# How "HOT" is your R15



## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

Now that everyone has 10C8/1047 (or should have it VERY VERY Soon)...

And that update includes a temperature indicator....

How hot is your R15 running.

If you have more then one... you can select multiple temperatures.... 
If they are both in the same range... just select it once


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## LockMD (Nov 16, 2005)

I checked it at power up yesterday and it was at 50 C, meant to check it after running for a couple hours and forgot to check back


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## tonyc (Jun 12, 2006)

How hot should it be (safe range) is what i want to know??


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

tonyc said:


> How hot should it be (safe range) is what i want to know??


I will ask...


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## Bud33 (Jan 26, 2006)

Earl Bonovich said:


> Now that everyone has 10C8/1047 (or should have it VERY VERY Soon)...
> 
> And that update includes a temperature indicator....
> 
> ...


If I could remember where the temp was displayed I would let you know.
(Old age is hell :lol: )


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

Bud33 said:


> If I could remember where the temp was displayed I would let you know.
> (Old age is hell :lol: )


Quick Menu->Setup->Settings->Info (page down a bit)


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## ISWIZ (Nov 18, 2005)

Earl Bonovich said:


> Quick Menu->Setup->Settings->Info (page down a bit)


I'm glad someone asked. Been out of town for 10 days, dissappointed when I got back and no update. Better this morning when I saw it was there as I left for work. I did a reset as I left hoping it will be settled when I get home.

By the way, from what I see all but one show recorded properly with the old software.


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## qwerty (Feb 19, 2006)

Earl Bonovich said:


> I will ask...


While you're asking, can you ask what temp triggers the fan?


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## cabanaboy1977 (Nov 16, 2005)

Earl Bonovich said:


> Quick Menu->Setup->Settings->Info (page down a bit)


Is it on that page or do you have to hit select to get to the screen with the verison number? I haven't looked at mine yet, I really should.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

99% you have to hit select... and go down a bit...
Same page as the Version number

Current reply is around 54 range, the fan will turn on ...
My contact is contacting others to find out what the "ideal" range is.


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## Bud33 (Jan 26, 2006)

Earl Bonovich said:


> Quick Menu->Setup->Settings->Info (page down a bit)[/QUOTE
> 
> I'm still missing something... Quick Menu>Settings>Set Up>Info & Test
> 
> I get the System Info Page with the New upgrade number, BUT I can't scroll down and there is no temp. Do you suppose it is because I havn't done a reset since getting the last update?


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## wohlfie (Dec 28, 2005)

Bud33 said:


> Earl Bonovich said:
> 
> 
> > Quick Menu->Setup->Settings->Info (page down a bit)[/QUOTE
> ...


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## Bobman (Jan 3, 2006)

Sounds like you need to tab to the right side, then use the channel down button.


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## Bud33 (Jan 26, 2006)

Bobman said:


> Sounds like you need to tab to the right side, then use the channel down button.


It was the channel down button that had me stopped. I was trying to use the down arrow under the select button.
Sure would have been nice if they had hired a teck writer to do the manual:sure:


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## cabanaboy1977 (Nov 16, 2005)

Bud33 said:


> Earl Bonovich said:
> 
> 
> > Quick Menu->Setup->Settings->Info (page down a bit)[/QUOTE
> ...


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## VaJim (Jul 27, 2006)

Is there a reason the internal temp display is in Celsius? Or is there a way to change it to Fahrenheit?


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## Phroz (Jul 3, 2006)

Mine is at 46C after recording/running for the last 4 hours or so... didn't get a temp before because I never even noticed I had received the update until I saw the other thread here. 

Not sure if the components are different, buy mine is the smaller Philips. I haven't heard the fan kick in yet, though I haven't really listened for it either.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

I don't know of any way to change it from C to F


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## Jim Reid (May 30, 2006)

here's a fast site to convert: http://www.mathconnect.com/temperature.htm


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## Phroz (Jul 3, 2006)

Jim Reid said:


> here's a fast site to convert: http://www.mathconnect.com/temperature.htm


I prefer Google. It's quick and easy, especially with the search box at the top of my browser. 

e.g. 46c in f


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## VaJim (Jul 27, 2006)

Earl Bonovich said:


> I don't know of any way to change it from C to F


Thanks Earl

Just seems odd for us living in the USA where for the most part it's still (F). Here's a link that will help for those of us who are used to using (F):

http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/conversion/tempconvert.html


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## Jim Reid (May 30, 2006)

VaJim said:


> Thanks Earl
> 
> Just seems odd for us living in the USA where for the most part it's still (F). Here's a link that will help for those of us who are used to using (F):
> 
> http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/conversion/tempconvert.html


I'll guess the fact that the unit is not made in the USA has something to do with it....


