IRONY: 2 Apple Displays & 1 Firewire Port

I find oddly unsettling that my brand new setup (3.2 Mac Pro + 2x 23" Cinema's) has an obvious flaw. Two Displays means I have two USB / FW hubs built in, yet when I run the cables across my desk and down to the Mac Pro, I can plug in the 2 DVI and 2 USB cables, but one of the FireWire cables is left to dangle since there is only 1 FireWire 400 port on the back. To make matters worse, the cable isn't long enough stretch around front (not that I would want to).
Design flaw? Logistic over sight? Laziness? I sure won't return the thing, but wow this seems odd.

Well, actually there are two ways to look at it, none maybe from my angle. There is only ONE bus and you are just splitting (hairs) to daisy-chain devices. At least the 2008 is now linked to a new PCI Express bridge inside so FW800 is better, but all FireWire ports are running on one bus/channel.
Add a PCI Express card, and that may have multiple ports, but only one (extra) bus.
Then you have problems if you end up mixing drives and consumer electronics on the same bus. And, to make matters worse, there are some problems users experience with the built-in USB hub(s) in the ACD, keyboard, etc.
You don't say what you need to attach, whether a powered hub or 2nd controller would help, or whether best served with SATA drive controller.

Similar Messages

What can I connect to the cinema display´s firewire port?

What do you think of connecting an external hard drive to the cinema display´s firewire port? My other firewire ports on my G5 are already occupied.

The FireWire ports on a Cinema Display can be used with anything that the FireWire ports on a Mac can be used for; they are included because a Mac and external monitor may be set up in a way that prevents the ports on the computer from being easily accessed.
(23780)

Power shortage caused by mini-display touching firewire port.

I discovered if you touch the in firewire port with a mini-display adaptor the power cuts and you need to restart the machine.
Has anyone else discovered this happens or is it jsut this one machine?

Well that would create a dead short between the pins on the FW port, as the mini display adapter has a metal outer surround, I would think that it cause an issue with any machine as these pins are not intended to ever touch. BE CAREFUL!

Is a 1394 mini firewire port for DV cameras a regular firewire port?

I wanted use the mini 1394 mini fire wire port for some peripherals (IDE drive in firewire enclosure). I have digital camera cable with a 4pin? mini firewire plug and a 6pin? normal fire wire plug (both are males). Or mini fire wire ports for cameras only. All I will do is some backups, performance is not needed.
Just cause it fits, it don't make it right. (remember the ADB and Svhs cables?)
I do not want to be surprised with a burnt inexpensive resistor that cost very much to change.
Thankyou in advance

No, Apple dropped the firewire port on the White Unibody MacBooks in 2009. If you you need a firewire port you'll have to upgrade to a MacBook Pro or get a used pre-2009 MacBook.

Firewire port for Canon XH-A1s camera

I am considering buying a Canon XH-A1s camera. However, I would have to connect it to a firewire port, and don't currently have one on my macbook. Is there any way to have one installed? (also, I've heard that USB to Firewire adapters don't work for this purpose).

No, Apple dropped the firewire port on the White Unibody MacBooks in 2009. If you you need a firewire port you'll have to upgrade to a MacBook Pro or get a used pre-2009 MacBook.

MBPro w/Mini DisplayPort to Cinema Display w/only USB and Firewire ports?

I've searched the threads for something that will explain what kind of cable I need to use my Cinema Display with my MacBook Pro, and I'm not finding anything. The MacBook Pro has the Mini DisplayPort for video out, and the Cinema Display's only ports are two USB and two FireWire.
All of the video cables I've seen in the online Apple store are either Mini DisplayPort to DVI or Mini DisplayPort to VGA, neither of which would work. Tech support told me that the computer and the display are compatible -- can anyone tell me which cable I need?

I have been using the display for several years, connected to my G4 PPC Mac Pro. Now that I have a new MacBook Pro, I was thinking of getting rid of the tower and simply using the laptop.
The cord coming out of the back of the display is connected to the tower with both the DVI plug and two USB plugs. It didn't occur to me to look on that cord because my understanding was that there was a port on the display itself, and I always think of that cord as simply a power cord.
I understand getting a DVI-to-Mini DisplayPort converter cable, but the Cinema Display is apparently powered by the Mac Pro tower. Would a laptop be able to power the Cinema Display? And would I have to connect both USB plugs to the laptop? That would take up both of the MacBook Pro's USB ports.

