have cluttering up you coffee table? If you are like most people, you'll have at least three. If you find it difficult to quickly navigate and find the buttons you need on all of these different remotes, you need a system controller.

Many of us like to have our system components behind closed doors. You just can't do that with the standard remotes that are included with most components.

Have you tried cheap universal remote controllers they sell at the supermarket? They always have trouble with some or most of the infrared commands, and they don't work at all for devices that operate with RF remotes. If you want more comfort, style and ease-of-use when controlling your home entertainment devices and would also like to control your lights, curtains and furnace, then you need a system controller.

The system controllers we use at Custom Digital have the ability to run macro instructions. A macro is a pre-programmed sequence of commands sent to your components to accomplish a particular task. More about how it works later.

We have found most people that have a home theater system, whether large or small, just want the operation of their system to be simple; "I just want to hit one button to watch TV". Is that too much to ask? Well, in the past it was!

Here's where Custom Digital can come to the rescue. The type and complexity of your system determines the type of system controller you need. Remember the idea of one button control; well this is how easy we can make it for you.

Press the one button that says "Watch TV" and here is what the controller actually does...

Turns on the DVD player.

Turns on the surround receiver.

Sets surround receiver to the appropriate input for DVD..

Turns on the TV display.

Sets the TV to the appropriate input for DVD.

Dims the lights to a low level, perfect for watching movies.

Sets the surround processor to the correct Dolby surround mode, automatically determined by the media content you are watching.

Automatically issues a "play" command to the DVD player, along with special commands that bypass the "previews", taking you to the beginning of the movie!

The controller is now set to operate the satellite receiver and you're ready to go.

The only part you need to remember is that you want to watch TV! We deal with the rest!

The challenge for Custom Digital and the reason you cannot buy one at W Mart is that the set-up for these units is very complex. Yes, we do the hard part so you don't have to.

We obtain from each of your components manufacturers something called source codes or discrete codes. With a laptop computer we program these codes into your controller to perform a specific command or a series of commands. These commands are the "macros" we referred to earlier. It is a very time consuming process since we have to anticipate the sequence of events required to perform the function you need. The good news is that this is completely invisible to you.