• The forum software that supports hummy.tv has been upgraded to XenForo 2.3!

    Please bear with us as we continue to tweak things, and feel free to post any questions, issues or suggestions in the upgrade thread.

Is HDD failing ? occasional picture problem

C

charentejohn

New Member
Hi
I noticed recently that I sometimes get a quick pause in playback of some channels. Seems random.
The picture 'clicks' for a split second, best analogy is a bad scratch on and LP (for those who can remember such things), a quick 'click' then back to normal.

Could just be the channels but the unit is 6 yrs old and in constant use, HDD usually between 25-45% full at any one time. Just wondered if this could be bad tracks on the HDD and may be worth replacing it ?
I have seen some videos of how to do this and it doesen't seem that bad, I assume any HDD would do and that I would format it using the Humax once installed (video doesn't say). Could I use a solid state HDD ? I know these don't like constant read/writes but would still last a long time and now that expensive these days.

Last but not least, in an emergency can I save progams to an external HDD ? never tried it.

Any help appreciated, I would be lost without this facility, i haven't watched an advert in years :)
 
Just another thought.
I considered using SATA extension cables and removing the HDD from the machine altogether. I can then plug in any HDD I like to the cables outside the machine ?
Any HDD types to avoid, I was thinking of a 320GB laptop drive as they are usually cool and quiet ?
 
Ideally you need a AV specified drive like the WD AV-GP range.

http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=150

I used an esata external cradle for my recording HDD for some years. I made a auto power switch for the power using the drive 12V power to turn the hdd on and off. The custom firmware made that not necessary as you can transfer content from and to the hard disc directly using a PC (Either by mapping the drive in Wimdows or by FTP). The CF includes a Linux Disk Check and repair capability, if you install this you may be able to repair any dodgy sectors and also back up your recordings to a PC.

The box will only auto initiate drives up to 1TB, and you will need to put a jumper on pins 5 and 6 for Sata 3GB/second drives (or faster)
 
grahamlthompson said:
Ideally you need a AV specified drive like the WD AV-GP range. <snip> The box will only auto initiate drives up to 1TB,
Click to expand...
Which means that you will have to format a drive larger than 1TB on a PC first if you want a larger drive to have more than 1TB capacity on your Hummy.
 
Thanks for the info.
I only need the same size again, or even smaller, a 250gb drive would do nicely. I have only ever reached 45% full on a (I think) 320gb drive.
I like the external drive on an 'extension' cable idea as they can be swapped out as required.
Hadn't heard of AV drives but looks interesting,basically built to take more punishment than normal and stay reliable.

Seems the Humax is 5 yrs old, so recording an average of 3.5hrs/day with 3.5hrs playback is 7hrs/day x 5 x 365 = 12,775 hours, probably about average in drive life ?
About 1.5 yrs non stop use, saying that perhaps I should get out more :)

On formatting the drive, I assume a smaller 250/500gb one would jut be a case of - insert into Humax and go to format drive and done ?
I am assuming it would recognise a new drive and just format it regardless of what is on it.
 
charentejohn said:
Hi
I noticed recently that I sometimes get a quick pause in playback of some channels. Seems random.
The picture 'clicks' for a split second, best analogy is a bad scratch on and LP (for those who can remember such things), a quick 'click' then back to normal.

Could just be the channels but the unit is 6 yrs old and in constant use, HDD usually between 25-45% full at any one time. Just wondered if this could be bad tracks on the HDD and may be worth replacing it ?
I have seen some videos of how to do this and it doesn't seem that bad, I assume any HDD would do and that I would format it using the Humax once installed (video doesn't say). Could I use a solid state HDD ? I know these don't like constant read/writes but would still last a long time and now that expensive these days.

Last but not least, in an emergency can I save progams to an external HDD ? never tried it.

Any help appreciated, I would be lost without this facility, i haven't watched an advert in years :)
Click to expand...
Any HHD won't do it must be AV for video so it can cope with constant streaming. Changed mine just last week as the one I installed four years ago (1TB) started playing up. Put the original (320GB) HDD back in and it now works fine so I don't have to buy a new box. I've now swapped this box with the one in the bedroom as it now has a smaller HDD. Don't worry about installing a new HDD it's very easy.
 
charentejohn said:
Thanks for confirming AV is best, found a 500gb drive that looks a good price so will do that.
Click to expand...
No problem. I think 500GB is just about perfect as I never got anyway near filling the 1TB drive. The newer box I'm now using downstairs has 500GB and seems just the right size. The original 320GB drive was definitely to small (but fine for my bedroom) as it only gave about 40 hours of recording in HD. That was ok at first but as more channels were added in HD it became a struggle. Anyway good luck!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top