External drive- is firewire 800 drive compatible w/ PBook g4 firewire port

I need to buy an external hard drive. Will this model connect to my PowerBook G4 which is about 3 years old without any additional upgrading of the firewire ports? (G-Tech G-DRIVE mini 120GB FW800 Portable Hard Drive)
Would this drive be more beneficial than the firewire 400 drive for transfering movies from my HD camcorder to disk?
powerbook g4 Mac OS X (10.0.x)

Hi, freestoner, and welcome to Apple Discussions. Your FireWire ports can't be upgraded, so check with the manufacturer of the drive as to its compatibility with FireWire 400 ports, or else buy a FireWire 800 CardBus adapter.
If you need to buy a CardBus adapter for the drive, make sure that either the drive or the adapter card has its own power supply. The CardBus slot won't supply enough power to run a hard drive that depends on bus power.

Similar Messages

Buying External Drive that Only Needs One USB Port?

The optical drive on my 2007 MacBook Pro has been dead for about 6 months. I need to get an external one so I can install some software, but I am having trouble finding one that only uses one USB port, as there is only one on each side of my notebook. I went to Best Buy today, and the only one they had that is compatible with a Mac needs two side-by-side USB ports.
Does anyone know of any good Mac compatible external drives that only require one USB port? I am interested in purchasing one by LaCie, but their site does not specify how many USBs it requires.
Any advice you can give me will be greatly appreciated!

Welcome to Apple Discussions!
You might want to consider a FireWire powered optical drive:
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/firewire/optical-drives/
A FireWire port will deliver more power, so you would only need to use one FW port. The people at OWC are very Mac knowledgeable and could help you to pick one out. Your 2007 MBP should have both FW400 and FW800, so you could use either port.
Good luck!

HT3770 I have recently bought a external hard drive and I was told to down load a Fat 32 in order to work with my MAC/ Is this right and how do I find the download and how to install to make my new external drive compatible with my MAC?

What is a Fat 32 which I am suppose to download inorder to work on a MAC for external drive to be compatable ?

Bad advice. You do not need or want FAT.
You want GUID and Mac HFS Standard Journaling.
You don't download when you write files, or when you format or erase a drive.
General purpose Mac troubleshooting guide: Isolating issues in Mac OS X
Creating a temporary user to isolate user-specific problems: Isolating an issue by using another user account
Identifying resource hogs and other tips: Using Activity Monitor to read System Memory and determine how much RAM is being used
Starting the computer in "safe mode": Mac OS X: What is Safe Boot, Safe Mode?
To identify potential hardware problems: Apple Hardware Test
General Mac maintenance: Tips to keep your Mac in top form

Is the audigy ex external drive compatible with the audigy

I have an audigy ex sound card that came with the external dri've that has all of the audio inputs and stuff. I also have an audigy 2, which i would like to use instead. Is it possible to use the audigy 2 sound card with the audigy ex external dri've?

I'm afraid not, no. They are not compatible.
Cat

Circle with slash/won't recognize DVD or external drives

I have this model:
Model Name:          MacBook Pro
Model Identifier:          MacBookPro5,5
Processor Name:          Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed:          2.26 GHz
Number Of Processors:          1
Total Number Of Cores:          2
L2 Cache:          3 MB
Memory:          8 GB
Bus Speed:          1.07 GHz
Boot ROM Version:          MBP55.00AC.B03
SMC Version (system):          1.47f2
Serial Number (system):          7304001D66D
Hardware UUID:          134FD99D-DF06-5912-A8B9-255280C48DCC
It often fails to boot with the circle with slash. Tried safe boot (works), tried booting from optical drive with original system disc (won't recognize or eject-tried all of the eject techniques), and ran disk repair in target mode (found nothig wrong). Can't run hardware check for obvious reasons. It does not see external drives connected to FW or USB ports.I am starting to suspect a bad logic board. Any thoughts?

I can no longer startup from a CD/DVD
Be sure you're inserting the DVD that came with your Mac Pro. If you are trying to boot from other optical media be sure it is compatible with Intel Macs and specifically the Mac Pro. You are probably trying to boot off a discs that does not have a suitable OS on it.
or my external FW drive which has 10.4.8 also installed on it (pre-intel)
Same goes here. Your FireWire drive does not have a suitable OS installed in it. You need to install an Intel version of Mac OS X. Additionally you will probably need to repartition your drive using the GUID Partition Table. Until you do both of these Startup Disk will not let you select it.

