You can't swap boards like that; the access card is tied to the serial number of the unit, which is on the board. Your best bet is to get your old Hughes unit repaired if you want to continue using it and keep the programs recorded on your hard drive.

Alternatively, you'd have to call DIRECTV for a new access card for your other HDVR2.

Also see:

TiVo Error 51 Hardware Error Has Occurred

Can I call DirecTV and have them re-activate the old unit? I still have the card... so if I swap the hard drive will it work?

I was wondering what that CR2032 battery on the motherboard was keeping in memory? the serial number of the motherboard? what would happen if I pulled it?

If you reset the hard drive once in the unit, yes, it should work.

The battery doesn't seem to do much.

DirecTV is screwing with me... they say this old unit was never on my account and they are unable to activate it... They say that they cannot get the proper ID from the box to activate the unit so I can't do anything but buy another expensive unit. I refuse to accept this...

I ended up swapping the hard drive to the other unit that worked, but the card that is matched with it, they say isn't on my account and they cannot reinstate it. But it looks like the motherboard on the active box is dead. Is there any way I can make this work????? HELP!

Any idea what might be bad on the mother board to create that clicking issue? I swapped power supplies and it still did it, so there is a problem on the motherboard.. is my only option to repair the old motherboard? I can do board repairs myself if I know what to look for? Replacing the electrolytic caps?

Is it true that I cannot re-active the other HDVR2 unit? I swear I used this before but DirecTV says it's on another account and won't activate it - they didn't give me any option to get another card married to the unit.

Any help anyone can offer is most appreciated!

I read this:

"Motherboard Failure - Many Series2 TiVo DVRs (both standalone and DirecTV) are especially likely to have problems if the cable connecting the motherboard to the faceplate IR unit is disconnected or paritally connected when the unit is powered on. A resistor on the motherboard is very likely to burn in this circumstance, and will render the faceplate inoperable. This generally only occurs when the cable is accidentally partially dislodged, such as during a drive change, fan change, or general cleaning. The fixes for this involve motherboard repair by a TiVo specialist."

Is this likely the cause? Although the unit just died but I am pretty sure it's the motherboard because I moved the hard drive and power supply to a second machine and it booted. Is this resister a surface mount resistor? Anyone know which one and its value? I can probably do this repair myself if I have details.

The ticking is a motherboard problem, most likely. It can be repaired, but you'd have to send it in. See:

Flat-fee TiVo Repair Service

Something else I found which may relate to this issue: http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb...d.php?t=452777

It looks like it may be possible to swap cards on HDVR2s? Right now I'm erasing the hard drive and it's taking a few hours so I'm waiting to see what will work. Any advice would be appreciated.

Where I currently stand:

My original HDVR2 died and wouldn't boot up and made a clicking sound.

I swapped a power supply from another HDVR2 (that apparently was not on my account that I got off eBay for parts but booted up and had its own matching card) and my machine still wouldn't boot. I swapped the hard drive into the old unit, it booted but gave error #51. So I surmised the motherboard or something other than the power supply in my unit was bad.

I've been told I cannot activate the second HDVR2 with my old hard drive. And that my best bet is to try and repair the motherboard of my original unit and put my hard drive back?

A rep at Tivo told me I was SOL on getting the second unit on my account and that they don't activate HDVR2s except on the original accounts they were on?

Help! What can I do?

I've been told I cannot activate the second HDVR2 with my old hard drive. And that my best bet is to try and repair the motherboard of my original unit and put my hard drive back?

Yes, this is the approach we recommend.

UPDATE:

DirecTV appear to be a bunch of incompetent lying A-HOLEs

After spending more than an hour arguing on the phone with a "supervisor" who told me I could not do anything but order a more expensive DVR to replace my dead HDVR2, and who wouldn't escalate me up to a higher tier, I finally gave up and started messing with the Tivo myself.

It turns out the the backup HDVR2 will marry itself to any access card once the hard drive is cleared and deleted. So everything that DirecTV told me was a total lie. Take your active access card, put it in a new HDVR2 and reset/clear everything and it works.