Dual Displays, not enough firewire ports?!

My MacPro isn't here yet...and I only have 1 cinema display right now but plan on adding a 2nd one in a few months.
In my anticipation for the Mac to be dropped of by FedEx, I noticed something while reviewing the specs...
My video card, the ATI Radeon X1900, has two DVI ports (so I can do two 23" or whatnot). If I use the my 23" Cinema Display, I can plug in the USB, the Firewire & the DVI connector.
However!! If I get a 2nd 23" Cinema Display, there's room for another DVI port and USB but NO firewire port. There's only ONE 400 FW port on the back of this machine?!?!
What do you all do if you're dual displaying it w/ Apple displays??

Well, the Firewire cable/port in the monitor is only there as a hub/extender, it doesn't affect the working of the monitor itself. So you can always attach the cable from the second monitor into the Firewire port of the first monitor. It depends how many other Firewire devices you need to add.
Matt

USB-C to mini display port and thunderbolt apple displays

I currently have a 24 in late 2008 Apple Cinema Display connected to a 2008 MacBook. This particular display has a three pronged connector (MagSafe, mini DisplayPort, conventional USB). I am thinking of upgrading to the new MacBook but am concerned about the compatibility with my display. Will there be an adapter or solution to connect the USB-C port to the three pronged connector of the apple Cinema Display? I see that USB-C port has support for hdmi, VGA, and standard display port but I see nothing about Mini DisplayPort or MagSafe. There is also no mention of thunderbolt dislay connectivity (for newer adopters of Apple displays). I understand innovation often comes at a price but it seems like a fairly large oversight to potentially obsolete fairly expensive larger apple Mini DisplayPort and thunderbolt devices for people who are looking to upgrade. This will certainly factor into my decision in purchasing new apple laptops in the future, especially if the standard inevitably moves toward USB-C on all devices. Thanks for any help!

You can connect your 24" display with the Apple HDMI adapter
<http://store.apple.com/us/product/MJ1K2AM/A/usb-c-digital-av-multiport-adapter>
followed by a HDMI to Mini DisplayPort converter
<http://www.kanex.com/xd>
The MacBook USB-C connector does support DisplayPort, so there may be a future adapter that would avoid the HDMI conversion.
You won't be able to use the MagSafe cable.

Recent Leopard Update Messes up Cinema Display Firewire Ports

Okay, this is really odd. I have a Lacie Porsche DVD-RWDL Firewire drive hooked up to my Mac Pro via my 23" Cinema display. The cinema display firewire cable was connected directly to the back of the mac pro. Lastly my iSight was connected to the open firewire port on the Lacie. This worked just fine for the longest time under both Tiger and up until very recently in leopard.
Now tho the DVD Drive is not recognized by any programs (Toast, etc) or by System Profiler (Unknown Device) when it is connected to the cinema display. Oddly enough it is detected when connected directly to the mac pro (or for troubleshooting sake I tried my G4 cube w/ Tiger... it also detected it). On top of that the iSight will work when plugged into either the Lacie or the Cinema Display... so its not like the cinema display's pots are dead (the USB works fine).
This is pretty obscure I know... but has anyone ran into something similar? I figure its either some very, very weird hardware problem or or one of the many recent updates to leopard has things acting goofy.
Thanks

I have a similar problem with my 20" cinema display. Try unplugging and replugging the device. That's been working for me, although it is an annoyance.

HT1338 I have macbook without a firewire port, I have usb 2.0 port, now my os is not working I can not get through apple logo loading , I can not enter safe mode, I can only enter one user mode, how can I backup my data, I have very important data in my h

I have macbook without a firewire port, I have usb 2.0 port, now my os is not working I can not get through apple logo loading , I can not enter safe mode, I can only enter one user mode, how can I backup my data, I have very important data in my hdd

Here is what worked for me:
My usb hub, being usb2, was too fast. I moved the wire to a usb port directory on my pc. That is a usb1 port which is slow enough to run your snyc.

