# External USB Hard Drive and Case for Roamio



## drdave17 (Nov 21, 2014)

Hey folks which hard drive/external usb case is best recommended for my Roamio?

Thanks


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## Arcady (Oct 14, 2004)

None. You don't connect a drive via USB. You have to use the MyDVR expander drive, which connects via SATA.


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## drdave17 (Nov 21, 2014)

Ok if I just search "MyDVR expander drive" then I am done. Otherwise please advise.

Thanks


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## Arcady (Oct 14, 2004)

The item on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Book-Expander-eSATA-External-Drive/dp/B003MVZ60S


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## drdave17 (Nov 21, 2014)

Yeah I searched after my last post just wanted to be sure there was nothing else I needed to know.

That item is under review btw. I am sure I can find it elsewhere.

Thanks for help


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

drdave17 said:


> Yeah I searched after my last post just wanted to be sure there was nothing else I needed to know.
> 
> That item is under review btw. I am sure I can find it elsewhere.
> 
> Thanks for help


Don't do it.. seriously, DO NOT DO IT.. it's another point for failure, it's far safer to replace the internal drive with a 3TB drive if you didn't get a Roamio Pro.

As nice as it looks, and as many folks that have never had an issue, you're only going to get 1TB and add a point of failure that should it die ALL your recordings after installing it are gone, it's just not worth the headache to many of us, and the early WD expanders had a high failure rate.


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## drdave17 (Nov 21, 2014)

Which TB HD is best recommended if any?


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## h2oskierc (Dec 16, 2010)

This is the one I am planning on. 3TB.

Western Digital 3 TB WD AV-GP SATA III Intellipower 64 MB Cache Bulk/OEM AV Hard Drive WD30EURX


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## drdave17 (Nov 21, 2014)

I'll keep that in mind. I am a fan of WD HD's. 

I have a Roamio not Pro.

Thanks so much


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

dianebrat said:


> a point of failure that should it die ALL your recordings after installing it are gone


To be fair that's just as true of the internal HDD, and there is no data to suggest that the external drive is any more likely to die then the internal one. Also swapping the internal drive (the easy way) will cause you to lose all the recordings you have on there right now. (as well as your thumbs data and settings*) It will also unpair your CableCARD which means you have to call the cable company to get that reconnected. Adding an external drive is as easy as plugging it in and answering OK to the prompt.

* SPs and WLs can be backed up via kmttg and restored easily, although I'm not 100% sure how well that works after the update to 1P


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## drdave17 (Nov 21, 2014)

ok I see. Makes sense. 

I have a separate Magnavox DVR I use, recording Roamio stuff to DVD HD and then onto DVD's.

But my ultimate goal is to take those DVD shows and import them into my PC for further editing and create my final libraries from there.

I then go back and delete most of my Roamio recordings. (well, maybe delete them all down the road) and start the entire process all over again. But it will be nice to try and keep some of my favorite recordings on the Roamio.

Based on what I am hearing, sounds like I might be better off just not using a second hd or if the Roamio gets full and I decide to keep the recordings there, then I just get the external hd instead of using an internal one.

I have very little experience with Tivo, DVR's etc. so any further advise (if any) welcome.

Thanks folks!


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

FYI with TiVo there is a way to transfer shows directly to your PC, bypassing the whole DVD (and SD conversion) capture process.

You just need to download the free version of TiVo Desktop and you can copy any show that is not protected directly to your PC in a few minutes...

http://assets.tivo.com/assets/exe/tivotogo/TiVoDesktop2.8.3.exe

If you're interested in editing them VideoReDo can open the .tivo files directly, edit and output to pretty much whatever format you want.


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## drdave17 (Nov 21, 2014)

Thanks for reminder I did hear of Tivo Desktop (downloading...) 

Don't TWC protect most of their content though?

What do I know.


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

Yes TWC does protect most (all?) channels except the locals. So if you're a TWC user then that may not work for you.

Although rather then using a DVD recorder, which requires discs and downgrades to SD, you might want to look into an alternate capture device. There are devices that can capture HD output directly to a PC.


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## drdave17 (Nov 21, 2014)

Yeah you are right. Looking at the list right now. 

