[deanbri75]

I've had my RTV 5504 for a while now and am quite happy with it. I haven't done any of the IVS or CS things i've read about . . . yet.


My main question is this: Should I upgrade the drive in my RTV or just set up a dedicated PC with DVArchive? What are the pros and cons to doing one or the other? I've got my 320GB drive that meets the specs I researched so I know either option is viable (in theory).


My 5504 is the only replay I own. If I had one complaint it's that I sometimes want to watch a different show than the one that's recording, though this happens very seldom. I've thought about trying IVS/CS but am reluctant because I really like the stability I've had with my out-of-the-box setup.


thanks,

brian

 

[Ace987]

Quote:

Originally Posted by deanbri75 My 5504 is the only replay I own. If I had one complaint it's that I sometimes want to watch a different show than the one that's recording, though this happens very seldom. I've thought about trying IVS/CS but am reluctant because I really like the stability I've had with my out-of-the-box setup.

Although this doesn't answer a thing about using DVA, I'm curious what you mean by this.


Are you saying you want to watch something live that is on at the same time as what you are recording? If the answer is yes, you might be able to do that if you are using cable. You can also do this with satellite, but it requires buying another box and paying an extra $5 a month to the satellite provider.


I'm sure you already know this, but you can always watch something you already recorded while something is recording (as well as watch what is being recorded live or delayed).




As far as using DVA, it won't help you watch anything live. However, you don't need to void your warranty, less likely to lose the shows when they are stored on the computer and setup automatic offloads when the Replay is getting close to filled up. There are other advantages to DVA, but you don't really need to a large drive to use it. Things like confliction detection, offloading shows so you can burn them to DVD (or other media) and being able to remotely schedule recordings.


There are some small disadvantages to setting up a dedicated DVA machine. You basically have another computer running 24/7 sucking down juice. It typically costs a bit of money to setup another computer. Finally, although it can be controlled a bit through the use of multiple instances of DVA running on a machine, if you put too many shows on DVA, when you look at it through the Replay, the guide may take quite awhile to show up.


Although if you do setup a dedicated DVA machine, you might as well setup WiRNs to enable CA and IVS. Might even throw in the Poopli Updater to make it easier to send/receive shows via IVS as well.



There's a couple of dozen threads on this topic, so you may want to do a search. In the end though, it's just a matter of opinion.

 

[icecow]

If you had 2 or more replaytv's there would be reason to keep small drives in the them.


But you have one so there's nothing critical.


With a big drive in the replaytv you'd have to less show transfers to deal with, and more immediate access to the shows. The downside is you'll have so many shows on the ReplayGuide list that your mind may get slushy and out of touch with what has been recorded recently .


All the newly recorded show titles mix in to the old alphabetic list. Confusion mainly happens when I record a single show to 'check out' a series. It records but I don't remember I recorded it, and then I don't find it for weeks/months/years later because didn't know I had it. I use shortcut keys when I'm in the Replay Guide to go directly to the show I'm thinking so there are patches of show list I rarely see.


Like Ace987 said, it just comes down to opinion in the end.


Also, You don't neccarily need a dedicated machine. I made my g/f a machine that's super quiet (cpu fan/case fan) and it runs more or less 24/7. It is used as both a DVA server and a general use computer and web kiosk. It's been a joy.

 

[ND40oz]

I used to use DVA to archive my shows, but after 2 months I put a 250 gig in my 5504 and stopped using DVA. I record everything in high quality and get about 100 hours worth of recording time. To me, this is enough space as generally I almost always have 50 or so hours free, but I don't archive many programs, just things like the entire season of the wire.

 

[MethodMachine]

I do both. I like large drives in my Replay units (I have one 120GB and one 200GB) because it allows me more flexibility in recording anything that even *looks* like it might be interesting to watch.


I use DVA to archive libraries of my favoritie shows. I find the automated tasks of DVA very useful for this. For example, I have been amassing libraries of "SpongeBob SquarePants" for my kids and "Family Guy" for myself. I also find the web interface of DVA very useful for those situations where I forgot to set up a recording of a particular show and can get it done when I am away from home.


Also, if you haven't enable IVS or CA on your 5500, I highly recommend it. I own 5000s, so I cannot imagine living without these features. Although I don't download shows with IVS that often, it has saved my marriage quite a few times when I forgot to record a show or the IR blaster fell off one of my Dish Network receivers.

 

[Wrecks]

Quote:

With a big drive in the replaytv you'd have to less show transfers to deal with, and more immediate access to the shows. The downside is you'll have so many shows on the ReplayGuide list that your mind may get slushy and out of touch with what has been recorded recently .

That can happen with even just a few shows recorded. DVArchive allows you to sort the list of shows on a unit any way you want, so I leave them sorted by Recorded On with the newest shows at the top of the list.

 

[plyons10]

I recommend setting up DVA (especially if you already have a computer in your home and on your network that is essentially on 24 /7 anyway -- most of us do).


One reason I believe you are better off with DVA is that you reduce your chances of losing shows that you've saved for the longer-term, by a factor of ten or more (that's my fudge-y guess!). I have shows that I recorded over three years ago on my DVA server and frankly, I'd like to keep them as long as I have hardware that can play them. With DVA, some of my favorite or hard to replace shows are backed up securely to another drive. The chances of losing that data are very, very low. Whereas upgraded Replay drives seem to have a MTBF of only about two/three years. Many people here have lost shows that they had been saving for months or years when their Replay drive crapped out and had to be re-imaged.


All of my units are 50xx, so I haven't had to deal with whatever efforts are involved in running WiRNS; however, I can certainly say that I dont' think I could live without Commercial Advance and IVS! These features just make TIVO people go dumbstruck!