What is wrong with my 30" Cinema Display? The USB and FireWire ports still work, but the screen is pitch black. When you plug it into the computer, it detects that it's a Cinema Display.

When you plug it into the computer, it detects that it's a Cinema HD but the screen is pitch black.
For some reason, the USB and FireWire ports still work.

If you shine a really bright light directly into the screen can you then see a faint image on the screen? If so, that would indicate the backlight has died (hardware failure) and the unit needs repairing.

Full Firewire Port Failure (three different machines : iMac Intel, iMac G5, Black Macbook)

I'm experiencing a failure of all FireWire ports on all of my three machines. I believe this problem began with a faulty external, FireWire powered hard drive from G-Tech. Here are all my specs, followed by a rundown of the order of events that has lead to this situation, followed by the various troubleshooting I have done.
Equipment :
iMac Aluminum Intel - 24" Mid 2007 - running OsX 10.5.8 - currently 1 FW400 and 1 FW800 ports disabled
iMac G5 - 20" - running OsX 10.5.8 - currently 2 FW400 ports disabled
MacBook - 13" black Early 2008 - running OsX 10.5.8 - currently 1 FW400 port disabled
2 500GB G-Drives (by G-Tech) - AC powered
1 5TB G-RAID Drive (by G-Tech) - AC powered
1 250GB G-Drive Mini (by G-Tech) - FW powered
Initial Setup :
1 500GB G-Drive connected directly to iMac Intel via FW800
1 500GB G-Drive connected to first 500GB G-Drive via FW800 (daisy chained)
1 250GB G-Drive connected to second 500GB G-Drive via FW400 (daisy chained)
1 5TB G-RAID connected directly to iMac Intel via FW800>400 adapter
Sequence of Events :
I had transferred some files to my G-Drive Mini in order to move them to my MacBook from my iMac Intel. I copied the files to the G-Drive Mini and ejected it normally and plugged it into my MacBook via FW400. The drive would not mount, and the power indication light would not go on. After experimenting with various connections and cables I was able to get the drive to power with FW400 and USB connected at the same time, but the drive would still not mount.
I then plugged the G-Drive Mini back into the 2nd 500GB G-Drive as it was previously connected via FW400. This action caused the G-Drive to immediately reboot and eject itself from my iMac Intel.
I then attempted to plug the G-Drive Mini into my older iMac G5 via FW400. Immediately upon plugging in, the computer shut down, and would not restart.
At this point I kind of started to freak out. I was unaware of the extent of the damage, but was upset that the FW powered G-Drive Mini had shutdown my iMac G5. I contacted G-Tech Support and they offered to replace the drive and instructed me how to manually reset the computer's SMC by opening up the iMac and finding the Cuda switch. This worked and the computer was able to start and function again, but the FW400 port seemed to be disabled.
I then tried to swap out configurations and drives on my iMac Intel to see if there was any cable problems, but doing so, slowly rendered all my FireWire ports useless. It's almost as if the act of plugging in the FW-powered G-Drive Mini started a kind of shortout chain reaction. I soon learned that none of my hard drives would connect to any of my three machines, with any kind of cable combination via FW400 or 800.
I am currently able to connect my 5TB G-RAID drive to any machine via USB, as well as my G-Drive Mini. I am unable to access the other two external hard drives, as one has only FW400 and 800 ports and the other's USB connection is not functional as well on any machine.
Troubleshooting Steps Taken :
I have on all machines, reset the SMC in the following methods. iMac G5 - manually, by opening the case and pressing Cuda switch. iMac Intel - unplug, hold power button, restart method. MacBook - unplug, hold power button, restart method.
I have also on all machines, reset the PRAM by the Cmnd + Opt + P + R method at startup.
I have also unplugged all cables / removed battery, from all machines and left alone for a period of at least 12 hours, then re-plugged in each device one at a time.
I have also restored my hibernate mode (through Terminal) on my iMac Intel to mode 3 and also turned on Virtual Memory in system preferences and set hibernatemode to mode 7, the restarted and attempted to plug in devices. The reason I even began to deal with the hibernate mode was because I had around the same time my ports began malfunctioning, installed the DeepSleep widget, which allows you to control your computer's hibernate mode. I thought that tweaking with this setting may have made my computer incapable of recognizing devices that were plugged in. I have since uninstalled the widget and experimented with different hibernatemodes to no avail.
I also have Repaired Disk Permissions and Repaired Disk on all my machines, from within my Admin User as well as from the OsX Install Disk.
Sometimes in my System Profiler (like right now for example on my iMac Intel) my computer is "Unable to list FireWire devices," but sometimes, no warning message comes up and it simply displays the appropriate Bus speed.
I also conducted a system restore using a backup from my 5TB G-Raid Drive via USB, to a date before these problems started, but my ports are still not working.
Summary :
I am looking at a situation where all my FW ports on all my computers appear to be disabled, and possibly also on my four external hard drives, with one possible USB port malfunction on one external drive. The only root of this seems to be a malfunctioning FW-powered external hard drive.
Is this possible? Has this happened to anyone else before? G-Tech assures me that it is impossible for my 250GB G-Drive Mini to draw enough power from a computer to permanently disable any ports, but I have tried all of the FW port problem troubleshooting steps and am at a loss.
I do not have AppleCare and would like to avoid bringing two iMacs, a MacBook and four hard drives to the Apple store and take my chances with the geniuses.
I would appreciate any help or advice you all have. Thanks for reading and for your support!

