I'm considering splitting the sata power to supply an external disk, then I can USB enable it using a SATA to USB (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...=STRK:MEWNX:IT) .

Will the HDR power supply be ok to drive 2 disks ?

Note - its not that I'm trying to save money, more that the number of power adaptors plugged 24/7 in is really bugging me and I don't want to add to it.

I would not advise it - everyone who has done HD upgrades on the HDR has gone for low power (Green) drives - So I would recommend a powered USB/ESATA enclosure to avoid overloading the HDR (USB/ESATA for flexibility and speed when connecting to a PC).

If you just want more disk space then replace the existing disk (you will find several threads on this). You could then use the original disk in an enclosure with a power switch It should only need to be powered up when you want to use it.

I'm not the one to ask but I was given this Wiki for one of my own questions by grahamlthompson.Might have the answer.

http://foxsatdisk.wikispaces.com/eSATA+loop+mod

A hard disk is one of the most power hungry components of an STB after the main SoC, personally I would be quite nervous of drawing too much power but the worst that can happen is that it will stress the PSU and it will fail.

On my hdr both the internal drive 1TB (mounted externally in esata cradle and the 1TB archive also in a cradle are externally powered. I use the hdrs 12v drive power simply to operate a relay that powers up both drives and the external modulator. I agree entirely for longevity that the internal power supply loading should be as small as possible