Strange Problem

[toocan]

I hope you all can help, you've been great to me in the past. :)

Here is my issue (I searched and could not find a similar post):

I have an older Tivo that I upgrades when the HD died about a year ago. It now has 120gb. It is a series 2 and it is connected to a wireless network and on a UPS.

So, I have not had any signs of HD failure (no studdering, freezing etc) and everything was working great until last night.

I get home from a 4th party and go to turn on some TV, and Tivo won't respond to the remote. Not only that, but all the LED lights are on. I tried to power cycle and it does nothing, just sits there with all the LED lights on.

As you can imagine, it's very fustrating and I'm not sure what to do...

Any thoughts?

[tiellv]

This is very strange and certainly doesn't seem like it could be coincidental that several people are posting about this. The same thing happened to me. I left my computer on night before last transferring 3 shows to TiVo Desktop from my 2.5 year old Series 2 and when I got up yesterday morning my TiVo was unresponsive with the lights on. I tried uplugging three times and still no response. I looked around here for similar problems and it seems it may be the power supply.
I don't read the Help Center very often so I don't know if this is a common problem.

[toocan]

I emailed weaknees (thoes guys are great btw) and they suspect a powersupply issue.

However, this strikes me as odd

- I use a UPS, shouldn't that protect me from surges/power failures etc?
- Why would this happen to a bunch of people at once??? I just noticed a few more threads similar to mine... ok, sorry one other post.

[Alcatraz]

Is it possible that you have another IR source causing issues? I've heard of situations where people found a remote stuck in a couch cushion was causing interference, or a wireless game controller was the problem.

If you can't find a jammed remote, take a book and block the IR sensor and restart the box. If it comes up normally, move the book and see if the receiving LED lights up. That'll tell you if something else is interfering.

[toocan]

Thanks, I'll try that before I drop 50 bucks on a new power supply. So, if your theory is correct, then IR interfenence will keep the Tivo from even rebooting? Well, I'll post again tonight once I try that out.

[toocan]

Well, no such luck. Covering the IR reciever had no effect. I even had the Tivo unplugged all day and that did not help.

Guess I'm opening the thing up to check for loose wires. Any idea what to look for?

Thanks!

[toocan]

Another question. If I buy a new powers supply, is ther ea chance the bad power supply already fried my motherboard???

[litzdog911]

Another question. If I buy a new powers supply, is ther ea chance the bad power supply already fried my motherboard???

There's always that possibility. But a recent post from Weaknees states that they've had good luck by simply replacing the power supply.

[ddonohue]

Too many people, including me, are having the exact same problem at the same time for this to be a stray IR problem. I have 2 series 2's, one with this problem for the past few days and one working fine. However, the one working fine has been off the network for about a week and has not received updates. Now I'm afraid to reconnect it!

[toocan]

Well, if I'm having the problem, that's too many for me!!! :)

I would love to hear if more people are having it - or have had it in the past. So far, I have seen 4... are there more?

[ddonohue]

I have had the stuck LED problem, but the main problem is that any key I hit on the remote is executed for infinity. For example, if I go to the main menu and hit the down button once, the yellow LED comes on (indicating received IR signals), stays on, and the cursor goes down down down down down until the bottom of the menu. Even then, the yellow LED stays on. If I hit another key, like select, I can make it go off. But if I then hit up, it does the same thing in reverse until ig gets to the top of the menu. Same behavior on Now Playing, everywhere else. Basically, TiVo is unusable because I can't reliably choose a menu option unless it's the first or last option on the menu. At other places, such as trying to press clear to delete a program (because I can't make the cursor stop on "delete this now"), TiVo doesn't respond at all until I press the button about a dozen times. Restarting has not fixed the problem, and I've tried two remotes, so it's definitely the box itself.

[jmace57]

Well, if I'm having the problem, that's too many for me!!! :)

I would love to hear if more people are having it - or have had it in the past. So far, I have seen 4... are there more?

A major problem is when it happens to me...it's a minor problem when it happens to you!
;)
Jim

[toocan]

I have had the stuck LED problem, but the main problem is that any key I hit on the remote is executed for infinity.

That does seem to be a problem. However, I don't think it is the same problem. Certainly not exactly the same. My Tivo won't even start up, and ALL the LED lights are on, not just the yellow one.

[toocan]

I added a poll to see if this might be related to external power fluctuations

[toocan]

Do a search for 140060 and you get lots of these complaints.

[Dan203]

This just happened to one of my old 60 hours units as well. I got a new power supply from Weaknees (thanks guys), swapped it out, and I was back up and running again. The whole process only took about 15 minutes.

It is very odd that so many people with 140060 units are having this problem right now. I wonder if maybe the new software is not controlling the fan properly and causing the power supply to overheat?

Dan

[tiellv]

This just happened to one of my old 60 hours units as well. I got a new power supply from Weaknees (thanks guys), swapped it out, and I was back up and running again. The whole process only took about 15 minutes.

