On the road with a DVR. Big mistake?

[MojaveJoe]

I have purchased a remanufactured DISH 508 DVR to put in my RV. I want to use it while in motion on the road to record programs to watch later that evening when I stop. Also passengers may use it's time shifting functions to pause, rewind etc while in motion.

Do you think I will damage the DVR if I operate it while in motion? :eek2:
Is there any way I can install it to minimize damage?
Will it get damaged if I only turn it on when stopped?

I will also have a DISH 322 dual tuner onboard. Would using it in motion cause any damage to the receiver? :confused:

Thanks for any and all advice and experience.

Joe

[Jacob S]

I do not think it is a good idea to use a DVR while your on the road. Perhaps when storage becomes solid state then it would be a lot better option.

[Bob Haller]

Bad idea the hard drive will fail fast.

Besides trees, bridges, buildings hills and other obstrructions will cause aquiring sat messages

the 322 is a better choice for in motion:)

[SimpleSimon]

The 3xx receivers having no moving parts will obviously be less susceptible to vibration damage - but NOT immune.

Laptop computers are used in moving vehicles millions of times a day without issue - but their HDDs are designed for such abuse.

The 501/508/510 receivers check the model of HDD installed, so swapping in a notebook drive won't work.

And the answer is: Shock-isolate the receiver. Make sure you account for cooling. In other words, don't just wrap it in foam rubber.

Power-isolate the box, too - make DANG sure you've got clean juice to it. I suspect that will do more damage than anything else.

And even after all of that, expect a shorter life span for it.

[Bob Haller]

My friend Warren uses a regular D receiver in his motorhome without any problems with the box.

He does report everything shakes apart, fixing things is a continious job. his is a big bus 40 feet or so long

[DishDude1]

Just add on the Dish warranty...if it fails let them replace it.

[MojaveJoe]

I only just purchased the receivers. The 508 is a remanufactured unit, the 322 is a new unit. Could I just invoke my 1 year warranty rights on both units for the frist year if anything happens?

Thanx

[Jacob S]

You could transfer the videos to your laptop or get one of those portable DVR's.

[airpolgas]

I have a 508 and brought it with me on or vacation two years ago. Since it was a temporary thing, I just placed it on top of something soft, like a pillow or a blanket that was laid flat on the "trunk" of my SUV. I did not care about line of sight because of the UHF remote. No problems there. I just made sure the thing was turned off before shutting off the vehicle.

I also had the added bonus of watching our shows in our hotel room. I just brought the RCA cables and was lucky enough to have RCA inputs on the hotel's TV (located at the front!)

[MojaveJoe]

Airpolgas...So what did you use for a power supply? I have a Xantrax 1500 watt X-Power Inverter I will use. But wondering if a non-true signwave AC source would be a problem?
The product specs say OK for Satellite equipment.

Im thinking about looking for a piece of memory foam to mount the 508 on to absorb the shock.

[airpolgas]

Oh, I already had an inverter installed. It was a low watt one though, the ones that don't go over $50. I can't bring a microwave with me on a camping trip with that one. It was able to handle the PVR, Gamecube, Xbox and PS2 though.

[Jacob S]

Putting the DVR onto a pillow prevents it from getting ventilation on the bottom of the receiver and may cause it to overheat.