Has any brave soul with sensitive ears tried experimenting with disconnecting the cooling fan in a Pioneer HDD/DVD, or replacing it with something else ?

If a Topfield can get by without a fan why can't a Pioneer ?

I have 2 Pioneer HDD/DVDR and this is the first I knew of a fan.
Fans are normally there to cool a constantly spinning HDD.
AFAIK the HDD in the Pioneer recorders only work when activated for recording or viewing.
The only "fan" type sound I ever hear from them is when they are burning dvd's at high speed.
What models do you have?

I have a 440HX. The fan is probably part of the power transformer, as the circular grill is located next to the power socket. AFAIK the other models seem to have a similar setup.

I have a 420(80GB) and a 630(250GB) and I can honestly say I have never heard a fan running in the same way I sometimes hear a sound from my Fusion PVR and my Sky+160.
Whether they are making sounds from fan or the HDD I don't know.
And the 630 is recording on its HDD from CCTV 24 hours a day,so if anything should make a noise that would be it

Hi

Internal pics of the Pioneer 540HX are here: http://www.avforums.com/forums/showt...=287176&page=4

The fan is a separate fan and does seem to shift more air than the 530/630 models, and with a larger case it is a bit more audible, however the 530/630 had a slower running fan that made more of a buzz than fan noise.

Regards

Phil

Thanks for the pic - saved me having to dig mine out from the pile of gear and open it up.

I don't suppose you have tried pulling that little two pin power connector from the circuit board, and seeing if anything melts?

I might try fitting some rubber gaskets to the fan mounting to see if it will dampen the vibration.

If it's a standard two pin fan connector you could try an attenuator to reduce the voltage to the fan and thus the speed at which it rotates. Some fans don't like this. Or, you could simply get a quieter fan - it looks like a 6cm fan to me, these are widely available. Or like the man says, pull the conector out and see if anything melts. I'd love to change that Seagate for a Samsung HA250JC.

I've not got one of these yet (and I never thought I'd even be considering it) but I'm fed up with transfering Wimbledon to my PC for the wife who then doesn't watch it. Easier all round just to give in and make some DVD's for her.

BTW, two points: is the 440 the same as the 540 in all respects apart from HDD size? The Pio web site says there are differences but I also read that they are identical on avforums.

Forgotten what second point was. Doh!

Another Toppy user who got sick of transferring recordings to the PC for archiving to DVD. Been there, bought the DVD recorder....

I have the 440HX and I know of no difference to the 540 other than disk size. They come with the same manual, and I have seen no '540 model only' notes.

I've got hold of a 6cm ultra-quiet fan from acoustiproducts but haven't tried it yet. It does bug me that the toppy is fanless and silent, whereas the Pioneer chugs along like a train.

If you look at the internal shot on that other thread, you can see that the fan isn't really close enough to anything to really do anything other than general case ventilation. I'd be tempted to try the box with it unplugged, but being careful.

Guide+: how long is the list of satellite STBs that you get to choose from?

I want this to provide me with an EPG for Sky because I watch my Sky sub through my Dreambox and thus have no EPG. The Dreambox has a HDD and is quite capable of recording its own content but I can't do this if I don't know what's on. GRR!

If Guide+ isn't going to do anything for me I may as well go with the Pana DMR-EX75 to match my amp.

Hi


It doesn't take much self help to find:

http://www.europe.guideplus.com/En/help/clu.html

Regards

Phil

Oh dear. A clever one. Well, there always has to be one doesn't there?

You could examine every line of code that makes up that web site and you wouldn't find the answer to my question.

Do you really think that I haven't already read every page on that web site?

Hi

My quoted text was wrong, it was in answer to:


That link provides a list of all the channels you get on GuidePlus, no need to look at lines of code either, does answer the question now?

That in quotes wasn't a question, was it? That was a statement. The line above that was a question since it ends in a question mark.


If you felt like answering the question, then you would be being helpful.

Hi

Did you follow the link posted?

If so you will see it provides you with GuidePlus+ help and information, including supported STBs and channel line ups and the host channels you need to receive to populate the EPG. Just select the option from the left hand menu for the topic required.

If it doesn't answer your question, try rephrasing it so we know what you are asking.

I thought I had scoured every page on that web site, but because I am not always right I went and had another look. It is there, thanks, and yes, my nice Dreambox is supported.

I'll mull over whether having an EPG for Sky is worth £300.

Hi


You will not be able to fit a rubber gasket as the fan has no room to move further back as it is wedge in by the end of the power circuit board.

Most of the noise seems to be amplified by the roomy case and is air noise and with the case off it is wisper quiet. Perhaps some PC sound proofing stuff on the inside lid might help.

Regards

Phil

Or you could slow it down by fitting a 2V attenuator.

@PhilipL: can you tell me the height of this unit in mm, please, including feet. Some web sites give it as 79mm and plenty of others give it as 69mm.

Rhubarbe,

my 440 is 79mm high including the feet

Thanks c_j. I'll get my tape measure out......

Cobson, have you tried the ultra quiet fan yet?

my 440 seems to be getting louder by the day, and every so often it has sudden bursts of being extra loud. I'm gonna e-mail Pioneer and see what they say about it

I'm sure you're right about this. I turned on my new 440 in a silent room this morning, and listening carefully, you become aware of the fan noise. But it doesn't go up in pitch, as it would if the fan itself was the cause; it just gets slightly louder. This suggests to me that the case is resonating, and a small piece of something attached to it may cure it. I have some car body silencing stuff, made from lead and tarry stuff, which would seem ideal. If I can find it...

Not yet I'm afraid, too busy decorating Will let you know as soon as I try it

yep, I had a closer look last night after I posted about the fan noise and it is definitely the case resonating. If I place my palm on top of the case the resonating stops. The pull-down flap on the front may be contributing, if I touch that its a lot quieter.

Are you planning on taking the top off and putting sound-deadening material inside? (which would invalidate your warranty)

Nothing to stop me putting a piece of it on the outside, I guess. Or if it's the front flap, a bit of sponge rubber in there, perhaps. It won't take much to change the natural frequency.