Upgrading Fusion Hard Drive? - Digifusion

bluestraw · 21-07-2004, 11:52

Sorry for starting a new thread on the Fusion PVR, but I looked through the long 'main thread' and can find this question asked a few times, but never answered. Maybe this will make it stand out some more!

Has anyone tried a larger drive in the Fusion FVRT100? Since it looks like the Sky+ '17 min bug' is here to stay, I'm looking for some other reliable recorders, but 40Gb is just too small!! I know it is possible in the Thomson, but what about the Fusion?

hansena1 · 26-07-2004, 10:19

I just tried upgrading the hard drive on Sunday, to a segate 120gb drive. The machine finds the channels but then hangs. If I put the old hard drive back in the machine works fine. I think the hard drive is not compatable. I bought this from reading the forum and people saying that you can do it but cannot find out anybody who actually has upgraded the hard drive......

I will be interested if you have had anybody contact you with a method of upgrading the Fusion.

Thanks

patr · 26-07-2004, 11:34

Some people have had problems upgrading their Tivos using Seagate drives. It may well be that another make of drive will work.
It is quite difficult to find a satisfactory alternative to the Maxtor since this is low noise and low power. The only sensible alternative seems to be the Samsung SV1203N (unless anyone knows different).
Another issue may be the drive height. The Maxtor is specced at less than one inch (17mm?) whereas most other drives are one inch high (25mm?) so other drives may not fit in the box.

Madmonk · 26-07-2004, 23:02

I've just bought an FVRT100 and keen to upgrade too.

Good point Patr about the height of the drive.

Looking closely at the spec of the fitted drive it is a Maxtor Fireball3 (old IBM drives?) +12/+5v, 5400rpm, ATA133, code 2F040L07. http://www.maxtor.com/_files/maxtor/...data_sheet.pdf

Dabs have a 7 day offer on the newr Maxtor Diamond Plus 9, 120Gb, 7200rpm, ATA133, code 6Y120LO for £48.99 but sadly no current stock! This unit is 0.7 bel louder and draws 214 mA more power @ 12v while the disk is busy.

A better match is the Maxtor QuickView Comsumer Electronics 120GB 4R120LO-QV, 5400RPM, ATA133, same noise level as original, only draws 142 mA more power. I suspect this is hard to buy.

I'm also tempted to drill more holes in the Fusion case to let the heat out and fit a better quality fan.

hansena1 · 27-07-2004, 10:15

Just bought a 120Gb Maxtor Diamondmax Plus 9 ATA- 1 £45.50 from SCAN.com. will arrive tomorrow so I will post and let you know if I have any luck with this.

The seagate drive did fit in the case (very tight) I think the drive might have been touching the case. I think the Maxtor drive is the same hight as the seagate I tried.

If I dont have any luck there might be a few hard drives for sale on ebay....

zoro · 27-07-2004, 10:53

You might want to take a look at this item by Cotman in the main Fusion thread (item #211) for some pointers.

http://forum.digitalspy.co.uk/board/...&postcount=211

His last entry seemed to say it was OK but there were never any further updates.

djdazzy · 27-07-2004, 11:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by Madmonk

Dabs have a 7 day offer on the newr Maxtor Diamond Plus 9, 120Gb, 7200rpm, ATA133, code 6Y120LO for £48.99 but sadly no current stock! This unit is 0.7 bel louder and draws 214 mA more power @ 12v while the disk is busy.

Tried a 6Y120LO drive but it didn't work. I suspect it is taking too much power from the feeble psu. I might try and find a 5400rpm drive to try,.

patr · 27-07-2004, 11:41

Personally I wouldn't try and swap the drive for a higher current model, there are already too many issues with heat and the small power supply.
I have ordered a Samsung SV1203N as it is the only one I can find which has similar power consumption and noise to the Maxtor model.
This leaves height of the drive as an issue and from a quick look last night it seem that it may be possible to use a higher drive by lowering the fan/mounting plate somewhat.

