# Since I am not afraid to ask stupid questions



## DB_0673 (Sep 2, 2009)

Reading that the basic Roamio has a plastic case instead of metal in the higher end models and reading that basic only has a very small fan for cooling and thought I read that the larger 3TB might run hotter or draw more power and always wondering about how to keep electronics cool....

What does anyone think of the idea of extending the plugs/wiring to the hard drive and just having it outside the box.

Dan


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## eboydog (Mar 24, 2006)

There was much discussion on the upgrade thread about such, the overall impression I recieved was that as long as you are using a green AV drive, there is a couple degrees of increased temperature but so far nothing that appears to have created any problems unless you use a 7200 rpm or higher desktop drive as some of those get very hot. 

Personally, given the cost of the base unit, I wouldn't take the chances of having the hard drive mounted externally, the majority of the heat is generates not by the drive but the mainboard.


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## FitzAusTex (May 7, 2014)

I recently opened my Basic, and was surprised to find the hard drive opposite where the hottest part of the Roamio is. So, concur, the stock hard drive was much cooler than I expected.


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## DB_0673 (Sep 2, 2009)

thanks
Dan

what about running it with the top raised or removed, to cool the mainboard


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## eboydog (Mar 24, 2006)

It's my opinion that devices such the Roamio, Mini all generate heat primarily due to the processor and related ic circuits and the hardware developers make accommodations for such while also shielding those components from RF emotions, both emitting from them and not allowing other external devices to interfere with them, operating the Tivo with out its cover protection might not be a safe practice in the long term keeping in mind too that opening the cover voids the warranty. 

Also, too the heat hasn't been seen as a problem yet, I haven't heard of anyone being able to suggest their Roamio is not working correctly due to overheating and heat isn't the normal reason component fail necessarily, it's the cycle of heating and cooling were such places stress of all those part due to expanding and contracting; as long as a constant temperature is maintained in the entire device, the better. Taking the cover off will allow part of the main board to have a higher temperature nearest to the processor while component further away are much cooler and that contrast isn't healthy for long life as it's better for the entire board to maintain a higher temperature over all it's components. 

My problem is I have a house cat who like to sleep on my Tivo, he annoys me as he curls up next to it blocking the the air ventilation and on the top, since he's unemployed I going to rather mad if causes my Tivo to overheat as he has no means pay for a new one....


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## DB_0673 (Sep 2, 2009)

eboydog said:


> It's my opinion that devices such the Roamio, Mini all generate heat primarily due to the processor and related ic circuits and the hardware developers make accommodations for such while also shielding those components from RF emotions, both emitting from them and not allowing other external devices to interfere with them, operating the Tivo with out its cover protection might not be a safe practice in the long term keeping in mind too that opening the cover voids the warranty.
> 
> Also, too the heat hasn't been seen as a problem yet, I haven't heard of anyone being able to suggest their Roamio is not working correctly due to overheating and heat isn't the normal reason component fail necessarily, it's the cycle of heating and cooling were such places stress of all those part due to expanding and contracting; as long as a constant temperature is maintained in the entire device, the better. Taking the cover off will allow part of the main board to have a higher temperature nearest to the processor while component further away are much cooler and that contrast isn't healthy for long life as it's better for the entire board to maintain a higher temperature over all it's components.
> 
> My problem is I have a house cat who like to sleep on my Tivo, he annoys me as he curls up next to it blocking the the air ventilation and on the top, since he's unemployed I going to rather mad if causes my Tivo to overheat as he has no means pay for a new one....


thanks, good explantion
cover on, although I probably will replace with a larger HD at some point
Dan


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## replaytv (Feb 21, 2011)

I would think that the power supply would be the greatest source of heat, but will so some testing next time I get a chance and see if that is true.
But now that I think of it, I think the power supply is outside the box on the Roamio, so maybe not relevant? 
It doesn't take much energy to keep a hard drive spinning, but moving the control arm a lot when deleting files and other actions might cause more heat. 

I don't see how it would relate to Roamios directly, but when I was using my smart phone to navigate, it really put out more heat, and when I incorrectly put it on a towel, it overheated.