PC to Mac external drive compatibility

Is there a way to make my PC external drive compatible with my macbook pro?

Your Mac can read & write PC Volumes in FAT-32. It can Read but not write NTFS, but there are add-ons that can allow it to write NTFS if you need it.
Windows does not acknowledge that there ARE any other kinds of computers.

How many external drives can i have on Pavillion p7-1154 compter

I have four usb ports on our 1154. one is used for printer, one is used for skype, one is used for a Western Digital 'MY BOOK' external drive, and one is not in use.
Can I use the remaining usb port for another Western Digital External Drive, which also requires a usb port.
I think the answere is 'YES', but before I connect the second one, I thought I would ask, just to be safe.
Thanks for any help, comments, or questions... Wayne

Thanks a lot for the interrupted reply.
The WD external drive I now have attached is a USB3, 2TB drive. The one I want to add is also a WD drive, a USB2 USB3, meaning that it is a USB2 but is compatible with a USB3. It is a 1TB Drive.
The reason I want to add the second drive is basically security. I dropped one external drive several years ago and the data were never recovered. I just want a second backup of all the data on the hard drive.
On the box of the 1TB drive is says that it is compatible with a USB3 Drive, and this may have answered my question. However, I am not sure of this and that is why I am asking the question as to whether or not I can have two external drives on the P7-1154.
When I originnaly attached the current USB3, 2TB drive, I immediately had a new folder come up named MY BOOK (K and that is where I back up all my data.
I am assuming that when I attach the new, 1 TB drive to the empty USB port I will Immediately get another MY BOOK folder but with a different name, probably MY BOOK (K2 , or something like that.
My real Question I guess, is whether the Computer will recognize this as a different drive and give it a different name, or whether the computer might not be able to accept a second drive.
I do not want to take any chance of confusing the computer in any way, and so that is why I posted this question.
Thanks again for the earlier response. Hope your error messages have gone away.
Hopefully this more detailed question will be helpful for you to give me more advice, one way or the other, on whether or not I should add a second external drive.

HT202807 I have a MB Air 128gb and a Time Cap.802.11AC. My HD is maxed out because of 30GB of photo storage after migration to 10.3.3 Photos. Please recommend an external drive best for connecting to TC and moving the iPhoto Lib off my HD

I have a 13" mid 2011 MB Air 128gb and a Time Cap.802.11AC. My HD is maxed out because of 30GB of photo storage after migration to 10.10.3 Photos. I have reduced apps and files as much as possible so the only thing left is to move the photos. Please recommend an external drive compatible for connecting to my TC 802.11ac and moving the iPhoto Lib off my HD which will free approx 15 gbs. of space. I don't plan on using it for any other purpose so a small capacity drive will suffice. I know the "optimization" is supposed to adjust for this condition but I don't trust that assertion.I only have 2gb free space remaining.

I don't plan on using it for any other purpose so a small capacity drive will suffice.
If you really only want such a small capacity drive.. what about just buying a 32GB or 64GB USB memory stick.
You should still have a back up to the internal hard disk of the AC TC.
Or just buy a WD Passport.. don't waste your money buying 500GB as it is only a bit more to buy 1TB and a bit more again for 2TB.. For future use if you do buy a USB hard disk buy 2.5" type.. and buy 1TB or if the budget stretches 2TB..

Use of external drives and connection types in final cut

What are the performance differences in bringing up stored data into FC6 by using firewire800, 400 and USB? Does it matter much if you get an external drive that only has a USB port, or is it significantly slower? Thanks!

FW 800 will offer nearly twice the throughput of FW400-all other things being equal.
USB is not recommended for use with video as it does not have the sustained throughput.
Good luck,
x
Message was edited by: Studio X

Firewire ports on Cube seem to be dead

The firewire ports on my Cube seem to be dead, in that the Cube is not able to see an external drive connected to either of the ports (and the external drive can be seen when connected to another computer). Is that sufficient evidence to conclude that my firewire ports are dead? Is there any software test I could perform? Is it possible to repair the firewire ports?
I'm afraid it's about time to retire the Cube.

