My Tablo Quad is extremley hot. Ia m using an internal Barracuda HDD. Should I just use a external drive instead?
For mine both the Quad and 4-tuner are on vented shelves. The Quad with a 2TB internal drive is 103F while the 4-tuner is 107F. Some people have used laptop coolers to keep their tablos chilled.
Where do I get laptop coolers???
Amazon, Ebay, Best Buy, Walmart…
This is what I use on lowest speed quiet and keep it cool
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So if you ask Tablo support they will tell you the unit is running within normal specs. To me, “too hot” is like what justice Potter Stewart said of porn: “I know it when I see it.”
I’m also using the MULTIFAN S3 pictured above at the lowest speed (plugged into the USB port) to cool my quad from the bottom and am very satisfied. Keeps the unit just slightly warm.
That little square hollow area on the right side of the Quad makes me wonder if it might be possible to buy a small fan like this one and put it in that space:
Thank you for the suggested item and picture of it. I will save it and order it. As soon as I get my new replaced tablo quad
There is a heat sink built into the device, to keep it at a safe operating temperature. Although I trust the Tablo team and realize they know what they’re doing, I did decide early on to provide some venting. This is how I accomplished that (a household trivet):
After about three months or so, I upgraded to a more elegant approach:
There’s so much back-and-forth on this topic, I don’t believe half of it, most of the time. To err on the side of caution though, this has worked for me. At some point, somebody came up with the idea of using a defrosting plate and I bought one of those as well, but reverted back to my trivet solution.
My previous 4 tuner ran pretty hot, so I sat it on four corks from some scotch bottles- just enough elevation off to allow for airflow under the base. Not as fancy as the turtle trivet, but it did the job.
I have a dual 64 now, and with the new style case the heat isn’t any worse than what you get from an unmanaged switch or router.
I tend to agree, tablo certainly did some testing. Providing it’s in an open, flat surface, too hot for people doesn’t mean it’s too hot for the device. While we know cooler is better 
I recall laptops running at nearly 60 °C, or at least the processor. Seagate claims their drives operate in a range 5 to 50 degrees Celsius maxing out at 60
That’s 122 °F to 140 °F obviously too hot to touch… but not too hot for an operating range. So it it bothers you - get a rack or fan, it you never want to touch it, supposedly it’s ok.
I just picked up my Dual Lite, it’s warm… then realized I have no reason to pick it up, and if I didn’t I wouldn’t know it’s warm. I understand everyone has issues. I use a cooling rack approach for my laptop computers, and occasionally other devices.
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My Dual 64, which I just measured with a probe on the top surface, is ~94F. My router, in the same rack, but on a different shelf, measures ~88F. The Tablo isn’t significantly warmer than any other network device. YMMV.
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Thank you, thank you!
I kind’a thought that was the heat sink. From the pics for the FCC tablo quads records the External photo appears to have a fan… or maybe a turtle shaped heat sink 
you can’t get size perspective from the pic.
But there must be another FCC ID, because those WIFI test only show 2.4 MHz which wouldn’t include (802.11)AC much less dual band.
In the FCC external photo that’s the hollowed out area I was referring to.
I would speculate that Tablo initially thought it may need a fan but ultimately decided against it before production. I’m wondering if I can somehow add the little guy in…
Considering the heat comments, as in the past, why? If there’s a mount for one.
.absolutely no need for it
.potential source for “noise”
.pull in dirt, gunk heat sink and device gets even hotter as vents get blocked
.would add too much to final cost 
Yes, it appears to be a fan mounting, maybe not. If there were a possibility maby in a make-believe-world, wouldn’t it be nice if they’d unofficially suggested what specifically would fit in there if someone wanted to void their warranty.
This hollow area is on the outside of the chassis, the fan could in theory simply snap in. Why would it void the warranty, even in a make-believe world?
Modifying a product does not automatically void the warranty. The manufacturer has to show that the modifications caused the “warranty” issue.
" Are there any modifications, changes or unauthorized uses of the product that could void the warranty? Under federal law, the merchant must prove that a defect was caused by the alteration in order to void a written warranty."
COOL, surprised it doesn’t have a sticker/label stating breaking or removing this will void warranty. That would pretty much would be clear. Depends what you use for a power source
internally, you could do serious damage if you don’t have more than a clue, externally, you’re modifying the case (design) even if having wires running through it.
Still, if it’s possible I’d bet there are users here with the necessary skills willing to attempt, if they had some info so as to have some degree of success not to damage their device. And a couple who would try just because.
Putting a sticker on it doesn’t make it legal.
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Well, I for one have no intention of opening the chassis or using my Quad for anything other than its intended purpose of enjoying the best OTA experience out there. But just to slake my unyielding curiosity, can someone from Tablo support enlighten as to what that small, hollow piece of real estate is about, and whether I can try fitting a small fan in there?