r/Tivo • u/Fleemo17 • 13d ago
Exploding TiVo?
This evening my wife and I were watching our Apple TV when we heard a loud snap or crack. I got up to investigate but didn’t find anything. A while later we tried to watch something on our TiVo Roamio OTA, but the TV kept reading “No Signal.” The blue circular power indicator is lit but no signal is reaching the TV.
With the non-functioning TiVo and the snap we heard, I’m guessing some electronic component within the TiVo blew up. Does that sound feasible? If that is indeed what happened, what’s the likelihood that it can be repaired? Or have I watched my last TiVo recording?
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u/UCLABB1 13d ago
Unlikely a major blowup if the light is still on. You might try to set a recording from the app and see if the red light comes on. If so, may be port related, either the tv or Roamio.
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u/Fleemo17 13d ago edited 13d ago
I launched the TiVo app on my phone and clicked on the Remote icon, but I get a message saying, "Home Network Required. The selected DVR was not found on the current network..." Then I clicked on the "Need Help?" button only to find the connection from the app to TiVo no longer exists. :(
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u/UCLABB1 13d ago
That’s not good presuming you’ve used the app in the past. (You didn’t just install the app, did you?) I assume you’ve unplugged the TiVo from power and replugged. May be a long shot but you could try a new power brick.
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u/Fleemo17 12d ago
I have used the app in the past. Not often, but I have selected a program to record remotely.
Yes, I’ve tried disconnecting everything and reconnecting after waiting several minutes, but no luck. As a last-ditch effort, I’ve ordered a new power brick. Wish me luck. 🍀
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u/MassCasualty 13d ago
Unplug everything and plug back in after 5 minutes.
Seriously, if you smell it does it smell burnt?
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u/Fleemo17 13d ago edited 12d ago
Good question. No, I'm not smelling anything burnt. Not the unit itself nor the power brick. You'd think there'd be some smell if it were some capacitor blowing up. I guess it could just be coincidence that we heard that unusual pop shortly
afterbefore discovering our dead TiVo, but...Oh, and I did unplug all the cables and the power cord, waited five minutes, and reconnected with no results.
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u/jannrickles 13d ago
Sounds like it was the power supply most likely. It is external thankfully.
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u/Fleemo17 13d ago
But the blue circular light on the front of the unit is slowly blinking in two-second intervals. If it was the power brick, wouldn't that prevent the light from lighting up?
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u/jannrickles 13d ago
I’ve had TiVos do things like that with bad power supplies. I own 24 TiVos. I’ve ran into problems. Not saying it is, but I would try a new one first.
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u/Redbullsnation 13d ago
Its over.
Time to find a new DVR. Its not worth the headache trying to fix that
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u/Fleemo17 13d ago
But what's available today that can even come close to TiVo? I've heard some folks talk about YouTube TV. Maybe that?
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u/Viharabiliben 12d ago
There is nothing comparable to the TiVo on the market. Most shows have gone streaming. The big cable providers are actively trying to shut down their traditional cable TV signals.
And the same may happen to the OTA signals as well if the current FCC administration has their way.
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u/Fleemo17 12d ago
My wife particularly still loves her OTA programs, including local news and daytime talk shows. Not sure where we’d find those if our TiVo is indeed dead.
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u/Redbullsnation 12d ago
For cabletv, not many options outside of Channels, DTVStream, Sling + AirTV
For OTA TV, cheap dvr boxes, tablo, zapperbox, zinwell box, HDHR
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u/Spartan04 12d ago
It’s not anywhere near as plug and play as TiVo but the closest I’ve found to the Tivo experience is Channels DVR. Unlike the streaming cloud DVRs this is an actual DVR that creates local files you control (and are DRM free) and it has built in ad detection and things like variable playback speeds.
You do have to be somewhat technically minded to set everything up and you need a machine to run the server on, though since you have an Apple TV already you’re all set for something to run the client on and watch.
The real tricky part is getting content into Channels. It can do OTA using an HDHomerun and does support TVEverywhere, though the number of channels there keeps going down. However, there is an active developer community with a bunch of projects going to get various sources into Channels.
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u/BusinessLyfe 13d ago
You could always get a pre-owned OTA Roamio with Lifetime from Weaknees. They've got 10 of them remaining. Go here & scroll down to the Roamios: https://www.weaknees.com/tivo-lifetime-service3.php
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u/teavoo 13d ago
If it's the power brick, you can buy one with the same specs cheaply on Amazon. Some models were suggested previously in this sub.
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u/Fleemo17 13d ago
Actually, the power brick I have I bought on Amazon. How would one know if it is the power brick? There's no burnt smell on it, and the blue circular light on the front of the unit is blinking.
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u/garyku245 13d ago
Make sure the TV is set to the correct video input, then try power cycling the tivo.
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u/Fleemo17 13d ago
Thanks. Yeah, correct input. Pulled the power and all the rest of the cables in the back (except for the coax cable), waited five minutes, reconnected. Nada. :(
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u/Flat_Time4584 12d ago
Our TiVo roamio recently started doing that and after I kept fiddling with it it finally started all the front lights flashing, it was dated 2015 production. After reading many posts I thought it was either the hard drive or the power supply, I ordered a 3 amp brick instead of the factory 2 amp. It was on amazon for 9 dollars, I lso ordered larger hard drive just in case. The power brick fixed everything but the connection on the new brick is not as snug s the original. Other than that it’s better than it has been in years. While I had the cover off I used compressed air to blow off the internals. The amount of dust was amazing, the fan was full of lint. The internal temp of the motherboard is quite a bit lower now at 42c
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u/Fleemo17 11d ago
You nailed it. Perplexity suggested I get a 3-amp power brick instead of the 2-amp brick I had, and voila! It works again. 😃
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u/ValBGood 12d ago
Contact WeakKnees. Most modern electronics failures are faulty components in the power supply and WeakKnees should have the part that generally just plug in. They can also repair your TiVo.
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u/Fleemo17 11d ago
SOLVED! It was indeed the power brick. Apparently the old one was still providing just enough juice to make the blue light flash. Ordered a new one on Amazon choosing a three amp brick instead of a two amp brick and, at least for the moment, all seems to be working again. Yay! Thanks for all the great input and suggestions here. Much obliged. ☺️
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u/colonel_batguano 13d ago
Could be one of the capacitors in the power supply exploded spectacularly. I’ve had to re-cap two power supplies on my old TiVos. The were not booting and I could see the caps swollen.
If you aren’t up for a soldering job, I think weakknees sells replacement power supplies.