# Bolt died



## SNJpage1 (May 25, 2006)

My 2017 Bolt with life time, was replaced in 2019 because of a HHD failure under the warrenty. Today the same thing has happened again. All lights flashing. Because of the failure, my mini in another room is not working. I can replace the HHD myself for $150 or send to Weeknees and they will do it for $200. Or for $586, I can get a brand new Edge with life time and their care program. I have read on here that the Edge has had a lot of problems. I am not sure if my Bolt has a resolution problem. But I have a Comcast DVR and the Bolt connected to the same 50 inch Samsung TV. The Comcast box has a very noticable better picture then the Bolt. So I am not sure if Comcast is doing something to restrict the resolution thru the cable card or not. But it is another thing to think about before I decide on what route to go. I started with a ser 2, then bought a HD with life time, which I still have sitting on a self and now the Bolt with life time. I prefer the Tivo remote over the Comcast one. The buttons on the Comcast remote are not easy to press and I haven't gotten use to using the voice commands. My wife says the Tivo is easier for her to use. If I don't replace the Bolt, I will have to get another Comcast box to replace the mini. That would cost an additional $108 a year. If the new Edge would last five years like the Bolt then it would work out to $116 a year. Basicly the same as renting the additional Comcast box. What direction would any of you go?
I will not go back to using the HD after having the Bolt. So I should just give it away. I bought the Tivo streaming device but found it hard to use. So that is sitting on the shelf also.


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

A used Roamio Pro with Lifetime from ebay for under $250 is the best alternative if you don't want to fix the Bolt.
$50 a year for 5 years 

It's also possible the Bolt issue is a power supply.


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## chiguy50 (Nov 9, 2009)

SNJpage1 said:


> My 2017 Bolt with life time, was replaced in 2019 because of a HHD failure under the warrenty. Today the same thing has happened again. All lights flashing. Because of the failure, my mini in another room is not working. I can replace the HHD myself for $150 or send to Weeknees and they will do it for $200. Or for $586, I can get a brand new Edge with life time and their care program. I have read on here that the Edge has had a lot of problems. I am not sure if my Bolt has a resolution problem. But I have a Comcast DVR and the Bolt connected to the same 50 inch Samsung TV. The Comcast box has a very noticable better picture then the Bolt. So I am not sure if Comcast is doing something to restrict the resolution thru the cable card or not. But it is another thing to think about before I decide on what route to go. I started with a ser 2, then bought a HD with life time, which I still have sitting on a self and now the Bolt with life time. I prefer the Tivo remote over the Comcast one. The buttons on the Comcast remote are not easy to press and I haven't gotten use to using the voice commands. My wife says the Tivo is easier for her to use. If I don't replace the Bolt, I will have to get another Comcast box to replace the mini. That would cost an additional $108 a year. If the new Edge would last five years like the Bolt then it would work out to $116 a year. Basicly the same as renting the additional Comcast box. What direction would any of you go?
> I will not go back to using the HD after having the Bolt. So I should just give it away. I bought the Tivo streaming device but found it hard to use. So that is sitting on the shelf also.


Based on the above, it sounds to me that your preferred option would be to stick to the Comcast X1 devices. As far as the remote control issue is concerned, you should be able to get Comcast to replace it with one that you like better--whether the same model or a different one. They have remotes that are designed for better tactile functionality (e.g., for folks who need larger buttons for whatever reason). You might prefer the XR5, which has larger buttons than the newer models and does not support voice commands.











At the very least, you could give this option a shot in order to test out how well it works out for you. If you decide against it, it is easy enough to return the second Comcast STB and go back to TiVo bearing in mind that Comcast will only charge you a pro rata fee for the number of days that the box was on your account


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## WVZR1 (Jul 31, 2008)

Your mention of a 'resolution' issue with the Bolt seems odd. A Bolt with correct settings should duplicate what you see from the Xfinity Box. I'd consider the possibility of a Power Supply issue with the Bolt first. Do you use TE3 or TE4 with your Bolt? Since your Bolt and Mini are both 'Lifetime' and if it's not a Power Supply issue maybe a Weeknees external HDD is an option. With the Edge you have no TE3 option, only the TE4. Your Bolt and Xfinity are connected directly to the 50" display or through a receiver?

