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downside to weeknees ?
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Posted by: briang5

I am looking to upgrade my series two TIVO.

Is there a downside to a weaknees upgrade ? I simply want to add a 160gig second drive to my existing 60gig drive. If I order it from them is it as simple as cracking open the TIVO and installing it ?

Is the only downside that it is more expensive ?

It looks as if their price for a 160 gig is $219, and I just scanned a mag for prices, and an average 160gig drive is only about $35 less. For me that would be $35 well spent if it eliminated the inevitable hassle of hacking, figuring out exactly what to do, posting questions, and worse of all risking losing my existing programming on my exisiting drive.

Comments ?

Posted by: bigpuma

I don't know about weaknees but you can get 160 gig hard drives here starting at $108 with free shipping.

http://www.newegg.com/app/manufacto...talog=14&DEPA=1

I have used newegg for lots of purchases and they have good prices and the items come quickly via fedex.

edit: fixed link

Posted by: goodness0001

I am not sure, but if you order a drive from them and you are adding it to an existing drive you are still going to have to do a little tweaking because you have to let drive A know that there is a drive B. I dont know that weaknees can do that for you...unless you send them your existing drive and then send both back ready to go...

someone correct me.

Posted by: slappyjam

quote:
Originally posted by goodness0001
I am not sure, but if you order a drive from them and you are adding it to an existing drive you are still going to have to do a little tweaking because you have to let drive A know that there is a drive B. I dont know that weaknees can do that for you...unless you send them your existing drive and then send both back ready to go...

someone correct me.

From the other posts I read, you just order the kit and isntall the drive and that's it. Checkout the Weaknees website at weaknees.com. They have a link to a PDF whcih is the instructions on how to install the drive. I read through it and it (obviously) does not involve sending your TiVo anywhere.

Posted by: weaknees

We don't need your TiVo drive; the drive kits we send include a drive that can be installed directly in your TiVo... no PC necessary on your end (we do the PC work before shipping the drive).

As for cost, keep in mind that most Series2 TiVos require a bracket to hold a second drive, as well as an IDE cable, power cable and Torx tools. In addition, we recommend a power saving device if you are upgrading a standalone Series2 with a model number starting with TCD2. Drive kits include all of these parts; if you want to do the upgrade on your own, you'll want to price in the cost of the appropriate TwinBreeze kit--see here--which comes with the parts you need (other than the drive).

Michael

Posted by: Robert S

197Gb puts you beyond the point at which mfsfix requires additional swap (180Gb on a Series 2). If your TiVo ever gets a Green Screen of Death you'll have to do a rather complicated procedure to get it to boot again (see the Fixes thread).

I recommend you go with the 120Gb upgrade drive, which is just below the threshold and is known to work properly on that model.

Posted by: Squirrelissimo

quote:
Originally posted by weaknees
We don't need your TiVo drive; the drive kits we send include a drive that can be installed directly in your TiVo... no PC necessary on your end (we do the PC work before shipping the drive).

But how do you get around making changes to the A drive (or am I in error in thinking that changes are always necessary) ?

Do you have a "run once" routine installed on your B drives which make changes to A after installation ?

I, too, am considering adding a 2nd HD to my new Series2, and I'm curious as to the apparent alternate method of doing so.

Posted by: jennifer

Just want to take this chance to give Weaknees 2-thumbs up. I ordered a drive to replace an existing drive, and they were with me on the phone and via email helping me to install it correctly. Their customer service cannot be beat!!

Posted by: Shark73

quote:
Originally posted by Squirrelissimo
But how do you get around making changes to the A drive (or am I in error in thinking that changes are always necessary) ?

Do you have a "run once" routine installed on your B drives which make changes to A after installation ?

I, too, am considering adding a 2nd HD to my new Series2, and I'm curious as to the apparent alternate method of doing so.

Check out their website and download the installation instructions for your type of machine. I am by no means a tech person and the installation was very easy if you follow the instructions. I even purchased the upgraded fans.

If you feel comfortable with the instructions, then I would recommend buying the drive from weakness.

Jim

Posted by: weaknees

Squirrelissimo-

There is a mechanism in stock TiVos that looks for a certain signature on secondary drives. We set our secondary drives with that signature, so that when your TiVo boots with the new drive, it sees it, and adds it's capacity to the bank.

Michael

Posted by: Zirak

The real downside of weeknees or any other "canned upgrade" is that if problems ever arise you aren't well positioned to fix it yourself. You have to "go back to the well" as it were.

It also certainly costs more than doing it yourself, but that also applies to cutting the grass.

160G drive deals are sometimes (infrequently) as low as $79, although ~$100 deals are much more common. One needs to add up the price of the parts and make an individual determination of whether a canned upgrade is worth the additional cost.

Posted by: Squirrelissimo

quote:
Originally posted by weaknees
Squirrelissimo-

There is a mechanism in stock TiVos that looks for a certain signature on secondary drives. We set our secondary drives with that signature, so that when your TiVo boots with the new drive, it sees it, and adds it's capacity to the bank.

Michael

Excellent, thanks for helping me understand.

Shark73, thanks, I've been to the weeknees site and am also considering purchasing a prepared "drop in" unit.

I just wanted to understand how they could create "drop ins" when what I've read re: MFSTools suggested changes to the A drive.

My decision/situation is complicated by the fact that I have several spare HD's now that I've retired my home-based, system test bed, and am trying to find uses for them. Thus ...

Posted by: Robert S

MFS Tools requires access to the A drive and IMO is a better upgrade all-round, but blessed drives have done the job just fine for thousands of people.

If you know enough about PC's to have a 'home-based system test bed' (do you still need a license for those?), I think you'd be able to figure out the mysteries of MFS Tools fairly easily.