|
PowerTrip TiVo Power Saver
The PowerTrip™ fits perfectly in a TiVo equipped with
the TwinBreeze™ TiVo Upgrade Bracket and works with other
dual drive solutions. If you are looking to add a second drive
to a Standalone Series 2 TiVo TiVo models 240040, 24004A, 230040,
240080, 24008A, 240140, 540040, 540080, 540140, 649080, 649180, Humax T800 and
Humax T2500, we recommend the TwinBreeze and the PowerTrip.
|
PowerTrip™ TiVo Power Saver
$19.00 - FREE USPS first-class shipping!
View more info on our TwinBreeze™ to
save over 50% on PowerTrip with a TwinBreeze Bracket.
|
|
Installation Instructions:
Installation of the PowerTrip™ is a snap. Install your
two drives in your TiVo. Connect one end of the PowerTrip™
into the TiVo's Master hard drive and the other end into one end
of the Y-power splitter. Connect the TiVo's main power cable and
the TiVo's slave drive to the other ends of the Y-power splitter.
What is the PowerTrip™?
The PowerTrip™ is a device that staggers the startup of two TiVo hard drives.
With the PowerTrip™ installed, upon startup, only one hard drive will spin up,
followed approximately 7 seconds later by the startup of the second drive.
Why do I need one?
Although the PowerTrip™ will work in any TiVo, we believe
that it is only necessary in the TiVo-branded 240040, 24004A, 230040,
240080, 24008A, 240140, 540040, 540080, 540140, 649080, 649180 and Humax T800 and
Humax T2500.
Each of these TiVos has a power supply that is rated 38W max.
By contrast, every other TiVo manufactured has a power supply
with a max rating of 61W-78W. The 61W-78W power supplies are certainly
sufficient to power up two hard drives; a 38W power supply is
questionable. At startup, a hard drive requires between 20W and
30W of power, but after only a few seconds, that power draw drops
to about 5W to 7W. Thus, by delaying the startup of one drive,
the PowerTrip™ cuts by 40-45% the single-largest draw on
the TiVo's power supply.
Will this damage my TiVo?
This device was designed for use in a TiVo, and we have conducted exhaustive
tests without any harm to either software or hardware. The short delay has no
impact on the operation of the TiVo software.
Haven't many people upgraded these TiVos without any problem?
While others have reported "no problems" running two drives in these
TiVos, it is still too early to tell. We refuse to sell upgrade
kits for these units without a PowerTrip™, because we believe
problems could arise. Starting two drives at once draws more power
than the rated maximum capacity of the power supply. Based on
our experience and tests, repeated operation of a 38W power supply
while starting up two drives will cause heat issues and, eventually,
reveal symptoms of stress. In addition, the MTBF (mean time between
failure) of a dual-drive unit without a PowerTrip™ is likely
to be much lower.
Note: the PowerTrip has been tested with several
brands of hard drives, and works with Maxtor, Western Digital,
Quantum, Samsung and many others. The one known brand of drive
that will NOT work with PowerTrip is IBM.
Please feel free to email us with any questions. 
|