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## carl6 (Nov 16, 2005)

I voted 45 or lower, but keep in mind my R15's are both modified for the fan to run continuously. They normally stay in the high 30's.

As to C versus F - it is well past time the US caught up with the rest of the world. Km, Kmh, liters, etc... I'm travelling in Canada right now - it's almost a pleasure to be using metric again (lived in Germany for a few years also). Unfortuantely, they (Canada) only half adopted it. People are still measured in feet and inches. 

Carl


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## wohlfie (Dec 28, 2005)

Jim Reid said:


> I'll guess the fact that the unit is not made in the USA has something to do with it....


Or the old "based on XTV from NDS a British based company...."  

(gawd, I hope I remembered the right acronyms....)

EDIT: to be thread relevant and not just a smartass...I turned mine on about 2 hours ago...read 53....now 52.....though I did just turn on the air conditioning.....


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## wohlfie (Dec 28, 2005)

carl6 said:


> I voted 45 or lower, but keep in mind my R15's are both modified for the fan to run continuously. They normally stay in the high 30's.
> 
> Carl


Not that I would ever suggest this, but it would sure be interesting if you UN-modified one and reported the temp....given the improvements i recall after your mods and the problems before... 

(ps...SERIOUSLY, I am NOT asking you to do this, just wish we knew what temp yours had been running at)


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## qwerty (Feb 19, 2006)

carl6 said:


> I voted 45 or lower, but keep in mind my R15's are both modified for the fan to run continuously.


Ditto. Mine varies in the low 40's. 50 -55 before modding.


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## Wolffpack (Jul 29, 2003)

Mine runs 38 when the HD sitting on top of the unit.


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## Upstream (Jul 4, 2006)

The reason the temp is in C instead of F, is because the temp is only useful for troubleshooting, and electronic components are rated in C (even in the US).


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## rlambert7 (Feb 7, 2006)

Mine was 52°C (126°F, 585°R, 325°K). My R15 sits in an entertainment center on a shelf which is completely open front and back, and has about 1" clearance on the top, and about 2" clearance on the sides.


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## Clint Lamor (Nov 15, 2005)

Mine is 53 C right now but my house is also set to raise the temp to about 78-79 during the day when i'm not home then drop it later. Also it's normally about 5 degrees hotter in my bedroom where the R15 is. I will take another reading tonight when it's cooler in the house.


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## cybok0 (Jan 5, 2006)

Mine has been at 40c for the past 2 days in an tv stand no open back on it.


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## Upstream (Jul 4, 2006)

Earl -- any idea on what is the acceptable/ideal range?


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

Nope... haven't been given an ideal range....


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## walters (Nov 18, 2005)

I'm curious about the 300/500 issue (as well as other things), so it's time to break out the Survey Monkey again: 

R15-300 only, please

R15-500 only, please

Notes:
Please take the appropriate survey for your version of hardware (feel free to do both if you have both or to otherwise do multiple surveys if you have multiple boxes).
Note that R15 temperature should be in C (because that's how it is reported) and that ambient temperature should be in F (because that's most likely what your thermostat, thermometer, brain, etc. uses).


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

Thank you walters...

I was thinking about that the moment I posted the thread (and got a PM from a couple users....)


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## Mordha (Jul 18, 2006)

I took walters survey. I don't have any special setups with my R15. It sits on a glass shelf mounted to the wall with the LCD mounted higher up on the wall too.

On Earls survey I posted 60 or higher. Mine is right now 63, been running for a couple of hours at this point. I should note that the thermostat in the house is set to 80f and my R15 is in a bedroom on the second floor.


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## walters (Nov 18, 2005)

I don't know that I have a large enough sample, yet, but the 300 appears to be running about 10C cooler than the 500.


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## qwerty (Feb 19, 2006)

After thinking about it, those of us (both?) that modded the fan to run constantly may skew the survey. I went < 45, but out of box I would have went with something between 50 - 54.9.