Ok. So if that was too confusing, I've re-labeled this post with letters for my hard drives and some mapping of the connectivity configurations I have attempted.
Equipment :
iMac Aluminum Intel - 24" Mid 2007 - running OsX 10.5.8 - currently 1 FW400 and 1 FW800 ports disabled
iMac G5 - 20" - running OsX 10.5.8 - currently 2 FW400 ports disabled
MacBook - 13" black Early 2008 - running OsX 10.5.8 - currently 1 FW400 port disabled
1 500GB G-Drive (by G-Tech) w/ no USB port - AC powered : A
1 500GB G-Drive (by G-Tech) w/ USB port - AC powered : B
1 5TB G-RAID Drive (by G-Tech) - AC powered : C
1 250GB G-Drive Mini (by G-Tech) - FW powered : D
Initial Setup :
C > FW400-800 adapter > iMac Intel
D > FW400 > A > FW800 > B > FW800 > iMac Intel
Sequence of Events :
D > FW400 > MacBook
I had transferred some files to my G-Drive Mini D in order to move them to my MacBook from my iMac Intel. I copied the files to the G-Drive Mini D and ejected it normally and plugged it into my MacBook via FW400. The drive would not mount, and the power indication light would not go on. After experimenting with various connections and cables I was able to get the drive to power with FW400 and USB connected at the same time, but the drive would still not mount.
D > FW400 > A > FW800 > B > FW800 > iMac Intel
I then plugged the G-Drive Mini D back into the 2nd 500GB G-Drive A as it was previously connected via FW400. This action caused the G-Drive to immediately reboot and eject itself from my iMac Intel.
D > FW400 > iMac G5
I then attempted to plug the G-Drive Mini into my older iMac G5 via FW400. Immediately upon plugging in, the computer shut down, and would not restart.
At this point I kind of started to freak out. I was unaware of the extent of the damage, but was upset that the FW powered G-Drive Mini D had shutdown my iMac G5. I contacted G-Tech Support and they offered to replace the drive and instructed me how to manually reset the computer's SMC by opening up the iMac and finding the Cuda switch. This worked and the computer was able to start and function again, but the FW400 port seemed to be disabled.
I then tried to swap out configurations and drives on my iMac Intel to see if there was any cable problems, but doing so, slowly rendered all my FireWire ports useless. It's almost as if the act of plugging in the FW-powered G-Drive Mini D started a kind of shortout chain reaction. I soon learned that none of my hard drives would connect to any of my three machines, with any kind of cable combination via FW400 or 800.
D > USB > AnyMachine
C > USB > AnyMachine
I am currently able to connect my 5TB G-RAID C drive to any machine via USB, as well as my G-Drive Mini D. I am unable to access the other two external hard drives, as one has only FW400 and 800 ports (A) and the other's USB connection is not functional as well on any machine (B).
Troubleshooting Steps Taken :
I have on all machines, reset the SMC in the following methods. iMac G5 - manually, by opening the case and pressing Cuda switch. iMac Intel - unplug, hold power button, restart method. MacBook - unplug, hold power button, restart method.
I have also on all machines, reset the PRAM by the Cmnd + Opt + P + R method at startup.
I have also unplugged all cables / removed battery, from all machines and left alone for a period of at least 12 hours, then re-plugged in each device one at a time.
I have also restored my hibernate mode (through Terminal) on my iMac Intel to mode 3 and also turned on Virtual Memory in system preferences and set hibernatemode to mode 7, the restarted and attempted to plug in devices. The reason I even began to deal with the hibernate mode was because I had around the same time my ports began malfunctioning, installed the DeepSleep widget, which allows you to control your computer's hibernate mode. I thought that tweaking with this setting may have made my computer incapable of recognizing devices that were plugged in. I have since uninstalled the widget and experimented with different hibernatemodes to no avail.
I also have Repaired Disk Permissions and Repaired Disk on all my machines, from within my Admin User as well as from the OsX Install Disk.
Sometimes in my System Profiler (like right now for example on my iMac Intel) my computer is "Unable to list FireWire devices," but sometimes, no warning message comes up and it simply displays the appropriate Bus speed.
I also conducted a system restore using a backup from my 5TB G-Raid Drive C via USB, to a date before these problems started, but my ports are still not working.
Summary :
I am looking at a situation where all my FW ports on all my computers appear to be disabled, and possibly also on my four external hard drives (A, B, C, D), with one possible USB port malfunction on one external drive (B). The only root of this seems to be a malfunctioning FW-powered external hard drive.
Is this possible? Has this happened to anyone else before? G-Tech assures me that it is impossible for my 250GB G-Drive Mini D to draw enough power from a computer to permanently disable any ports, but I have tried all of the FW port problem troubleshooting steps and am at a loss.
I do not have AppleCare and would like to avoid bringing two iMacs, a MacBook and four hard drives to the Apple store and take my chances with the geniuses.
I would appreciate any help or advice you all have. Thanks for reading and for your support!

