I think my 5040 is dying

490 Views 7 Replies 5 Participants Last post by icecow, Oct 19, 2004

jimmcq

Discussion Starter · Oct 18, 2004

I think my 5040 is dying... I have two Replays... a 5080 that gets quite a bit of usage, and a 5040 in a spare bedroom that is mostly used to record shows that are then streamed to the 5080.

Anyway, over the weekend I noticed that the 5040's Replay Guide was entirely empty (no shows or replay channels) when viewing it remotely. I walked into that room and they were still gone when viewing them locally, but all channel guide data was still there. I rebooted the machine, but it didn't change anything.

I was hoping that it was a one-time fluke so I set up a few recordings and left it alone. The next morning I found that the Replay Guide was entirely blank again. Also I noticed that the machine seemed to stutter when trying to view anything including live TV.

I haven't really done any diagnostic work yet, but I'm guessing that the hard drive is the problem. What would be the easiest solution? Is there anything on the unit itself I can do? Factory Reset maybe? Is it possible to re-format the hard drive while it is still inside the Replay?

I know that I may have to just replace the hard-drive but I'd rather attempt to revive the unit without cracking the case first.

Any suggestions and input are appreciated!

Save

Status: Not open for further replies.

1 - 8 of 8 Posts

rm -rf .

· #2 · Oct 18, 2004

That's definately the beginnings of a hard disk headed towards floating belly-up on the surface...

For the most part, the stock drives ammount to having equal value to that of a turd-on-a-stick, so no point in trying to salvage it.

I'd sugguest using this as a golden opportunity to take the lightly-used Bedroom 5040 and stuff a 200Gb

(or more - whatever's on sale that week) under the hood, then swap it with the 5080.

This will put a brand-new 200Gb+ drive in the heavily used RTV and give you twice the space on the Bedroom unit, while still maintaing the relatively low noise levels afforded by the 5400RPM 80Gb drive in 5080.

Save

icecow

· #3 · Oct 19, 2004

I wish I could trust a stock replaytv 40 gig harddrive as far as I could throw one. I upgrade not only for capacity but also for reliability.

unless you suspect another problem and/or your replay is still in warrenty you will need to crack the case open. Even if you want to use your existing HD you should crack the case and run a low level format on that drive then reimage it.

I go straight to the Fry's Ads and get a nice big HD for cheap/after/rebate myself.

If your still in warranty consider sending it in. However, I'd personally be afraid of doing that at this point. Their inventory might be dwilndling down to the worst of the returns. I don't know that factually, but fear it.

Save

jimmcq

Discussion Starter · #4 · Oct 19, 2004

That's exactly what I did last night... I went to Fry's and found a 200GB Seagate (ATA100, 7200RPM, 8MB Cache) on sale for $69 (after $50 in rebates).

It was a quick and painless procedure to run RTVPatch and pop it into the Replay. It seems to be working much better now... it even seems more responsive.

Now my only issue is the noise that the new hard drive makes... it seems much more audible than the stock drive. I'm very happy that I upgraded, the noise is just a minor nitpick.

Save

Chip718

· #5 · Oct 19, 2004

Hi. I tried to upgrade my HD the other day. I unscrewed all the screws that held the cover down, but I could not get the cover off the front off the unit. The back and sides came off without a problem, but the front was giving me a while lot off trouble. I was afraid of cracking the front so I stopped. Anyone have any suggestions on how to do it? Thanks for any info.

Save

jimmcq

Discussion Starter · #6 · Oct 19, 2004

There should be no need to remove the front of the case... once the top is off, that's it... you should have access to everything.

Save

l8er

· #7 · Oct 19, 2004

Quote:

Originally posted by Chip718
The back and sides came off without a problem, but the front was giving me a while lot off trouble.

From the rear of the ReplayTV, lift the back of the cover up to about a 45 degree angle, and then pull toward the back as you continue to lift up. There are tabs that fit into the front part of the case.

Save

icecow

· #8 · Oct 19, 2004

Quote:

Originally posted by Chip718
Hi. I tried to upgrade my HD the other day. I unscrewed all the screws that held the cover down, but I could not get the cover off the front off the unit. The back and sides came off without a problem, but the front was giving me a while lot off trouble. I was afraid of cracking the front so I stopped. Anyone have any suggestions on how to do it? Thanks for any info.

after the screws are out face the front of the replaytv in front of you towards your stomach (you should be able to imagine the lazor blue light piercing your left side, mortaly wounding you).

Lift up the back of the case cover up about 35 degrees. The front of the case cover doesnt move. It is a hinging motion.

Then slide out the case cover backwards along the case covers own plane of axis (which is 35 degrees relative to the ground).

In short you must hinge up the back of the cover and slide it out. You must do this because two tabs in the front of the case tuck under the front.

To put case cover back, reverse process. If the tabs are sticking out of the front, then try again as you hone your hinging skills.

See less See more

Save

1 - 8 of 8 Posts

Status: Not open for further replies.

Top Contributors this Month