[mythtv-users] HDPVR died, what should I buy?

[Gary Buhrmaster]

On Tue, Jun 17, 2014 at 1:54 PM, Fred Hamilton <fred at yonkitime.com> wrote:
....
> I'll second that.  When my hdpvr "died" a few years ago, I probed the voltage coming from the adapter and saw it was low and crazy ripple-y.

A common failure mode for those (POS) power adapters is that
the caps fail (heat in a (mostly) enclosed plastic case is the
death of most (cheap) electrolytics that are used), which results
in bad ripple.

>  So I cut the cord from the adapter and soldered it to a USB connector.  I found a 5V 1A USB charger, plugged it in, and it's worked like new ever since.
>
> Might even work plugged into one of your PC's USB ports...

1A is possibly on the low side.  Hauppauge specs 2A,
and sells a replacement (in the US) for around $10 through
their web store(*).  I presume the new one has the same
failure mode as the original, but for $10, another few
years of use might be an acceptable investment for
those that do not want purchase something better (or
resort to soldering).

Depending on the PC USB port (and version), it may not be
able to provide more than 100ma without negotiation (although
many dedicated USB charging ports provide more, even
without negotiation, PC ports may require some amount of
negotiation).  As with all else, your particular MB will vary.

Gary

(*) Given they sell the replacement adpaters, one can
conjecture that it is a common accessory that needs
replacement after some period (usually, right after
the warrantee expires :-)