I had read that a desktop computer cools better with the cabinet on as the air is being driven across the heat sinks and other components, where if you don't have a case on the airflow is less reliable.


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## cosmicvoid (Oct 13, 2013)

DB_0673 said:


> thanks, good explantion
> cover on, although I probably will replace with a larger HD at some point
> Dan


I have replaced the stock Roamio basic drive with the Weaknees 4TB unit, and going on 7 months now there is no heat problem. The HD side of the case is still cooler than the mobo side of the case.


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## DB_0673 (Sep 2, 2009)

cosmicvoid said:


> I have replaced the stock Roamio basic drive with the Weaknees 4TB unit, and going on 7 months now there is no heat problem. The HD side of the case is still cooler than the mobo side of the case.


Thanks all, mine should arrive wed
Dan


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## Series3Sub (Mar 14, 2010)

My Romio (basic) has been running with a temp of 46 (114.8 F) since January of this year when I first got it, and it has presented NO PROBLEMS that I can say were the result of heat. Yes, there were 2 times when I had pressed the TiVo Central button and it put the picture in the corner with the rest of the screen black for about 2 minutes, but that happens to my Premiere with far more frequency and can take an HOUR before the black portion changes to the TiVo Central display on my Premiere. I have to say, except for those 2 times, the Roamio has been a champ and not given me any other problems.

While the Roamio is in an audio pier with NO enclosures, quite in the "open" with LOTS of room for air to circulate, I fear the reason my Roamio runs far more hot than what others have posted on this forum is because it is atop my Hopper, however, the Roamio is raised several inches above the Hopper with lots of air flow at the bottom of the Roamio, but the Hopper runs quite HOT and I think a good deal of that heat rising does have the Roamio's temp gauge read much more hot than I've seen posted on this forum.

However, the point is that about 6 months running, not a single real problem. I do know that the high heat may present a problem in the long-run, but just to confirm, I've had no issues with the Roamio at 46 (118.6 F). It seems TiVo has designed the Roamios to tolerate the heat pretty well even with the less effective cooling cited on the Plus and Pro models. After the fiasco of the Premiere, I am so happy TiVo did the job right with Roamio. Now, if I can keep my self from buying another Roamio .

I may have missed it, but is there a temp that has been confirmed to cause noticeable operating problems with the Roamios?


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## DB_0673 (Sep 2, 2009)

Series3Sub said:


> My Romio (basic) has been running with a temp of 46 (114.8 F) since January of this year when I first got it, and it has presented NO PROBLEMS that I can say were the result of heat. Yes, there were 2 times when I had pressed the TiVo Central button and it put the picture in the corner with the rest of the screen black for about 2 minutes, but that happens to my Premiere with far more frequency and can take an HOUR before the black portion changes to the TiVo Central display on my Premiere. I have to say, except for those 2 times, the Roamio has been a champ and not given me any other problems.
> 
> While the Roamio is in an audio pier with NO enclosures, quite in the "open" with LOTS of room for air to circulate, I fear the reason my Roamio runs far more hot than what others have posted on this forum is because it is atop my Hopper, however, the Roamio is raised several inches above the Hopper with lots of air flow at the bottom of the Roamio, but the Hopper runs quite HOT and I think a good deal of that heat rising does have the Roamio's temp gauge read much more hot than I've seen posted on this forum.
> 
> However, the point is that about 6 months running, not a single real problem. I do know that the high heat may present a problem in the long-run, but just to confirm, I've had no issues with the Roamio at 46 (118.6 F). It seems TiVo has designed the Roamios to tolerate the heat pretty well even with the less effective cooling cited on the Plus and Pro models. After the fiasco of the Premiere, I am so happy TiVo did the job right with Roamio. Now, if I can keep my self from buying another Roamio .


Thanks,
Good to know


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## unitron (Apr 28, 2006)

"Since I am not afraid to ask stupid questions..."

Fortunately you've found a place where we aren't afraid to provide stupid answers.




But seriously, if S4s and S5s are like the 1s, 2s, and 3s, they draw air up from underneath the unit for cooling, so taller feet might help, and I understand some use good quality laptop coolers under them as well, perhaps even instead of taller feet.


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