It is very odd that so many people with 140060 units are having this problem right now. I wonder if maybe the new software is not controlling the fan properly and causing the power supply to overheat?

Dan

Thanks for voiceing that Dan. I'm glad that I'm not the only one who thinks this might be the cause. It was my 60 hour 140060 unit also that has this problem. I don't think I've seen any complaints with any other model besides this one.
And my new power supply is arriving today from WeaKnees.

[toocan]

Yes, thanks Dan - can you let us know if you use a UPS? That would help us rule out a power spike in your case. It would seem odd that only 60 hour Tivo's are having power spike issues.

So, if the fan is the issue will my new power supply (on it's way!) be at risk once it starts running??? :confused:

tiellv, be sure to come back after your new power supply is installed and let us know how it works for you. :cool:

[Dan203]

Yes, thanks Dan - can you let us know if you use a UPS? That would help us rule out a power spike in your case. It would seem odd that only 60 hour Tivo's are having power spike issues.

This particular TiVo was not connected to a UPS. However it has a newer 540 unit plugged into the same surge suppressor and it still works fine. So I doubt it was a power problem.

So, if the fan is the issue will my new power supply (on it's way!) be at risk once it starts running??? :confused:

If this is a software issue, then that is a possibility. :(

Dan

[toocan]

very fustrating.

:rolleyes:

[AviStetto]

I am having a very similar problem. The number of people reporting this problem starting at around the same time makes it unlikely to be hardware related.

This sounds like a software problem to me. I hope TiVo gets an update to fix this out soon.

More details...
This has happened to me twice. I get ready to watch TV and the TiVo box is on, but the TV and receiver aren't so I turn them on. All I see is a black screen and the TiVo won't respond to the remote or even to using the buttons on the box. The remote still can control the receiver and turn the TV on and off. Unplugging the TiVo box and letting it reboot fixes the problem.

I've also noticed that my system has been resetting almost every day for the past several weeks. It loses my 30-sec skip setting and resets to displaying full channel/show information rather than just the title.

My System:
Sony TiVo box with an extra hard drive in it.
Linksys wireless adapter connecting to my home network.
System Ver: 7.1a-02-2-110
Lifetime service

[Tap]

Too many people, including me, are having the exact same problem at the same time for this to be a stray IR problem. I have 2 series 2's, one with this problem for the past few days and one working fine. However, the one working fine has been off the network for about a week and has not received updates. Now I'm afraid to reconnect it!

I agree. Our Series 2 just started doing this yesterday, July 9th. Came here this morning and found this thread.

Had added a second hard drive last year which has been working without a problem.

Checked the internal temp last night and it was at 37C. Normally whenever I checked it 34C was the norm. Still 37C is not too hot, but someone mentioned maybe the sw is messing up the fan, so I thought I would mention it.

The only thing different for us in the last week dealing with Tivo has been our brand new universal Sony AV2500 remote. Yes, we have ours hooked up to our DSL network and yes we have a UPS, but this has to be some sw issue - else all the hw is failing within days of each other.

Tivo Series 2
SW Version: 7.1b-01-2-240
IR Controller Version: Tivo1
IRDB Version: 182
Service Level: C:08080

[Tap]

I have had the stuck LED problem, but the main problem is that any key I hit on the remote is executed for infinity. For example, if I go to the main menu and hit the down button once, the yellow LED comes on (indicating received IR signals), stays on, and the cursor goes down down down down down until the bottom of the menu. Even then, the yellow LED stays on. If I hit another key, like select, I can make it go off. But if I then hit up, it does the same thing in reverse until ig gets to the top of the menu. Same behavior on Now Playing, everywhere else. Basically, TiVo is unusable because I can't reliably choose a menu option unless it's the first or last option on the menu. At other places, such as trying to press clear to delete a program (because I can't make the cursor stop on "delete this now"), TiVo doesn't respond at all until I press the button about a dozen times. Restarting has not fixed the problem, and I've tried two remotes, so it's definitely the box itself.

Perfect explanation. This is the exact same behaviour we are experiencing. Also tried different remotes. Also verified no stray IR signals.

[walkerism]

I have the exact same problem with a 60 hr series 2. Which power supply should I order form weakness? I bought a new humax 80hr with dvd yesterday from sam's club for $168. But I still would like to get my old one to work.

[toocan]

More details...
This has happened to me twice. I get ready to watch TV and the TiVo box is on, but the TV and receiver aren't so I turn them on. All I see is a black screen and the TiVo won't respond to the remote or even to using the buttons on the box. The remote still can control the receiver and turn the TV on and off. Unplugging the TiVo box and letting it reboot fixes the problem.



I think that is a different problem, since power cyclying fixes it.

[toocan]

Perfect explanation. This is the exact same behaviour we are experiencing. Also tried different remotes. Also verified no stray IR signals.

OK, well if that explanation is perfect for you, then you have a different issue - so the power supply probably won't help. This problem is were you can't even get the thing to turn on.

