Powering a DVD drive.

**spoonraker** · 12-16-2006, 03:37 PM

Basically my situation is that I don't have enough USB cables. My computer has 4 running to the front of the car, two of them are used for the touchscreen and the GPS reciever, which obviously leaves me with two USB cables. These two I just ran to my center console, where I plan to mount my DVD drive and keyboard, and possibly split one with a hub so I can also have a spare port to plug my USB drive keychain into for transferring stuff.

Here's my problem... The DVD drive requires 2 USB cables, one is just a USB cable, and one is the power for the drive. I've hooked it up and it works fine, but that leaves me with no extra USB for my keyboard and keychain drive.

My question is will a USB hub, just a standard USB in, 3 or 4 USB out, be enough to power my DVD drive?

I was kind of thinking that I could buy one hub with 3 or 4 outputs, and then use one USB cable with no hub to power the DVD drive, and then plug the keyboard and the regular USB cable from the DVD drive to the hub on the other cable. That would even leave me an extra port for my keychain drive.

Would this work?

**Gamer64** · 12-16-2006, 08:02 PM

I also have some powering issues with my dvd drive. I bought a D-Link 7port 5volt hub that is giving me some problems on my system. My DVD drive draws a lot of power (it`s rated 1,5A). A USB port usually gives you about 500mA. What kind of drive you have? I have a Slimline DVD Enclosure that i hooked up with it`s own 5v connection (taken from a 12v with a Motorola MC78T05, google this). Now i need to figure out why my USB won`t be recognised right by Windows. But that`s not a problem that`s caused by the dvdrive power. More a Windows or my Active USB cable with USB hub problem.

**studmonk3y** · 12-16-2006, 08:06 PM

if i were you i think i'd get a powered usb hub that i could power from a molex connection and hook your dvd drive to that

**Gamer64** · 12-16-2006, 08:12 PM

I also have a powered USB hub (D-Link DUB-H7) that is also powered by a Motorola MC78T05 (Separate from the DVD Drive). The problem is that my DVD drive is in my glove compartement and my Car PC is in my trunk. I have the Active USB cable that goes to the front of my car. On that cable at the end is the USB Hub with it`s own power supply. On the Hub i need my Touch Screen and my DVD drive signal cable. The power from the DVD drive comes from also a seperate 5V.

So running a connection from a molex is a bit difficult

.

**com2soft** · 12-18-2006, 02:26 AM

i think one hub for : touchscreen, keyboard, mouse may be o.k. or even + GPS. Then one USB from mobo for your DVD.

**spoonraker** · 12-18-2006, 02:47 PM

Originally Posted by Gamer64

I also have a powered USB hub (D-Link DUB-H7) that is also powered by a Motorola MC78T05 (Separate from the DVD Drive). The problem is that my DVD drive is in my glove compartement and my Car PC is in my trunk. I have the Active USB cable that goes to the front of my car. On that cable at the end is the USB Hub with it`s own power supply. On the Hub i need my Touch Screen and my DVD drive signal cable. The power from the DVD drive comes from also a seperate 5V.

So running a connection from a molex is a bit difficult

.

I'm in a similar situation, my pc is in the trunk but my DVD drive is in the center console, so I can't really use a molex powered hub.

I still don't know what I should do...

Is is possible to take a molex powered hub, and run only one cable from it, and then use a non powered hub on the end of that?

**Gamer64** · 12-18-2006, 03:04 PM

I have been fiddling around with all my usb stuff but at this moment it really sucks. When coming from hibernate the DVD almost never works, and also hangs in POST a lot. And my hub isn`t even connected at the moment. Neither is my Bluetooth.