marantz rc2000 durable?

I've used one for almost five years now and still love it. I don't find it very difficult to program, maybe just a bit time consuming when starting from scratch. The buttons and controls show no sign of sticking or losing their snap. My remote still looks brand new because I always place it display side down when not in use. Nothing grosser than going to a friends house and grabbing a remote gunked up with dirt and dust between the buttons because they left it face up.

The negative is that the RC2000 eats batteries, so I use two sets of rechargeables that I alternate and as a result have almost zero waste. The Marantz AV550 I'm using is old and sonically challenged, but the RC2000mkII that came with it marches on.

Its a great unit . I have one thats over 3 years old. Takes a beating from the kids. It is not the most user friendly unit. But once its set up it a nice unit.

I have an RC2000mkII and love it. You can create macros, etc. It looks complex because it has alot of buttons, but then again, you don't need to page through alot of menus to get to what you want. It is not as hard as it looks to program, but if you put the book away for several months, you'll need to get it back out the next time you want to make changes (or is my brain turning to mush with age??). The instruction manual is well written. Durable? YES. Mine is 3 years old and going strong. Real nice soft touch rubberized buttons. Just adjust the light features to minimum to save on batteries. Might be a little large for one handed operation for some. But a very flexible unit. It has worked with all of my gear, TV, satellite dish, VCR, etc. I would recommend it.

Seems to be a pretty rugged unit, but you'll need a rocket scientist to program the damned thing. If you're lucky enough to get it programmed, be prepared to operate it on behalf of your family cuz they'll never figure it out. I sold mine out of frustration; my kids find it easier to use the five remotes lying around than the Marantz unit.