I actually have an XG1V4 Xfinity box and use a Roamio and Mini also. I use an HDMI splitter to put the XG1V4 service to a display in another room. I'm very fortunate that I could do this with an HDMI cable.


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## SNJpage1 (May 25, 2006)

WVZR1 said:


> Your mention of a 'resolution' issue with the Bolt seems odd. A Bolt with correct settings should duplicate what you see from the Xfinity Box. I'd consider the possibility of a Power Supply issue with the Bolt first. Do you use TE3 or TE4 with your Bolt? Since your Bolt and Mini are both 'Lifetime' and if it's not a Power Supply issue maybe a Weeknees external HDD is an option. With the Edge you have no TE3 option, only the TE4. Your Bolt and Xfinity are connected directly to the 50" display or through a receiver?
> 
> I actually have an XG1V4 Xfinity box and use a Roamio and Mini also. I use an HDMI splitter to put the XG1V4 service to a display in another room. I'm very fortunate that I could do this with an HDMI cable.


Both are connected to the tv using input 1 and 2. I then send the audio from the TV by way of optical to the receiver. I am using T3 with the Bolt and the mini.


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## SNJpage1 (May 25, 2006)

dianebrat said:


> A used Roamio Pro with Lifetime from ebay for under $250 is the best alternative if you don't want to fix the Bolt.
> $50 a year for 5 years
> 
> It's also possible the Bolt issue is a power supply.


I just tried what you suggested and looked on e bay. They do have some units priced really good with life time. There are also a few Used Bolts for under $80 with no life time. It would be cheaper for me to buy one of those Bolts and just use the hard drive to replace mine.


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## SNJpage1 (May 25, 2006)

chiguy50 said:


> Based on the above, it sounds to me that your preferred option would be to stick to the Comcast X1 devices. As far as the remote control issue is concerned, you should be able to get Comcast to replace it with one that you like better--whether the same model or a different one. They have remotes that are designed for better tactile functionality (e.g., for folks who need larger buttons for whatever reason). You might prefer the XR5, which has larger buttons than the newer models and does not support voice commands.
> 
> View attachment 71670
> 
> ...


I forgot I have one of those remotes some wheres in the house. I will have to go find it. Thanks for the suggestion.


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## SNJpage1 (May 25, 2006)

What ever I do is going to be put on hold for at least a week. I go in the hospital 5/19 for back surgery and will be laid up for a while.


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## SNJpage1 (May 25, 2006)

If I buy a used Bolt off of e bay will the HHD from that work in my Bolt with out having to do anything else to it?


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

SNJpage1 said:


> If I buy a used Bolt off of e bay will the HHD from that work in my Bolt with out having to do anything else to it?


In general, yes.


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## Audiophiletom (Jan 13, 2020)

dianebrat said:


> A used Roamio Pro with Lifetime from ebay for under $250 is the best alternative if you don't want to fix the Bolt.
> $50 a year for 5 years
> 
> It's also possible the Bolt issue is a power supply.


You ARE the best thing about tivocommunity !


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## tommage1 (Nov 6, 2008)

SNJpage1 said:


