Elmosaurus, I am thinking about taking a LED emitter (I have some spares) and plugging into my processor's IR-out as a test. I figure that doesn't involve any other gear and I am pretty sure it doesn't pose a threat to the processor. If it works like the manual describes, I should see the emitter light up every time I use the remote.
Am I understanding this all wrong or would that test tell us what we want to know?

... it wouldn't be a hobby if it wasn't fun...