Hard Drive upgrade for Pioneer DVR-520H

[mrmazda]

> Procedure 4 was written for use on a computer using two IDE drives,
> since then many more computer configurations have arrived on the scene.
> Linux recognizes IDE drives as hda, hdb, etc.

Traditionally, yes. Currently, usually not.

> SATA drives and USB drives are recognized as sda, sdb, etc.

In the latest releases of most Linux distros, add to the sdx chain all PATA storage devices as well. So, if your system has PATA, SATA & USB, which one is which can turn into quite a guessing game. Luckily for most readers of this thread, Knoppix 5.1.1 and prior still use the traditional drivers. In some of the newest distros (e.g. Mandriva & OpenSUSE), the option to use the old drivers remains available, though they all default to the new.

> That leaves Procedure 4 open to some interpretation,
> if you were to connect a SATA drive as the slave drive,
> it would be sdb and you would have to modify the command
> line in the procedure to reflect that. Since computers are
> constantly upgraded with new devices, it would be very difficult
> to list all those variations in Procedure 4. The important thing
> is knowing your own drive configuration and correctly labelling
> the drives when using the dd command.

Most likely the newest Knoppix, whether or not yet released, will use libata, the generic term for the driver system used with the latest kernels. In popular distros' latest versions (e.g. Ubuntu, Fedora and OpenSUSE) libata has replaced the traditional drivers that referred to PATA hard disks as /dev/hdx. The libata system uses the SCSI subsystem as its foundation, which is why PATA devices are now lumped in with SATA and real SCSI and USB. If you have a multidisk system using libata, extra care will be required to ensure you choose the correct devices for use with dd.

There is another option for those uncomfortable with Linux and/or dd. There are various partitioning tools around capable of cloning operations and sector level copying. The one I use is shareware - DFSee. It's available from http://www.dfsee.com/ and has a good support group. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dfsee-support/. What's really nice about it is it has versions that run natively in all popular operating systems. That means you can prep a new disk for use in your Pioneer without leaving "home", be that XP or DOS or OS/2 or Linux. Its Mac version is technically post-beta, but I don't believe it yet includes cloning functions. The main catch, other than it isn't free software, is that it has a less than idea learning curve, but the support group is a big help dealing with that shortcoming. A minor characteristic some might not be happy about is it's a text mode app, but this actually helps keep it behaving predictably across boots for those multibooters who use it with multiple platforms.

Using DFSee, it'll always be clear which is/are your regular disk(s)/device(s), and which is new or ready for installation in your Pioneer.

Note - anyone interesting in using additional HDs for backup purposes will by stymied by the Pioneer's user-hostile need to encode the serial number on the disk. I've tried a pure clone replacement of a fully working Seagate 160 with another Seagate 160. It doesn't work.

[Corona]

I'm thinking we ought to try and keep this as simple as possibe. Linux is an "open source" operating system subject to continuous modification. Unless you are a Linux expert (and I certainly am not), I'd recommend just downloading a copy of Knoppix 5.0 and using it to upgrade your hdd. I know it works as advertised in Part 4 of the Pioneer FAQ, never had a problem with it, brought my own DVR back from the dead, and have helped quite a number of other folks upgrade/fix their DVR's. Just remember to use the proper .iso for your model/firmware and properly label your drives depending on whether they are IDE, SATA, PATA, or USB.

Corona

[orsetto]

I'm thinking we ought to try and keep this as simple as possibe. Linux is an "open source" operating system subject to continuous modification. Unless you are a Linux expert (and I certainly am not), I'd recommend just downloading a copy of Knoppix 5.0 and using it to upgrade your hdd. I know it works as advertised in Part 4 of the Pioneer FAQ

Most of the time, for most people, I would agree stick with Knoppix and follow the Pioneerfaq instructions exactly. But in my experience, using ordinary PCs with ordinary IDE, it often does not work. Only when I connect via USB can I correctly do a file transfer of the Pioneer.iso data to my replacement drive. I brought this up only because some people reported difficulty doing the upgrade, and knowing Knoppix 5.0 simply did not care for my "wiped" ex-Windows drives if they were connected via IDE I'm passing on my tip to try USB instead. Knoppix never fails to properly update the drives for me with pioneer.iso under USB. I recommend all DIY upgraders attempt the exact PioneerFAQ instructions first, as they are proven to work for most people. But do give USB connection a try if you experience problems under IDE.

