VIP 211 and external hard drive problem

[saea501]

Good day,

I recently added a WD 1TB drive to the 211. Installation went fine, I made a test recording, 5-10 minutes and it played back fine.

Sunday night I recorded Vinyl, a 2 hour show. As I am watching it the video stops, freezes, as if I had pressed pause. It will stay for a few seconds to 30 or 40 seconds then start playing again. If I hit the play button during the freeze it does nothing. It might happen again seconds later or play fine for 10 minutes. The only thing I have done to try to correct this is to replace the USB cable which made no difference. It is almost as if a buffer has filled and has to clear to resume play.

Sure would appreciate any help.

 

[thomasjk]

Reboot your 211 by unplugging for 20 seconds. Then plug back in.

 

[saea501]

I have done that. All that accomplished was to restart the receiver.

 

[KAB]

I have done that. All that accomplished was to restart the receiver.

It reboots the receiver. Have you tried to watch the show again afterwards?

 

[saea501]

Yes.....same problem

 

[KAB]

Then, sounds like your EHD may be failing.

 

[osu1991]

Sounds like a failing drive or one that can't keep up with the constant read/write of dvr service.

When I was preparing to move, I accidentally knocked the external drive off the shelf for my 211. It was toast. I had an old one laying around that I used for temp moving files between computers. I put it on the 211 and it behaved exactly like that. Freezing and pausing even though live tv was fine. Replaced it with a new one and was back in business with normal recording and playback.

 

[saea501]

And I would mind replacing it....the problem is I have not been able to find a 1TB drive that has an external power supply anywhere. Everyone has gone to 2TB and higher. All of the 1TB drives I find are the portable, USB powered type. The one I'm currently using was fine in it's application before. I'm a photographer and I was using it to store picture files. It's only about a year old.

By the way, thank you guys for your input on this.

 

[thomasjk]

You can use a 2tb drive.

 

[saea501]

Please help me understand as all I have read, including Dish's own statement, is the drive has to be 1TB maximum. I have the VIP 211.

 

[KAB]

Please help me understand as all I have read, including Dish's own statement, is the drive has to be 1TB maximum. I have the VIP 211.

2T is good to go on this page.
https://www.mydish.com/upgrades/products/external-hard-drive

 

[osu1991]

I replaced the WD 500gb drive I knocked off shelf with a 1.5TB. The 1.5 TB Seagate external has been working fine.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk

 

[Dudleydog73]

And I would mind replacing it....the problem is I have not been able to find a 1TB drive that has an external power supply anywhere.

You can easily bypass the need for an external power supply by getting a small 4 port powered USB hub which you then connect to the 211. That way you can use ANY portable hard drive within the size specs as it will get its power from the hub.

 

[KAB]

You can easily bypass the need for an external power supply by getting a small 4 port powered USB hub which you then connect to the 211. That way you can use ANY portable hard drive within the size specs as it will get its power from the hub.

That has worked for some, not for others. Better to stay within the guidelines that are Dish supported.

 

[Dudleydog73]

That has worked for some, not for others. Better to stay within the guidelines that are Dish supported.

If you say so. I have had this same setup support two external HDs on two different Hoppers (H1 and now H3) with no issues. Everything is within guidelines since the drives are not powered off the Hopper USB port.

 

[osu1991]

If you say so. I have had this same setup support two external HDs on two different Hoppers (H1 and now H3) with no issues. Everything is within guidelines since the drives are not powered off the Hopper USB port.

The hopper is not constantly reading and writing to the external drives either. The 211 is constantly writing to the drive once it's connected. The USB hub can work but it's better to just go with a single powered external drive

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk

 

[n0qcu]

The hopper is not constantly reading and writing to the external drives either. The 211 is constantly writing to the drive once it's connected. The USB hub can work but it's better to just go with a single powered external drive

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk

But it is impossible to find a 2 1/2" self powered drive, even 2 1/2" self powered enclosures are hard to find. That only leaves the option of a powered hub.

 

[KAB]

But it is impossible to find a 2 1/2" self powered drive, even 2 1/2" self powered enclosures are hard to find.

OK, so you get something like this.
http://www.staples.com/Seagate-2TB-...9dfrfmBs5Omkxi8Tq8m7D8GtE8rKWqqxQkxoC64Dw_wcB

 

[n0qcu]

Read the dimensions and you will clearly see that is not a 2 1/2" drive.

OK, so you get something like this.
http://www.staples.com/Seagate-2TB-...9dfrfmBs5Omkxi8Tq8m7D8GtE8rKWqqxQkxoC64Dw_wcB

 

[Foxbat]

I built my own 2 TB EHD and could not find an external enclosure that would recognize the 2 TB Western Digital Video drive I selected for my project.

I ended up with a USB 3.0 enclosure from Siig which said it could support up to 6 TB.

You can find externally powered 2.5" USB drive enclosures but you're right, most people are looking for one less cable in most portable drives.