# DBSTalk First Look: DIRECTV HR21-100 High Definition DVR



## Earl Bonovich (Nov 15, 2005)

DBSTalk is proud to preset our First Look, at the third HR21...
The HR21-100








HR21-100 First Look


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## mhayes70 (Mar 21, 2006)

Good work guys!


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## Zepes (Dec 27, 2007)

Great Job.

Thanks for the info


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## mikhu (Oct 10, 2006)

Good job AirRocker and GWV! Looks nice! You shoulda used more pictures from that Mike Huss freak though... :lol:


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## rmartinj (Jan 29, 2007)

Thanks guys , Looks Great:grin:


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## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

Wow! I especially like the comparison between the internals of the three units!

Superbly done!


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## HDTVsportsfan (Nov 29, 2005)

Good job guys.


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## LameLefty (Sep 29, 2006)

Excellent work fellas.  :up:


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## Draconis (Mar 16, 2007)

Great report, thanks.


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## phat78boy (Sep 12, 2007)

Nice work guys.


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## LarryFlowers (Sep 22, 2006)

Outstanding...


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## waynebtx (Dec 24, 2006)

Good job AirRocker and GWV really like the layout.


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## Pinion413 (Oct 21, 2007)

Excellent job gentlemen. It looks great! :grin:


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

A job well done and a terrific team effort.

Congrats.


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## jimmyv2000 (Feb 15, 2007)

awesome presentation


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## JoeCool123 (Jan 6, 2008)

Top notch as usual. Thanks!


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## litzdog911 (Jun 23, 2004)

Excellent write-up! Looks like another winner.


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## Smuuth (Oct 4, 2005)

Another great document!


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## JACKIEGAGA (Dec 11, 2006)

AirRocker and GWV very well done thanks for your hard work.


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## carl6 (Nov 16, 2005)

Very nice job.

Carl


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## pacjag (Apr 10, 2007)

I installed one of these last week. No problems so far. Looks just like
my HR21-700. Very nice job on the write-up.


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## flipper2006 (Oct 2, 2006)

Very nice article, right to the point, with pictures documenting it, and without (i know we all love it) meaningless info. 

Looks like it's getting easier and easier to replace the drives internally.


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## PoitNarf (Aug 19, 2006)

Nice job all. Just added the HR21-100 to CE Slinger


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## say-what (Dec 14, 2006)

great job guys


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

Nice work guys!


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## gbubar (Feb 3, 2004)

Great Job All...


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## HDTVsportsfan (Nov 29, 2005)

PoitNarf said:


> Nice job all. Just added the HR21-100 to CE Slinger


You've been waiting patiently for that, haven't you.


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## cadet502 (Jun 17, 2005)

Good job, thanks for all the info.


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## Groundhog45 (Nov 10, 2005)

Nice job, guys. Looks good.


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## rjf (Mar 9, 2007)

interesting unit. but no pangs of regret over getting a second HR20 last month


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## tonyd79 (Jul 24, 2006)

Yay! Great work.

Now to update the signature....


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## spartanstew (Nov 16, 2005)

Great job guys.

Only a few :cough: errors :cough:  


I can finally update my sig.


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## alexjb12 (Nov 28, 2007)

Great Work as usual!


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## Canis Lupus (Oct 16, 2006)

Great report. Thanks


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## ccr1958 (Aug 29, 2007)

looks good....thanks guys


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## chris.dg (Nov 25, 2006)

Great job as usual guys.

I'm intrigued by this statement within the report:

_"The HR21-100 runs silently, even in the quietest of environments. The interior fan is barely audible, while the hard drive is completely silent."_

Seems too good to be true.  I definitely need to somehow swap my HR20-700 with the HR21-100. Currently, I have to unplug my DVR every night just so my wife can get to sleep.


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## waynebtx (Dec 24, 2006)

chris.dg said:


> Great job as usual guys.
> 
> I'm intrigued by this statement within the report:
> 
> ...


Have never heard the fan running or hard drive on mine.


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## bwaldron (Oct 24, 2005)

waynebtx said:


> Have never heard the fan running or hard drive on mine.


It's definitely a pretty quiet box compared to my HR20-700's.


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## dmurphy (Sep 28, 2006)

Awesome job guys!!! Keep these First Looks coming!

I love the "coming out" party for these - it's a great feeling!


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## Malibu13 (Sep 12, 2004)

My hat is off to our members who contributed to this document. Great job guys!


