Topic: Laptop firewire card

[zowie]

Can someone point me to a PMCCIA [or whatever its called] laptop card that has firewire WITH POWER.  The one I've got won't power my Firewire 410, even though it is 6-pin size.

Thanks

[zowie]

PCMCIA
Looks like they can't, unless you run an external power supply.  I'd thought someone on this board had said that they charged their Ipod off of one.

[silverbullet]

bump.

I'm looking into lappies and also would like to know how others are using their FW 410 with there lappies. Will a 4pin to 6pin cable work? Is anyone using a pmccia card with 6pin connections and getting the FW410 to power up and work? I'd like to avoid having a separate 12v source for the FW 410 also.

[Phil]

You actually have many options here.  You can use this http://fwdepot.com/thestore/images/cfr-66p-01large.jpg or just find something here www.fwdepot.com or your local best buy should have one with a dc in jack on it.  You would have to rig up a 12v battery to any of these solutions mentioned.

[caymanreview]

im running a firewire 410 (oade warm mod) into a lappy with a 4pin firewire jack

this is my second lappy with the 4pin jack

works fine with a 6pin > 4pin cables, you just have to provide power for the unit

i use these, they have to be the best option out there, without a dought. comes with a plug that is right angle that fits the 410 perfectly
http://batteryspace.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=172

[silverbullet]

I guess there is no way around the external batteries. At least they are small. thanks.

any idea how long the batteries will last for the FW 410?

[caymanreview]

I guess there is no way around the external batteries. At least they are small. thanks.

any idea how long the batteries will last for the FW 410?

i have the 12v 4ah packs from batteryspace and have run 6+hrs on one pack using phantom

[silverbullet]

I'm tempted to get the pci card for my lappie that provides two 6 pin firewire ports but that would just drain my computer battery more and I don't know how long that would last. The 410 can't draw that much power. I'll probably get it and do some testing. I think that card runs about $50 at comp usa.

Does anyone else use a 6pin connection from the pci slot on their lappie for their 410 with success?

[caymanreview]

im not sure you can get pcmcia firewire cards that supply power... or can you?

[silverbullet]

Well, I saw one that provided two 6 pin firewire ports in comp usa. I would assume it would work. 6pin is 6pin but you know how the saying goes about assuming.  Thought I better ask if this was done before.

[caymanreview]

i think there was a discussion in one of these threads saying that the pcmcia cards with 6 pin firewire ports didnt provide power. or maybe it was that just some fo them did... i cant recall

[silverbullet]

Come to think of it, I think I remember that now.

[caymanreview]

i had to dig earlier to find a thread with some info about the asio drivers for the 410, i cant begin to remember where that info is though

on your v3 > 410 setup, do you choose to sync with the internal source or external source. i was thinking external right?>\

headed to see umphreys friday and have access toa  buddys V3 to run out front and havent ran anything in front fo the 410 before

[silverbullet]

Funny. I haven't run the V3 alone yet.

I didn't change any sync settings. I pull the 410 out of the box, installed the software and then installed the latest drivers. Then I hooked up the V3>410>lappie. Made some adjustments from the firewire control panel, icon found in the lower right hand corner of the monitor. Choose the correct recording device from the Wav Lab recording menu and powered up and everything seemed to work.

I seem to remember ready some comments about slave syncing or latency. Never seemed necessary for me to follow up. I really was pressed for time. Only did some test recordings from the living room on Thursday and then it would be out taping the next two nights. 24/96 recording went fine but I can't seem to send that digital signal out my FW 410 and into my home stereo system. I guess I can try the headphone jack>RCA inputs on my stereo but I want to stick to all digital if possible. How are most people playing back their 24/96 recordings? I know some DVD players will play these audio dvd discs but I'm not sure what to look for in this type of DVD player.

[caymanreview]

search for a thread in this section with some sort of title like audio dvd creator

it is a program that makes 24/96 dvd discs with just audio that will play in any dvd player

i have yet to get that far, my home system sucks and is in the process of a major overhaul. ive just been doing 16bit cds for playback now, but im keeping all this 24bit stuff for later when the playback rig gets better

[caymanreview]

did you try changing the setting for the s/pdif out to be enabled? just like you owuld have had to do to allow s/pdif input right? just check the menu for the 410

[caymanreview]

there, i bumped that thread for you with that program

it has like a 15 day trial also, which is good

[silverbullet]

wow, I thought I would have to get a special DVD player.

