I have a hardwired IR system in my current house. I used little tube style IR pickups by a company called Imagine (they also say Buffalo Electronics on them). You need a connecting block back at the components you want to control, which is fed by the pickups (I have 5 in the house). Emitters plug into the connecting block and feed the components.
Assuming you have access to run wires, this system is a breeze to install and works PERFECTLY.
In a large house I would never count on the wirless systems discussed here to have adequate range, so I am not planning that route in the new "casa".
I used regular old telephone wire to make the runs, but I hear rumor that cat 5 wire works the same, and who would complain about an extra cat 5 run down the line.
In my new house, I will have several "zones" of infrared signals, using an "addressable" IR router to like specific remote commands for devices that share like codes. In addition, some of these zones will be hardwired to specific receivers that will take care of volume and amplification in those zones.
