Mini start up screen and then shuts off
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I assume that the TiVo button on the remote doesn't do anything, including having the remote's LED show RED? My Mini boxes do the same thing since I shut them off in Standby.
My router shows connected devices. Have you checked after a few minutes to see if the Mini has an IP address? Also, are there no progress displays with the TiVo log displayed in SD & HD?
Which model Mini? A92, A93 or A95?
My router shows connected devices. Have you checked after a few minutes to see if the Mini has an IP address? Also, are there no progress displays with the TiVo log displayed in SD & HD?
Which model Mini? A92, A93 or A95?
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As a Mini starts, there are several different displays telling you it's starting. Are those missing? What modem is your router?
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79 Posts
Spoke with Tivo tech support. They told me since I have done everything to troubleshoot, there's nothing that can be done. Since the mini was bought on Ebay, they have no interest in helping in any way. Replacement or otherwise.
When equipment like this doesn't work I'd love to be able to find out what happened. So, if anyone else has the same problem and got it back working or found the reason why the mini just shuts itself off, please let me know.
When equipment like this doesn't work I'd love to be able to find out what happened. So, if anyone else has the same problem and got it back working or found the reason why the mini just shuts itself off, please let me know.
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79 Posts
**** UPDATE ****
So, in the wee hours of the morning I took the mini (actually I have two that shut down at starting up - both A93's), and began fiddling around. Again. Plugged internet and hdmi in at different intervals. Plugged in with and without internet and/or hdmi. Still shut off.
At one point with everything plugged in (the last being ac power), the white light on front of the mini (which is always on until it shuts off), blinked orange a few times (which it always has), and I started clicking the Tivo button on my remote constantly and the amber light on front of the mini blinked in accordance with my tivo button pressing. Lo and behold the mini got to the home screen. I'm sure the constant tivo button pressing had nothing to do with the mini booting to home screen, but nevertheless I was ecstatic. I got to "Reset to Defaults" and cleared and deleted everything.
I can't remember if mini restarted on its own or if I unplugged and replugged ac (again, wee hours), but the mini hung on "starting up". I unplugged ac and replugged a couple of times trying to be patient in hopes I could get passed the "starting up" screen and lo and behold the setup screen appeared. I went through all the setup and personal preferences and then went to "live tv" and began watching tv. I unplugged and replugged a couple times to make sure it loaded to home screen and "live tv" and had no problem
Went on to my second mini with the same problem and yes, lo and behold I went through the same exact procedure with same results. So, for whatever it's worth. There ya go.
So, in the wee hours of the morning I took the mini (actually I have two that shut down at starting up - both A93's), and began fiddling around. Again. Plugged internet and hdmi in at different intervals. Plugged in with and without internet and/or hdmi. Still shut off.
At one point with everything plugged in (the last being ac power), the white light on front of the mini (which is always on until it shuts off), blinked orange a few times (which it always has), and I started clicking the Tivo button on my remote constantly and the amber light on front of the mini blinked in accordance with my tivo button pressing. Lo and behold the mini got to the home screen. I'm sure the constant tivo button pressing had nothing to do with the mini booting to home screen, but nevertheless I was ecstatic. I got to "Reset to Defaults" and cleared and deleted everything.
I can't remember if mini restarted on its own or if I unplugged and replugged ac (again, wee hours), but the mini hung on "starting up". I unplugged ac and replugged a couple of times trying to be patient in hopes I could get passed the "starting up" screen and lo and behold the setup screen appeared. I went through all the setup and personal preferences and then went to "live tv" and began watching tv. I unplugged and replugged a couple times to make sure it loaded to home screen and "live tv" and had no problem
Went on to my second mini with the same problem and yes, lo and behold I went through the same exact procedure with same results. So, for whatever it's worth. There ya go.
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79 Posts
I know. Weird huh?
My issue was exactly as succinctly described above. Sincere appreciation to @kad7777 for the solution!