There are some channels that are transferable and others that are not but the good news is, I can grab all the transferable stuff first, then go back and try your suggestions.

This is a HUGE help.

Thanks again


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

Dan203 said:


> To be fair that's just as true of the internal HDD, and there is no data to suggest that the external drive is any more likely to die then the internal one. Also swapping the internal drive (the easy way) will cause you to lose all the recordings you have on there right now. (as well as your thumbs data and settings*) It will also unpair your CableCARD which means you have to call the cable company to get that reconnected. Adding an external drive is as easy as plugging it in and answering OK to the prompt.
> 
> * SPs and WLs can be backed up via kmttg and restored easily, although I'm not 100% sure how well that works after the update to 1P


The point is that it's doubling the number of failure points for minimal value compared to just putting in a 3TB IMNSHO


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

dianebrat said:


> The point is that it's doubling the number of failure points for minimal value compared to just putting in a 3TB IMNSHO


I feel the convenience out weighs the risk. But to each their own.


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## jcthorne (Jan 28, 2002)

dianebrat said:


> The point is that it's doubling the number of failure points for minimal value compared to just putting in a 3TB IMNSHO


And the WD expansion drive has proven far less reliable than the internals. Many fail within a year. The drives in the WD enclosure run very hot and are in use 24/7. When it fails, all recordings on the tivo are gone as they all span both drives.

As others have said, save yourself the grief and just don't do the external expansion. The internal is just too easy on the Roamio.


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## drdave17 (Nov 21, 2014)

Actually the channels I am able to transfer is not even worth it. 

I looked at a few capture devices but could only find them @ 720x480 so far.

If I could find something at a higher resolution and reasonably priced then it might be a go.

Any additional storage at this point will also seem not worth it since twc is blocking almost all the good stuff I really want.


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

The Hauppauge HD-PVR 2 can capture in HD and is about $150 on Amazon. Not sure if that's "reasonable" to you or not. I think Avermedia also makes one, but it's similar in price.


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## emfinlay (Sep 21, 2008)

My DVR expander has been going strong for 2 years with zero issues. I plugged it in and was good to go. I paid 99 bucks for it on Amazon and it was worth every penny.


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## drdave17 (Nov 21, 2014)

The thing about the expander or any other storage don't seem worth it to me since twc won't allow me to go any further than a Tivo file which means no flexibility even if I back them up 100 times and why I need to seek other avenues.

Now, if the Hauppauge doesn't have that flexibilty then I am still shooting myself in the foot.

Sorry folks I haven't read up on it yet but I trust that someone will ring in. 

No problem either way. I will simply read up on it before purchasing.


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

The Hauppauge device will allow you to capture the component video output and optical audio output, which bypasses all copy protection. You could also use one of the HDMI splitters on the market which strip HDCP and use an HDMI connection instead. Bot will give you HD and 5.1 audio, so either way it will work.


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## drdave17 (Nov 21, 2014)

Dan203 said:


> You could also use one of the HDMI splitters on the market which strip HDCP and use an HDMI connection instead. Bot will give you HD and 5.1 audio, so either way it will work.


Could you tell me of a specific one or do I just search for "HDMI Splitter"?

And how will it connect and what do I need to record on my Laptop?


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

I have not used it myself but someone over on AVS recommended this one to me...

http://www.amazon.com/ViewHD-Port-Powered-Splitter-1080P/dp/B004F9LVXC

It will apparently remove the HDCP signal from the HDMI so that you can capture it using the HDPVR.

The way it would work is...

```
TiVo->Splitter->TV
              |->HD-PVR->PC (via USB)
```
Or you could use component video and optical audio to the HD-PVR and avoid the HDMI splitter. (I doubt there is a quality difference)

Another option would be to use a Slingbox. There is software that will capture the output of a Slingbox. You could use that to capture to your laptop over the network. Although the quality probably wont be quite as good and you'd only get 2ch audio.


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## drdave17 (Nov 21, 2014)

Ok thanks

One more thing folks

I am mislead by the Hauppauge HD PVR 2 (Gaming Edition) thing. I also see a 1512, 1504 all confusing to me which one to purchase.