I see a PDF on the top of this search page. And a little lower down is link to a video on removing the board.
http://www.google.com/search?q=replacelogic+board+mac+cube&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&clien t=firefox-a#q=replace+logic+board+g4cube&hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=slH&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&prmd=ivfd&ei=_ UG6TPyDB8P6lwep6IDFDA&start=10&sa=N&fp=6b353df19b06cafa
Thank you, WZZZ. I'm afraid I can't find the link to the video you mentioned. Would you give me the link itself?
Thanks,
John Link

Upgrading my intel iMac to internal SSD and running 1TB external drive from firewire 800 for mass storage while still using a second external drive for backups...my goal-speed with a SSD, to still have 1TB of room for everything i have now..possible?

I seem to kill HD's every two years...the last two i've installed were WD Caviar Black 1TB 7200rpm 3.5" drives. The speed gains over stock drives have been remarkable. I don't blame the drives for the failures, my machines are up and running 16 hours a day, every day, year round. They die from 'mileage' so to speak...i assume...there's no viral acvtivity or questionable downloads to gunk things up...just lots of work.
I have my third new drive ready to install in my intel based iMac...but i've had a thought...I want to install a SSD in my iMac for the speed gain (and recent price drops)...for standard storage i want to use this new WD Caviar Black 1TB in an external drive bay and connect via firewire 800 for storing everything except the OS and my most commonly used software...am i crazy? will the firewire 800 external drive negate the speed gained with an internal SSD??
I have four iMacs in my office, and one at home. I buy second hand and install new drives and boost memory. I'm going to do this on my 'home' machine...if it works out well i want to upgrade the other three this way...but first i need to know if i'm just dreaming, or will it really make a difference? or even possible??
Thanks!
2.66 intell core2duo
2009 iMac
8gig ram
1 gig hd
OSX ver. 10.8

The SSD gives great bootup and Application launch speed. I think it also speeds up the video rendering a bit, I do all that on the SSD and then move the finished project to the external drives. As far as the speed for the external drives they are quick enough for viewing video and the file transfer rate is good. I had initially put the SSD into an external cradle (FW800) and the system was faster than on the internal drive. I only got a 1.5GBs SATA drive, perhaps yours could benefit from the 3GBs. I know the 6GBs would be too fast and costs a lot more, even the MacPros need special hookups to make use of the 6GBs.

I have an iPod G2 with a firewire 400 lead. how can I attach it to my new 13 inch Mac book Pro, is there a 400 to 800 firewire converter. USB lead wont work with the Macbook Pro. iPod used as an external drive to archive memory cards on the go.

My G2 iPod that I use as an external drive to archive memory cards on the go cannot link with my new 13" Macbook Pro cause it uses a firewire 400 lead. It will not work with a USB lead. Is there a firewire 800 ipod lead or converter available? Can any one shed some light on this please?

As far as I know, if a harddrive works with a Macpro, it should work with the Macbook: if your Macbook is low on power, plug in the AC adapter
If your Macbook has a firewire port, then it should be fine. BUt i would do somemore research first.

Firewire Hubs For Use With A New Firewire 800 External Drive

I currently have 3 HD daisy chained to one of my Firewire ports. I have an older Firewire iPOD with a dock that is attached to the other Firewire Port.
I need more storage capacity so I am planning to get 1 Tetra La Cie - this model. I have had excellent experiences with LaCie.
(LaCie 301442U d2 Quadra Hard Disk 1TB eSATA/FireWire800/FireWire400/USB 2.0 External Hard Drive (Aluminum).
I would be using the new HD as a Time Machine Device and possibly as backup for my music library which is currently on one of the external HD's and backed up to a second HD.
I don't have available ports.
Are there Firewire Ports which would be functional?
Should I be considering some other sort of configuration?
This is an iMAC 24" bought in October 2006
Thanks