My observation: there appear to be three phases (to my problem). First the colorful Tivo Logo. Pressing the remote at this stage did not change the color of the led on the front of the mini. Next, "Starting" for a very long time. Once again, pressing the remote at this stage did not change the color of the led on the front of the mini. Finally, the screen flashed a couple of times (green in my case) and then "Starting" again. Previously this would last for a relatively short time and then I'd experience no signal. I noticed that pressing the remote at this stage DID change the color of the led on the front of the mini to a reddish color. And, this time it went to the home screen. I went to "Reset to Defaults" and cleared and deleted everything. Do note I have no evidence whether pressing the remote in the earlier stages helped or not - all I'm describing is what I saw in the led on the front of the mini.
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I'm on my 3rd replacement out of 4 minis in my home. Don't let them charge you $79 as they will tell you its their Vox mini which are the same as the old ones. Tell them that you see others being charged $39 on your tivo forum. They will come back and say OK they can give you the promo rate of $39. It was awhile ago when I set my system up, but I thought tv mini's had a lifetime warranty? The replacement fee should be only $39. They arrive quickly in a few days. Once you see the looping tivo guy "thats it thats all folks" . . . it has to be replaced.
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I find it just a massive coincidence that roughly 5 years in, Minis are failing at an incredible rate. I've had two out of four go belly-up so far within days of each other. Bootloops, Red Screens of Death, work for a while then fall into another bootloop.
Why, it's almost as if somehow some update was causing all these failures, and people just had to buy new hardware.
With the endless streaming suppliers and hardware options currently available, it's quite likely that should my Roamio Pro fail, I will move on from TiVo after more than 20 years as a customer. There is just no way I'm spending more than a thousand dollars for a main unit plus four min-style boxes again.
Why, it's almost as if somehow some update was causing all these failures, and people just had to buy new hardware.
With the endless streaming suppliers and hardware options currently available, it's quite likely that should my Roamio Pro fail, I will move on from TiVo after more than 20 years as a customer. There is just no way I'm spending more than a thousand dollars for a main unit plus four min-style boxes again.
Five years? Consider yourselves lucky. I’ve had a string of three Minis each of which died after 2 years of extremely limited use. Tivo replaced the original one as well as its replacement. The replacement’s replacement (yes, really) just died and the only remedies I was offered today were (1) buy a new Mini at the list price or (2) take the old one to a repair shop and pay for the repair myself. The guy insisted that there were no other options, no accommodations whatsoever. He just kept repeating his script, “I understand your point of view, but...” over and over. Maddening!
Count me as another dead Mini victim. Managed to get almost three years before failure. Called Tivo who quickly told me a replacement was the only solution. Offered $25 off a new Mini Lux with a groovy backlit remote . I was advised the old $39 deals expired on September 1st. So now it is pony up $175. I think my days with Tivo are coming to an end.
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Would love to know of the best option out there besides TiVo. Any ideas?
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'Best option' is somewhat vague. How are you using it now? Cable? Off air?
For ease of use and locally stored content, I don't think there's anything. There are lots of techy-type solutions like Silicone Dust hardware, and YouTubeTV offers a 'cloud vcr' as does Plex. YouTube's has 'unlimited storage'.
When my Roamio dies, I'll be sorry to see TiVo go after about 20 years as a customer, but to replace it with another similar box is too much money for too little return. Also, while the quality of streaming video/audio has gone up and up over the last decade, the quality of the images delivered by Spectrum Cable has gone down consistently year after year as they increase compression to accommodate more channels on a single piece of coax and continue to use the 20 year old horrendous MPEG codec for compression and 5.1 audio (at best). And then there's the required Tuning Adapters and the fact that Spectrum is sending more and more channels onto their SDV system so the TA is required, and it misbehaves regularly. And yes, I know some systems don't need a TA. Spectrum does.
Especially now with a minimal amount of decent-to-adequate new episodic content being generated for cable, I find myself streaming using my AppleTV4K more and more, and watching properly compressed 4K wide color space Dolby Vision images with Dolby Atmos audio is light years ahead in terms of quality of anything my Spectrum cable system/TiVo combo spews out, which continues to be compressed to death 1080i or 720p MPEG video and 5.1 audio. Even the premium channels like HBO never get above 10 Mb/s, which would be fine with H.264, but with MPEG that is complete garbage on scenes where the actors or camera actually, you know, move.
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Pretty much my experience. We've now lost 5 of 8 Mini's purchased in early 2015, all within the last year.
p.s. Whether relevant or not ... none of the above Minis have ever run the TE4 software.
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