Upgrading Humax PVR8000T hard disk

[Ikki]

I just upgraded my PVR8000T from 40GB to 120GB which will probably give around 60 hours of storage. It is working as before but with 3 times the storage, the new drive is very quiet.

How to do it:

1. Get a 120GB IDE HDD. I got a Maxtor DiamondMax Plus 9 with an 8MB cache from Scan (www.scan.co.uk) for £66.
2. Unplug the PVR8000T from the mains and whip off the case cover.
3. Disconnect the power cable and the data cable from the old drive.
4. Make sure that the new drive has the jumper set for 'cable select' - a diagram on the drive shows the correct driver position.
5. Unscrew the HDD mount from the case (3 screws) and the HDD from the mount, replace with the new drive.
6. Plug the cables into the new drive.
7. Put the cover on and plug in.
8. Turn on and wait a few minutes.

Job done

[Tetlee]

Nice one Ikki , that sounds like a £60 well spent, and quieter you say , maybe you can give an update in a week or so to confirm everything is rinkydink How hot is the unit getting now? I'd be a tad nervous of an overheat.
I might consider an upgrade myself but I'm in no hurry at the mo as I just spent a small fortune on console accersories

[Ikki]

There doesn't appear to be a heat problem at present but it is early days. All I can say at the moment is that it increases total power consumption by about 12% when it is recording or playing back, and a minimal increase when idling.

A lot of the power increase is used to operate the faster drive, rather than being lost as heat. Don't forget that the PVR uses convection cooling, so most heat is lost upwards through the cover (a good reason for not placing anything directly above it).

[Tetlee]

Sure, I'll wait and see how you get on, keep us posted! I never would consider putting anything on top of my Humax, if something has vents, I don't cover 'em

[Plastic Paddy]

Nice one Ikki. Saved the details for future ref .
Having a lot of fun with the 8000t.
Doesn't seem to get very hot so far.

[TVCables]

It's not a good idea to put a 7200 rpm drive into a set top box, more power consumption means more heat which ultimately leads to an earlier failure of the box and the drive.

Its worth spending a little more on a 5400rpm drive, the Samsung SV1204H is a superb low current, low heat drive for a set top box.

I'm not sure whether your £66 includes their extortionate delivery charge? The last 1204 I bought came off the shelf from my local PC World in January for £82 so the price should have dropped by now.

Andy.

[Ikki]

My tests have shown that the average increase in air temperature in the case is about 1C to 3C with the larger drive.

The stable operating temperature of the air within the PVR is about 40C give or take a few degrees for each drive, this is well within the maximum operating limits for the drive and would still be within limits if the room temperature rose by 10C.

So I am not worried about failure due to temperature.

p.s. I just popped into their shop for the HDD, so no delivery charges.

[Ikki]

I have now tried a 120GB Seagate Barracuda drive in the PVR8000T. It doesn't give as much capacity (about 3GB less) and seems to be a bit noisier, it also runs slightly hotter.

The big question that I would like to know the answer to is: Can a drive larger than the 137GB barrier be fitted? (e.g. 300 GB)

The cable connecting the drive to the circuit board is an old style 40 conductor cable. Would using an 80 conductor cable work? I don't know.

The Maxtor 120GB drive is working happily at present.

[JIT]

Ikki

How is the PVR running, any problems?

[Ikki]

So far, everything is hunky dory.

I haven't noticed any difference in operation between the 120GB HDD and the standard 40GB HDD. It records, pauses, fast forwards and reverses as before, just lots more space. I was always running at 75% to 95% full, but there are no worries now.

[Ikki]

After one month, I can tell you that the PVR8000T (120GB) is behaving impeccably, in fact, I have not had any of the occasional eccentric events that were a feature of the PVR with the 40GB disk. What more can I say except that the 120GB seems to be filling up - it's like salaries, the more you get, the more you use!!

[Goober11]

Originally Posted by Ikki

I just upgraded my PVR8000T from 40GB to 120GB which will probably give around 60 hours of storage. It is working as before but with 3 times the storage, the new drive is very quiet.

How to do it:

1. Get a 120GB IDE HDD. I got a Maxtor DiamondMax Plus 9 with an 8MB cache from Scan (www.scan.co.uk) for £66.
2. Unplug the PVR8000T from the mains and whip off the case cover.
3. Disconnect the power cable and the data cable from the old drive.
4. Make sure that the new drive has the jumper set for 'cable select' - a diagram on the drive shows the correct driver position.
5. Unscrew the HDD mount from the case (3 screws) and the HDD from the mount, replace with the new drive.
6. Plug the cables into the new drive.
7. Put the cover on and plug in.
8. Turn on and wait a few minutes.

Job done

Ikki I am thinking about having a go at this but am a complete noob - should I get someone who knows what they are doing or have a go?

Thanks

[Ikki]

If you have ever changed a card or something else in a PC, it's simpler than that. I don't know your level of technical ability, the golden rule is if you don't feel confident, get a mate who is familiar with PC's to help with it. Having said that, if you follow the instructions, there is little to go wrong, use the image as a reference. Just make sure that the unit is switched off and unplugged from the mains before you start and take everything a step at a time, double checking all the way.

[hornydragon]

Very tempted to buy one of these now, i dont spose you can record off the scart can you???
Would this drive work ok? http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/produ...duct_uid=32009
£44 + delivery!!!!
Sooooooooooooooo tempted.


£49 delivered!!!!! ikki you are the man!

[Ikki]

The PVR8000T can only record from the internal digital signal source that it decodes from the DTT signal. The scart sockets only output a tv signal, there is no way to record from an external source. As long as you understand that this device is purely for timeshifting DTT programs, it is one of the best pieces of AV kit released released in recent years, especially with the extended EPG.

I can see no technical reason why the WD HDD should not work. The only thing to think about is noise. When the PVR is on the HDD runs continuously in seek mode as it is buffering the station being watched, for the live tv pause functions. I don't think that this HDD has FDB (fluid dynamic bearings) and the seek noise value seems to be a bit higher than the Seagate or Maxtor competition. For example compare the WD with a Seagate Barracuda 7200.7 120GB. Quiet seek values WD 34dB, Seagate 28dB, Performance seek WD 37dB, Seagate 34dB. Bear in mind that the dB is a logarithmic value, so the difference will be bigger than it looks, the WD is actually twice as loud in quiet seek than the Seagate. This observation is solely based on the manufacturers figures. It's a good price though.