By the way. As far as I am aware we still haven't had anyone report a successful hard disk upgrade for this unit

julieng · 27-07-2004, 13:30

I have place a
Maxtor Diamondmax Plus 9 160Gb 7200rpm 8mb Cache ATA133 Hard Drive but the whole system ran slow and when trying to playback from the library the box would crash. So i used an external powered disk caddie and everything worked as normal.

so far i have recorded approx 8hrs and it has only used 12% of disk which corresponds to the 131GByte limit. EPG downloaded fine. The disk makes a small clicking noise when generating the thumbnails and sometimes when searching through the guide.

I may upgrade the power supply or modify the box to include a removable hard disk.

zoro · 03-08-2004, 10:18

Hi

It's been a while since this thread has been updated, has anyone succeeded in doing this upgrade and been using it for long enough to see whether there are any associated problems?

patr · 03-08-2004, 12:01

I have tried a Samsung SV1203N which worked fine, initalised ok, recorded ok and showed a usage consistent with the disk size (120GB). The problem with this and other drives is that they are thicker than the installed Maxtor and do not allow the lid to be replaced without modification.
While changing the hard disk I did notice that parts of the Maxtor were VERY hot (too hot to touch) reported here before I think. The fan is small and does not appear to have an air inlet which must mean it is not very efficient.
So if you are thinking of upgrading I would suggest that you should expect to modify the box and also to improve the cooling if you want the hard disk to last a reasonable time.

03-08-2004, 13:04

There is also the possibility of using a 2.5" HDD, but this will only become an economical option once the prices of larger capacity 2.5" drives comes down.

slimgym · 03-08-2004, 16:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by julieng

so far i have recorded approx 8hrs and it has only used 12% of disk which corresponds to the 131GByte limit.

Has anyone tried the drive in a PC to see if any of the data is readable?

Madmonk · 03-08-2004, 23:08

Hi

I've been looking for the Samsung SV1203N and can't find anyone selling it.
Any ideas on who to try and buy it from?

Cheers,
MM

patr · 04-08-2004, 07:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by Madmonk

Hi

I've been looking for the Samsung SV1203N and can't find anyone selling it.
Any ideas on who to try and buy it from?

Cheers,
MM

I got one from MicroWarehouse.co.uk. They mark them as special order but mine was delivered in four days.

gav_johnson · 04-08-2004, 13:25

What's the fan like that sits under the drive? What sort of dimensions are we looking at?

patr · 04-08-2004, 13:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by gav_johnson

What's the fan like that sits under the drive? What sort of dimensions are we looking at?

Fan is 40mm square by 6mm deep , 5V @ 0.45W

julieng · 04-08-2004, 13:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by patr

Fan is 40mm square by 6mm deep , 5V @ 0.45W

Its a Sunon Maglev Fan kde0504peb3-8

gav_johnson · 04-08-2004, 14:03

Cheers fella. That's going to be a difficult one to replace.

clansley · 04-08-2004, 14:55

Can you post a picture of the fan and where it goes (i.e. a picture of under the disk)?

gav_johnson · 04-08-2004, 15:26

What do you reckon the chances are of fitting a 50mm x 50mm x 10mm fan would be? It'd be nice to get a fan in there than can shift a bit more air.

clansley · 04-08-2004, 15:46

Data sheet for fan says:

size: 40mm x 40mm x 6mm
voltage (VDC): 5
operating voltage (VDC): 3-6
bearing type: Ball
no. of motor poles: 8
current (A): 0.09
input (W): 0.45
speed (RPM): 5000
air flow (CFM): 4.5
Static Pressure (@ 1” or 25.4mm – H20): 0.06
Noise (dBA): 23
Operating Temperature: -10°C to 70°C

Seems like a lot of noise for the amount of air flow!

HANG ON - I'm getting conflicting data from different sources!! One says: 0.06 A, 0.3W, 4000 RPM, 3.5CFM, 20dBA.

patr · 04-08-2004, 17:26

I can give a few dimensions:
Inside box height 39mm
Gap above Maxtor drive 4mm
Maxtor drive 17mm
Maxtor to fan top 9mm
Fan height 6mm
Gap below fan 3mm
Most other drives are 25mm high
So a 10mm fan could theoretically fit. The size the other way is not a problem since there is nothing else under the drive.
But note my comment above, air cannot get out of the box if there is no hole for air to get into the box!

gav_johnson · 05-08-2004, 12:47

I suppose you could hook up a couple of 30mm fans at either side of the box where the fins are, one set up for intake and one for outlet. This should help the air flow by quite a bit. I'd imagine the PSU would be able to support them.

clansley · 05-08-2004, 13:11

Would putting fans outside the case help at all? I'm assuming it would cool the case and in turn cool down what's inside.

