Which Direct-Tivo?

[UNIXhacker]

I have been reading the forums here and on tivocommunity for the last few weeks trying to decide what Direct-Tivo unit to get. Here are my goals:

1. Get network access, bash, and Tivoweb so I can pull off content from the Tivo.
2. Get fixsub (and lifetime subscription) working so I don’t have to have a phone line hooked up.
3. Use my existing HU card.

It looks like both the series 1 and series 2 will do this, the series 1 might be easier though. I am very confident with UNIX, I have been using it for 8 years now.

What are the advantages to the series 2? From my reading it sounds like the guide is faster, which is a plus for me. I have also read about audio problems on the series 2, this might be fixed in 3.2 or later but I would lose my bash if I went to that version and I don’t want to do that.

So, based on all that what would you recommend for me, a series 1 or series 2? And then what model? I have heard of heat issues with the Sony T-60. Then were would you recommend a buy a unit without having to be committed a long contract.

Comments? Please correct me where I am wrong.

Thanks for your help,

[mrblack51]

short answer: unless you are looking for a challenge, stick with the s1 units. it you just want to watch tv, get an s1. if you want working extraction and dvd burning type stuff now, get an s1. if you can't follow directions and/or learn independantly based on the direction provided here, then get an s1.

all s1 dtivos are the same except for the remote and the case (sat-t60, dsr6000, gxcebot).

long answer:

series 1 - needs turbonet/tivonet/airnet to get ethernet. everything for tivo has been written for the s1 dtivos or sa tivos, so no worries about compatibility. tivo has seemingly indicated that they will not be putting the home media option onto s1 units. no USB. all the hacks which you indicate you want are well known and easy to find/apply. prom is flashable via 25xtreme and other methods, which means its easy to get into every version of the software out there. also, all the extraction stuff has been focused on the s1 dtivo, with the s2 as an after-thought. s1 units are only readily available on ebay, with a few other sources out there. they are relatively expensive. menus and guide are faster on 3.1 than on previous versions

series 2 - has usb, which means usb ethernet is available (cheaper, easier to find a usb adapter). prom can't be flashed in place, so you must use a software vulnerability (such as bash_env) that is only available on certain versions of the tivo software, or desolder the prom so it can be flashed and replaced. anything for the s1 'should' work, but will probably need tweaking or need to be recompiled for the mips processor. if you don't flash your prom, you 'must' prevent updates if you let your unit dial in. since the s2 units all run 3.1.x or higher, they require p4 cards. there are hints in this forum which many have found to be adequate, but further discussion of this hack is not permitted. also, while the s2 units could use the home media option, dtv hasnt said whether they will authorize it or not (since dtv controls directivos now). s2 units are cheaper than s1 units. some say guide is faster...thats debatable (the waits seem to have been moved to different points in the menu system).