Is this the one I should get?
http://www.amazon.com/Hauppauge-Gaming-Edition-Definition-Capture/dp/B008ZT8QKO


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

Check out the comparison...

http://www.hauppauge.com/site/products/prods_hd-recorders.html

Looks like the gaming edition "plus" comes with Mac software and the regular one comes with an IR blaster so you can control the device you're capturing from. The non-plus gaming edition one does not have optical in.


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## drdave17 (Nov 21, 2014)

Excellent Thanks


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## damondlt (Jan 5, 2014)

emfinlay said:


> My DVR expander has been going strong for 2 years with zero issues. I plugged it in and was good to go. I paid 99 bucks for it on Amazon and it was worth every penny.


Agree, I have one that lasted 6 years.


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## Puppy76 (Oct 7, 2004)

Dan203 said:


> To be fair that's just as true of the internal HDD, and there is no data to suggest that the external drive is any more likely to die then the internal one.


Even if that were true, at best you'd be doubling your chance for hard drive failure, as you've now got TWO drives, either one of which will take everything if it goes.

But I don't for a second believe external drives are as reliable. I VERY rarely lose an internal drive in a PC (and never in a Tivo so far), and always after years of service. By comparison, I've lost multiple external drives, and they're never used very heavily. I think they're very, very poorly cooled, also spun up and down. The cases aren't designed like they should be.

I lost one a few months ago that died just while copying files to it across my network at about 10MB/s. It probably had a dozen hours run time on it at best before going, and that's not uncommon in my experience.

Last time I lost an internal drive was I think a Western Digital after about 2 years back in 2003, and before that a pair of those IBM Deathstars that were all defective regardless.



Dan203 said:


> If you're interested in editing them VideoReDo can open the .tivo files directly, edit and output to pretty much whatever format you want.


So that's still good? I came to double check on that, as it seems like it's the only program that actually WORKS! It's so weird though that it's this little program no one's ever heard of, and it's the one that actually works versus all these huge well known video editing programs LOL


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

Yep, we have our niche and no one really competes with us. There is one other small company with a similar product, that I wont name, but they can't open .tivo files and in my opinion their UI sucks.


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## Puppy76 (Oct 7, 2004)

Dan203 said:


> Yep, we have our niche and no one really competes with us. There is one other small company with a similar product, that I wont name, but they can't open .tivo files and in my opinion their UI sucks.


Well it's an awesome niche, because I need to deal with MPEG-2 more than anything else, and TiVo video more than anything else!

Thanks!


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## ggieseke (May 30, 2008)

Puppy76 said:


> Well it's an awesome niche, because I need to deal with MPEG-2 more than anything else, and TiVo video more than anything else!
> 
> Thanks!


+1000000000000000000


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## xfm (Apr 1, 2005)

Dan, any plans to come out with a Mac version of VRD? It's one of the only things I miss after switching to Macs a few years ago. I keep a MacMini with Windows 7 on BootCamp for the express purpose of being able to use VRD, but it's getting pretty old and slow. Toast does a horrible conversion -- jaggies and stuttering video, not to mention freezes and hangups during the editing process. VRD rules! (just not for OSX). :-(

Re OP's question, I have had 4 external TiVo drives, all WD, 3 were MyDVR Expanders. Only one failure in over 6 years of continuous use, and that was a WD in an Antec MX-1 case, and it failed well after it had been repurposed and reformatted as a backup HD for my iMac. I guess I've been very lucky.


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

xfm said:


> Dan, any plans to come out with a Mac version of VRD? It's one of the only things I miss after switching to Macs a few years ago. I keep a MacMini with Windows 7 on BootCamp for the express purpose of being able to use VRD, but it's getting pretty old and slow. Toast does a horrible conversion -- jaggies and stuttering video, not to mention freezes and hangups during the editing process. VRD rules! (just not for OSX). :-(


We've looked into it, but it's a LOT of work. We're a small company (only 2 developers) and we can barely keep up with the Windows version. So honestly, it's probably never going to happen.


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## xfm (Apr 1, 2005)

Fully understand, Dan. I was just hopin'. I really miss VRD in my Mac TiVo video editing tasks.


