Moving the slider on the D* remote is the only way. Why don't you want the DVR to go into standby anyways?

 

Moving the slider on the D* remote is the only way. Why don't you want the DVR to go into standby anyways?

Thank you. No particular reason for not wanting it to go into standby. Just odd like that.

 

You can just push the OFF button and then hit the PWR button again to turn the DVR back on right away, no slider movement.

 

Both of my vizios are a toggle signal, so pressing the TV power on button again shuts off just the TV.

No sliding required.

 

The TV Power "ON" button will cycle the TV on and off while not affecting the state of the DVR. I prefer to leave the DVR on all the time. When I first got the unit in 2006 I was frustrated to see the TV Power "OFF" button turned off both the TV and DVR. I was happy to discover a work around that would allow me to control just the TV. To me, this quirky behavior approaches the status of a bug.

 

A universal remote might do the trick, there are some inexpensive ones out there.

 

To me, this quirky behavior approaches the status of a bug.

What seems quirky to me is that people would want to suffer the drawbacks of having the receiver turned on all of the time.

 

What seems quirky to me is that people would want to suffer the drawbacks of having the receiver turned on all of the time.

Really now, just because you may want to turn your DVR off and on every day doesn't mean the rest of us "suffer drawbacks".

 

Really now, just because you may want to turn your DVR off and on every day doesn't mean the rest of us "suffer drawbacks".

The drawbacks are fairly well documented; chief among them is guide update lethargy.

The advantages are....

 

What seems quirky to me is that people would want to suffer the drawbacks of having the receiver turned on all of the time.

+1

The drawbacks are fairly well documented; chief among them is guide update lethargy.

Yeah, standby is a good thing for the D* DVRs. It lets it know that it isn't currently in use so that it can dedicate more time in retrieving guide data as well as allocate more resources to maintenance tasks on the disk and file system. They gave the DVR a standby mode for a reason after all.

 

Turning the DVR "off" ...
(1) allows faster guide update and other background tasks to operate
(2) only turns off the display output, all other electronics remain active (i.e., does not save power).
(3) permits better HDMI synch with TV when turned back on.

Leaving the DVR "on"
(1) Accomplishes nothing.

Carl

 

Turning the DVR "off" ...
(1) allows faster guide update and other background tasks to operate
(2) only turns off the display output, all other electronics remain active (i.e., does not save power).
(3) permits better HDMI synch with TV when turned back on.

Leaving the DVR "on"
(1) Accomplishes nothing.

Carl

Actually, leaving the DVR "on" ensures that you do not return to Live TV when you turn the TV back on. If you have something from your list paused (like a football game) and put the DVR in standby, it will go to Live TV when you come out of standby. Some (like myself) may not like this because you could see a score or other spoiler on Live TV that you were trying to avoid. I don't leave my DVR "on" all of the time but there are occasions for it.

I'm not arguing whether this outweigns the negatives or not but I am responding to the misconception that there are no advantages to leaving the DVR "on".

 

Turning the DVR "off" ...
(1) allows faster guide update and other background tasks to operate
(2) only turns off the display output, all other electronics remain active (i.e., does not save power).
(3) permits better HDMI synch with TV when turned back on.

Leaving the DVR "on"
(1) Accomplishes nothing.

In all the years of owning a DVR, I've never 'turned it off' - ever. And we have 4 in our house (2 Tivo, 2 D*). I guess I never really thought about. Even with all the HT forums I read on a daily basis, it's not a topic I've ever read about. I guess I always assumed that turning it off meant that it was truly turned OFF (meaning it wouldn't record, etc).

Boy do I feel dumb...

I'll have to do some reading!

 

In my case I have my bedroom HR-20 feeding a tv in kitchen and bathroom also. SoI prefer to leave the receiver on all times because it may interfere with watching tv in another room. 1 HR-20 feeding 3 tv's controlled via RF remotes, works great with the exception of having to slide to turn off respective tv's!

 

I leave my reconditioned HR20-700 on all the time because I find that 99% of the time it won't turn back on without a RBR.

My new HR20-100 we turn off. My reconditioned HR20-100 I leave on.

I've noticed no difference in performance, HDMI handshaking compatibility or syncing, program guide speed or data availability between the units left on or turned off.

 

Good timing on this thread...

I just had an HR-21 installed today and am trying to adjust from 5 years of using a Tivo remote. I'm looking at the DirecTV remote button labeled 'D* & TV Power' and wondering to myself, "Why in the world would you turn off the DVR???" "How will it record my shows?".

So to recap, it's best to turn off your DVR when not actively using it. It will work better for regular maintenance, syncing, etc? Just to be sure, when the the HR-21 (or 20) is in Standby, it still records shows that it's programed to record, right?

 

I leave my reconditioned HR20-700 on all the time because I find that 99% of the time it won't turn back on without a RBR.

My new HR20-100 we turn off. My reconditioned HR20-100 I leave on.

I've noticed no difference in performance, HDMI handshaking compatibility or syncing, program guide speed or data availability between the units left on or turned off.

I haven't seen any differences either. I think this would be a good topic for MythBusters

 

The unit will still buffer when it's off? I know, I should know the answer, but if it does, I'll start turning mine off then. I get up late in the morning and usually watch JAG on USA, and I usually leave the unit on so I can rewind and catch the episode from the start.

 

Turning it off is Green.

 

Turning it off is Green.

Well, yes, but only slightly. A few lights go out.

What's really "green" is unplugging the unit. But then it's really off and you'll wind up with a reset when you plug it back in.

Bill

 

Good timing on this thread...

I just had an HR-21 installed today and am trying to adjust from 5 years of using a Tivo remote. I'm looking at the DirecTV remote button labeled 'D* & TV Power' and wondering to myself, "Why in the world would you turn off the DVR???" "How will it record my shows?".

So to recap, it's best to turn off your DVR when not actively using it. It will work better for regular maintenance, syncing, etc? Just to be sure, when the the HR-21 (or 20) is in Standby, it still records shows that it's programed to record, right?

Yes, it will still record in stand-by. The Tivos would still record when in stand-by as well.

 

The unit will still buffer when it's off? I know, I should know the answer, but if it does, I'll start turning mine off then. I get up late in the morning and usually watch JAG on USA, and I usually leave the unit on so I can rewind and catch the episode from the start.

Thats one of the things the HR20 does that Tvio did not (at least the older Tivos). It will continue to buffer when in stand-by

 

Thats one of the things the HR20 does that Tvio did not (at least the older Tivos). It will continue to buffer when in stand-by

That's nice, I tried it when I got home and it buffered just fine, I should have known that, but I guess I didn't even think about it, I'm still living in the TIVO mindset, I don't think the TIVO even had an off, other than a power outage.

 

That's nice, I tried it when I got home and it buffered just fine, I should have known that, but I guess I didn't even think about it, I'm still living in the TIVO mindset, I don't think the TIVO even had an off, other than a power outage.

Exactly, the DirecTivo remote doesn't have a power off button, only one for the TV. Hence my confusion.

 

Both of my vizios are a toggle signal, so pressing the TV power on button again shuts off just the TV.

No sliding required.

Same here