21-07-2004, 11:52	#1
bluestraw Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Surrey Services: Sky+ V2, 250Gb Maxtor Posts: 492	Upgrading Fusion Hard Drive? Sorry for starting a new thread on the Fusion PVR, but I looked through the long 'main thread' and can find this question asked a few times, but never answered. Maybe this will make it stand out some more! Has anyone tried a larger drive in the Fusion FVRT100? Since it looks like the Sky+ '17 min bug' is here to stay, I'm looking for some other reliable recorders, but 40Gb is just too small!! I know it is possible in the Thomson, but what about the Fusion?

26-07-2004, 23:02	#4
Madmonk Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Coventry Services: Freeview, HiGain Aerial, FVRT100, FVRT200. Posts: 31	I've just bought an FVRT100 and keen to upgrade too. Good point Patr about the height of the drive. Looking closely at the spec of the fitted drive it is a Maxtor Fireball3 (old IBM drives?) +12/+5v, 5400rpm, ATA133, code 2F040L07. http://www.maxtor.com/_files/maxtor/...data_sheet.pdf Dabs have a 7 day offer on the newr Maxtor Diamond Plus 9, 120Gb, 7200rpm, ATA133, code 6Y120LO for £48.99 but sadly no current stock! This unit is 0.7 bel louder and draws 214 mA more power @ 12v while the disk is busy. A better match is the Maxtor QuickView Comsumer Electronics 120GB 4R120LO-QV, 5400RPM, ATA133, same noise level as original, only draws 142 mA more power. I suspect this is hard to buy. I'm also tempted to drill more holes in the Fusion case to let the heat out and fit a better quality fan. Last edited by Madmonk : 26-07-2004 at 23:51.

27-07-2004, 10:53	#6
zoro Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Services: Freeview (Fusion FVRT100) Posts: 25	It has been done before You might want to take a look at this item by Cotman in the main Fusion thread (item #211) for some pointers. http://forum.digitalspy.co.uk/board/...&postcount=211 His last entry seemed to say it was OK but there were never any further updates.

27-07-2004, 13:30	#9
julieng Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 26	Hard Disk Upgraded I have place a Maxtor Diamondmax Plus 9 160Gb 7200rpm 8mb Cache ATA133 Hard Drive but the whole system ran slow and when trying to playback from the library the box would crash. So i used an external powered disk caddie and everything worked as normal. so far i have recorded approx 8hrs and it has only used 12% of disk which corresponds to the 131GByte limit. EPG downloaded fine. The disk makes a small clicking noise when generating the thumbnails and sometimes when searching through the guide. I may upgrade the power supply or modify the box to include a removable hard disk.

04-08-2004, 14:03	#19
gav_johnson Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 31	Cheers fella. That's going to be a difficult one to replace. Last edited by gav_johnson : 04-08-2004 at 14:27.

26-07-2004, 10:19	#2
hansena1 Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 3	I just tried upgrading the hard drive on Sunday, to a segate 120gb drive. The machine finds the channels but then hangs. If I put the old hard drive back in the machine works fine. I think the hard drive is not compatable. I bought this from reading the forum and people saying that you can do it but cannot find out anybody who actually has upgraded the hard drive...... I will be interested if you have had anybody contact you with a method of upgrading the Fusion. Thanks

26-07-2004, 11:34	#3
patr Forum Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 49	Some people have had problems upgrading their Tivos using Seagate drives. It may well be that another make of drive will work. It is quite difficult to find a satisfactory alternative to the Maxtor since this is low noise and low power. The only sensible alternative seems to be the Samsung SV1203N (unless anyone knows different). Another issue may be the drive height. The Maxtor is specced at less than one inch (17mm?) whereas most other drives are one inch high (25mm?) so other drives may not fit in the box.

27-07-2004, 10:15	#5
hansena1 Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 3	Just bought a 120Gb Maxtor Diamondmax Plus 9 ATA- 1 £45.50 from SCAN.com. will arrive tomorrow so I will post and let you know if I have any luck with this. The seagate drive did fit in the case (very tight) I think the drive might have been touching the case. I think the Maxtor drive is the same hight as the seagate I tried. If I dont have any luck there might be a few hard drives for sale on ebay....

