Is it normal for this to suddenly switch on what sounds like a cooling fan? I havent had it long and have not noticed it before. It continues even when switched off on the remote control. It was going for ages and I could only stop it by unplugging it (probably not the best thing to do )
Perfectly normal ... with certain limits. There IS a cooling fan which makes a noise, you can also hear the hard drive if you listen, but the cooling fan shouldn't run flat out all the time. Make sure the Sky+ box is kept in a well ventilated area, ideally away from other items like DVD players and Home Cinema amps, which make more heat. The cooler the Sky box, the less noise the fan will make. If the fan keeps going best give Sky a call as the box may be faulty (been there, done that!)
ronnie_07, you slightly misunderstood my quote when I said ..."if the fan keeps going...", you said yourself yours stopped after 45 mins. The unit I had revved up like a blower fan and refused to stop - Sky replaced the box (it was 3 weeks old).
Just to confirm, the fan noise will be audible, but should NOT be unbearable! :-) Fans in PC's and Sky boxes are cheap components and often become noisy early in their life - don't let Sky put you off with their excuses if it is very noisy - phone again and complain if need be. I once had to phone 3 times, got the answer I wanted from operator No3 :-)