TiVo noise

March 14, 2005 11:35 AM

Does anyone else have a problem with the level of noise their TiVo produces?

I have a Series 2 TiVo, 2 years old, that from day 1 has produced a steady hum/whine. It seems like a completely normal sound for something like this to make, but I wonder if there is any way to shield or insulate it so that the noise is less of an issue without interfering with its cooling ability? The worst time is when I'm watching a quiet DVD. I would consider turning it off but that sort of defeats it's purpose and the boot-up time is an issue.

Suggestions appreciated.

posted by docpops to technology (7 comments total)

My answer: yes.

I have problems both with the case fan noise (not so bad, but seems somewhat excessive) and the obscenely loud hard drive noises. I have my TiVo and TV in the bedroom and I unplug the thing every night before I go to sleep.

The only suggestions I've ever heard involved replacing the HD with a quieter one...
posted by rxrfrx at 12:23 PM on March 14, 2005

You can get a replacement quiet fan from WeaKness, PTVUpgrades, etc.
posted by riffola at 12:33 PM on March 14, 2005

Depending on what fan is already in your TiVo replacing it may or may not help.

I've found using something to isolate it from the surface it sits on (a wooden shelf) helps to cut down the HD noise considerably. I use a folded towel, but I'm not to concerned with aesthetics. If you'd feel better spending money on it, you could buy some of these (I no nothing about their effectiveness or the vender).
posted by cosmonaught at 1:29 PM on March 14, 2005

Damn, make that "know nothing"
posted by cosmonaught at 1:30 PM on March 14, 2005

Quiet PC has a US site, also.
posted by cosmonaught at 1:38 PM on March 14, 2005

Drives me crazy. When I move, I'm moving my Tivo/TV out of my room because of it.
posted by sirion at 1:39 PM on March 14, 2005

The problem is twofold: first, not-that-great engineering on Tivo's part, in which a small fan is asked to do quite a bit of work; and second, the cheap hard drives that they use, which have a fair amount of audible spindle whine.

I've tried just about everything, including replacing the hard drives with Seagates (which helped quite a bit), and am now about to leap into uncharted territory by actually removing the motherboard entirely from the cramped little case it's in and putting it into a standard PC case capable of having multiple 120mm fans. I'll update this thread once I get around to completing the project, if I do.
posted by felix at 2:42 PM on March 14, 2005