[abc32453]

I finally did get it working. I initially had tried using the Pioneer(533) file instead of the Pioneer(1.30) file since my recorder is a 533H.

I also think I mis typed the dd command and had put of=/dev/hda1 instead of /dev/hda which also caused the recorder to then reject the hard drive entirely and not even let me reinitialize it. I did a wipe of the first part of the hard drive and followed the instructions again and now it is working.

[KevinL]

HI all, I am desparately hoping that someone may be able to help me.
I have a Pioneer 720H which unfortunately has a broken (160GB) hard drive. The most unfortunate part is that it contains some very sentimental personal video data. I am therefore needing a working 160GB drive from which I can raid parts to repair the broken drive and restore the video data. To broaden the scope slightly, these drives were used in a number of DVD recorders of this era. I know for example of LG, Toshiba and JVC

Have any of you "upgraders" perhaps removed a working 160GB drive that you would be willing to sell me?

The drive is a
MAXTOR DiamondMax 16 160GB ATA/133
Quickview (manafactured 21st June 2004).

Most important is that the PC board is labeled (close to the spindle of the hard drive)

301593100
POKER/KOI/LITE

I would be eternally grateful

[orsetto]

HI all, I am desparately hoping that someone may be able to help me.
I have a Pioneer 720H which unfortunately has a broken (160GB) hard drive.

You have my sympathy- I suffered a similar failure with a DVR-520H and opted to just give up and discard the "dead" drive and replace with a new one. Unfortunately it is not generally possible to "repair" a "broken" hard drive on your own. Maybe if its just a blown external circuit board you could swap it out yourself using the board from a similar drive, but this is rarely the problem in a 520/720: when the drive goes down in one of these it is usually due to data errors and crashing on the video recordings. If this is your problem, it might be possible to read and salvage files from the drive using a special version of Linux on a PC, you can then transfer the saved files to any new drive you buy as a replacement and format beforehand in your 720. This would not be at all simple to do, but there have been recent reports from people who have succeeded.

Alternately, if the drive really did have a MECHANICAL failure, there are data salvage companies that might still be able to repair the hardware, pull the video files off and transfer them to a new drive that you have formatted in the 720 and sent to them with the bad drive. This service is not cheap, it costs hundreds of dollars, but may be worth it for videos of family etc.

The 720 can use any standard IDE computer hard drive as a replacement, on this model you should stick to 250 Gb or less capacity because the early-model Pioneer HDD navigation screen can't efficiently display a huge number of videos on a big drive. You can install a drive up to 500Gb but anything much bigger than the stock 160Gb on this model would be REALLY clumsy to use (later Pioneers have speedier navigation screens that scroll straight up and down easily, making huge drives more feasible to use).

[KevinL]

Hi Orsetto,
Thanks for the interest. It is much appreciated.

Yes, broken hard drives can be very frustrating. In this case the drive has gone down with the "clicks" which generally means that a condition is not being satisfied on startup.

The drive is spinning up and there are no abnormal sounding noises coming from within the drive whilst spinning or going through the clicking cycle until it eventually gives up trying. An ohmeter/conductivity test of the pinouts of the drive unit match up well compared to a good non-Quickview Diamondmax 160GB so it seems that the internals of the drive mechanics and the preamp are OK. I know this is not conclusive, however, I have identified problems on the PC board so I believe there is enough hope to have a bash.

The W503 chip on the board does not check out (against what I would expect when compared with its datasheet). I am not sure about surrounding components however, which is why I am hoping to get hold of a good drive from which I can remove the W503 and then compare the one against the other to identify if there are any other components that may be faulty. It would be absolutely brilliant if it did boil down to simply needing to replace the W503 chip, but I would like to be as confident as possible that I am giving it the best possible chance.

Ergo the need for the drive. Once the data is retrieved (or not) I will dump the the drive and look at getting the recorder going again.

