Tivo/ReplayTV/non-Tivo PVR questions

[JackHawksmoor]

Not sure where to ask Tivo related questions on Anandtech. IMO it might as well count as a computer question, but this way no one will get ticked off

Anyway, I had a VCR die on me, and I'm looking into my options for replacing it. (New VCRs don't have a tape guide, and I don't want to buy something without at least a basic listing of what's on a tape/DVD/Hard drive).

I was really getting excited by Tivo's features...until I came across something absolutly bizarre about it. Apperently Tivo CAN'T BE SHUT OFF?!? My understanding from reading stuff all over the net is the unit is ALWAYS on, always running the hard drive, always recording for the 30 minute live TV buffer.

That's insane for a variety of reasons if true, but I'm going to put whatever I get in my bedroom, about 5 feet from my bed. There's no way I'd be able to go to sleep with a hard drive and fan (even quiet ones) running in the same room. I assumed that Tivo would turn itself on to record stuff (obviously) and also to download the TV guide, and maybe to do some disk maintenence. I could accept all of that, but I can't have the thing running 24/7 in the little private sanctuary that is my bedroom

Can anyone confirm this for me? (Oh, I'm looking at the new whiteish Tivo-branded Series 2 recorders in either the 40 or 80 hour forms.)

If it's true, do ReplayTV units have the same flaw? Do NON Tivo/Replay units like Toshiba's RD-XS32 run the hard drive all the time?

The RD-XS32 looks like it's about the same price as a 40 hour Tivo after the service fee, but it includes a larger drive (I think), and a DVD-RW drive...plus I'm assuming that since the instruction manual says it takes a while after you turn it on to load the OS into RAM, that it's really OFF when you turn it off.

Any thoughts? (Oh, and I'm not interested in a PC based PVR just because you have to run THEM all the time too).

Thanks!

 

[nageov3t]

Tivo can be shut off... I don't know if it turns itself on to record stuff, though. IMO, it's not that loud... I have it in my living room, and even with the tv off, I can't hear it from 5' away.

 

[n0cmonkey]

Not trying to thread crap or anything, but you can build a PC that is totally fanless. The VIA c3 processors are pretty cool.

 

[SpunkyJones]

Tivo doesn't shut off, it has a standby mode, which pretty much just shuts off the lights on the front of the Tivo, and stops it from outputting video/sound, but the hard drive is still spinning, and it will still record season passes, or what ever else you have set up. I don't hear much noise from my tivo when I'm sitting on the floor in front of it.

 

[MustISO]

I have one of the Toshiba Tivos with the DVD player. It doesn't shut off, the only way is to unplug it. The fan and the hard drive can be heard but it's not too loud. You get used to it in a week.

 

[spacelord]

ReplayTV is "on" all the time its plugged in also. When "off" though, it is not buffering TV, but the fan and HD are running... like Tivo its checking and waiting for the next thing to record.

Auto Commercial Skip rules! I watched all of Lost last night in about 40 minutes without ever touching the remote!

 

[royaldank]

I have a TiVo and Replay and I've never heard any noise from either except the first time I turned it on. Day to day, I can't say I ever remember hearing it search the drive or fans running.

 

[bunker]

I have a 40 hour series 2 Tivo. I have to be about 2 feet from it with the tv off hear the fans. It's quiet, I wouldn't worry.

 

[Doggiedog]

ReplayTVs are always on but the HDD shuts down if there is nothing going on.

That said, my RPTV got really noisy when I finally realized the HDD was dying. I replaced it with a new 160Gb and its a lot quieter now. If you are really worried about the noise level, I recommend getting a quiet Seagate and replacing the stock HDD.

 

[Dulanic]

I have a replayTV about 4 feet from my head when I sleep, and it's not loud or annoying, I cant even hear it.

 

[geecee]

I have an old 20GB Panasonic Showstopper (Replay TV). It has an old Quantum drive in it and you can't hear it at all and it's like 8 feet away from my head in the bedroom. When you shut it off, it spins down the hard drive, but it will spin it back up occasionally to check if anything needs to be recorded, if it is recording, or if its doing the nightly download. It has never woken me up. I can't say if the new Replay models have fans, but the old ones do not, so it's only the sound of the hard drive.

BTW, I also have another Replay that I hacked with a 80GB Maxtor drive. That one I could never have anywhere near the bedroom because the Maxtor drive is ridiculously loud. If you do decide to hack a smaller unit into a larger one, definitely go with a Seagate as someone above suggested. The Maxtors and the WDs are just not quiet enough.

 

[TwiceOver]

I also have a TiVo Series2 and I can't hear it at all. There is really only two noise producers, the fan and the hard drive, I hear nothing from either.

 

[loup garou]

Allowing you to turn it off would be stupid, what would happen if episodes of your Season Pass shows came on when the device was turned off?

My hacked Series2 Tivo with 2 drives is silent.

 

[kaizersose]

i had a standalone series 2 tivo that i thought was kind of loud but it was in my living room. no i have a phillips directivo and it is SILENT. it has a fan but i can put my ear right up to it and i hear nothing.

 

[Fritzo]

It can't be turned off. Not sure why you would want to though----wouldn't that defeat the purpose? If it's turned off, it can't record programs while you're not there or follow your schedule.