> My 2017 Bolt with life time, was replaced in 2019 because of a HHD failure under the warrenty. Today the same thing has happened again. All lights flashing. Because of the failure, my mini in another room is not working. I can replace the HHD myself for $150 or send to Weeknees and they will do it for $200. Or for $586, I can get a brand new Edge with life time and their care program. I have read on here that the Edge has had a lot of problems. I am not sure if my Bolt has a resolution problem. But I have a Comcast DVR and the Bolt connected to the same 50 inch Samsung TV. The Comcast box has a very noticable better picture then the Bolt. So I am not sure if Comcast is doing something to restrict the resolution thru the cable card or not. But it is another thing to think about before I decide on what route to go. I started with a ser 2, then bought a HD with life time, which I still have sitting on a self and now the Bolt with life time. I prefer the Tivo remote over the Comcast one. The buttons on the Comcast remote are not easy to press and I haven't gotten use to using the voice commands. My wife says the Tivo is easier for her to use. If I don't replace the Bolt, I will have to get another Comcast box to replace the mini. That would cost an additional $108 a year. If the new Edge would last five years like the Bolt then it would work out to $116 a year. Basicly the same as renting the additional Comcast box. What direction would any of you go?
> I will not go back to using the HD after having the Bolt. So I should just give it away. I bought the Tivo streaming device but found it hard to use. So that is sitting on the shelf also.


I'd replace the drive in the Bolt. You need a CMR drive. Current model CMR 2.5" drive that will work in Bolt is WD 1TB Red Plus. You did not mention what model Bolt you have (cable or OTA/cable and what size drive). Definitely try a power supply, 12v 3A, same polarity. Don't buy anything with monthly, lifetime is cheap. Bolt or my preferred Roamio $200 or less with lifetime. Roamio way better built than Bolt or Edge and uses 3.5" drive which can last 5-10 years as compared to normal 2-3 years in a Tivo for 2.5" drives. Cheapest route, the Red Plus 2.5" 1TB for the Bolt, preferred route (for me) is the lifetime Roamio (used of course, pick a good reliable seller who is actually the user of the Roamio so know it works). Again, no sense in buying something with monthly, $15 a month, when can get lifetime Bolt or Roamio for $200 or less. I'd skip the Edge myself, lot of problems ( I have a couple, won't get into details), too expensive for what you get.


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## tommage1 (Nov 6, 2008)

Oh, would not buy a used Bolt just for the drive, don't know how old it is, 2.5" drives in Bolt on average last 2-3 years. Buy a new drive, Bolt will format itself, the WD 1TB Red Plus will work if 1TB enough for you. DO NOT BUY AN SMR DRIVE, majority of 2.5" drives now are SMR. To be honest most used Bolt without lifetime barely worth the cost to ship, if you buy local could probably get for $15-20. But again, used just for drive not a good idea.


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## WPO (Jul 6, 2018)

SNJpage1 said:


> My 2017 Bolt with life time, was replaced in 2019 because of a HHD failure under the warrenty. Today the same thing has happened again. All lights flashing. Because of the failure, my mini in another room is not working. I can replace the HHD myself for $150 or send to Weeknees and they will do it for $200. Or for $586, I can get a brand new Edge with life time and their care program. I have read on here that the Edge has had a lot of problems. I am not sure if my Bolt has a resolution problem. But I have a Comcast DVR and the Bolt connected to the same 50 inch Samsung TV. The Comcast box has a very noticable better picture then the Bolt. So I am not sure if Comcast is doing something to restrict the resolution thru the cable card or not. But it is another thing to think about before I decide on what route to go. I started with a ser 2, then bought a HD with life time, which I still have sitting on a self and now the Bolt with life time. I prefer the Tivo remote over the Comcast one. The buttons on the Comcast remote are not easy to press and I haven't gotten use to using the voice commands. My wife says the Tivo is easier for her to use. If I don't replace the Bolt, I will have to get another Comcast box to replace the mini. That would cost an additional $108 a year. If the new Edge would last five years like the Bolt then it would work out to $116 a year. Basicly the same as renting the additional Comcast box. What direction would any of you go?
> 
> I have a TiVo bolt purchased in 2019 for cable with lifetime service. It is one terabyte and six tuner.
> A Lightning strike took out the HDMI port this past Monday. However the unit still works in the sense that I can connect to a TiVo mini and get recorded shows as well as tune to any other channels.
> ...


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## WPO (Jul 6, 2018)

SNJpage1 said:


> If I buy a used Bolt off of e bay will the HHD from that work in my Bolt with out having to do anything else to it?