[drgg]

Hi Sir,

I would like to upgrade my Pioneer DVR from 80G to 160G. However, I couldn't find the service disk of GGV1179. Would you please tell me where can I download from the Web! Thanks for your attention

DRGG

Hi
I don't remeber if I told about the new Guide!
There is now a guide for changing the HDD in a DVR-540/543/640H US&Canadian units.
How ever this guide could be used for replacing the HDD in a DVR-545HX European unit.
So it seems that all the Pioneer 2006 DVR models uses the same procedur and most of all it seems that you do not need to fiddle with firmwares, Linux or what ever the case was for the 2005 models.

The Guide will later on be updated to be more internationel, now it is more US&Canadian.

Guide for 2006 years models.

[drgg]

Hi Donglejack,

Would you please tell me where can I find the servrice disk as I couldn't find the Services Disk of GGV1179 on the web? Thx!

Hello all,

I need your help!

I bought months ago a DVR-520H for cheap. Then, I wanted today to replace its 80Gb HDD with a 300Gb (I've already replaced one before, without any problem).

But this time, it failed

I was not able to rewrite CPRM Id with service disk... (I obtain a frightening 'Rom Write NG!' error after inserting data disk).
I tried with the service disk found over eDonkey I already had (GGV1179 I think), and with GGV1256 vol. 4.1 (sent by hkan few months ago), with no avail ...

Note though that firmware version of this 520H is 2.73.

If ever someone has an idea, it is very welcome, since CPRM Id is deleted and I have no way to reenter it

Option of the last chance: downgrade firmware with multiregion disk (v2.64). But the very last chance, however ...

[mjbjuno]

Hi, I am having a problem with upgrading the drive in my Pioneer DVR-510H. I have the service remote, and I have the Service discs. I replaced the drive about six months ago and was able to use the Service ID Data Disc I have GGV1279, and it worked fine. Now I have been trying to replace my hard drive with a new bigger one, but when I install the new drive and update the CPRM no problem, but than it asks for the ID Data Disc, I get ID Data NG! It does not seem to do any damage to my unit. I have put the original one back in and it works just fine, no HDD ERR message. I than tried the linux command to copy the drive to the new bigger one, and same thing with new drive I get ID Data NG! I even tried to update the CPRM ID which worked fine and I get the same ID Data NG, with the old drive the unit works just fine. I was wondering what I am doing wrong. If any one has any ideas it would be greatlly apprecaiated, I have been working on this for a week now.
thanks

[orsetto]

Now I have been trying to replace my hard drive with a new bigger one, but when I install the new drive and update the CPRM no problem, but than it asks for the ID Data Disc, I get ID Data NG! It does not seem to do any damage to my unit. I have put the original one back in and it works just fine, no HDD ERR message.

There are two "easy" possibilities that jump to mind. One would be that the service disc you used has become corrupted since you last used it. Given that almost everyone is using clones of this software, it can easily go bad if recorded on poor-quality media or if it is left out on a desk where sunlight can hit it. You might want to get a fresh service disc before trying again. The other would be that the new drive is funky or just too large. The 510 tends to balk at drives larger than 320GB, I have heard of using 500GB but its a struggle.

Check that you are inputting the CPRM number exactly as printed on the rear panel of the recorder, and double check that you are following the steps properly.

[mjbjuno]

Hi, thanks for the reply I do not think my problem is the hard drives, I have tried an 80 WD hard drive which is the same size and mfg as the original and get the same problem, the other one is a 250 WD hard drive. I have tried some fresh downloads from another post about getting the ggv1179 disc and I have also tried the ggv1256 which I got from someone and worked for the optical drive replacement. I did make several copies of the disc when I got it originally and they all give the same error. I even burned the discs at the slowest speed I could which was 1.0x. I will try another drive to see if that is the problem, and I will double check the CPRM number. One thing that is odd is the CPRM number seems to be okay, when I remove the drive after updating it, and then I put it back in it shows that the CPRM number has not changed. Also the clone I made with linux also shows the correct number.
thanks I will try again jsut to make sure I did not put in a wrong number.

[orsetto]

Hmmmm... well, mjbjuno, this is either an odd problem that will resist solution or else you are going to have one of those embarrassing moments when you suddenly realize you failed to do some very simple thing correctly (it happens to all of us: could Pioneer have made this HDD replacement procedure ANY more ridiculous?). You might be transposing or mixing up a couple of the CPRM numbers, or leaving a number off. The remote may not be clearing the numbers completely when you press "STOP": they need to be gone before you re-enter them, especially if there's a mismatch from a previous try.