[toocan]

I have the exact same problem with a 60 hr series 2. Which power supply should I order form weakness? I bought a new humax 80hr with dvd yesterday from sam's club for $168. But I still would like to get my old one to work.

http://www.weaknees.com/tivo_power_supply.php

You need to know which model you have. Since you only say you have the same problem, and do not describe it I'd caution that if you have one of the other problems on this thread where you can still turn on the Tivo then the power supply might not help you...

[walkerism]

http://www.weaknees.com/tivo_power_supply.php

You need to know which model you have. Since you only say you have the same problem, and do not describe it I'd caution that if you have one of the other problems on this thread where you can still turn on the Tivo then the power supply might not help you...


I have a tivo series 2 60 hrs. The problem I'm having is, both lights stay on and I do not get the welcome to Tivo startup screen. I Just get a black screen with audio. I've left it unplugged for a day still nothing.

[toocan]

walkerism, sounds like you have the same problem. weaknees is reccomending a power supply to fix it, and a few board members have agreed it works. I can't say yet, as I'm still waiting for mine.

i believe the risks would be

- you could buy the ps for 50 bucks and find that the hd or motherboard were blown too and it still does not work (i'm told this is possible but not reported a lot)
- you could buy the ps for 50 bucks and find it working, only to have it blow out again due to a fan/software issue

anyway, sounds like you have a 140060, so the powersuply for that model should work. you might want to check the back of your tivo before you buy it, it should have the number 140060 on it.

[toocan]

update, power supply just arrived, should know by tomorrow if it works. can't wait to have tivo back!!!

[gacto]

I went to the tv tonite, found only a black screen with no sound. No response from the remote. It's a series 2 40hr tcd24004a model. I turned off tv and unplugged tivo, plugged back in and got the Powering up screen, that won't go off. Also got some sounds coming fromthe tivo itself. Some beeping and a whirring noise. What gives? It's all original, never opened. Hard drive bad after a year and a half? Sounds like the same thing everyone else is dealing with, except the sounds. The other tivo is still working, also series 2 40hr but different model. Did I mention it's plugged into a Monster Cable surge protector.

[toocan]

gacto, sounds like a bad hard drive to me. weaknees sells replacement kits. mine went after about a year and a 1/2 too.

anyway, the new power supply apears to have worked for me, I'll let you all know if fails again. at this point, the only original part i have is the motherboard.

[gacto]

I'm gonna call tivo, if they say it sounds like the drive, what's it take to change on my own? I've put a modem in a computer and added memory. Other than than, my electronics skills are slim.

Thanks

Gacto

[dgh]

I've put a modem in a computer and added memory.

If you buy a pre-imaged drive from someplace like Weaknees then it's as easy as those tasks.

[tiellv]

I'm gonna call tivo, if they say it sounds like the drive, what's it take to change on my own? I've put a modem in a computer and added memory. Other than than, my electronics skills are slim.


WeaKnees sends excellent instructions so you should have no problem installing the HD they send you.

[toocan]

i've done both the hd and the power supply now, and they are very easy both.

[gacto]

Thanks for the input guys, but I'm just gonna ship it back and let'em send me another one. Easier for me, to do it that way. Appreciate the help, will be checking in often.

Gacto

[toocan]

as long as you still can still have tivo, it's all good.

good luck!

[pwbrowne]

I'm wondering if I'm having a similar problem:
* I had a 60hr DVR that suddenly started repeatedly rebooting one day. I unplugged it and when I plugged it back in, nothing happened on the screen and all the lights were lit up on the DVR. That was it. It wouldn't do anything after that. I called TiVo and they said it was dead.
* I bought a refurbished 80hr DVR to replace it. It's only day two and this one has started rebooting.
What's going on? Any suggestions?
Thanks!

[toocan]

That is odd pw. Mine did not reboot as you say, just died. It does sound like once it died, and all the lights came on that your power supply had blown.

If I were you I would return the 80 hour right away.

Do you use a UPS?

[pwbrowne]

We just have a surge protector strip. I'm wondering if I should have something better. Wondering if the same problem that killed the first one is causing the rebooting in the 2nd.

[toocan]

hard to say. I use a ups, and it happend to me. however the rebooting might have something to do with inconsistent power? I don't really know thoa.

[PPatla]

I too have the ALL LED LIGHTS ON and stuck mode issue....

Here is what I know, I lost power while doing a transfer to my PC using TiVo Desktop 2.1...

I have a Series2 that was upgraded with a 120 + the original 60

I have it sitting on rubber feet and an extra fan has been blowing on it for years now.. and it's always cool....

I upplugged it for a few minutes and yes it's stuck with all the LEDS on.

Rats..

I have two spare drives to drop in, I don't have a backup img file though.... :eek:

[tiellv]

Sounds like you may need a new power supply also. Contact weaKnees and describe the problem and if it is a power supply issue, you won't lose any recordings on your hard drive.

[tiellv]

I finally had time to replace my power supply today and it took care of the problem for me.