I messed up on a previous reply so sorry for this duplication.

I have a TiVo bolt purchased in 2019 for cable with lifetime service. It is one terabyte and six tuner.
A Lightning strike took out the HDMI port this past Monday. However the unit still works in the sense that I can connect to a TiVo mini and get recorded shows as well as tune to any other channels. 
I can’t bring myself to replace the 2 Tivo minis (as well as the Bolt) that were also taken out with the same lightning strike.

Would anyone like to make me an offer for my Bolt?


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## tommage1 (Nov 6, 2008)

WPO said:


> I messed up on a previous reply so sorry for this duplication.
> 
> I have a TiVo bolt purchased in 2019 for cable with lifetime service. It is one terabyte and six tuner.
> A Lightning strike took out the HDMI port this past Monday. However the unit still works in the sense that I can connect to a TiVo mini and get recorded shows as well as tune to any other channels.
> ...


So you had at least 3 minis, 2 were taken out with the lightning, 1 you can still connect to the Bolt to watch shows? The Bolt, perhaps you can still use, just have to do all your programming etc with Tivo online? And watch through the Mini. Bit of a hassle but doable? But probably cannot do settings/setup etc, not sure what capability is available through Tivo online. Lifetime Bolts are cheap now, usually under $200, maybe worth a purchase (though I would get a lifetime Roamio instead). Not sure if you can replace the HDMI port, not worth paying someone to do, would cost more than buying another Bolt. But if you can buy one local without service ($10-20 or so), perhaps could play with it, see if you can remove the HDMI port and put in the one that got fried? Might be fun to try, if you only spend $10-20 or so  I guess it also depends on what got fried, the port itself or something on the board that connects with the port or both.


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## WPO (Jul 6, 2018)

tommage1 said:


> So you had at least 3 minis, 2 were taken out with the lightning, 1 you can still connect to the Bolt to watch shows? The Bolt, perhaps you can still use, just have to do all your programming etc with Tivo online? And watch through the Mini. Bit of a hassle but doable? But probably cannot do settings/setup etc, not sure what capability is available through Tivo online. Lifetime Bolts are cheap now, usually under $200, maybe worth a purchase (though I would get a lifetime Roamio instead). Not sure if you can replace the HDMI port, not worth paying someone to do, would cost more than buying another Bolt. But if you can buy one local without service ($10-20 or so), perhaps could play with it, see if you can remove the HDMI port and put in the one that got fried? Might be fun to try, if you only spend $10-20 or so  I guess it also depends on what got fried, the port itself or something on the board that connects with the port or both.


You summed things up well and thanks for the suggestions. The Bolt will not deliver a signal to a TV. I didn't try to see if I can schedule on line and will do that. Also I think the time is not currently accurate as displayed on the mini.


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## tommage1 (Nov 6, 2008)

WPO said:


> You summed things up well and thanks for the suggestions. The Bolt will not deliver a signal to a TV. I didn't try to see if I can schedule on line and will do that. Also I think the time is not currently accurate as displayed on the mini.


Well hopefully the time will fix itself. You can force a connection with the Mini. The Bolt should connect once a day on it's own. Or you can force a connection by unplugging and plugging back in. When you do that it will connect to the service in about 1/2 hour. Good luck, I've never played with replacing an HDMI port myself but this situation may be worth a try since the Bolt is lifetime.


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## vcudnik (Sep 8, 2006)

tommage1 said:


> Oh, would not buy a used Bolt just for the drive, don't know how old it is, 2.5" drives in Bolt on average last 2-3 years. Buy a new drive, Bolt will format itself, the WD 1TB Red Plus will work if 1TB enough for you. DO NOT BUY AN SMR DRIVE, majority of 2.5" drives now are SMR. To be honest most used Bolt without lifetime barely worth the cost to ship, if you buy local could probably get for $15-20. But again, used just for drive not a good idea.