Some other things you can check that have hung me up once or twice:

Check the position of the termination plug on the replacement drive that isn't working. The 510 is inconsistent in how it prefers different drive brands and sizes to be terminated. Look at where the plug is on the drive that DOES work: is it set to Master, Slave, CS, or is the tiny plug missing altogether? Make sure the bigger replacement drive is set exactly the same way- if it isn't, this could be your issue. If it is, try all four settings to see if one of them works and gets you to the "ID OK".

The DVD drive could be failing. Its about due, most 510 owners began reporting trouble more than a year ago. If the DVD drive has trouble reading the "cloned" service disc, it won't allow the CPRM registration to complete properly resulting in the "NG!" warning about the hard disk ID. You could try using a dvd drive-cleaning disk, sometimes a little dust on the lens is enough to cause a problem. If there are smokers in your house, the tiniest bit of oily film from the smoke can screw up the drive's ability to read some discs. If the drive starts to really bomb, you'll need to find a replacement DVR-106 drive and swap some parts around. More fun.

[henu]

Hi,
I have 433H and in remote there is no ESC key. So what is the key, or do I need another remote to change my HDD?

[corinacho]

HOLA HKAN, O CUALQUIER OTRA PERSONA QUE ME PUEA AYUDAR. PERDONA QUE TE MOLESTE. SOY NUEVO EN ESTO. TENGO UN DVD GRABADOR PIONEER DVR-530H-S, SE HA ROTO EL DISCO DURO. HE COMPRADO OTRO SEAGASTE DE 160 Gb. IDENTICO, DE LA MISMA SERIE. LO HE CAMBIADO, COMO E VISTO EN UNA PAGINA FENOMENAL QUE EXPLICA MUY BIEN CON FOTOS. PERO YA ESTA, NP SE QUE MAS TENGO QUE HACER PARA PODER TERMINAR DE ARREGLARLA. ME SALE " HDD ERR". POR FAVOR ESTOY DESESPERADO Y MIS HIJOS NO PARAN DE PEDIRME QUE LA ARREGLE PARA PODER GRABARLES LOS DIBUJOS ANIMADOS QUE LES GUSTAN. GRACIAS POR LA ATENCION PRESTADA Y MUCHAS GRACIAS A TODAS LAS PERSONAS QUE ESTAN POR ESTOS FOROS PARA PODER AYUDAR A LOS DEMAS

[corinacho]

HOLA A KHAN O CUALQUIER PERSONA QUE ME PUEDA AYUDAR. SOY DE ESPAÑA Y NUEVO EN ESTO. TENGO UN DVD GRABADOR PIONEER DVR-530H-S, SE ME ROMPIO EL DISCO DURO Y PUDE ENCONTRAR OTRO IDENTICO. SEAGASTE 160 GB Y DE LA MISMA SERIE, LO HE CAMBIADO AYUDADO POR UNA PAGINA QUE EXPLICABA PERFECTAMENTE COMO HACERLO CON FOTOS. PERO YA ESTA. A PARTIR DE AHI, NO COMO SEGUIR. AL ENCENDER ME SALE " HDD ERR " Y NO SE COMO SEGUIR. POR FAVOR NECESITO QUE ME AYUDEIS, NO SE NADA DE INGLES. AGRADEZCO DE ANTEMANO LA ATENCION PRESTADA. MUCHAS GRACIAS A TODOS LOS QUE ESTAIS EN ESTAS PAGINA PARA AYUDAR A LOS DEMAS.

[Gypsy898]

Does anyone know what the correct burner model number is for the Pioneer 520H? Mine hasn't died yet, but I do want to be prepared in case it does.
I believe you can't replace it with anyone it has to be specific. I could be wrong but I'm not really sure....

[Seeker47]

Does anyone know what the correct burner model number is for the Pioneer 520H? Mine hasn't died yet, but I do want to be prepared in case it does.
I believe you can't replace it with anyone it has to be specific. I could be wrong but I'm not really sure....