My music library is housed on an external hard drive so Time Machine can't be used since it requires an operating system on the source files...
That's not true. You can back up files and folders on an external drive using Time Machine, as long as they are not on the same volume as the Time Machine archive. You just go to System Preferences +Time Machine+ pane. Click on the Options button. All external drives are on the +Do not back up+ list by default. Remove the external drive (with your iTunes files) from this list of things excluded from backup.
If don't want to include everything on that external drive, put the folders you do not want backed up on the +Do not back up+ list. What I've done for my external FireWire drive (which is my primary data storage volume since my internal is only 160GB) is create two main folders. They are called Documents and +Documents (not backed up)+. They serve as an extension of the user account folder on the internal drive. Files and folders I want backed up go into Documents. Files and folders that are non-critical go into +Documents (not backed up)+. So then, the external drive volume gets removed from the +Do not back up+ list, so that Time Machine backs it up. But I put the +Documents (not backed up)+ folder back on the +Do not back up+ list so that only the Documents folder gets backed up.
If you do daisy chain off the FireWire 800 port, be sure to put the 800 drive first on the chain. Putting the 400 drive before the 800 drive will reduce the speed to the 800 drive to 400 speed.
perhaps the beach ball I often get when working with iTunes is a product of the speed of the data being accessed on the external hard drive.
My +iTunes Music+ folder is on an FireWire 400 external drive. I do not notice any issues with iTunes accessing the files. That drive is attached directly to the iMac's port with no daisy-chaining behind it. If the free space gets low, the files and remaining free space will get more fragmented, and that can also cause such issues.

Thunderbolt to Firewire 800 external drive problems

I recently upgraded from a MacBook Pro 17" early 2011 to a MacBook Pro Retina 15" (early 2013). I have a Drobo and two Seagate 4TB external drives, all connected via Firewire 800. So, I added a Thunderbolt to Firewire 800 adapter and, it seemed, life was good.
I keep my large iTunes Movie and TV show collection on the Drobo. Since transitioning to the new MacBook, I have had a number of issue with watching movies on my Apple TV 3. Randomly, and periodically, the movie appears to be corrupted - the audio track skips/loops and the image is horrible macroblocked, as if the file is damaged. When I check the movies on the Drobo, opening it with Quicktime on the MBP, it plays just fine at the same spot it appeared damaged on the Apple TV 3.
A second symptom is this: I can no longer re-encode video with Handbrake with the source and target files on the Drobo - it gets some portion of the way through and it just stops, leaving the video partially encoded; again, at random locations/offsets into the video and not the same spot twice.
My initial thought is that connection to the Drobo is dropping out and coming back, on its own, but long enough to cause the above problems.
Is anyone else seeing this issue or something related when using the Thunderbolt to Firewire 800 adapter with large drives?
Thanks, in advance.

Update: I exchanged the Thunderbolt to Firewire adapter and the issue persists. I have a Drobo that I used with my previous system, a PowerMac G5, and never had any issues like this.
It does not matter what software I use. But at some point video playback will suddenly become garbled. If I start the video from the beginning, sometimes the garbled video will start sooner but never later. A restart temporarily resolves the issue. If I copy the file to the local hard drive the video will play back garbled. This is indeed a very strange issue. The issue behaves like a bandwidth bottleneck.
I was having this issue prior to upgrading to Mavericks.
Fred K
iMac (Late 2012), 3.4 GHz i7, GTX 680MX, Fusion Drive, 24 GB RAM, Drobo (Firewire via Thunderbolt)

Firewire 800 and Iomega 2Tb External Drive

I started using an Iomega 2Tb as Time Machine just over one year ago.
Initially it connected to my iMac 27" and worked perfectly with a Firewire 800 cable.
After a couple of months it suddenly stopped working and was not recognised in Finder or Disc Utility. I contacted Iomega and they suggested I try a new cable. I did and it did not make any difference. I have no other Firewire devices to test if the problem is with the Iomega or my iMac.
I switched to USB and that worked perfectly for a while. I have subsequently had problems with the Iomega "unmounting" itself, with a Journal Error comment when I run Verify in Disc Utility.
I have reformatted and remounted the Iomega twice but it has unmounted itself again.
I rotate three external drives as Time Machine back ups. The other drives are USB Freecom and Seagate 1Tb drives. They continue to work perfectly.
Because the Iomega has also given problems when connected by USB, I suspect it is the cause of the problem.
I would hope that we have reached the stage in home computing when we can buy a device, plug it in and it works, without having to waste time problem solving.
Can any one suggest anything else I can check?

Thanks Nick. The Iomega is the only external drive with which I have experienced any problems so I guess I wasted my money and will need to try another brand.

External drive- is firewire 800 drive compatible w/ PBook g4 firewire port

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