I wholeheartedly agree. I bought one on ebay (came with a couple of minis, too) and the drive failed less than 6 months later.


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## ITGrouch (Jan 7, 2015)

chiguy50 said:


> Based on the above, it sounds to me that your preferred option would be to stick to the Comcast X1 devices. As far as the remote control issue is concerned, you should be able to get Comcast to replace it with one that you like better--whether the same model or a different one. They have remotes that are designed for better tactile functionality (e.g., for folks who need larger buttons for whatever reason). You might prefer the XR5, which has larger buttons than the newer models and does not support voice commands.
> 
> View attachment 71670
> 
> ...


On a recent visit to my local Xfinity store to swap a defective XB7 Internet gateway, the store had a basket at the front of the store with new XR11 X1 voice capable remote controls. I asked if I could have two of them for my XG1v4 DVRs and they said I could have four of them. No charge. If you have an Xfinity store close by, you could check to see if they have any XR11 remotes or you could try to order the XR11 remote by calling customer service, use the online support chat, or contact support on Twitter or Reddit.


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## WPO (Jul 6, 2018)

tommage1 said:


> Well hopefully the time will fix itself. You can force a connection with the Mini. The Bolt should connect once a day on it's own. Or you can force a connection by unplugging and plugging back in. When you do that it will connect to the service in about 1/2 hour. Good luck, I've never played with replacing an HDMI port myself but this situation may be worth a try since the Bolt is lifetime.


The MOCA connection was active but I needed to fix the Powerline ethernet and now I am synched properly with time and channel and can schedule from my Mini. My question for you is can I add another Mini without being able to see any screen from my Bolt with the bad HDMI port? I am able to watch recorded shows with the Tivo app on my Apple devices and can screen mirror them for play back on my Apple TV box ( I never knew this was possible before ) so I may not even need another Mini.
Thanks


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## tommage1 (Nov 6, 2008)

WPO said:


> The MOCA connection was active but I needed to fix the Powerline ethernet and now I am synched properly with time and channel and can schedule from my Mini. My question for you is can I add another Mini without being able to see any screen from my Bolt with the bad HDMI port? I am able to watch recorded shows with the Tivo app on my Apple devices and can screen mirror them for play back on my Apple TV box ( I never knew this was possible before ) so I may not even need another Mini.
> Thanks


Have not setup Minis in awhile, I'd guess yes but for a definitive answer maybe ask in the Mini forum. Good you are figuring out ways to make the best of the situation, at this point may not have to try the HDMI port replacement


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## pl1 (Jan 18, 2007)

WPO said:


> The MOCA connection was active but I needed to fix the Powerline ethernet and now I am synched properly with time and channel and can schedule from my Mini. My question for you is can I add another Mini without being able to see any screen from my Bolt with the bad HDMI port? I am able to watch recorded shows with the Tivo app on my Apple devices and can screen mirror them for play back on my Apple TV box ( I never knew this was possible before ) so I may not even need another Mini.
> Thanks


Yes, you select the Host Bolt from the mini. They just need to be on the same network and the same TiVo account.


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## WPO (Jul 6, 2018)

pl1 said:


> Yes, you select the Host Bolt from the mini. They just need to be on the same network and the same TiVo account.


Great Thanks


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## Robin A Baum (Sep 13, 2021)

SNJpage1 said:


> I just tried what you suggested and looked on e bay. They do have some units priced really good with life time. There are also a few Used Bolts for under $80 with no life time. It would be cheaper for me to buy one of those Bolts and just use the hard drive to replace mine.


I purchased a non-lifetime Bolt on eBay and changed out the hard drive when my bolt died earlier this year. 
I wanted the 3tb 6 tuner version unit for the storage. It had died the year before and I purchased a WD 2TB drive but it didn't last a full year. 
Only issue I had was the new hard drive had the version 4 installed. Took some doing (and I don't remember what I did) but I finally got my version 3 back.
I read that they tend to overheat so I bought a laptop fan and put it under the unit after replacing the hard drive. Jury is still out on whether that works.


