Using Halo Control

[Jon SS]

Has anybody tried connecting to their C2/C1 using the serial port at the back. I tried connecting my laptop using a Db9 male/female serial cable but was unable to get a serial connection - tried com 1 through 4 (use com 1 for my remote control). Am I missing something?

[Chris D]

Yes, I had to do just a bit of tweaking, but it ended up working for me. I've got the Halo connected via a USB-to-serial cable from my Dell laptop. Mine is Com 4 if I remember right. I love all the tweaking that I can do now!

[Jon SS]

Did you just plug the cable into the Halo? Do you have to do anything to the Halo itself to make it connect with the software?

[nicholtl]

The Halo doesn't require anything to make it connect. It's the software on your PC (which I assume you downloaded from Parasound's website?) that you need to connect with your Halo, via one of the four "com ports" which is an option in the program. I can't remember how to access that option though, you'll have to consult the manual for that. Oh, and the full (100 page or something) manual for the remote and software is also available for download too. That is something you DEFINITELY want to have, if you don't already.

[Swfalcon]

You go to "file" then "options" ( you will have com 1, 2, 3, 4 )
to test connection go to "operations" and select "check connection"
retry with the different com to find the good one

[Chris D]

I ended up playing a lot more with the Halo software tonight. A couple tips to pass on:

1. I had to remove the two little screw-bolts on either side of the female RS-232 port on the Halo C1. (they just unscrew right out) My male serial cable has the screw bolts also, and are permanent, so the two sets of bolts were preventing me from plugging the cable into the port. Interestingly enough, the serial cable for the MX-700 remote included with the Halo C1 has the screw heads on either side of its female serial port, so it makes me think that the bolts on the Halo C1 are wrong. (probably not, though, I'm guessing RS-232 cables for theater automation use these with the female ports)

2. There were a couple times that the computer lost connection with the Halo C1. If I jiggled the cable port a bit on the back of the C1, it worked again. This is probably because I had to remove the bolts, and the plug is just inserted without screws holding it tight.

3. MAKE SURE YOU SAVE YOUR ORIGINAL CONFIGURATION before you start changing it! I can definitley see that it's easy to get confused, mess something up, and then not know where you had it to begin with. If all else fails, I can always wipe my setup clean and start over from my original configuration. (note: this is different from the default configuration automatically opened by the Halo software)