IMac 24" + 2 daisy-chained bus-powered external hard disks: possible?

Hello everyone,
I have a 24" iMac and two G-Drive Mini external hard disks. Currently, one of the disks is connected to the FW 800 port, and the other to a USB port. Each is powered by it's respective bus. I would love to have the use of the USB port for other purposes. Is it possible to daisy chain both drives to the FW 800 port without an external power supply?
If not, can I power one drive on the FW 800 bus, and the other with an external supply, or must I use two external power supplies? Does it matter which device, first or last in the daisy chain, is powered by the external supply?
Thanks in advance . . .

Hi Captain Spalding
The iMac's FireWire port supports 7 watt.
http://support.apple.com/kb/SP507
Check the ratings of both the Mini G-Drives and add that together? If it is over 5 watts, then I would suggest using the external power supply on at least the first drive in the chain.
The power has to come from somewhere and personally to keep the power demand on the iMac as low as possible, I use external power with all of my desktop FireWire Drives.
Dennis

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This also happens on the PB 15". It is perceived as a problem. If you check via the System Profiler you will likely see that the USB port output is 500mA. Most drives - in a USB or FW case - need 1A to boot. There are some drives that will boot with 500mA. If a 500mA drive is installed in the USB case it should boot off the bus power. If using a ext HD you can only boot the computer from the FW port and not the USB or PCMCIA slot.
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For the longest time, FireWire was the only practical solution to bus-powered hard drives. FireWire provides a heck of a lot of power (typically 7 to 8W) while USB by definition provides up to 2.5W per port (if powered). FireWire has so many advantages, but cost seems to be the consideration that's won out.
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Message was edited by: ypw

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IMac 24" + 2 daisy-chained bus-powered external hard disks: possible?

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