It is a Pioneer 107 or A07 burner, and I don't believe any other model would be accepted by the 520. These have become rather hard to find, though they do turn up on Ebay (used, in most cases) several times a year. You just have to be persistent in looking for them, on a regular basis, and hope you can find one in good condition with relatively "low mileage" on it. This model was used a lot in disk duplicators of a certain vintage. They are probably not the best place to find low mileage units, but it is one additional avenue for your keyword search.

[awc]

Can anyone help ? I just upgraded my pioneer DVR-340H (bought in HK) with new 160g HD (from 80g) following the instruction found in this forum (very usefull and informative !!). However, it seems that I used the wrong Services Disk (pioneer_service.nrg = GGV1179 ???). My DVR shows up an "Incorrect CPRM information" message.

I noted from the above posts that the service disc GGV1273 or GGV1305 may work for the DVR unit buit after mid-2006. Accordingly, I would very much appreciate it if anyone can let me know the URL link for D/L the image of the above disc.

[awc]

I finally upgraded my DVR-340H with WD340 gb. The harddisk is quiet and fast fast responding. Many thanks to HaKan's helps.

Cheers.

[cycat123]

hi all pros


can i know the maximun size of HDD i can use to upgrade the Pioneer DVR 340HS? ?

[orsetto]

The largest hard drive upgrade reported here as successful in Pioneer recorders is 500 Gb. In theory, it may be possible to go higher than that but so far no one has reported trying. There is however a point of diminishing returns where you can create problems for yourself with excess capacity. 250Gb is about as good as it gets, more than that and you're overdoing it. The navigation system in these machines is really not designed to cope with more than about 100 programs, and even at that point is annoying and slow to operate. You put 500 shows on a 500GB drive, and you'll spend 45 minutes just scrolling to show # 369: not fun. Also, keep in mind that these recorders are not full-fledged PCs: they are not capable of recovering from a hard drive error. One hiccup, and your only "repair" option is to reformat the drive and start over. There are enough sad reports here from people who've lost the videos from 80 Gb drives getting a bad sector: losing 340 Gb, 500 Gb, or a terabyte will make you suicidal.

[CustM]

I want to Thank everyone who has posted and freely given help and instructions. I have a 420H that I thought had a bad HD, it was stuck in the power on boot loop and could not be reset, or shut off w/o pulling power.

I was able to source the GGV1179 pioneer service disk online as a down load and the RAR to NRG image was OK. For reference the MD5 is as follows:

fd6def66f13a1d5ead111d31e786bfa7 *pioneer_service.part19.rar
d3d180cc05cb2b60b328aea37a193b75 *pioneer_service.part18.rar
db5717efb8c56ed388e93e2903a9c0b7 *pioneer_service.part17.rar
6ae92ff49adf6de85268d7c151ffe611 *pioneer_service.part16.rar
b7d7ed210a0d94de195afa9fb2b5e9f7 *pioneer_service.part15.rar
bdeb79dd7d78527aedec53a660c4ac05 *pioneer_service.part14.rar
0a832c9f594fe916f5191f883e5e9ede *pioneer_service.part13.rar
7a918dfe799f3d4d1633881d7f8733ca *pioneer_service.part12.rar
5b6c91893df423639d640833fecbd82f *pioneer_service.part11.rar
a1a1212bb9f6ce7294941b95b6566fa3 *pioneer_service.part10.rar
edd4c87e8994a5e4247ae1c58f4d92fc *pioneer_service.part09.rar
1dbe52ed4ba53fab17df232a175868a8 *pioneer_service.part08.rar
a43d1417e1feb90690bb0409df76c2dc *pioneer_service.part07.rar
351d16d15b5d00c38531c5016ee467a8 *pioneer_service.part06.rar
5f32d25ff066c2c20a7716ed4c968a0b *pioneer_service.part05.rar
b63be0f88cbcc1256e340b7d4d5c04bf *pioneer_service.part04.rar
c28786fab02273bb8289ced5f9ec4e8e *pioneer_service.part03.rar
316eacc5fb6023d1dce1cc181fe667e4 *pioneer_service.part02.rar
b7a940fe5aa164f21d7de66a79a15e61 *pioneer_service.part01.rar

**** f43a519ba0d9c1a51141487c5bd06699 *pioneer_service.nrg
File size =(1,953,533,952 bytes)
This file size is smaller than some have reported, but the md5 checks OK.