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## srwdc1 (Sep 24, 2014)

I've had a tivo roamio basic for about six months. The $150 OTA version --with a cable card slot--but we are only OTA plus streaming (Netflix, Amazon instant video) (never could find the $50 OTA-only- distribution seemed a fail)

Roamio is great-- can now DVR shows from PBS and OTA networks--anything else we want to watch is on Amazon or Netflix pretty much. Saving $50/month vs cable bill. (Paying for channels we never watched)

But am running out of space on my tivo. Local PBS station broadcast several operas from the Met in Jan and Feb, and with a season of Dowonton Abbey and other shows I'm at 67% already. 

I think I have these choices:

A. An external 1tb will triple the available space from the current 500gb but you all advise against it ($100 from Amazon or $200 from tivo)

B. Put in a 3tb drive myself (haven't done that before but doesn't seem too hard) BUT would LOSE the 10 operas already recorded plus the other shows. 

C. Be strategic about what I keep and delete. 

Any suggestions?

Many thanks. Great forum and users. 

(Ps. How does tivo advertise "500 hours" for the basic tivo? Clearly not right.


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## ggieseke (May 30, 2008)

Since you're OTA none of your recordings should be copy protected. You could copy all your shows to a computer with TiVo Desktop or pyTivo, drop in a 3TB internal, then copy them back.

You can also back up your Season Passes with kmttg and restore them after replacing the drive.

The 500 hour figure is for low bitrate SD recordings.


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## Puppy76 (Oct 7, 2004)

Dan203 said:


> We've looked into it, but it's a LOT of work. We're a small company (only 2 developers) and we can barely keep up with the Windows version. So honestly, it's probably never going to happen.


Oh wow, two developers? Okay that makes the big guys look even more pathetic, since from my limited experience with the demo a few years back it actually WORKS which is more than I can say about a lot of packages...

Okay, so two more questions and I promise I'll actually buy it LOL...

When you edit MPEG-2, like say cut out a 3 minutes section of an hour video, does it recode it, or is it preserving the original video so there's no quality loss?

And how does any DRM it might have work? I tend to edit videos VERY infrequently...like I tend to buy PCs more often than I edit video, and I'm wondering what I have to do to move my paid copy from an old one to a new one, that sort of thing. For that matter, is it kosher to install it on two of my personal PCs, knowing I'll be the only person ever using it, and it'll NEVER be used at the same time? (I...err...might edit some Tivo videos on my notebook I take to work while I'm working :-D )

Thanks!


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

Puppy76 said:


> When you edit MPEG-2, like say cut out a 3 minutes section of an hour video, does it recode it, or is it preserving the original video so there's no quality loss?
> 
> And how does any DRM it might have work? I tend to edit videos VERY infrequently...like I tend to buy PCs more often than I edit video, and I'm wondering what I have to do to move my paid copy from an old one to a new one, that sort of thing. For that matter, is it kosher to install it on two of my personal PCs, knowing I'll be the only person ever using it, and it'll NEVER be used at the same time? (I...err...might edit some Tivo videos on my notebook I take to work while I'm working :-D )


It only recodes a few frames around the edit points. MPEG-2 videos are encoded in such a way that every 15-30 frames there is an I frame, which essentially resets the decoder. So we only need to recode the portion of the video between your cut and the next I frame in the stream. We use a high quality encoder set to a high bitrate for this purpose to maximize quality. All other frames are passed through as-is.

Our license allows you to install on multiple PCs as long as you only use one at a given time. v5 has a new activation process but we don't currently limit the number of activations. We just monitor them and deactivate keys which are abused. (i.e. activated a bunch of times in a short period of time from multiple IP addresses)


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## mike3775 (Jan 3, 2003)

I guess I have been blessed, as my Western Digital My DVR Expander HD was purchased in November 2007 and its been used on 2 different Tivo models since and currently is on my Roamio Pro now. If it were to fail me now, I would not be mad, considering it has lasted 7+ yrs now.