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## bobfrank (Mar 17, 2005)

Robin A Baum said:


> I purchased a non-lifetime Bolt on eBay and changed out the hard drive when my bolt died earlier this year.
> I wanted the 3tb 6 tuner version unit for the storage. It had died the year before and I purchased a WD 2TB drive but it didn't last a full year.
> Only issue I had was the new hard drive had the version 4 installed. Took some doing (and I don't remember what I did) but I finally got my version 3 back.
> I read that they tend to overheat so I bought a laptop fan and put it under the unit after replacing the hard drive. Jury is still out on whether that works.


If the 2TB internal drive fails, and it probably will, think about going with an external drive that's not a 2 1/2 inch drive. Plenty of threads here on how to roll you own. Or, if you're lazy like me, Weaknees has a nice, easy to install kit with everything you need.

There are also plenty of threads here on how to upgrade your Tivo from TE4 to TE3. Lots of us here prefer TE3 like you do.


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## John Waterman (May 12, 2017)

SNJpage1 said:


> My 2017 Bolt with life time, was replaced in 2019 because of a HHD failure under the warrenty. Today the same thing has happened again. All lights flashing. Because of the failure, my mini in another room is not working. I can replace the HHD myself for $150 or send to Weeknees and they will do it for $200. Or for $586, I can get a brand new Edge with life time and their care program. I have read on here that the Edge has had a lot of problems. I am not sure if my Bolt has a resolution problem. But I have a Comcast DVR and the Bolt connected to the same 50 inch Samsung TV. The Comcast box has a very noticable better picture then the Bolt. So I am not sure if Comcast is doing something to restrict the resolution thru the cable card or not. But it is another thing to think about before I decide on what route to go. I started with a ser 2, then bought a HD with life time, which I still have sitting on a self and now the Bolt with life time. I prefer the Tivo remote over the Comcast one. The buttons on the Comcast remote are not easy to press and I haven't gotten use to using the voice commands. My wife says the Tivo is easier for her to use. If I don't replace the Bolt, I will have to get another Comcast box to replace the mini. That would cost an additional $108 a year. If the new Edge would last five years like the Bolt then it would work out to $116 a year. Basicly the same as renting the additional Comcast box. What direction would any of you go?
> I will not go back to using the HD after having the Bolt. So I should just give it away. I bought the Tivo streaming device but found it hard to use. So that is sitting on the shelf also.


Why not just replace the hard drive? A new 500 gig hard drive is about $30 and takes less than an hour to replace.


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## rburgie (Jun 25, 2018)

dianebrat said:


> A used Roamio Pro with Lifetime from ebay for under $250 is the best alternative if you don't want to fix the Bolt.
> $50 a year for 5 years
> 
> It's also possible the Bolt issue is a power supply.


IMHO I trust Weakness more than a seller on eBay. 

TiVo Bolt VOX 500GB No TiVo Fees - "All-In" Service Included ($549 Value) | 4 Tuner | For Cable or Antenna (Renewed)$299.99


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

rburgie said:


> IMHO I trust Weakness more than a seller on eBay.
> 
> TiVo Bolt VOX 500GB No TiVo Fees - "All-In" Service Included ($549 Value) | 4 Tuner | For Cable or Antenna (Renewed)$299.99


I trust a Roamio a lot more than a Bolt...
and eBay has done a lot of work becoming more buyer focused, my recommendation stands.


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## slowbiscuit (Sep 19, 2006)

Same here, there's no issue buying used Roamios or Bolts on ebay. If it doesn't work, send it back and ebay will make sure you get the refund if the seller doesn't do it.


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## SNJpage1 (May 25, 2006)

My Bolt was 6 years old and had already been fixed by Tivo once. So I decided to buy a new Edge and then go back and replace the HHD in the Bolt. Not sure why the HHD's are so expensive. Weeknees wants $150 for a replacement. Looks like E bay will be where I get a replacement. Will a Tivo only take a certain brand or type of HHD?