I seem to remember reading a post that the new Wav Lab will burn 24/96 audio cds. Last time I looked into this I found discwelder but it was way too pricey. I'll do that search now that I don't have to worry about buying a new DVD player. Still would be nice to get my FW 410 to ouput a digital signal to my home stereo. What am I overlooking?

[caymanreview]

i dont know what you could be overlooking if you have the output turned on in the 410 menu

wavelab 5 will definantly burn 24/96 dvd-a's, but you have to have a dvd player capable of playing dvd-a discs, which i dont

[silverbullet]

I don't either 

[caymanreview]

i have a pretty decent sony that plays dvd-/+r and dvd-r/w. and i actually hadnt tested dvd-a's in it, but im sure it would have specified on the box it played them wouldnt it? maybe not, maybe i should test it

[silverbullet]

I probably should do the same. I have a Harmon Kardon DVD 50. I went to the HK website and it said none of their units play dvd-a discs  I doubt my Sony will.

What about regular computer DVDrom drives?

[caymanreview]

im not real sure about comp dvd-rom drives...

that is a real good question because im getting ready to start using my pc in my playback gear. my new sony desktop came with an optical out stock

[silverbullet]

Well, if I can burn dvd-a with Wave Lab then I would think I can play the dvd-a on the same computer.

come to think of it, when i was in panic mode trying to burn cds at the norva, I tried even using wave lab. It couldn't find my cd drive. I better look into that some more.

[caymanreview]

i wish someone besides us with a little more dvd-a experience would stick thier head in here.... but i guess its just us

ive never tried wavelab to burn anything, my first attempt will be dvd-a after the umph show friday

[silverbullet]

good luck. Let us know how it turns out and what you used. I'll try and post some photos from The NorVa from the other day. Love the lappie. Gave the bands cds after the show. 

[caymanreview]

thats nice to give the band cds right after the show

im headed to The Canopy Club in champaign illinois, basically on camput at Univ. of Illinois

my buddy Ben (BC here) wont go to the show with me, he dislikes umph, so hopefully il run his v3 if i can get ahold of him

il be sure and take a bunch of pics, i havent had a camera in this place since ive been taping

[silverbullet]

I usually don't take photos of my rig but for this website I've been meaning to remember. Kind of wierd but ya know. Have fun at the show. I'll be taping another NorVa show next week. Kind of curious if I can capture video from my camera as well as audio. Burning a DVD video of a show before the night is over may take too long but pretty cool if I can pull it off. I'll give a shot and check my CPU usage.

[caymanreview]

that would be pretty sweet to do! i dont ahve a camera, but if i did, this venue would def be the place to do it. everyone (staff) there is super cool, mostly college kids just out to see shows for free i think....

but the guys who manage the venue are super accomadating to tapers. and once in awhile if the badn is cool with it, they allow video to be ran... next time i see someone run vid il def get a copy and make a vid with my audio!

[silverbullet]

I haven't run any of my mics into my camcorder yet. I've just been dubbing later at home. I need to check into running a signal into my vid camera and see out it turns out. I have some attenuators with 10,20, and 30 pads switches which I may need to use.

Burning audio cds only takes me about 5 minutes after a set. I usually get them done before the next band hits the stage.

Running a firewire from vid camera to lappie and capturing in mpg-2 or even maybe mpg-1 might be possible to later burn onto a DVD or CDR. Capturing in full dv mode avi files wouldn't make much sense. I can do that later at home from the video tape. I could just burn the mpeg data file for a band at the show. I know capturing video takes a lot of CPU usage so using just one computer for vid & audio might be pushing it. Good excuse to get another computer. Only thing left is to bring in a small printer for photos or album graphics. I already have a memory card reader for the dig. photos.

Back to this firwire 410. I'm sending in a dig signal from my V3. Can't I get an analog L/R channel from the 410? Maybe patch out to four other users.