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## jpl (Jul 9, 2006)

walters said:


> I don't know that I have a large enough sample, yet, but the 300 appears to be running about 10C cooler than the 500.


This is probably anecdotal, but this seems consistant with what I'm seeing with my two R15s. The 500 is in the living room, and reads in the low 50's. The 300 is in the family room, downstairs, and reads in the low to mid 40's. Tough to tell exactly since the conditions aren't the same between the two rooms - e.g. I have a wall a/c unit about 10 feet from my entertainment center in the living room, with the air-flow hitting the side of the entertainment center -- the air should be getting behind the unit, which probably helps cool things off. The family room has no a/c, but it's just off the main floor (in a split level), so coolish air does get down there, although it is on the slab (no basement), so the humidity level is higher as well. Also, the living room setup includes a TV, vcr, dvd player, stereo system, as well as the DVR. Downstairs we just have the TV, DVR, and an RF adapter, so more heat gets generated around the 500 than the 300. Kind of like comparing apples and oranges, but there does seem to be a difference of about 8 - 10 degrees between the two.


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## Clint Lamor (Nov 15, 2005)

Ok the air in my house is now set at 73 an has been on for a while. My bedroom is a bit warmer then the rest of the house and the R15 has now been on for quite some time and is now showing 51 degrees. So it has gone down 2 degrees since I checked it earlier with the air at 78.


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## White_Horse (Jun 26, 2006)

I'm only running at 43 or 44 the couple of times I have checked it. I've got an unmodified 300 model. The unit is sitting on top of a DVD player (which is turned off most of the time) which is sitting on top of a dresser. If I'd have to guess, I'd say the air temp in that room is 78-80...

I'll have to check the downstairs DVR tonight and see what temp that one runs at..it's another unmodified 300 model, sits on top of the tv which sits on a dresser but the downstairs is a good 5-10 degrees cooler than upstairs.


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## Bobman (Jan 3, 2006)

Both my 500's run at 51-52 at all the times I have thought to check. One sits on top of the other with a small 12" color security monitor on top of both. They are not in a case and have plenty of open space on all the sides.

The room temp doesnt seem to matter as I checked a few different times of day, this morning it was 74 and when I got home last night it was about 82 and they are still 51-52.


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## jpl (Jul 9, 2006)

One thing I have to say, even with heavy usage (running the R15 for a few hours), two things jump out as a contrast to my old tivo unit: 1) it stays remarkably cool to the touch. 2) it's really quiet. Now that we have the temp reading on the unit, I check it from time to time while watching tv, and the temp stays pretty consistant -- it may jump a degree or two, but that's it. My old tivo would get pretty hot. Not enough so that you couldn't put your hand on the unit, but you could definitely feel it. And it was pretty loud. The R15 is really quiet. And what really astounds me with all that is the size.

My 500 is just as wide and about as deep as my old Philips DSR7000, but about half as high, and I'm astounded by the weight difference - the R15 is really light. Then I got the 300 and I got really impressed. I could tell, as soon as the installer took it out of the box, that it was the 300 - you could see the difference in the size of the footprint right away.


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## walters (Nov 18, 2005)

Update on the SurveyMonkey poll:

Average temps:
500: 53.6C*
300: 44.4C

*I eliminated a modified (always-on fan or otherwise) 500 from this. This modified unit was running at 42C, which would drop the average for the 500 to 52.7C.

I have a very small sample size for the 300 (only five units), so if I take the lowest five 500s (not counting the modified unit), I get 51.6C for the 500. So even in a best case it is still quite a bit warmer than the 300. In fact, even the warmest 300 (in a cabinet on top of another device) is only 51C.

So I think it's fair to say the 300 runs cooler.


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## scott T (Jul 6, 2006)

walters said:


> Update on the SurveyMonkey poll:
> 
> Average temps:
> 500: 53.6C*
> ...


I'm getting the results.

500 is running hoter .. 52+
300 is ruuning around 43
R10-100 is running in the 30s


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## PlanetBill (May 8, 2006)

It could be the small case size of the 300 moves more across heat producing components kepping them cooler.


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## cabanaboy1977 (Nov 16, 2005)

PlanetBill said:


> It could be the small case size of the 300 moves more across heat producing components kepping them cooler.


Less "attic" space for the hot air to stay. I can see that.


