Dishnetwork 508 DVR issues.

[Tundracat]

Woke up Friday morning and discovered these issues with my DVR from dish network.

1. When watching a prerecorded program while recording a live program...I would be able to watch for 15-20 minutes before the dvr would shutdown and come back on again thus missing about 3 minutes of the live recording.

2. While watching a live program and recording it at the same time in order for the wife to watch it later......the same thing occurred...after 15-20 minutes the dvr would recycle. Thus a two hour program would have six to eight different recordings for the same program with 3 minute gaps.

3. While watching a live program without doing any recording....after about 15-20 minutes....I could not pull up the guide or the menu off the remote on the initial request but on subsequent requests the guide or menu would briefly come on but then the dvr would power off and on and then would have to wait 3 minutes for everything to come back up.

So in other words, everything works perfectly fine when first turned on but after 15-20 minutes the malfunctions start occurring.This has been going on for a couple of days and I have unplugged it overnight and turned it back on and the same things keep happening.

So the question is...can this be fixed? What are my options for a person living in Fairbanks, Alaska and the costs involved? I have had this refurbished model for five years as this is the only receiver I have ever used as I have been a Dish customer for that amount of time. I only have a view of the 119 satellite so an HD Dvr is out of the question. I wouldn't mind leasing an updated DVR but it sounds like I have to buy the unit and still pay a monthly charge. Is this correct? I would appreciate any input out there!

Thanks!

 

[TheKrell]

The 501 and 508 are the only remaining DVRs that do not come with a DVR fee, as far as I can remember. You can avoid one such fee (on your primary DVR) by subscribing to the "with DVR" package, which also comes with locals.

As to the errors, I'd say you're "cooking" your internal disk. I forget whether the 50x has a fan or not. If so, then I think it's not spinning. Or maybe you've blocked vent holes, or placed the receiver in an untenable location. The drive might also be failing even if it's not overheating.

 

[Tundracat]

The 501 and 508 are the only remaining DVRs that do not come with a DVR fee, as far as I can remember. You can avoid one such fee (on your primary DVR) by subscribing to the "with DVR" package, which also comes with locals.

As to the errors, I'd say you're "cooking" your internal disk. I forget whether the 50x has a fan or not. If so, then I think it's not spinning. Or maybe you've blocked vent holes, or placed the receiver in an untenable location. The drive might also be failing even if it's not overheating.

Thanks for the reply. I believe it does have a fan as you can hear it when it is in reboot mode. Vent holes are clear of obstructions. It may not be spinning. I used to get a message when I first powered on that said please wait while disk is spinning up. I have not seen that message since these problems came up. Which begs the question...How do you get it spinning again?

 

[TheKrell]

If the fan has seized, it has to be replaced. As for the missing message, that potentially went away with a new version of the firmware.

 

[boba]

Digital Home Protection Plan (DHPP) is $5.99/mo. and will get you a replacement receiver free. Service calls are $29.99 and there is no minimum time that you must keep DHPP active.

 

[Tundracat]

Called Dish on August 12th and they agreed to sent out a refurbished 508 for $74.99 which includes shipping. The 508 showed up here in Alaska on the 14th and now I am up and running. I can also get a $10.00 credit on my next bill if I send them the bad one back (the return lable was included and is prepaid and I have no time limit to return it by). Also the refurb unit has a one year warranty, so if I get more than a year out of it then I will more than break even in saved DVR access fees. Needless to say, I am very happy!

 

[navychop]

Hmmmm. Maybe the warranty makes it worth it. I think I'd sell my 508 for $75 if offered. Look on eBay for 508 prices. I suspect the 508 is not to be long for this world. Probably phased out next year. But you may well get your money's worth out of it.

 

[boba]

And for $5.99 DHPP you could have gotten that 508 replaced, but Alaskans are rich so I guess it dosen't matter.

 

[JayStil]

I've got 2 spare 508's since somehow DISH doubled my 7200 exchange. I guess I've got a couple of hard drive replacements covered. Nice to have the extra remotes too.

 

[Juan]

The 501 and 508 are the only remaining DVRs that do not come with a DVR fee, as far as I can remember. You can avoid one such fee (on your primary DVR) by subscribing to the "with DVR" package, which also comes with locals.

As to the errors, I'd say you're "cooking" your internal disk. I forget whether the 50x has a fan or not. If so, then I think it's not spinning. Or maybe you've blocked vent holes, or placed the receiver in an untenable location. The drive might also be failing even if it's not overheating.

not "exactly" true You can get a VIP 211 and add your own hard drive.. it has a ONE TIme activation charge of somewhere around $50 It then acts just like a 501 or 508 (One Tuner) with no monthly DVR Fee

 

[Tundracat]

And for $5.99 DHPP you could have gotten that 508 replaced, but Alaskans are rich so I guess it dosen't matter.

So are you saying, I could of ordered up this plan once my DVR failed last Friday and then the following day call them back and say, " You won't believe this, but my 508 just failed and I need a replacement. Could you please send one?" Wouldn't that look suspicious? I would still pay the shipping charge, no?

 

[boba]

Actually you could have done it in the same phone call. DHPP is too often not used by DISH customers. The way they have written the rules and it is used by DISH CSRs makes it a great benefit for customers. There is no minimum time that you need to carry the plan and your $5.99 even gets free shipping.

 

[Tundracat]

Actually you could have done it in the same phone call. DHPP is too often not used by DISH customers. The way they have written the rules and it is used by DISH CSRs makes it a great benefit for customers. There is no minimum time that you need to carry the plan and your $5.99 even gets free shipping.

I wish I had seen your message earlier....I'm a tightwad. Sounds too good to be true especially for us Alaskans who get charged more for everything especially UPS shipping. I will make a mental note of this for future use and thanks so much for the information.