New Seagate Bolt upgrade option

Wow!! I see Seagate also has a 5TB, 2.5 inch, Barracuda model too. I didn't realize they already had 5TB models.

Seagate drops the world's largest tiny hard drive

I wonder how well that would work in the Bolt. Five platters at 1TB per platter. 15mm thick like the 4TB drives I have in my Bolts.

 

Unfortunately, the drive uses SMR (shingled magnetic recording) and consequently is not a good choice for a TiVo. Seagate initially claimed this drive as PMR in the press release, which made it seem like a good option for the Bolt. See >this< for more information.

 

The information on this is sketchy at best. It's both SMR and PMR but should have been noted as such -- what the heck does that mean?? I guess we will find out since I ordered the 2GB version on a Cyber Monday sale - the ST2000LM015. It will be a couple weeks before I can report back on how it works out since I have to get the Whiteout sale Bolt up and running with the stock drive, marry they Cable Card etc. I am hoping the shingled/perpendicular hybrid technology allows this drive to work with Tivo... Hopefully so.. if not I use it as a data backup drive on one of my other systems.

This article describes how MTC (multi-tiered caching technologies) work in conjunction with SMR drives to minimize any performance hit: Seagate Introduces BarraCuda 2.5” HDDs with Up to 5 TB Capacity

 

Advertisements

I just bought a new 500GB TiVo Bolt and this (ST2000LM015 ) is one of the drives I've been looking at to upgrade my TiVo. It's really confusing. I've been holding off until I hear from anyone with any experience in using this drive. There doesn't seem to be a general consensus on a good affordable drive in the 2 TB or greater range. Also, I really hate TiVo for creating such a weird case for the Bolt that makes opening it up such an intimating prospect.

 

Anyone have success with finding a stable 2+ TB drive? Just got the 500gb bolt today. BTW - I'm assuming opening/replacing the drive voids warranty?

 

Why not get the 3TB samsung.. seems to work well in that unit, no software hacking required.

 

You should still run mfsr on it.

 

Any update on how the ST2000LM015 (2tb version) is working/worked out in your Bolt? I am thinking of getting this same drive. It appears the 2tb and smaller versions of this drive have a slightly faster cache than the 3tb and larger versions. Hoping that's good enough for the bolt.

 

Just saw your post - unfortunately the refurb Bolt they sent me was a DOG. It was not recording on all the tuners and at the same time they sent a poison software update that prevented me from transferring my recordings from my Series 3's. So the Bolt went back for a refund and so did the hard drive I was going to use for the upgrade. It was a bad experience. To add insult to injury the Bolt is still on my account which has blocked me from getting invited to any future Bolt promos. Not a good treatment for a longtime Tivo owner. I'll stick with my Series 3 fleet until Tivo gets their act together.

 

I am sorry to hear that. I ended up going with the 2.5" Firecuda 2TB as it was actually cheaper than the ST2000LM015 and has a 5 year warranty (vs 2 year). Also, it may work better with the Bolt as it has a significantly faster cache, which I am hoping will do a better job handling the four tuners and potential transfers to and from my Premiere with Lifetime. I have always had good luck with Seagate, so was hoping to stick with them. Been running for just under a month with no issues, I suppose I can give you guys another status update in two years or so

 

Even the regular platter 500GB drive has no issues with 12/13 concurrent read/write HD streams. And can still achieve 500Mb/s transfer rates, Bolt to Bolt.(with no tuners buffering).

The Firecuda uses that 8GB cache to store the files that are used most for quick access. With a DVR it really isn't going to improve the recording or transfer rates.

i do have one in my PS4 Pro. But since I use standby mode, I really don't see the benefit of the SSHD Firecuda in my use.

But as you said, it has a five year warranty. Which is a great deal for the price.

 

I installed this drive from Amazon last week in my Bolt and it seems to be working fine so far.

Seagate 3TB Laptop HDD SATA 6Gb/s 128MB Cache 2.5-Inch Internal Hard Drive (ST3000LM016)

It's an old model that is out of stock. A private seller had one that had been opened and returned for $99.

The drive has many bad reviews from people because it's too thick, but there are a few good reviews from people using them in a Tivo Bolt.

 

The Firecuda works great for me, mostly purchased for the 5year warranty at just $5 more than the Barracuda.
It seems to have improved app load times, here are some of my FireCuda times for comparison (some may be impacted by my slow DSL):

Netflix loads instantly
Amazon Video 12sec
YouTube 9sec
VuDu 7sec
Plex 12sec
Vevo 13sec
Pandora 8sec
iHeart 9sec

 

The Firecuda drive is SMR. Eventually it will have problems in the Tivo just like all the other SMR drives do. Really recommended to stay away from SMR drives for DVR use.

 

Yes, the WD Blue 2TB drive is highly recommended for the Bolt. Its the same series drive Tivo uses in the Bolt+

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071NLR34Z