For the remote I just used a Logitech Harmony 520. Harmony has the code listed on the site as GGF1381 as has been reported in this thread. I used a Western Digital 320gb (WD3200JB) as the replacment to the Maxtor 80 gig. I thought the maxtor was dead, this was not the case. After doing the CPRM replace and ROM write, which both went OK it would not see the 320. I tried the old 80 again and it would not see that either. Only after grabing a new-old stock 3.2 gig did it see the drive and initilize it. What ever this did it "flushed" the "power on" loop it had been stuck on. After that I popped the new 320 in, it saw it and all went fine during install.

The old 80 gig was fine and I was able to burn and save the old movies after I popped it in, then replaced it with the fresh 320.

Just a couple of simple, but maybe frustrating tips:

1. Be sure to finalize the DVD burn of the NRG image.
2. After the ID disk is read and ejected, remove disk, leave the door open, then power down.
3. On the 420, 520 models you do not need to remove the front panel ribbon cable to remove the HD caddy.

I now have 140+ hours at SP on my new drive.
Thanks to all that made this possible.

Edited: to correct remote code

[mrmazda]

So, IIUC, you downloaded 19-20 rar files and stuck them together to burn to a DVD? Where did you find those files and the instructions to put them together? This thread is so long I get lost. I never found a good URL to get a service disk iso. All I've ever managed to do so far is reload the guide info and reinitialize the HD based on http://pioneerfaq.info/ info, not much good for putting in a bigger HD.

[CustM]

So, IIUC, you downloaded 19-20 rar files and stuck them together to burn to a DVD? Where did you find those files and the instructions to put them together? This thread is so long I get lost. I never found a good URL to get a service disk iso. All I've ever managed to do so far is reload the guide info and reinitialize the HD based on http://pioneerfaq.info/ info, not much good for putting in a bigger HD.

I think the link has been posted in this thread, but here it is again:

www.dvdboard.de/forum/showthread.php?t=121319

You will need a copy of WinRar to assemble, it can be download free on the net. Just Google it.

[Fin]

Hi all

I would like to replace the hard drive in my DVR-540H. Appearantly I need a service disc named GGV1273 Type 2.
Any help in locating a copy or a reliable site to download it would be much appreciated.


Fin

[Fin]

A big thanks to Hkan for helping me with the service disc (GGV1305) and lots of other details on doing this upgrade.

Thanks also to CustM for his information on getting the GGF1381 codes for a Logitech Harmony remote.

I now have everything required to change the HD and will report back when it is done.

Fin

[mrmazda]

CustM wrote:
"You will need a copy of WinRar to assemble, it can be download free on the net. Just Google it. "

I don't see how WinRAR could do me any good. Where are the Linux instructions/program for assembling those files?

[orsetto]

CustM wrote:
"You will need a copy of WinRar to assemble, it can be download free on the net. Just Google it. "

I don't see how WinRAR could do me any good. Where are the Linux instructions/program for assembling those files?

There are occasional drawbacks to being an exclusively-Linux user, and you just hit one of them. In a nutshell, you can either borrow time on a Windows box, or forget about downloading this disc image. The older disc image download was enormous- most members reported it took DAYS to download and often failed at the 99% point. This WinRAR version should be much easier to download piece by piece, because if any section fails you don't have to download the entire huge file again. Once you assemble all the WinRAR pieces into a proper disc image and burn it on the Windows PC, you're done: just follow the instructions at pioneerfaq and insert the disc in your recorder when prompted. (Understand this service disc is not formatted as standard UNIX or standard anything: it is in the machine language of the Pioneer recorder motherboard. Linux, Windows, Mac: whatever platform you use will not make any sense of this disc other than to create or burn an image of it.)

[Hkan]

CustM wrote:
"You will need a copy of WinRar to assemble, it can be download free on the net. Just Google it. "

I don't see how WinRAR could do me any good. Where are the Linux instructions/program for assembling those files?

(Win)RAR for Linux:
http://www.rarlab.com/rar/rarlinux-x64-3.8.b2.tar.gz
http://www.rarlab.com/rar/rarlinux-3.8.b2.tar.gz
http://www.rarlab.com/download.htm

Search and you will find 8)