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## Mikeguy (Jul 28, 2005)

And so, a question as to a summary of the storage space expansion opportunities for a new Roamio Basic (after my 6-year absence from the TiVo Community Forum, I just noticed, having been happily content, in the meanwhile, with my Series 2 Toshiba DVD TiVo), having received a TiVo 10-year customer appreciation offer for a new Roamio, which I couldn't resist:

Having read through various upgrade threads here, it seems that the expansion options are the WD My Book AV DVR Expander with a 1TB storage size; or dropping a new hard drive into the Roamio, the current size limit being 3TB without having to putter with the drive via a PC--from what I've read, replacing the hard drive is as simple as opening the Roamio case with a Torx screwdriver, removing the old hard drive with another-sized Torx screwdriver, plopping in the new hard drive, and closing the case, no programming of the hard drive required (as versus with my Series 2 TiVo--simply rerun the TiVo setup once the new hard drive is installed).

By going the new internal hard drive route, one gets 3x the amount of space as going the external expander route, for nominal additional cost (a 3TB hard drive currently is just over $20 more than the WD Expander, at Amazon.com); and one eliminates having a separate external unit (and, possibly, a further potential failure point). 

The downsides I have seen in going the hard drive replacement route: loss of TiVo OnePass settings and recorded shows (although one first could transfer the shows to a PC or another TiVo and then back again, after the hard drive replacement); and a possible Roamio warranty issue (although, should warranty service be needed, one simply could put the original hard drive back in the Roamio and send the unit in, there being no "tamper resistant" seal on the Roamio).

Am I missing any other downside in going the hard drive replacement route? If not, and if one is not concerned about what seems to be a fairly simple replacement process (almost at the level of plug-and-play), the benefits of going the hard drive replacement route almost seem to make this a no-brainer.

Thanks for checking my thinking process out--


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## jrtroo (Feb 4, 2008)

You lose the cablecard pairings as well.


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## Puppy76 (Oct 7, 2004)

Oh wow, so you can just buy a regular 4-tuner Romio, crack it open, swap to a 3TB drive and seal it back up, and turn it on, and it'll be just like it shipped with a 3TB drive to begin with?

Or does that only apply to the 6-tuner models that don't support broadcast TV? (The 4-tuner model is smaller, and I'm not seeing screws on any of the pictures I'm looking at.)

What drives are recommended?

EDIT: You'd think maybe one built for severs would be good? Actually this WD Purple drive sounds like it would be good for a Tivo...?

http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=1210


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## jrtroo (Feb 4, 2008)

Tivos don't use AV drives when new, as they don't use their features. Just get what you want, the only concern some folks have is with the power consumption with the basic box with a larger drive. I would go with a lower power drive, speed is not an issue.


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## heifer624 (Jul 12, 2009)

Go with WD 3TB Red....... Purple is rated for 300,000 load/unload cycles vs Red's 600,000 cycles. Both have 3yr warranty.


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## Mikeguy (Jul 28, 2005)

Puppy76 said:


> Oh wow, so you can just buy a regular 4-tuner Romio, crack it open, swap to a 3TB drive and seal it back up, and turn it on, and it'll be just like it shipped with a 3TB drive to begin with?
> 
> Or does that only apply to the 6-tuner models that don't support broadcast TV? (The 4-tuner model is smaller, and I'm not seeing screws on any of the pictures I'm looking at.)
> 
> ...


From what I've read, yep, easy to do and applies to the Roamio Basic. A bunch of threads here that I found helpful on this:

http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=507695 (very long thread as to the replacement process--check out the first few and last few pages)
http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=525267 (drives)
http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=512964 (drives)
http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=523683


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## Mikeguy (Jul 28, 2005)

And helpful/reassuring customer comments at Amazon.com, discussing a popular replacement drive for the Roamio, the Western Digital WD30EURX. http://www.amazon.com/Western-Digital-AV-GP-Intellipower-WD30EURX/dp/B00DXFEQGI/ref=cm_rdp_product


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## ggieseke (May 30, 2008)

Puppy76 said:


> Oh wow, so you can just buy a regular 4-tuner Romio, crack it open, swap to a 3TB drive and seal it back up, and turn it on, and it'll be just like it shipped with a 3TB drive to begin with?/QUOTE]
> 
> It's exactly like that, because Roamios ship with blank drives.