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## Drew2k (Aug 16, 2006)

Excellent addition to the First Look family!

I really want foam in my HR21-700!!!!


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## smiddy (Apr 5, 2006)

Wow, good job all, excellent First Look!


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## cygnusloop (Jan 26, 2007)

Yahoo! We're finally out of the closet.

Really good work on the document, guys! Looks great.
Time to update the sig.


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## Mike Bertelson (Jan 24, 2007)

Drew2k said:


> Excellent addition to the First Look family!
> 
> I really want foam in my HR21-700!!!!


I really think the foam (memory foam??) is one of the keys to how quiet this unit is.

Mike


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

MicroBeta said:


> I really think the foam (memory foam??) is one of the keys to how quiet this unit is.


My HR21-700, which has no foam, is silent as well.


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## spartanstew (Nov 16, 2005)

Jeremy W said:


> My HR21-700, which has no foam, is silent as well.


As is mine. They're basically right next to each other (-700 & -100) and I can't hear either one even when right in front of them with nothing else on.


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## Drew2k (Aug 16, 2006)

I can't hear my HR21-700 either. It's just the "idea" of the foam that I like.


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## mikhu (Oct 10, 2006)

chris.dg said:


> Great job as usual guys.
> 
> I'm intrigued by this statement within the report:
> 
> ...


As others have said, this is the truth. The HR21 is almost silent compared to the HR20. Heck, my HR21 is even quieter than my R15's now that I think about it.


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## Mike Bertelson (Jan 24, 2007)

Jeremy W said:


> My HR21-700, which has no foam, is silent as well.





spartanstew said:


> As is mine. They're basically right next to each other (-700 & -100) and I can't hear either one even when right in front of them with nothing else on.





Drew2k said:


> I can't hear my HR21-700 either. It's just the "idea" of the foam that I like.


I guess I have no clue what the foam is for....

When I was taking the pictures my daughter wanted to steal the foam.

Something about keeping a makeup something or other from sliding across the table.

So I guess it has some use...:grin:

I wonder what it actually does. If not for sound/vibration isolation then what? I suppose it could block air flow above the drive or vibration protection during shipping.

Mike


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

My guess is that it's both air flow management and to reduce vibrations. Does the foam touch the cover when it's attached?

I do find it a bit puzzling as the hard drive is the biggest heat generator in the box. Normally the last thing you'd want is to put an insulating material against the largest radiating surface of the drive.


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## Mike Bertelson (Jan 24, 2007)

sbl said:


> My guess is that it's both air flow management and to reduce vibrations. Does the foam touch the cover when it's attached?


It fits exactly between the drive and cover and it is an interference fit.



sbl said:


> I do find it a bit puzzling as the hard drive is the biggest heat generator in the box. Normally the last thing you'd want is to put an insulating material against the largest radiating surface of the drive.


That's why I thought it must have something to do with sound attenuation.

Definitely an interesting quandary...:grin:

Mike


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## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

I can tell you it wouldn't likely be memory foam, as memory foam is a lot denser and probably would impede heat dissipation.


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## BlackRabbit (Feb 29, 2008)

I'm curious what brand/type/speed of memory this device has. I couldn't zoom into the picture enough to get a clear view. Are the original pictures high enough resolution to make out a part number? I believe the memory is the row of 4 chips just to the left of the processor.


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## jheda (Sep 19, 2006)

Great job boys!!! Iam impressed!!!!!!!!!!!


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## Mike Bertelson (Jan 24, 2007)

Stuart Sweet said:


> I can tell you it wouldn't likely be memory foam, as memory foam is a lot denser and probably would impede heat dissipation.


Truthfully I don't have any idea what it really is. :shrug:

Here's a little speculation not necessarily based in fact...:scratchin

I have a sample of memory foam I got at a home show. It is identical in feel, weight/density, and color to the foam in the HR21.

Memory foam has a very weird feel to it. The surface has a kind of oily/sticky feel to it. It is because of the similarities that I think it might be memory foam.

Heat has always been a problem with memory foam. There are some composites and re-formulations that are supposed to be better at dissipating heat. Regardless of composition, the one in the HR21 certainly denser/heavier that the standard foam pad. Not that it matters. Any foam pad will provide thermal insulation. However, the fan is right up against the drive and will easily control the temp in the drive.

It's just an incrediblely weird place for any kind of foam pad. It can only have a limited number of functions...insulation, air flow, sound, or vibration. IMHO it can only be for noise or vibration with an outside chance of air flow control.

