Background - I have been using my Tablo Quad with USB connected WD Elements 1TB drive for several years now without issue. The other day I noticed recordings did not record. Checked settings and it showed no storage connected (when there clearly was). As I worked with it things got worse. After a reboot it would not connect to the network. I finally threw in the towel and called Tablo Support.
While working with Tablo support he had me remove the USB drive and reboot. The Quad connected to the network immediately and I was able to watch live TV. He decided the data on the drive must have been corrupted and asked me to reformat it. Which I did and everything was working yesterday. I recorded several shows and they played perfectly. Overnight I tried watching one of the newly recorded shows and got the message no storage connected. This told me my issues may be with the drive itself. I then installed a 2.5" HDD in the Quadâs drive bay. Upon bootup it would not connect to the network again.
Conclusion - I only get problems with storage (either USB or internal SATA) are connected. This drove me to here. The Tablo Community.
Looking for confirmation - After perusing many articles I came upon this article.
The premise makes sense, but it is an old post and I would like confirmation. The article states the power supplies in some cases do not have enough power to both power the Quad and provide power to the storage drives. Can someone else confirm they have seen this issue?
Yep, I had similar problems with a Legacy Tablo but the premise remains the same. My system is still working great after making the changes described in the artcle below. In short, I replaced my power supply with one that can deliver more amps and i replaced an external drive that was powered by Tablo with an external drive with itâs own power supply.
I am currently running a test. I have another Tablo 12v 2A power adapter. It is now running the Tablo Quad with USB drive with that power supply without issues, but I wonât be confident until it runs a couple days.
What I would really like to do is install a 2.5" SATA SSD in the Quadâs drive bay to have a cleaner install. Do you think all it would take is buying a similar quality power supply with a higher output amperage?
I had a previous generation tablo in the closet that the quad replaced. Although the power supply has the same specs
The 12v 2A power adapter you just swapped in might be sufficient as long as it can deliver the rated volts and amps. I jumped to the higher amperage so there was headroom if needed. BTW, itâs safe to use an adapter with a higher rated amperage as the device will only draw what it needs.
Update - It has been 24 hours since replacing the original Quad power supply with the power supply from my previous generation Tablo and it is still running without issues.
Things I have learned through this ordeal.
* Faulty or failing power supplies where they are unable to provide enough power create odd issues like inability to connect to home network, unable to watch live tv or record.
* Connecting storage drives, either external or internal, draw more power which can be enough to create the issues noted in #1 above
* Although not definitive, a quick troubleshooting step would be to shutoff the Tablo, remove the storage drive and bootup. Test your ability to connect to your home network, check watching live tv. If both work now you may be on to something. Next, try shutting down, adding storage and bootup again. Do the issues return.
* Bear in mind that the issues may be transient like mine. Periodically the Quad (with storage) was able to bootup and work OK for a while, but the problems returned within 24 hours.
* Everything described above pertains to my situation where it appears the power supply was working, but beginning to fail.
Just an F.Y.I. I installed my 2 tuner legacy Tablo in early 2015. I used a 1tb self powered hard drive for storage from the start. I have never had the problems you encountered to this day. The original Tablo with the original power supply and stand alone hard drive are still going strong.
Power supplies are pretty simple electronic components but they can fail. Iâve had 3-4 cheap Chinese security (!) camera power supplies fail over the last 10 years.
Final Update - It has now been 48 hours and the Quad continues run perfectly with the ânewâ power supply from my previous gen Tablo.
Something curious to me - A storage drive, whether internal or external, does take an amount of power to run, so I understand how adding one may take just enough power to be the tipping point for a failing power supply. The part that I donât understand is why this would cause you not to be able to connect to your network nor watch live TV. If I power down, disconnect the drive and reboot the Quad would connect to the network and allow watching of live TV, but could not record (of course).
I mean, how much additional power could it take to find and connect to a network? Could there be other odd ball symptoms related to failing power supplies?
I think I see what you are getting at. I was thinking of just the software trying to connect to the network. I think you are referring to the actual ethernet (in my case) related hardware.