The default fan that comes in the TiVo DVR is either noisy from the start or gradually gets louder over time. In an entertainment center in the living room you might not even notice this, but if you have it in a bedroom it becomes very noticeable.
I’ve gone through several different fans over the years and have settled on the Fractal Design Silent Series 50mm fan.
The key here is that it’s a 50mm fan, which is what is used in the TiVo Premiere DVRs. The factory fan is a bit deeper, but is the same length and width.
The process to swap the fan out is easy, just follow these steps.
- Unplug everything from the TiVo and put it on a work surface.
- Ground yourself
- Using a Torx T10 to remove the screws from the back of the TiVo
- Slide the cover back and lift up once the latches release
- Using a Torx T15 remove the screws from the fan.
- Unplug the fan from the motherboard. Note that the factory fan only uses two wires, the black on the right (looking from the back of the unit) and the red on the left.
- Put the new fan in place so that the directional arrow shows air flowing out the back of the TiVo.
- Plug the wire into the same connector on the motherboard.
- Replace the T15 screws or use the Philips screws that come with the Fractal fan. These will be self tapping so you’ll feel more resistance.
- Slide the cover back onto the TiVo.
- Replace the T10 screws.
That’s it, just plug the wires back in and start up. On boot up the TiVo always uses the maximum fan speed and then settles down as it reaches steady state.
7 replies on “How to Make a TiVo Quiet”
hi elias- nice write up. i followed your direction and installed the fractal fan into my tivo series 4. my question is: did you install the wiring clip to use only the black and red- ignoring the yellow? reason i ask- it seems to run slow and not exhaust much air. is yours still working well? thank you again, marc
The Fractal fan does run a bit slower than the OEM fan but I’ve had no problems on either of my TiVos with it causing over temperature conditions. You can validate the internal temperature is in the normal range in the settings menu by navigating to TiVo Central > Settings & Messages > Account & System Info > System Information
What does ‘ground yourself’ mean, and how would one do it? I feel like this is an important question to ask before I embark.
You should make sure to touch something else metal before touching the inside of your TiVo. This discharges any built up static.
Thank you!
Will this fan work in a TiVo Roamio OTA?
The Romio OTA uses a 35mm x 35mm x 10mm 12V/.08A fan. Weaknees has one here that will definitely work though it’s kind of expensive: https://amzn.to/2V7g6dN
You could probably find a cheaper generic one if you have time to scour Amazon or Ebay.