It's a theory. :grin:

Mike


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## waynebtx (Dec 24, 2006)

BlackRabbit said:


> I'm curious what brand/type/speed of memory this device has. I couldn't zoom into the picture enough to get a clear view. Are the original pictures high enough resolution to make out a part number? I believe the memory is the row of 4 chips just to the left of the processor.


Found this in some of our pics hope this helps.


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## Mike Bertelson (Jan 24, 2007)

BlackRabbit said:


> I'm curious what brand/type/speed of memory this device has. I couldn't zoom into the picture enough to get a clear view. Are the original pictures high enough resolution to make out a part number? I believe the memory is the row of 4 chips just to the left of the processor.


Here you go and welcome to the forum...:welcome_s









HY5DU121622CTP-D43

512MB edit:corrected to amount of memory

Mike

edit: ya beat me to it wayne


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## BlackRabbit (Feb 29, 2008)

Thanks guys! That was fast.
Strange though, the parts look to be EOL. That can't be when this is a new device. Also, these are 512Mb, which means 4 of them totals 256MB. Maybe there's more on the other side.

Thanks for the warm welcome.


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## Thaedron (Jun 29, 2007)

Kudos to AirRocker and GulfWarVet on excellent job of packaging the final review!


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## dtrell (Dec 28, 2007)

again the latest write up shows its "cooler" than its "brothers" by running between 105 and 115 degrees....my HR21-700 has NEVER been over 115 degrees and is usually around 110...and i have a time warner sa8300hd box sitting on top of it...so again, how this new one runs any cooler is beyond me when the internal temps are the same. the fan in my unit is also whisper quiet, quieter than the sa8300.


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## Mike Bertelson (Jan 24, 2007)

BlackRabbit said:


> Thanks guys! That was fast.
> Strange though, the parts look to be EOL. That can't be when this is a new device. Also, these are 512Mb, which means 4 of them totals 256MB. Maybe there's more on the other side.
> 
> Thanks for the warm welcome.


You are correct in that it isn't 2GB, however it is 512MB.

Mike


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## tekie99 (Sep 14, 2006)

Bravo, excellent write up.


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

It would be interesting to know if the top surface of the foam gets noticeably warm after a period of operation. It could be that this foam is actually a heat transference medium to use the case cover as a radiator. The comments about it feeling like memory foam, which absorbs heat, make me wonder. Interesting design choice. I'm sure the engineers had a good reason for it.


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

sbl said:


> It would be interesting to know if the top surface of the foam gets noticeably warm after a period of operation. It could be that this foam is actually a heat transference medium to use the case cover as a radiator. The comments about it feeling like memory foam, which absorbs heat, make me wonder. Interesting design choice. I'm sure the engineers had a good reason for it.


I suspect the purpose of the foam pad is for vibration and some noise reduction (only).

The hard drives in the -700 and -200 models are each mounted differently a bit, and use different methods to accomplish the same things.


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## Mike Bertelson (Jan 24, 2007)

sbl said:


> It would be interesting to know if the top surface of the foam gets noticeably warm after a period of operation. It could be that this foam is actually a heat transference medium to use the case cover as a radiator. The comments about it feeling like memory foam, which absorbs heat, make me wonder. Interesting design choice. I'm sure the engineers had a good reason for it.


I can tell you that it doesn't. At least not with the thermometer on my multimeter(uncalibrated).

There was a variance in temp over the top surface. I don't remember what the values were but there was nothing different about where the foam is.

I'll try it again and this time write down the numbers.

Mike


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

pacjag said:


> I installed one of these last week. No problems so far. Looks just like
> my HR21-700. Very nice job on the write-up.


Hmm .. Any chance you can pass along the version information? Just press & hold the {INFO} button.


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## pacjag (Apr 10, 2007)

Doug Brott said:


> Hmm .. Any chance you can pass along the version information? Just press & hold the {INFO} button.


It installed 0x1fe within an hour of booting up.


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## mikhu (Oct 10, 2006)

I looked at my pictures again and between them and my memory, as feeble as it may be, I think it's just regular old closed cell foam. Attached is a crop from a high resolution pic I took.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

pacjag said:


> It installed 0x1fe within an hour of booting up.


Really? Are you sure that it's an HR21-100 and not perhaps some other model? It should be printed just behind the access door on the lower right front of the reciever.