[farley2k]

I have been having the same problem and just check the HD. It seems fine as far as my disk checking utilities can tell so that means I am off to buy a PS.

With this many issues I can't believe it isn't somehow releated to a software update not controling the fan properly.

Even if we assume it is the same model, so therefore the same age, one would normally see a more spread out pattern of failure.

[toocan]

I agree, it is odd. I would expect to see people who replaced the PS have it fail again, if that is the case. Has that happened to anyone?

[C Turner Joy]

TiVo Jane, thanks for taking the time to reply to my post in another thread about the "all lights on and a black screen." I finally got the chance to put the new power supply you suggested in the TiVo. At first it looked like a no-go, all lights were still lit up. But after a few minutes it sorted itself out. Updating program info as I write. I now have my TiVo back. You rock.

[tivo sidewinder]

First time poster here. On 7/30/05, I experienced the exact same problem described by several others in this thread. My 140060 has power (front LEDs on) but a black screen. Rebooting does not help. Tried replacing the 160GB HD with the functional original 60GB drive, but no luck. Since I have another DVR, I will wait for a little while to see if any official word comes from Tivo regarding this issue. I see in other threads (from April) that Tivo was offering users an $80 replacement. Does anyone know if this offer is still on the table? I'd hate to lose my lifetime subscription and would prefer this approach to risking a possibly fruitless power supply replacement.

[farley2k]

Well I got a new PS put in yesterday and it fixed the problem.

I am happy it was fixed for $50 but I am suprised that so many of htme are going out.

[C Turner Joy]

All Hail, Tivo Jane!

[Chiun]

I'm very suspicious now.
My 60 gig tivo did the exact same thing about the beginning of july.
(Hard drive not spinning up, and lights on the front.)

Good thing I switched over to sagetv because this is too big of a coincidence for me to believe.

Tivo has lost my business for good over this.

[toocan]

I'm very suspicious now.
My 60 gig tivo did the exact same thing about the beginning of july.
(Hard drive not spinning up, but no lights on the front.)

Good thing I switched over to sagetv because this is too big of a coincidence for me to believe.

Tivo has lost my business for good over this.

I understand your fustration. However, your tivo did not do the exact same thing, it did something quite different. This post is about people who have Tivos that are functionally dead with al the lights on, which seems to be a power supply issue on 60 hour tivo 2s.

Your problem may also be power supply related, but since you have no lights on, it is at least symptomativly different, and therefore incorrect to claim it as exactly the same.

[Chiun]

I would also like to make a correction.
I tried plugging the tivo in again and the lights do, in fact, light up.

[toocan]

i see, it is the same then. thanks for checking.

[digitize]

Hi guys, I'm having the same problem: Series 2, 140060 model, connected to a UPS. I first noticed something was up when I had to reset the 30 second skip code every day for 3-4 days. Then Tivo suddenly rebooted while I was watching a show, and continued to reboot over and over until I unplugged it. After plugging it back in a few minutes later, all the lights stayed on in the front and the tivo was completely unreponsive to the remote (solid black screen, no on screen displays, etc). Same result ever since then. I've only had this box for 2.5 years. Nice to know I'm not the only one, but pretty frustrating that this is obviously a widespread problem. I'm going to buy a power supply and see if that corrects the problem. Hopefully it does, I've already got a new Tivo and would love to network them together. :)

[toocan]

sounds like you've got the power supply issue. most likely, a new one will fix it. i'd reccomend you keep in un-plugged until you get the new one in so to aviod damanging the hd or mb.

[26theone]

Same deal here. Completely stock TCD140060 model. Had a storm and power went out yesterday. Tivo wouldnt boot up properly after that. Just all the lights lit on the front with no video or sound.

Called Tivo and they are willing to do the $79 replacement for what I would assume is a refurb unit but they will transfer my lifetime sub. Makes me suspicious though that this has happened to so many people recently.

We have had power outages before with no issues. Obviously the tivo would need to be able to handle abruptly losing power. What if your PC wouldnt boot after the power went out? Losing a show or some data is one thing but the unit not booting up is not right.

I have to decide if I want to replace the power supply or get the replacement unit. The replacment power supply from weaknees is $49 and I would assume its not new. I am a little concerned that if its a software related the problem will return. Does the tivo software manage the power supply in any way?

The positives about the replacement unit for $79 seems to be both a new power supply and a new "or newer" hard drive with less wear on it.

[tiellv]

Same deal here. Completely stock TCD140060 model. Had a storm and power went out yesterday. Tivo wouldnt boot up properly after that. Just all the lights lit on the front with no video or sound.

Called Tivo and they are willing to do the $79 replacement for what I would assume is a refurb unit but they will transfer my lifetime sub. Makes me suspicious though that this has happened to so many people recently.

We have had power outages before with no issues. Obviously the tivo would need to be able to handle abruptly losing power. What if your PC wouldnt boot after the power went out? Losing a show or some data is one thing but the unit not booting up is not right.