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

SNJpage1 said:


> My Bolt was 6 years old and had already been fixed by Tivo once. So I decided to buy a new Edge and then go back and replace the HHD in the Bolt. Not sure why the HHD's are so expensive. Weeknees wants $150 for a replacement. Looks like E bay will be where I get a replacement. Will a Tivo only take a certain brand or type of HHD?


There are HDDs that will work in a bolt for $70 as long as 1TB is ok, any one of the bazillion Bolt HDD threads should get you what you need.


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## seanandrsn (Dec 12, 2010)

SNJpage1 said:


> My 2017 Bolt with life time, was replaced in 2019 because of a HHD failure under the warrenty. Today the same thing has happened again. All lights flashing. Because of the failure, my mini in another room is not working. I can replace the HHD myself for $150 or send to Weeknees and they will do it for $200. Or for $586, I can get a brand new Edge with life time and their care program. I have read on here that the Edge has had a lot of problems. I am not sure if my Bolt has a resolution problem. But I have a Comcast DVR and the Bolt connected to the same 50 inch Samsung TV. The Comcast box has a very noticable better picture then the Bolt. So I am not sure if Comcast is doing something to restrict the resolution thru the cable card or not. But it is another thing to think about before I decide on what route to go. I started with a ser 2, then bought a HD with life time, which I still have sitting on a self and now the Bolt with life time. I prefer the Tivo remote over the Comcast one. The buttons on the Comcast remote are not easy to press and I haven't gotten use to using the voice commands. My wife says the Tivo is easier for her to use. If I don't replace the Bolt, I will have to get another Comcast box to replace the mini. That would cost an additional $108 a year. If the new Edge would last five years like the Bolt then it would work out to $116 a year. Basicly the same as renting the additional Comcast box. What direction would any of you go?
> I will not go back to using the HD after having the Bolt. So I should just give it away. I bought the Tivo streaming device but found it hard to use. So that is sitting on the shelf also.


I had the same issue where my HD failed on my Bolt. I purchased a replacement drive from Weaknees (smaller drive) and purchased a SSD HD from Amazon (1 TB) and then cloned the smaller drive on to the larger SSD drive giving me more recording space. With the SSD drive the unit runs cooler and it seems more responsive. I stored my replacement drive form Weakness incase the SSD drive fails as I could pick up another cheap SSD 1 TB drive from Amazon for about $80.

I've had this setup now since January of this year and I have not had any issues. I get it that Weaknees needs to charge for the software on the drive but now that I have a "master drive" I won't need to spend additional money at Weaknees in the future. I am quite comfortable changing the drive as the tutorial on their YouTube channel will walk you through it and I have the Torx driver so it's no big deal.


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## cwerdna (Feb 22, 2001)

What's the deal with the software on the drive? On Bolt, with a compatible blank drive, once you boot with it, the software is (AFAIK) downloaded and installed onto the drive. I've done this w/the replacement 2.5" spinning drives I bought, partly to test them out and one I'm using.


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

cwerdna said:


> What's the deal with the software on the drive? On Bolt, with a compatible blank drive, once you boot with it, the software is (AFAIK) downloaded and installed onto the drive. I've done this w/the replacement 2.5" spinning drives I bought, partly to test them out and one I'm using.


I have the same issue with that being discussed, the software on the drive means nothing in a Roamio or above, just put the right flavor blank drive in the unit, and like magic the OS gets installed from the flash memory, there's no reason to go to weaknees for a basic Roamio or Bolt drive replacement.


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## cwerdna (Feb 22, 2001)

Thanks! I wasn't clear it came from flash memory on the Bolt itself or if fetched it over the wire/wireless from TiVo's servers. 

But, most definitely on Bolts, a blank drive is fine. I think I went thru trying out 4 drives: the 3 replacements that I bought and a 100 to 160 gig laptop drive I had lying around to troubleshoot when the stock 3 TB drive died.


