# Tivo Series 2 and DirectTv



## bulsworth (Oct 25, 2007)

I have a Direct TV Plus R15 DVR and 2 standard receivers (All the tvs are SD) but I was thinking about getting a series 2 tivo so I could have 2 dvrs in the house. My wife tapes a lot of shows.

Would the tivo replace the standard receiver or would I connect it to the standard receiver? 

I already pay $5.99 for dvr service from direct tv. Is there an additional cost to add the tivo? 

should i be asking any specific questions when I buy the series 2?

Am I better off adding an external HD to the DVR to give it more space? How can I do this? Since the DVR is leased, can I do this?
'


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## litzdog911 (Oct 18, 2002)

Using a standard Tivo with a DirecTV Receiver is kind of a pain. The Tivo does NOT replace the Receiver ... it needs the Receiver to tune your satellite channels for recording. And you have to pay your monthly fees to Tivo, not DirecTV.


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## JimSpence (Sep 19, 2001)

And that TiVo fee is around $13-$14 per month.

I don't think the R15 can use an external hard drive.

It would be a better deal to replace one of your SD TiVos.


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## classicsat (Feb 18, 2004)

A Standalone TiVo will work with a DirecTV receiver, not replace it. 

You subscribe to the TiVo separately for the usual TiVo price plans, which begin at $12.95/month, and go down based on prepay or long term commitments.


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## Ferrari_Fan (Dec 2, 2008)

also, Tivo Series 2 has two tuners but with direct tv receiver, it can use only one. So that's big disadvantage. Then $12-13 per month Tivo monthly fee. I switched from Tivo to Direct TV and using DVR supplied by Direct TV. It is good enough, can record two channels at at time, has big HDD, works fine.


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## cthomp21 (Jul 15, 2007)

Get a used HDVR2 off of eBay (good condition ones usually go for around $30), swap the access card from one of your standard receivers, call (800)DIRECTV, go through the automated messages and enter extension 722 (this will refresh your services).

Presto! You've got a Tivo with 40hours of standard def recording capacity. Just make sure the model is an HDVR2 to do the "722" trick. Otherwise, you might have to order a new access card ($20) to get a used Directivo activated on your account.

You can do this with your 3rd standard receiver too. You will pay no additional fees either. The $5.99 DVR fee covers all DVR receivers on your account (I've got 7 on mine right now). Make sure to connect both inputs for dual tuner recording.


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## halfempty (Oct 17, 2008)

cthomp21 said:


> Get a used HDVR2 off of eBay


Philips DSR7000 and RCA DVR39 are also non-RID units and will work with the ext. 722 trick as well as the Hughes HDVR2.


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## kirkdickinson (Jun 22, 2003)

What exactly does the 722 trick do?

I have a second HDVR2 that has no card and service. The one hooked up now has a bad tuner.

Would I just hook up the other one, swap the card and do the "722"?

I have two drives freshly prepared with InstantCake, can I install them before the 722, or should I run the 722 on the new(to me) box, then install the two new drives?

How long does the 722 take to activate?

Thanks,

Kirk


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## bengalfreak (Oct 20, 2002)

kirkdickinson said:


> What exactly does the 722 trick do?
> 
> I have a second HDVR2 that has no card and service. The one hooked up now has a bad tuner.
> 
> ...


The 722 "trick" just refreshes the service to all of the boxes on your account. Its handy after a long power outage or if, for some reason, your local channels disappear. You should take the card out of the current (bad tuner) DTivo, place it in your spare HDVR2, do the 722 thing. Then replace your drive with a new instant cake upgraded drive. You'll have to do a 'Clear and delete everything' and then repeat guided setup after the drive upgrades.


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## kirkdickinson (Jun 22, 2003)

bengalfreak said:


> The 722 "trick" just refreshes the service to all of the boxes on your account. Its handy after a long power outage or if, for some reason, your local channels disappear. You should take the card out of the current (bad tuner) DTivo, place it in your spare HDVR2, do the 722 thing. Then replace your drive with a new instant cake upgraded drive. You'll have to do a 'Clear and delete everything' and then repeat guided setup after the drive upgrades.


Currently, the Dtivo with the bad tuner has the drive from the "extra" box it it because the HD went out of it. I thought that the tuner might be bad, so I ordered one off of ebay, but the drive went out and it was rebooting in endless loops. I took the drive out of the extra box and put it in the original one that has a card and cleared the settings to make it work. However, I for sure have a bad tuner in that box too.

Should I put that drive back into the box without a card, or did I mess up?

Can I swap card, drive, and Dtivo box all at the same time?

Thanks,

Kirk


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## unclemoosh (Sep 11, 2004)

kirkdickinson said:


> Can I swap card, drive, and Dtivo box all at the same time?
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Kirk


Yes, you can.

If the tuner going out is Sat 2, it is probably your power supply failing. You may want to give this a try:

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Repair-a-Hughes-HDVR2-Tivo-Power-Supply/


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## kirkdickinson (Jun 22, 2003)

Both tuners are acting up. One is much worse than the other. I can't tell for sure which tuner it is which unless I unplug the antennas one at a time. I haven't done that, didn't really think it mattered which. I have read somewhere that power supply problems can manifest themselves similarly to tuner problems. I have two extra ebay boxes here that I can swap parts from, or swap drives into. All of them are HDVR2's

Kirk


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## kimchee (Jun 28, 2009)

I hope I am in the right place for this question. i just got a philips dsr7000/17 receiver used on craigslist. I have a bad RCA drd410 receiver. Can I swap the cards and activate the dsr7000/17 receiver. I have tried to just activate the dsr7000/17 but they are insisting on a RID number.


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## cthomp21 (Jul 15, 2007)

kimchee said:


> I hope I am in the right place for this question. i just got a philips dsr7000/17 receiver used on craigslist. I have a bad RCA drd410 receiver. Can I swap the cards and activate the dsr7000/17 receiver. I have tried to just activate the dsr7000/17 but they are insisting on a RID number.


Try swapping cards and refreshing the service using the "722 trick" by dialing 722 when the automated system asks the reason for your call. It should automatically refresh the services w/o a conversation with a customer service rep. It usually takes a minute or so to send the refresh signal.


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## kimchee (Jun 28, 2009)

i'll give it a shot, thanks. Do I need to do anything special when swapping cards, or just swap and call?


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## unclemoosh (Sep 11, 2004)

Just swap and call. You can also refresh services on the internet. Just logon to your account and refresh.


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## kimchee (Jun 28, 2009)

Thanks all. I did forget 1 important question. I am only using one phone jack in the house, do all the receivers have to be connected to a phone jack before the 722 trick?


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## unclemoosh (Sep 11, 2004)

kimchee said:


> Thanks all. I did forget 1 important question. I am only using one phone jack in the house, do all the receivers have to be connected to a phone jack before the 722 trick?


Signal comes from the sky and happens almost immediately. Dish needs to be connected, but no phone line is required.


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