TiVo Community Forums Archives - add or replace drive

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add or replace drive
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Posted by: robertmc

I was wondering what the general opinion was regarding upgrades. Am I better off adding a drive or just replacing the drive? Thanks.

Posted by: robertmc

Is it quieter/less heat to just replace? does it matter? Anyone have an opinion?

Posted by: Nascar

Yes I would like to know to, I just ordered a 120GB drive and don't know If I should replace the drive or add the new one. My TiVo is a years old but I'm not having any problems with it.

Posted by: rseligman

Empirically, one drive is quieter and cooler than two, and a slower drive is quieter and cooler than a faster one. But the differences will probably not be noticeable. People have reported upgrades in every combination with few problems.

If it's a year old, it must be a Series 1. As long as you have room for 2 drives, adding a second one is fine. Some TiVo models even come with 2 drives right from the factory. There's some debate on whether you should use 5400 or 7200RPM drives, the idea being that the faster the drive, the hotter and noisier it is. I used two 5400 drives and have no problems. Others report no problems with the 7200 drives. You can search the forum on these points and read more for yourself.

Posted by: Nascar

Thanks rseligman. I have the Philips HDR212 do you know if I can put two drives in...Thanks

Posted by: stace

Yes, you can put two drives in it.

You can put two drives in any TiVo, just some require additional parts. An HDR212, however, will accept two drives fine.

Posted by: Nascar

Thanks stace after reading the Hinsdale how-to site, I found the link to 9thTee and bought the bracket for the extra drive. :)

Posted by: Robert S

I would replace the drive, at least to start with. If your added drive develops a problem, you're in real trouble (for a start, which drive is failing?). If the hard drive is OK after a month, then it's likely to be good for years, and you can safely add your old A drive as a B drive.

Posted by: robertmc

So I guess the answer is that it really doesn't make that much of a difference.