I have to decide if I want to replace the power supply or get the replacement unit. The replacment power supply from weaknees is $49 and I would assume its not new. I am a little concerned that if its a software related the problem will return. Does the tivo software manage the power supply in any way?

The positives about the replacement unit for $79 seems to be both a new power supply and a new "or newer" hard drive with less wear on it.

Hey, if the replacement unit is a newer model TiVo I would say go for it. Since you can transfer the lifetime sub all you lose is the shows that are on your old TiVo. If the replacement is the same model, I think you should just replace the power supply.

[toocan]

all of us with that issue have to make that choice... if anyone has replaced the ps and had it fail again, please let us all know!!

[26theone]

Had to call Tivo Support back while I was at the unit. Now they tell me that the replacement fee is $149 not $79. Still for a refurb unit. What? I will be buying the power supply to try that fix instead.

[toocan]

wow, that stinks. how muchb is a new one these days? so far so good for me with the new power supply.

[tiellv]

all of us with that issue have to make that choice... if anyone has replaced the ps and had it fail again, please let us all know!!

toocan, I don't think that will be me! I'm not using that particular TiVo as my main one any longer. I have my new one in my bedroom and downstairs I'm using a Comcast DVR because I bought a new HDTV and want to be able to see shows in hi-def.
So the one that has a new PS is in the guest bedroom and is only going to be used for conflicts when the fall season starts up again. AND I will not be transferring shows via TiVoToGo since I feel that may have something to do with the problem with this model. Call me crazy but that's my opinion :p

[toocan]

AND I will not be transferring shows via TiVoToGo since I feel that may have something to do with the problem with this model. Call me crazy but that's my opinion :p

Since I am running Win ME, I don't use Tivoto go at all. So, I doubt that is the source of the problem. You are of course entitled to your opinion.

[tiellv]

Since I am running Win ME, I don't use Tivoto go at all. So, I doubt that is the source of the problem. You are of course entitled to your opinion.

Ah, I see! Well, that shoots that theory down :) Then it must just be the software and it doesn't matter if I transfer shows or not, it MAY happen again with my new power supply :(

[digitize]

Hi guys, I'm having the same problem: Series 2, 140060 model, connected to a UPS. I first noticed something was up when I had to reset the 30 second skip code every day for 3-4 days. Then Tivo suddenly rebooted while I was watching a show, and continued to reboot over and over until I unplugged it. After plugging it back in a few minutes later, all the lights stayed on in the front and the tivo was completely unreponsive to the remote (solid black screen, no on screen displays, etc). Same result ever since then. I'm going to buy a power supply and see if that corrects the problem.

Hi everyone, I just wanted to report back and let everyone know that replacing the power supply did indeed resolve this problem! Lets hope the new supply doesn't fail... :o

[toocan]

glad to hear it, let us know if you get more trouble...

[jesuit]

In short, I also experienced the all LEDs on, blank screen power supply failure on my TCD140060 s2 around the end of July. Replaced the PS with one from weaknees and it's back up and running again. Glad to have found this thread!

I do wonder about the timing and appreciate all the conspiracy possibilities that a software upgrade caused the failure. A friend of mine suggested that imminent hardware failure is more likely to happen upon a system restart and that perhaps if the upgrade forced a restart... Then again, tivocommunity is also a small and self-selecting group of users (e.g. who are willing to replace their own power supplies). It is possible that there's a wider time-distribution of failures happening among tivo owners at large...

[Chiun]

In short, I also experienced the all LEDs on, blank screen power supply failure on my TCD140060 s2 around the end of July. Replaced the PS with one from weaknees and it's back up and running again. Glad to have found this thread!

I do wonder about the timing and appreciate all the conspiracy possibilities that a software upgrade caused the failure. A friend of mine suggested that imminent hardware failure is more likely to happen upon a system restart and that perhaps if the upgrade forced a restart... Then again, tivocommunity is also a small and self-selecting group of users (e.g. who are willing to replace their own power supplies). It is possible that there's a wider time-distribution of failures happening among tivo owners at large...
Mine went dead after I pulled the plug on it to get at the drives (i was migrating to an alternative DVR).
I put the original drive back in so I could reset the system and eventually resell the unit on ebay.
The problem (mentioned in this thread) immediately showed up when I tried to boot the system again.

[mr.cello]

Just happened to me last night. Same issue as Chiun - all LEDs lit and no disk spin up - also had the daily power cycle leading up to it.

I am thinking it might be due to a design limitation of the PS itself (intentional or not). Given that these things are on for months if not years at a time it is quite possible that something will simply kick it and fail. Also I think the timing might have more to do with how old the model is and the fact that we may have all bought them at about the same time.

I know people are concerned that there may be a SW issue for the fan control - but the fan in mine ran all the time, and there was someone that reported that they had the same issue and had extra ventilation going on. Also, as opposed to some other postings, mine ran a little hot (40 something degrees, two 120G 7200 RPM drives) and seemed to fail later than the bulk of this thread...