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

Mike Huss said:


> I looked at my pictures again and between them and my memory, as feeble as it may be, I think it's just regular old closed cell foam.


Judging from the picture, I'd agree.


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## johnp37 (Sep 14, 2006)

Fine job as usual gentlemen.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Jeremy W said:


> My HR21-700, which has no foam, is silent as well.


As is mine. I do have one 20-700 that I have to tap the area over the HD to silence the vibration every once in a while. Having had no luck at all with the 20-100s, I will not intentionally add one of these to my system.

If I remember correctly, the 100 is a designation for Phillips and after my latest adventure with a Phillips plasma TV want nothing to do with Phillips and their products. That's just an opinion, not written in stone, but how many different products from the same manufacturer can you have problems with before it dawns on you that they fail to meet the same criteria as other manufacturers do. I have the same opinion of Samsung products. I gotta admit I had the same opinion of Panasonic products until I bought a Panny plasma. That really changed my mind about Panasonic products. I now have four Panny plasmas.

Oh, best first look yet, great job!

Rich


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## pacjag (Apr 10, 2007)

Doug Brott said:


> Really? Are you sure that it's an HR21-100 and not perhaps some other model? It should be printed just behind the access door on the lower right front of the reciever.


You know, you are correct. I'm sure the installer that delivered it told me it was
a -100 and I don't think I ever actually looked at the box. It turns out it is a -200.
Sorry about any confusion. I'm an idiot. :goofygrin


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## Malibu13 (Sep 12, 2004)

rich584 said:


> If I remember correctly, the 100 is a designation for Phillips
> Rich


I believe the HR21-100 is manufactured by RCA (Thomson) and not Phillips.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

Donnie Byrd said:


> I believe the HR21-100 is manufactured by RCA (Thomson) and not Phillips.


You are correct.


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## K4SMX (May 19, 2007)

Donnie Byrd said:


> I believe the HR21-100 is manufactured by RCA (Thomson) and not Phillips.


And these days it's just plain Thomson, headquartered in Paris. They bought RCA's consumer electronics line some years ago. Royal Philips, N.V. is headquartered in the Netherlands and is a separate company.


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## bobnielsen (Jun 29, 2006)

I think that division of Thomson was recently sold to Audiovox (who had previously bought another part of Thomson).


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## Malibu13 (Sep 12, 2004)

RCA, Thomson. Royal Philips, Audiovox.......................

I'm so confused  :kickbutt: :lol:


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## K4SMX (May 19, 2007)

bobnielsen said:


> I think that division of Thomson was recently sold to Audiovox (who had previously bought another part of Thomson).


"On December 21, 2006, Thomson SA agreed to sell its consumer electronics accessory business, including rights to the RCA name on such products, to Audiovox" (Source: Wikipedia re: Audiovox)

I think that had to do with patch cords and so forth.

"On October 16 2007, Thomson SA agreed to sell its consumer electronics audio video business outside Europe including the worldwide rights to the RCA Brand for consumer electronics audio video products." (Wikipedia)

I'm not sure _what_ this covered. Have you got some more definitive source? The Thomson main website still shows that they are a major supplier to DirecTV (and Comcast). Of course, that was 3 weeks ago when I was doing research for this First Look, so it may have changed hands twice since then.


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## kram (Sep 3, 2006)

I've had an HR20-700 since October 2006. The D* site doesn't list any of the newer models as being available for purchase (or upgrade). How/where do you buy these newer models?


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

kram said:


> The D* site doesn't list any of the newer models as being available for purchase (or upgrade). How/where do you buy these newer models?


The DirecTV site doesn't list any models at all. It just has a generic picture of the HR20. When you order from DirecTV, you will get an HR21. If you go to a store, you will most likely only find HR21s. Aside from the lack of an OTA tuner, the HR21 is exactly the same as the HR20. Unless you really want a black receiver, there is no reason to switch from an HR20 to an HR21.


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## kram (Sep 3, 2006)

Thanks for that info. So the guts are exactly the same -- only the exterior is different? What about the HR21-100? I see that Best Buy has an HR21-600. Is this the same as the HR21-700?


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## Michael D'Angelo (Oct 21, 2006)

kram said:


> Thanks for that info. So the guts are exactly the same -- only the exterior is different? What about the HR21-100? I see that Best Buy has an HR21-600. Is this the same as the HR21-700?


There is no such thing as an HR21-600. It is something stupid Best Buy does.