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## astrohip (Jan 7, 2003)

Puppy76 said:


> Oh wow, so you can just buy a regular 4-tuner Romio, crack it open, swap to a 3TB drive and seal it back up, and turn it on, and it'll be just like it shipped with a 3TB drive to begin with?
> 
> Or does that only apply to the 6-tuner models that don't support broadcast TV? (The 4-tuner model is smaller, and I'm not seeing screws on any of the pictures I'm looking at.)


Yes, even works on the 4-tuner Basic. I did it. And there are a couple of Torx screws, plus some not so easy to find tabs that need to be popped off. It's harder on the Basic than it is on the Pro. Google a YouTube video someone posted on upgrading the Basic, it's very helpful.


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## Bellero13 (Mar 16, 2015)

Can I use the following HD (I have TiVo Roamio OTA)?
http://www.amazon.com/Purple-3TB-Surveillence-Hard-Drive/dp/B00IMPO5N8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1426527570&sr=8-1&keywords=WD30pURX
Thank you for your response!


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## Mikeguy (Jul 28, 2005)

Bellero13 said:


> Can I use the following HD (I have TiVo Roamio OTA)?
> http://www.amazon.com/Purple-3TB-Surveillence-Hard-Drive/dp/B00IMPO5N8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1426527570&sr=8-1&keywords=WD30pURX
> Thank you for your response!


The hard drive upgrade thread, which you may find informative (albeit very long--you might want to read up from the end, as types of drives have been discussed recently, including the purple drives; or do a search under that thread).

http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=507695


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## KARTman (Jan 4, 2010)

I just tried hook up a Black X SATA HDD eSATA & USB Docking station with a 3 TB WD Hard Drive. The Docking station came with the eSATA Cable which has eSATA connections on both sides.
It all physically connected fine, and when I powered up my Roamio Basic is asked if I wanted to format my external storage device. I said yes, then it came back and said unsupported device.
Does anyone know what is going on? Is there any alternate to the 1TB DVR Expander for external drive storage. Basically, I want to go external because there are several shows I want to keep. I also have a all Macintosh setup, and there is not a way for me to transfer the shows off my Roamio with a Mac.

Any other ideas?


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## b-ball-fanatic (Aug 5, 2003)

KARTman said:


> Does anyone know what is going on? Is there any alternate to the 1TB DVR Expander for external drive storage.


No, there isn't an alternative. You are limited to the WD expander that TiVo supports.


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

KARTman said:


> Basically, I want to go external because there are several shows I want to keep.


In addition to what B-Ball said in that it won't work, the official approved Expander doesn't work the way you're stating, once it's installed all recordings are striped to it and the internal drive, you can not remove or keep individual shows on it since it's treated as part of the internal drive and if you remove it all shows recorded since you installed it will be gone.


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## jmbach (Jan 1, 2009)

KARTman said:


> I just tried hook up a Black X SATA HDD eSATA & USB Docking station with a 3 TB WD Hard Drive. The Docking station came with the eSATA Cable which has eSATA connections on both sides.
> It all physically connected fine, and when I powered up my Roamio Basic is asked if I wanted to format my external storage device. I said yes, then it came back and said unsupported device.
> Does anyone know what is going on? Is there any alternate to the 1TB DVR Expander for external drive storage. Basically, I want to go external because there are several shows I want to keep. I also have a all Macintosh setup, and there is not a way for me to transfer the shows off my Roamio with a Mac.
> 
> Any other ideas?


There is a whitelist of approved drives that limit what can be added as an external drive. The whitelist is currently only those drives that are in the WD TiVo expanders.

An option for you might be something like a NetGear ReadyNAS. It will automatically backup non copy protected shows you record on your TiVo. You can then delete the shows on your TiVo. If you want to watch the show, you can transfer it back to the TiVo to watch.


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## Brianone (May 14, 2015)

Drdave scroll back to my post about the same question ( about a week ago) and it will tell you the exact drive to get. in fact TIVO suggests you replace the internal 500 GB drive with a 3TB drive ( the max) so you wind up with over 450 hours of HD recording. If you have another streamer like I do ( ROKU 3 media streamer) it covers that as well.