Don't know - hopefully won't happen again if the PS is replaced - I will be ordering mine ASAP - The Simpson's starts on Sunday night! Also don't really want to loose the 80+ hours of TV that I will never catch up on :)

this thread was great though $50 bucks is better than $149!

[jesuit]

I previously reported having changed the power supply and been back up and running. Well, within a couple of weeks a new problem has appeared. The TiVo now freezes while recording or playing back and requires a hard restart (read: unplug). The crash can happen within minutes, sometimes it even freezes at the "Almost there..." startup screen. I don't know if this could be due to a bad power supply or another problem. Just wanted to report my experience.

[mr.cello]

Got my power supply from Weaknees (http://www.weaknees.com/tivo_power_supply.php#ps) and now have a functioning TiVo again! Well at least it was functioning when I was testing it :) I need to put it back in it's "home", so lets hope it continues to function! Thanks for the help everyone!

[Klep]

My Tivo didn't want to boot up after I cut the power to the whole house to replace a lightswitch. All 4 LEDs are burning, audio output but no video... Thankfully I found this thread, and I just put an order in to get a new power supply.

Will report back if it fixes my problem as well.

[Klep]

My Tivo didn't want to boot up after I cut the power to the whole house to replace a lightswitch. All 4 LEDs are burning, audio output but no video... Thankfully I found this thread, and I just put an order in to get a new power supply.

Will report back if it fixes my problem as well.

Grmbl. Put in the new power supply tonight, and it powers up now. However, it reboots after a few minutes of the "Almost there..." message. Any suggestions?

In the mean time, i'll browse the forums to see what the possible causes can be. Please don't let me Tivo be dead :mad:

[toocan]

The audio output you were having makes it sound like maybe something different. A few week after I replaced my PS, I had the same issue after a power cycle (stuck on almost there). Another power cycle solved it though and it is still working.

I just upgraded to comcast HD with the COmcast DVR thought so now Tivo is just a back up.

[brianric]

I've also noticed that my system has been resetting almost every day for the past several weeks. It loses my 30-sec skip setting and resets to displaying full channel/show information rather than just the title.

My 140060 been rebooting two to three times a day. A new hard drive from Weaknees arives Monday. My Tivo and two Replays are hooked up to a APC 1500 UPS. Didn't help one month ago when some drunk took out a pole, causing a three hour loss of power. :eek:

[DukeEricJ]

I didn't post until I completed my work. But I have the old Tivo 60 hours (upgraded with a second HD) that all of a sudden stopped working. I had unplugged it and then only all the status lights would come on. Sure enough, like this thread and Weaknees suggest, my power supply went bad. So I ordered a new one and everything is once again working.

I have had this Tivo for 2 3/4 years (and recently got a second)... It has been on a UPS, so I doubt there's any electrical current or software issue. When I spoke with a Tivo rep, she recognized that there was problem (surprise) and that I could send it in for an exchange. She incorrectly thought it was a Harddrive failure. So after finding the info on the power supply, I researched some more and bought it from Weaknees. Since even if it were a free exchange from Tivo, I'd rather keep my 100+ programs on my old unit.

[TreyBras]

I now have the same problem...All lights on, blank screen. Sounds like I need a power supply, mine was on a UPS.

60hr unit with upgraded larger hard drive.
It seems like the 60hr is more problematic than my newer 40hr.

Ok here is my thinking.
Trying to exchange from Tivo for a newer unit.
Cost might be a little more $150 vs $50 for power supply.

Before sending in the 60hr, remove the larger hard drive and replace with the original.
Get newer unit, upgrade hard drive using InstantCake.

After all is said and done, Getting to transfer lifetime to a newer unit with same capacity.

This all dependant on Tivo transferring Lifetime to a new unit.

Comments?

[dpolivy]

I just want to add another "me too" to this thread. Odd that it happened to me so much later than everyone else. I have a Series 2 60-hour unit with a second HD (120gig) that's worked perfectly for a couple of years. This morning, I noticed it was rebooting constantly, so I put it into Standby before heading out to work.

This evening, it's got all the LEDs illuminated, a black screen, but still playing audio. It doesn't respond to remote, etc, all the classic symptoms mentioned previously.

Is it worth it to call TiVo support about this? Will they recognize the problem? Any chance they'll fix the power supply, or will it be a full unit swap?

[harrisgtz]

I have had the stuck LED problem, but the main problem is that any key I hit on the remote is executed for infinity. For example, if I go to the main menu and hit the down button once, the yellow LED comes on (indicating received IR signals), stays on, and the cursor goes down down down down down until the bottom of the menu. Even then, the yellow LED stays on. If I hit another key, like select, I can make it go off. But if I then hit up, it does the same thing in reverse until ig gets to the top of the menu. Same behavior on Now Playing, everywhere else. Basically, TiVo is unusable because I can't reliably choose a menu option unless it's the first or last option on the menu. At other places, such as trying to press clear to delete a program (because I can't make the cursor stop on "delete this now"), TiVo doesn't respond at all until I press the button about a dozen times. Restarting has not fixed the problem, and I've tried two remotes, so it's definitely the box itself.