Do a search for HR21-600 and you will find a few threads about it.

I actually believe the units they have is HR21-700.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

kram said:


> So the guts are exactly the same -- only the exterior is different?


The guts are essentially the same. There are differences in internal layouts between the five different models, but they're all functionally the same.


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## Toyo (Nov 19, 2007)

I just bought a HR21-200 from Best Buy. I saw a price card for a 600 and 700. However they did not have any of those anywhere. They only had the 200 models, in black of course. When I saw all those different #s I could not remember from this site which ones were which. So I called D* while I was at the store. I asked him what the differences were and he replied that the higher the 2nd # is the newer the software version is on it. But he said as soon as it downloads the latest software then they are exactly the same. Now, Is that the truth? Only the higher powers will ever know. Unless we buy one of each and start disecting each one. 

Is there anywhere on here that explains the differences in the HR-21's?


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## Michael D'Angelo (Oct 21, 2006)

Toyo said:


> I just bought a HR21-200 from Best Buy. I saw a price card for a 600 and 700. However they did not have any of those anywhere. They only had the 200 models, in black of course. When I saw all those different #s I could not remember from this site which ones were which. So I called D* while I was at the store. I asked him what the differences were and he replied that the higher the 2nd # is the newer the software version is on it. But he said as soon as it downloads the latest software then they are exactly the same. Now, Is that the truth? Only the higher powers will ever know. Unless we buy one of each and start disecting each one.
> 
> Is there anywhere on here that explains the differences in the HR-21's?


First of all there is no HR21-600. It is something stupid Best Buy does to the model numbers. There is only a -700, -200, and -100.

All three units are the same and are able to do the same thing. The insides are laid out a little different but that is it.


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## sbl (Jul 21, 2007)

And they were introduced in the order 700, 200, 100, so in this case, the lower the manufacturer number, the "newer" the design is. But really, they are functionally identical.


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## Greg Alsobrook (Apr 2, 2007)

Toyo said:


> I asked him what the differences were and he replied that the higher the 2nd # is the newer the software version is on it.


the only thing the 2nd number designates is the manufacturer of the box...


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## Pink Fairy (Dec 28, 2006)

That was great work guys! Awesome!


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## Toyo (Nov 19, 2007)

Hey Raven Man, Calm down........ While I was at BB I did not know about this "Stupid Best Buy" thing. Thats why I calledD*, because they did have a 600 listed. But the D* said just the oppisite, he said the higher the #, the newer it is. He is ass backwards.


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## hdtvfan0001 (Jul 28, 2004)

Toyo said:


> Hey Raven Man, Calm down........ While I was at BB I did not know about this "Stupid Best Buy" thing. Thats why I calledD*, because they did have a 600 listed. But the D* said just the oppisite, he said the higher the #, the newer it is. He is ass backwards.


Not a big deal either way....Best Buy has misnumbered before.

The HR21-700 came first, followed by the -200 a few months back, and now the -100. Different manufacturers...same basic DVR.


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## Michael D'Angelo (Oct 21, 2006)

Toyo said:


> Hey Raven Man, Calm down........ While I was at BB I did not know about this "Stupid Best Buy" thing. Thats why I calledD*, because they did have a 600 listed. But the D* said just the oppisite, he said the higher the #, the newer it is. He is ass backwards.


I apologize. I just look at my reply to you and it does not sound like what I wanted it to say. I was just trying to say that Best Buy for whatever reason changed the model number and they do it a lot. I just wanted to let you know that was the deal.


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## Jeremy W (Jun 19, 2006)

hdtvfan0001 said:


> The HR21-700 came first, followed by the -200 a few months back, and now the -100. Different manufacturers...same basic DVR.


And, while the manufacturer codes do get smaller as the receivers get newer, this is just a coincidence. That code is for who makes the recevier, not the order in which it came out.


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## Xram (Nov 19, 2005)

Great write up guys.


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## Just Ask (Mar 4, 2008)

Nice Work Everyone. As luck would have it and as of today, I am the proud owner of an HR21-100. Go to run! Have to set up my to do list.


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## litzdog911 (Jun 23, 2004)

Just Ask said:


> Nice Work Everyone. As luck would have it and as of today, I am the proud owner of an HR21-100. Go to run! Have to set up my to do list.


Enjoy!


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## tcusta00 (Dec 31, 2007)

Nice work everyone!


I know it's a little late, but I just read it and boy is it good.


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