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## ggieseke (May 30, 2008)

cwerdna said:


> What's the deal with the software on the drive? On Bolt, with a compatible blank drive, once you boot with it, the software is (AFAIK) downloaded and installed onto the drive. I've done this w/the replacement 2.5" spinning drives I bought, partly to test them out and one I'm using.


The software is never on the drive at all. It lives exclusively in flash memory on the motherboard.


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## SNJpage1 (May 25, 2006)

I pulled the HHD out of the Bolt and connected to my PC by way of an USB adapter. I was able to see it and format it and copy files to and from it. Looks like it isn't the
HHD. However, as you can see, I can not make it one disk. E drive has 746 g of unallotted disk space and everything is greyed out to make it all one. Not sure if that is a failure or not.


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

SNJpage1 said:


> I pulled the HHD out of the Bolt and connected to my PC by way of an USB adapter. I was able to see it and format it and copy files to and from it. Looks like it isn't the
> HHD. However, as you can see, I can not make it one disk. E drive has 746 g of unallotted disk space and everything is greyed out to make it all one. Not sure if that is a failure or not.
> 
> 
> View attachment 71996


Unfortunately by letting Windows add a signature and making it have a drive letter anything on it is now gone.
What you want to do is run the drive manufacturers diagnostics against the drive and do a "long test" that's the way you can tell if it's good or not.
You will need to delete all the partitions off the drive if if tests good and you decide to put it back in a Tivo


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## SNJpage1 (May 25, 2006)

I was able to regain the whole 3 TB by changing it from MBR to GPT. Ran HHD test and drive is healthy. So it looks like the four flashing lights is not a bad HHD. It took awhile. I haven't used command prompt to work on a HHD in a long time. I decided a few days ago to just bite the bullet and order a new Edge. It arrived on Sat and is up and running. I just hate the TE 4 software having used TE3 for the past 5 years. Not sure what to do with the bolt that has life time. Same as the Tivo HD with life time that is stting on a shelf.


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

SNJpage1 said:


> I was able to regain the whole 3 TB by changing it from MBR to GPT. Ran HHD test and drive is healthy. So it looks like the four flashing lights is not a bad HHD. It took awhile. I haven't used command prompt to work on a HHD in a long time. I decided a few days ago to just bite the bullet and order a new Edge. It arrived on Sat and is up and running. I just hate the TE 4 software having used TE3 for the past 5 years. Not sure what to do with the bolt that has life time. Same as the Tivo HD with life time that is stting on a shelf.


Did you replace the power supply? that is one of the standard Bolt troubleshooting steps for 4 flashing lights, it's usually power supply or HDD.
While the HDD you took out of the Bolt is fine and has now passed the tests, the way you tested it wiped all the programs on it.
There's a good possibility that replacing the power supply on the Bolt will resurrect it now that you know the drive is ok.

This is why just doing random shotgun troubleshooting isn't always the best way, if it is the PS and you had not wiped the drive in by letting windows write to it, you might have saved all your recordings.
Unfortunately the Edge is IMNSHO not an upgrade as you're now finding out


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## SNJpage1 (May 25, 2006)

dianebrat said:


> Did you replace the power supply? that is one of the standard Bolt troubleshooting steps for 4 flashing lights, it's usually power supply or HDD.
> While the HDD you took out of the Bolt is fine and has now passed the tests, the way you tested it wiped all the programs on it.
> There's a good possibility that replacing the power supply on the Bolt will resurrect it now that you know the drive is ok.
> 
> ...


We only had a couple of programs that we never deleted from the Bolt HHD, since we used it mainly for time shifting. So losing them wasn't any big deal. Not sure what I am going to do with the Bolt and the Tivo HD. Both have lifetime.


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

SNJpage1 said:


> We only had a couple of programs that we never deleted from the Bolt HHD, since we used it mainly for time shifting.* So losing them wasn't any big deal*. Not sure what I am going to do with the Bolt and the Tivo HD. Both have lifetime.


Much better than " my programs! MY PRECIOUS!"


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