I have the exact same problem. It does not look like anyone has given you an answer to correct it. Please contact me if you get a solution.

Harris

[dsb411]

Same thing happening to my 60hr. Seems like there is definately a defect in the power supply? How bout a recall Tivo?

[dfb01]

Today the same symptoms showed up on my 60 hr Series 2 TiVo. The unit is just over 3 years old (purchased 10/18/2002) and has been in continuous use since purchase. Based on finding this thread, I guess I'm ready to purchase a PS from Weaknees. The only question I have is whether anyone has any idea what part fails on these supplies. If so many people are having the same problem there must be some commonality in the failing component. My concern is buying a PS which is apparently used (described as pulled from a working unit) which has the same potential problem. Comments????

[dpolivy]

I sent my unit in for a no-cost exchange--all I had to pay was shipping. Apparently TiVo is doing some sort of warehouse move and because of it, they're not charging for out-of-warranty exchanges like they normally would. Plus, since they don't make the 60-hour anymore, I'll likely get an 80-hour in exchange. You might want to give that a shot before going the PS route.

[dfb01]

Thanks,
I'm in the middle of the same procedure. I called TiVo to request the service be discontinued until I had the unit working again. I was told they would exchange it at no cost except for my shipping cost of returning the defective unit. This is currently in process - they received my unit on 11/16/05. I was really surprised when they made this offer - told me it was due to my long membership to TiVo (3 years +). When I cancelled my order for the power supply the fellow at Weaknees told me he had heard TiVo was doing this in a limited number of cases and I was one of the lucky ones. I guess I won't celebrate yet until I have a working unit back in my hands. TiVo told me I would receive a "refurbished" 60 hour unit, identical to my original. If this all turns out as planned, I have to say it's great PR on TiVo's part and they will have earned some additional loyalty from me. I'll post the final outcome.

[TrueKnight]

:confused:

My TCD140060 died about a month ago in the same described manner of LED lights on but no response and a blank screen. While I do applaud Weaknees for supplying the replacement power supplies, the fact is that the ones they sell are pulls from other units which may contain the same design problem. It was $50 to buy a working but scratched up unit on ebay and I got it last week. Swapped the power supply and added the spare 60GB from the replacement unit and now the Tivo is up and running. I really would like to know if the cause of this problem is:

1. Software issue causing the power supply to fail
2. Insufficient cooling to the power supply board

I guess I can rule out #2 by leaving the cover off and blowing fans at it... I use my unit about once a week so I wasn't around most of the time to see if the unit did the self-rebooting like others have claimed. I think it might have rebooted on me like once or twice. What I recall was that the power supply side of the Tivo case was INCREDIBLY hot before it died. So hot that you can not put your hands on it. Anyways, so now I'm crossing my fingers to hope this may last for another 2 years.

[mstroh]

I will officially report that I am part of the group! :mad:

My Tivo Model 140060 has rebooted many times over the last week, it rebooted, and never restarted. All LEDs are lit up. After reading about the PS issue on weaknees I came here for confirmation.

My wife has been bugging me about what I wanted for Christmas ... now I know. :(

[mstroh]

several Questions:

1) Before I go and drop $50 on a new PS, should I check anything else about my unit first? Specifically, hard drive failure (1 original drive and 1 added drive) or anything else? I will visually inspect the MB to ensure there are no scorch marks.

2) Has the hardware vs. software issue been soved? These problems did start after the most recent upgrade (the one adding padding). But, I suspect that the problem started shortly after my main desktop (in same room/on same circuit) OS became very corrumpted. Would this be a power surge issue?

The unit was not connected to a UPS, but was connected to a good surge protector.

[dpolivy]

My advice: call TiVo and see what they have to say. I got a refurb'ed 540 80-hour unit in exchange for my broken 140060 model, and all I had to pay was shipping to them.

[dfb01]

This is an update to my post of 11-19-05. As of 12-20-05 I now have a working unit. TiVo replaced my 60hr unit with an 80hr unit for no charge except my shipping expense of sending my original unit back to them. They also issued a service credit for the time I did not have a unit. Overall, I appreciate TiVo's action on this problem since the unit was long out of warranty. This power supply problem appears quite widespread and hence I assume this is the reason for exchanges being made. That said, I feel compelled to relate what transpired in the past month:

1. TiVo states that 14 business days should be allowed before an exchange unit is delivered. Believe me, not only do they allow 14 days but they can not (or will not) provide any status of the exchange within that period. When I checked again after 15 business days they agreed to issue a query into the status of my exchange. I could obtain no results on the query after 16 days and was told I "just had wait" and there was no other action that could be taken. Then amazingly a TiVo showed up at my door 2 days later; thus a unit was obviously in transit when customer service was unable to give me any update on the exchange.
2. The exchanged unit was DEFECTIVE!!!! The modem was dead and I was unable to make the required guided setup call. Obviously TiVo does not do an extensive checkout of the exchange units. I wonder where these things come from and what "refurbished" means???.
3. So I send the exchanged unit back to TiVo expecting to wait another 14 business days at least and low and behold another unit shows up at my door 3 days after they received the one with the dead modem. Either their turn around time has improved immensely or my first exchange dropped into a black hole which couldn't be probed until 14 days had passed.
4. The guided setup goes normally on the 2nd exchange unit but I have no network options. The software version was only 3.2xxxx. How old is this unit and why doesn't TiVo ship out exchanges with the latest software????? Another call to TiVo customer support gets me put in a "priority list" for software downloads the next time I connect to the service. After three attempts the new software downloads and now everything appears to be fine.

My underlying concern is what exactly was the history of the unit I ultimately received as an exchange and of course whether I can expect the same power supply problem at some point in the future again. At any rate, I'd recommend that anyone having this power supply contact TiVo and pursue an exchange

[cbsmatt]

I just wanted to add my 2cts as well. I had the same problem with the TiVo series 2 constantly rebooting. I thought it was the hard drive but nothing changed after swapping it out. I read this thread where people also had all of the LEDs lit up. I ordered a new power source from Weaknees and installed it tonight. Up and running like normal.

BTW, my problem occurred the very first time I tried Desktop 2.2. There's something screwed up with that program.

Thanks to everyone who shared their experience on this thread!

[cduke4]

Just wanted to add that I have a tcd140060 that has a bad power supply also, both lights are on and just a black screen. I have found out from some searching that it looks like there is a capacitor on the power supply that has gone bad. I am going to replace it and see if it starts to work again. If this does work and anyone else experiences this same problem, drop me a PM and I'll help you out. If anyone still has their bad power supply and is willing to give it to me, let me know that also. I will pay for shipping :)

Cheers,

Cduke4

[cwoody222]

Add me to the club. Although I only get the green LED at startup, not both/all of them.

[toocan]

Hey there - I retired my Tivo until they support HD.

However, I think you have a different problem is if only your grean light is on. What are the other symptoms you experience?

[cwoody222]

No other symptoms. It was working fine and then I came home last night and it was a black/blank screen.

[toocan]

hmmm... have you tried to power cycle?

[cwoody222]

Yep. Multiple times for way longer than necessary. It's actually unplugged now... I'm giving it all day (8hrs) to power down / cool off...

[toocan]

well, sure sould be a power supply. sorry to hear it. i'll take a guess that you have a 60 hour series 2.

[cwoody222]

Yesterday evening after being unplugged all day it came back to life. But only for a short time. It then started random reboots and now can't get past "Welcome, Powering Up". So now I think it's a HD failure :(

[Drzy]

Just thought I'd bump this with my own experience, since it seems to be the definitive 140060 4-lights thread.

I discovered the problem a couple days ago and gave the TiVo plenty of chances to resurrect itself, but finally decided it was kaput. I called TiVo and spoke with troubleshooting. The first guy I spoke to didn't seem to have heard of this problem before, but he agreed it was toast. We began discussing exchange options, but he correctly pointed out the TiVo is no longer under warranty and there's a fee for an exchange. He said a better way to handle this might be that currently there's a promotion on the website where you get a free TiVo box with a 1-year service contract. So, just cancel the service for the old TiVo and get a new one, the only caveat being the 1 year contract. I hadn't known about this offer, and I agreed... a contract is fine, I'll certainly be keeping it at least that long.

So, I was transferred to someone who could cancel my account. When the new guy picked up, I explained things and said I'd be cancelling the account. He said that was fine, but he was only a "Level 2 Technician" and didn't have authorization to that, and he'd transfer me to someone who would.

I was transferred again (no wait time) to the third and final person. Once again I explained the situation, and he was very helpful. He said that "because I sound like a friendly guy," (I am kind of friendly, but he probably says that to everyone. or everyone who's not a jerk. :) ), he could go with the initial route I had mentioned, or to make things easier on me I could do a no-fee exchange with the TiVo. My current TiVo would be swapped out for a new one, and it would be an 80-hour Tivo instead of my current 60-hour model because the 60-hours aren't even made anymore. All information / accounts / etc. would be transferred to the new TiVo, so there'd be no hassle setting things up.

This of course sounded great. We discussed a small amount of details, he sent me an email that details what to do and where to send it, and I should get a replacement soon. I was also given the option that they'd send me the new TiVo first and I'd send them my broken one in that box, the only caveat being I'd be temporarily charged for the new Tivo until my old one got back to them. I opted to just send mine in first, to avoid any potential hassles.

So yup, problem solved! After 3.5 years of owning a TiVo, this is my first time needing customer service, and they came through in a big way. I always hear good things about their service, and now I see why. And hopefully I won't need that good service for another 3.5 years. :up: If any of the rest of you have the 4-lights problem, I hope your issues are solved as seamlessly as mine.