How noisy should it be? Your DIRECTV receiver or client should be completely silent. In fact these devices don’t even have a fan. On the other hand, there have been issues throughout the years with DIRECTV DVRs that seem too noisy for a bedroom or other quiet place. This is due to the fan and the hard drive. Most folks don’t seem to mind the fan noise, but the click-clack of the hard drive can be a little annoying in the middle of the night.
Why this happens
Electronics become noisier for several reasons. When the insides get covered with dust, they run hotter. This causes the fan to go on more often, and that’s the cause of a lot of noise. Eventually the bearings in the fan begin to wear. This makes things even noisier.
What you can do
The easiest thing to do with a noisy device is move it to another room. If you’re not using DIRECTV’s Genie DVR, you can put a regular receiver in the bedroom and put the DVR in another room. This will let you watch programs recorded on the DVR but does not let you pause live TV. On the other hand, if you’re using a Genie DVR, you can add a tiny Genie client which does everything the main DVR does and it’s completely silent. You can pause live TV, schedule recordings… it’s just like sitting in front of the DVR. This is perfect for a bedroom or spare room. This is a big reason why DIRECTV Genie clients are so popular.
If your DVR is really, really noisy, like if it makes a buzz or whiny noise, try putting some felt pads underneath the corners. This sort of noise is usually caused by excess vibration against a table or shelf. This tends to be an issue with some of the older equipment out there but it’s a lot less common now.
What you can’t do
The first tendency you’ll have is to put the receiver in a drawer or cover it up in some way. This is the worst thing you can do! The DVRs put out a lot of heat and if it can’t be vented, the device will fail earlier. You shouldn’t put a receiver or client in a drawer either, for the same reason. Those devices also rely on fresh air to stay cool and comfortable.
Another tendency people have is to unplug the device when it’s not in use. This will quiet it down, that’s for sure, but you will lose the ability to record anything while you’re not watching TV, and that’s sort of the point of a DVR. Also, some DVRs take up to 5 minutes to start up from a true power-down situation and let’s be honest, no one wants to wait 5 minutes to watch TV.
Why not just upgrade?
DIRECTV’s star is on the rise. If you’re happy with what you’ve been getting, you’ll be even happier with what’s to come. Why not take this opportunity to upgrade to the latest and greatest system? Call our experts at 888-233-7563 and we’ll give you the white glove service you deserve. Solid Signal is one of the top DIRECTV dealers in the country and we’re ready to help. If it’s after East Coast business hours, fill out the form below and we’ll get back to you, usually within one business day.