 

[pulse8]

You can turn a ReplayTV "off". It stops it from recording live TV, but it still records the shows you want.

 

[RossMAN]

Originally posted by: spacelord
ReplayTV is "on" all the time its plugged in also. When "off" though, it is not buffering TV, but the fan and HD are running... like Tivo its checking and waiting for the next thing to record.

Auto Commercial Skip rules! I watched all of Lost last night in about 40 minutes without ever touching the remote!

I have a ReplayTV 5040 which I'm selling, two great features are:
Internet Video Sharing and Commercial Skip

 

[n0cmonkey]

Originally posted by: RossMAN

Originally posted by: spacelord
ReplayTV is "on" all the time its plugged in also. When "off" though, it is not buffering TV, but the fan and HD are running... like Tivo its checking and waiting for the next thing to record.

Auto Commercial Skip rules! I watched all of Lost last night in about 40 minutes without ever touching the remote!

I have a ReplayTV 5040 which I'm selling, two great features are:
Internet Video Sharing and Commercial Skip

Why are you selling it?

 

[Dulanic]

Originally posted by: geecee
I have an old 20GB Panasonic Showstopper (Replay TV). It has an old Quantum drive in it and you can't hear it at all and it's like 8 feet away from my head in the bedroom. When you shut it off, it spins down the hard drive, but it will spin it back up occasionally to check if anything needs to be recorded, if it is recording, or if its doing the nightly download. It has never woken me up. I can't say if the new Replay models have fans, but the old ones do not, so it's only the sound of the hard drive.

BTW, I also have another Replay that I hacked with a 80GB Maxtor drive. That one I could never have anywhere near the bedroom because the Maxtor drive is ridiculously loud. If you do decide to hack a smaller unit into a larger one, definitely go with a Seagate as someone above suggested. The Maxtors and the WDs are just not quiet enough.

Hm my Maxtor 160GB has been quiet as can be, I sleep with it 4' from my head.

 

[spacelord]

I think I put a Maxtor 160GB in mine, but isn't there an option to slow down the seek time so its quieter? I forgot to do that when I was prepping the drive on my PC before installing it in the Replay unit.

 

[MrBond]

You'll probably get used to the extra noise eventually. I bought a dehumidifier for my room this summer, it ran 24x7 during periods of high humidity. The first night it was on I had a little trouble getting to sleep, after that I didn't even notice it (in fact, now that it hardly runs, it seems weird without the noise).

A Tivo is a great purchase, I highly reccomend it. The Series 2 (Dark Grey) is quieter than the Series 1, the silver ones might be quieter still.

 

[RossMAN]

Originally posted by: n0cmonkey

Originally posted by: RossMAN

Originally posted by: spacelord
ReplayTV is "on" all the time its plugged in also. When "off" though, it is not buffering TV, but the fan and HD are running... like Tivo its checking and waiting for the next thing to record.

Auto Commercial Skip rules! I watched all of Lost last night in about 40 minutes without ever touching the remote!

I have a ReplayTV 5040 which I'm selling, two great features are:
Internet Video Sharing and Commercial Skip

Why are you selling it?

Got a free Tivo series 2 (40 hours), wife prefers the TIVO interface and it's the same monthly fee.

 

[n0cmonkey]

Originally posted by: RossMAN

Originally posted by: n0cmonkey

Originally posted by: RossMAN

Originally posted by: spacelord
ReplayTV is "on" all the time its plugged in also. When "off" though, it is not buffering TV, but the fan and HD are running... like Tivo its checking and waiting for the next thing to record.

Auto Commercial Skip rules! I watched all of Lost last night in about 40 minutes without ever touching the remote!

I have a ReplayTV 5040 which I'm selling, two great features are:
Internet Video Sharing and Commercial Skip

Why are you selling it?

Got a free Tivo series 2 (40 hours), wife prefers the TIVO interface and it's the same monthly fee.

Cool. I've been thinking of picking something up. Not sure what to get yet though.

 

[JackHawksmoor]

Thanks guys. I am SO tempted to pick a Series 2 up this weekend with my 10% off coupon, but I?m almost positive I?d end up returning it. My hearing is REALLY sensitive, and I don?t think I?d be able to use a unit that stays on all the time, even if it?s super-quiet. (That's why if I do buy one, I'd get it local from Best Buy so I can hopefully return it, but I don't want to abuse their return policy by buying something I'm almost 100% sure I'd have to return.)

Does anyway know whether non-Tivo/Replay units with hard drives like Toshiba?s RD-XS32 keep them running all the time? It doesn?t have all the features of Tivo, but has most of what I?m interested in, and is actually cheaper on a feature by feature basis. If *IT* stays on all the time too, then I guess I need to look at non hard drive units like Sony's DVD recorders or just bite the bullet and get another VCR :/

Werk, (and Fritzo):

Allowing you to turn it off would be stupid, what would happen if episodes of your Season Pass shows came on when the device was turned off?

Well it wouldn?t really be ?off? anymore than a VCR is off when you hit power, it would just spin down the hard drive and fan, and run enough logic to turn itself back on when it needs to record something, or download the guide or whatever.

 

[Fritzo]

I have mine in an entertainment center and can not hear it at all. The fax is about as loud as a laptop fan, so it's like no noise. I have the feeling you think it's going to be like a PC fan or something.