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## Mordha (Jul 18, 2006)

I have to apologize to both Earl and walters, I discovered this morning why my R15-500 was running at 63c. Somehow when I last cleaned that shelf I accidently moved one of my tie-wrapped wires closer to the exhaust of the unit and the tie-wrap slipped into the exhaust port slowing the fan down, a lot. Once I pulled it out the fan sped up and now my R15 is running at 52c. Sorry for messing up both of your polls.


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## jpl (Jul 9, 2006)

PlanetBill said:


> It could be the small case size of the 300 moves more across heat producing components kepping them cooler.


I have a cynical question: what if the thermostat is just in a different spot? Say it's closer to the fan in the 300 than in the 500.


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## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

Mordha said:


> I have to apologize to both Earl and walters, I discovered this morning why my R15-500 was running at 63c. Somehow when I last cleaned that shelf I accidently moved one of my tie-wrapped wires closer to the exhaust of the unit and the tie-wrap slipped into the exhaust port slowing the fan down, a lot. Once I pulled it out the fan sped up and now my R15 is running at 52c. Sorry for messing up both of your polls.


No apologize necessary..... 
Thanks for the update, I corrected the poll

Earl


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## Clint Lamor (Nov 15, 2005)

jpl said:


> I have a cynical question: what if the thermostat is just in a different spot? Say it's closer to the fan in the 300 than in the 500.


Isn't actually built into the silcon on many chips now?


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## jpl (Jul 9, 2006)

Clint Lamor said:


> Isn't actually built into the silcon on many chips now?


Oh, I'm sure it is. But where is the position of the chip containing the temperature sensor relative to the fan? I would hope both units would have them in equivalent locations. But I could see the two units being different in that regard. It could be that the normal operating temp on the 500 is just higher than on the 300, as per spec, and as per where the sensor is. I would think that it's all relative, anyway. A temp of 50 on the 500 may be lower than average, while a temp of 45 on the 300 may be higher than average for each unit.


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## qwerty (Feb 19, 2006)

jpl said:


> Oh, I'm sure it is. But where is the position of the chip containing the temperature sensor relative to the fan? I would hope both units would have them in equivalent locations. But I could see the two units being different in that regard. It could be that the normal operating temp on the 500 is just higher than on the 300, as per spec, and as per where the sensor is. I would think that it's all relative, anyway. A temp of 50 on the 500 may be lower than average, while a temp of 45 on the 300 may be higher than average for each unit.


On the 500, the intake vents are on the left front. Right inside those vents is the hard drive. Directly behind the hard drive is the power supply. Behind the PS is the exhaust fan. The main board is on the right side.

How much smaller is the 300?


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## Phroz (Jul 3, 2006)

qwerty said:


> How much smaller is the 300?


I'm not sure the size of the 500, but the 300 is about 15x8.5".


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## qwerty (Feb 19, 2006)

500 - 11.25" x 15" x 3".


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## MercurialIN (Jul 17, 2006)

I have the model 300 unmodified and so far my R 15, which sits in an entertainment center with an open back to it and the R 15 sits on top of a rarely used DVD player has been running about 42C. Admittedly haven't been checking the temp on a regular basis however. In case this makes any difference the R 15 is located in a bedroom where the air conditioning isn't very effective.


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## qwerty (Feb 19, 2006)

My new 300 is running 43 -45C. About 8 - 10C lower than my 500 was out of the box.


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## PlanetBill (May 8, 2006)

jpl said:


> I have a cynical question: what if the thermostat is just in a different spot? Say it's closer to the fan in the 300 than in the 500.


What if the setpoint at which the fan turns on is fifferent between the 2 manufactures? My -300 runs 8 Deg cooler than my -500 in a warmer room even.

Being different manufactures, the calibration of the temp sensor could be different between the two also. The only way to tell is use another temp sensor in each and compare.


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## jpl (Jul 9, 2006)

PlanetBill said:


> What if the setpoint at which the fan turns on is fifferent between the 2 manufactures? My -300 runs 8 Deg cooler than my -500 in a warmer room even.
> 
> Being different manufactures, the calibration of the temp sensor could be different between the two also. The only way to tell is use another temp sensor in each and compare.


Good point - didn't consider that the fans run differently between the two units. Also, I think it's relative. What is normal for one unit isn't going to necessarily be normal for the other. I have an instant-read thermometer I use for cooking. I could put it at the back of each unit (right outside the fan) and see what it reads.


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