27-07-2004, 11:41	#8
patr Forum Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 49	Personally I wouldn't try and swap the drive for a higher current model, there are already too many issues with heat and the small power supply. I have ordered a Samsung SV1203N as it is the only one I can find which has similar power consumption and noise to the Maxtor model. This leaves height of the drive as an issue and from a quick look last night it seem that it may be possible to use a higher drive by lowering the fan/mounting plate somewhat. By the way. As far as I am aware we still haven't had anyone report a successful hard disk upgrade for this unit

03-08-2004, 10:18	#10
zoro Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Services: Freeview (Fusion FVRT100) Posts: 25	Hi It's been a while since this thread has been updated, has anyone succeeded in doing this upgrade and been using it for long enough to see whether there are any associated problems?

03-08-2004, 12:01	#11
patr Forum Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 49	I have tried a Samsung SV1203N which worked fine, initalised ok, recorded ok and showed a usage consistent with the disk size (120GB). The problem with this and other drives is that they are thicker than the installed Maxtor and do not allow the lid to be replaced without modification. While changing the hard disk I did notice that parts of the Maxtor were VERY hot (too hot to touch) reported here before I think. The fan is small and does not appear to have an air inlet which must mean it is not very efficient. So if you are thinking of upgrading I would suggest that you should expect to modify the box and also to improve the cooling if you want the hard disk to last a reasonable time.

03-08-2004, 13:04	#12
jase1 Posts: n/a	There is also the possibility of using a 2.5" HDD, but this will only become an economical option once the prices of larger capacity 2.5" drives comes down.

03-08-2004, 23:08	#14
Madmonk Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Coventry Services: Freeview, HiGain Aerial, FVRT100, FVRT200. Posts: 31	Hi I've been looking for the Samsung SV1203N and can't find anyone selling it. Any ideas on who to try and buy it from? Cheers, MM

04-08-2004, 13:25	#16
gav_johnson Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 31	What's the fan like that sits under the drive? What sort of dimensions are we looking at?

04-08-2004, 14:55	#20
clansley Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2002 Services: Fusion FVRT100 PVR Posts: 145	Can you post a picture of the fan and where it goes (i.e. a picture of under the disk)?

04-08-2004, 15:26	#21
gav_johnson Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 31	What do you reckon the chances are of fitting a 50mm x 50mm x 10mm fan would be? It'd be nice to get a fan in there than can shift a bit more air.

04-08-2004, 15:46	#22
clansley Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2002 Services: Fusion FVRT100 PVR Posts: 145	Data sheet for fan says: size: 40mm x 40mm x 6mm voltage (VDC): 5 operating voltage (VDC): 3-6 bearing type: Ball no. of motor poles: 8 current (A): 0.09 input (W): 0.45 speed (RPM): 5000 air flow (CFM): 4.5 Static Pressure (@ 1” or 25.4mm – H20): 0.06 Noise (dBA): 23 Operating Temperature: -10°C to 70°C Seems like a lot of noise for the amount of air flow! HANG ON - I'm getting conflicting data from different sources!! One says: 0.06 A, 0.3W, 4000 RPM, 3.5CFM, 20dBA.

04-08-2004, 17:26	#23
patr Forum Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 49	I can give a few dimensions: Inside box height 39mm Gap above Maxtor drive 4mm Maxtor drive 17mm Maxtor to fan top 9mm Fan height 6mm Gap below fan 3mm Most other drives are 25mm high So a 10mm fan could theoretically fit. The size the other way is not a problem since there is nothing else under the drive. But note my comment above, air cannot get out of the box if there is no hole for air to get into the box!

05-08-2004, 12:47	#24
gav_johnson Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 31	I suppose you could hook up a couple of 30mm fans at either side of the box where the fins are, one set up for intake and one for outlet. This should help the air flow by quite a bit. I'd imagine the PSU would be able to support them.

05-08-2004, 13:11	#25
clansley Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2002 Services: Fusion FVRT100 PVR Posts: 145	Would putting fans outside the case help at all? I'm assuming it would cool the case and in turn cool down what's inside.