# good quality ehd for dvr'ing my 211



## surfdude85 (Jul 26, 2008)

Good evening, just wanted some thoughts on a good 500gb ehd to run along side my vip 211. I see so many out there,but I am curious what the pro's out there think. I always like to get other opinions and thoughts before I buy something. especially when I am still on a learning curve, when it comes to computers. Thanks in advance for any opinions and advice. surfdude


----------



## Mighty H (Dec 8, 2008)

Seagate Showcase 500GB...It's DISH compatible. You can find in on the Seagate web site, but you'll have to look hard for it.


----------



## Texxen (Mar 14, 2006)

Dish Compatible is a VERY generic term.
Dish doesn't even list any specific models, it has more to do with transfer rate and size than brand name.
Read the DVR brochure.....

http://www.dishnetwork.com/receivers/hd/vip211dvr/document/productBrochure.doc

Stick with name brands..Western Digital,Seagate,Hitachi/IBM,Maxtor

I have seen problems with the prepackaged External hard drives,some of them have very slow data read/transfer rates,video needs the fastest data transfer rate.

Some External hard drives use 5400 RPM drives, which is borderline for video,let alone HD.

I always buy a good hard drive and buy the case separately


----------



## Mighty H (Dec 8, 2008)

I only see the "DISH Network" compatible sticker on Seagate and Western Digital products, and only see the full compatibility matrix on the Seagate site.

http://www.seagate.com/www/en-us/products/consumer_electronics/showcase/

I think the limitation in most externals is the USB bus (480Mb/s) not the RPM of the HDD. Most hdd transfer rates exceed bus rate by a wide margin.


----------



## Rduce (May 16, 2008)

I purchased an OEM Western Digital 640 GB “green” drive, placed it in a Rosewill enclosure, both from NewEgg, and am using that with my 211. Seems to work fine, I have recorded two programs at the same time while watched a previously recorded one and no problems. I think the total spent is about $91 bucks!


----------



## tcatdbs (Jul 10, 2008)

I just ordered this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136176

Hope it works. I've read most of these threads, has anyone tried swapping the EHD between 722 and 211? I already have the EHD active on my 722, I understand they consider this a "different" EHD $39.95 fee.


----------



## harsh (Jun 15, 2003)

Rduce said:


> Seems to work fine, I have recorded two programs at the same time while watched a previously recorded one and no problems.


How did you record two programs at once? I theorized that the ViP211 could only process one input stream at a time.


----------



## Rduce (May 16, 2008)

harsh said:


> How did you record two programs at once? I theorized that the ViP211 could only process one input stream at a time.


I have recorded an OTA HD program and a sat HD program at the same time, if it isn't suppose to do it please don't tell it, cause it is doing it with no problems...however, if you are watching a recorded program while recording two other programs the fast forward is much slower than normal...


----------



## Jim5506 (Jun 7, 2004)

Yes the 211 can address and record from either tuner to the EHD.

You can record a sat program and watch an OTA program and vice-versa, or record both.

Nifty, eh?


----------



## Cap'n Preshoot (Jul 16, 2006)

Nifty is one way of putting it. I honestly can't remember being this thrilled over this small of an expenditure. What a great feature!

Back on topic, I bought the Western Digital My Book Essential Edition (750 GB) and love it. Just make sure when looking for an external drive that it's externally powered and USB 2.0

There's been one or two reports that the 1-TB drive also works, but your 211 only supports 750 GB max.

.


----------



## Cap'n Preshoot (Jul 16, 2006)

Rduce said:


> I have recorded an OTA HD program and a sat HD program at the same time, if it isn't suppose to do it please don't tell it, cause it is doing it with no problems...however, if you are watching a recorded program while recording two other programs the fast forward is much slower than normal...


Curious here, what make/model of EHD are you using? I haven't yet tried 2 at once but have had 1 being recorded while playing back another and did not notice any FF speed difference. Perhaps it's only when trying to record 2 @ once while watching a playback of another. I'll have to try it.


----------



## Rduce (May 16, 2008)

Cap'n Preshoot;1935855 said:


> Curious here, what make/model of EHD are you using? I haven't yet tried 2 at once but have had 1 being recorded while playing back another and did not notice any FF speed difference. Perhaps it's only when trying to record 2 @ once while watching a playback of another. I'll have to try it.


I bought an OEM Western Digital 640GB "green" drive and put it in a Rosewill 2.0 USB enclosure, total spent about $92 and am very happy with the results.


----------



## GravelChan (Jan 30, 2005)

I just ordered a WD5000AVVS ($70) which on WD's website is advertised as green, low power and recommended for audio/video/dvr use. Supposed to be very quiet. Also a ThermalTake noo28usu docking station, normally $30 with a $20 rebate(through 12-29-08) from Mwave. Total after rebate $91 including $11 UPS. Several other websites have this hard drive for about the same price.

We'll see how well it works and how quiet next week!


----------