[caymanreview]

for patchers in using the analog outs. i got leegeddy to make me some cables

ive got  (2) 1/4" mono > rca mono cables. and also a dual 1/4" mono > 1/8" stereo cable

i figured i would need them at alot of the smaller shows i see since alot fo the time i have the only real rig

my 410 is just a bit different than yours. when Doug Oade did the warm mod to mine, he also changed the analog outs to all mirror the first set.. so i cant do 8 channels output, i can just do one set 4x. it works for what i do with it, and creates ALOT less current draw than they did stock so my op amps have alot more power to do what they need to do


on a side note. i was just tracking a show from 2 weeks ago, the band i archive. i got to the end of the show and my mics were still set up for a little bit and i got to hear part of the titty show that directly follow the concert... it was spectacular to boot. nothing like having a 40yr old nazi biker to set up a titty show and collect a cash prize for the winner

[silverbullet]

Yet, another reason to bring a video camera to shows. Where a shirt that reads 'Girsl Gone Wild', look like a director and see what happens. 

So you can patch out the 1/4 plugs. Dang if I can figure it out, that and the optical outs. I'll recheck the firewire command menu.

What are those link buttons and main/aux buttons? I don't know anything about the panning options or what panning even is. The firewire written manual is not helpful. Should I be reading the manual from the computer somewhere?

[caymanreview]

i should have at least had a camera for the titty show, i was dfc 1st row

im not too much of an expert on the 410.

i am using the 1/4" analog outs for patchers, when you plug them in, they automatically activate and the lights on the front panel light up telling you which output is active

im not sure about the aux/main buttons... panning should just be choosing which output is left/right correct? im not real sure

you should be able to get the optical out to function by using the 410 menu and activating it, or maybe it is always active. ive never used the digital outs before

[silverbullet]

im running a firewire 410 (oade warm mod) into a lappy with a 4pin firewire jack

this is my second lappy with the 4pin jack

works fine with a 6pin > 4pin cables, you just have to provide power for the unit

i use these, they have to be the best option out there, without a dought. comes with a plug that is right angle that fits the 410 perfectly
http://batteryspace.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=172

I got this battery today for my FW 410 but I'm thinking I can use something like this for my laptop computer as well. I know that's what it was intended for to begin with but can I use this along with my computers internal battery at the same time and extend my laptop running time even further?

As far as charging goes ... there's no battery indicator. You just charge for 10 hrs and hope for the best? What if you only used the battery for a short time and need to recharge for the next show. Do you still recharge for 10 hrs? Any chance of over charging?

[caymanreview]

it is possible to use that battery for an external extra battery with your internal. i have definantly been down this road, and have tried it

i tried it with my sony picturebook. thier batteries are like 11.1V, so i hoped the 12v would be enough to charge the internal while i taped... wrong. the charger for the picturebook was 16V, so this pack didnt have enough current to actually charge my battery, it just kind of extended it a bit.... but it got me by for a YMSB show, both sets with a 2x capacity picturebook battery and it..

you might want to check out thier other batterys with a higher voltage, something similar to your charger voltage if you want something that will prolong your battery life a great deal

my suggestion, check and see if your lappy is compatible with a Valence:
http://www.valence.com/

there are 5AH and 10AH versions of these... and they recently released a new one but i dont know the specs on it, they can get kind of pricey, but i tell you what, i LOVE my valence and wouldnt trade it for anything

as far as charging that battery goes, i try to discharge it fairly good before i charge it. BUT, sometimes that isnt possible. i would charge it while you can check on it, and see when the pack gets warm. these chargers do not have enough output to harm the pack, the extra juice will just be output as heat, and not very much heat at all for that matter. when i plug mine in I just let them go till they get kinda warm... they wont get warm untill they are fully charger

[silverbullet]

24/96 recording went fine but I can't seem to send that digital signal out my FW 410 and into my home stereo system.

I figured out my problem. I had to go under my control panel, audio devices, and select my 410 spdif as my main playback device.

A-duh

now I can play my 24/96 recordings from lappie>dig out> dig in> home stereo