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

Brianone said:


> Drdave scroll back to my post about the same question ( about a week ago) and it will tell you the exact drive to get. in fact * TIVO suggests you replace the internal 500 GB drive with a 3TB drive *( the max) so you wind up with over 450 hours of HD recording. If you have another streamer like I do ( ROKU 3 media streamer) it covers that as well.


Say what? 
Care to give a source for that statement? Since I can pretty much promise you that they didn't say that.

Not saying it's not an excellent suggestion that many of us suggest, but Tivo doesn't say it, and we can't scroll back to your post since you didn't make any previous comment in the thread we're in


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## ggieseke (May 30, 2008)

dianebrat said:


> Say what?
> Care to give a source for that statement? Since I can pretty much promise you that they didn't say that.
> 
> Not saying it's not an excellent suggestion that many of us suggest, but Tivo doesn't say it, and we can't scroll back to your post since you didn't make any previous comment in the thread we're in


We can even go up to a 6TB internal now with the help of DIY software, but you're correct. TiVo doesn't support anything that involves opening the case, and the "previous post" doesn't exist.


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## JBDragon (Jan 4, 2004)

I got my Tivo a couple of weeks ago. I took it out of the Box it came in. Opened it right up, Installed a new 3TB WD Green drive into it that I already got in the mail earlier and popped it back together, and only then did I actually plug it into power and watch it power up and do it's thing. 

So I have a worthless 500Gig HDD because it's to small for my use. I can put my ear right up to the TIVO and I can't hear the HDD at all. It's very quite as it should be. 

I just watched a YouTube video to see how it came apart so I wouldn't break anything and then just carefully did it. I didn't break anything opening it and so it snapped right back together like new as it was NEW. Really, I took it out of the Box and it wasn't 5 minutes later and I was opening the thing up.

On a Scale for 1 to 10 with 1 being the easiest, I give it a 2. That's with a little basic skills of opening things and being able to use some basic small tools. Quite frankly, I figured it would be a little harder then it was. Ya for TIVO making HDD swap these days a snap. Forget using a external drive!!!

My last TIVO I got in 1999, it was a Philips Tivo. It had 2 HDD in it and a complete pain in the butt to upgrade, so I didn't. I still have it back in my Closet. It has Lifetime service. I remember back that TIVO said I could transfer the lifetime onto a NEW Tivo once, but I never did. Of course now TIVO is clear that lifetime is tied to the Box and not the user.


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## telemark (Nov 12, 2013)

KARTman said:


> there are several shows I want to keep. I also have a all Macintosh setup, and there is not a way for me to transfer the shows off my Roamio with a Mac.


Mac's can transfer via TivoToGo virtually as well as PC's.
kmttg and pyTivo and cTivo work.

Copy-flagged recordings of course do not.


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## larry5601 (Jul 15, 2015)

dianebrat said:


> Don't do it.. seriously, DO NOT DO IT.. it's another point for failure, it's far safer to replace the internal drive with a 3TB drive if you didn't get a Roamio Pro.
> 
> As nice as it looks, and as many folks that have never had an issue, you're only going to get 1TB and add a point of failure that should it die ALL your recordings after installing it are gone, it's just not worth the headache to many of us, and the early WD expanders had a high failure rate.


How do you get the cover off to get to the internal harddrive. I only see 2 screws one above the esata port and one above the HDMI port. Or is there one somewhere I can't see.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

larry5601 said:


> How do you get the cover off to get to the internal harddrive. I only see 2 screws one above the esata port and one above the HDMI port. Or is there one somewhere I can't see.


What model TiVo? The basic Roamio takes some brute force. Ignore the one above the HDMI port. Correct screws are black.


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## telemark (Nov 12, 2013)

One torx screw on the back. Leave the one over the HDMI port alone.
What's left are snaps on the left and right sides. 3 per side, work them from the back side going forward.
Oh, and there's a hook in the front which should be left alone until the snaps are cleared.

So that's (unscrew) back, then sides, then front,
slowly creeping forward.

I found there are some ways that are more finesse than force but doesn't really matter as long as you don't break any of the plastic.


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