USB/FireWire Ports Issue

So before I go into the apple store and ask for this computer to be repaired/replaced, I would like to see if anyone knows if something can be done about this issue I have pinpointed..
Basically when I have more than a few USB/FireWire ports connected, one or more of the devices does not function properly. This has happened with two external hard drives - which should have no problem being connected simultaneously.. When I try to eject one of them, I receive a message stating that it cannot be ejected because one or more programs may be using it.. although all programs are closed, causing me to have to force eject..
Also, I plug in one drive and open the other in finder to back it up, and all of the folders in the drive are suddenly empty.. nothing inside. I go to Get Info.. Zero KB.. I try ejecting, but receive the same message, so I force eject, plug it back in, and wala, all the files are back in the right place..
This has also happened in the past when my cinema display and a printer were plugged in simultaneously.. the computer won't detect the USB of the cinema display -- which only means that the speakers of the display won't work + no brightness control from the keyboard.. so i let it slide.. but now with this external hard drive issue, i need to solve the problem..
Thank you for reading..

Same here. Since a few weeks, my MacPro ejects USB HDD's as soon as I write or read data on it.
(no I haven't installed something new at this time and all HUB's and HDD's have their own power supply, and yes they have been exchanged, so its not a broken cable or so !!!!!!!!)
After a reset of the NVRAM and PRAM its better for an hour or so, then starts to eject again. I've seen a lot of communities with exact the same question, but never a solution for it. There is also nothing in the support tab of apple.
Hope someone here can help me out or due to the fact that this is a AplleSupportCommunity, a Apple-Employee may starts to do his job and help this huge amount (I guess there are hundrets or tousand) of mac-user with exact the same problem....
btw: don't agree with MACATTACK2010 that this is a hardware problem, cause there are a lot of people in the
net that ask the same question with brandnew Hardware. I think it's an OS or an Update Bug, or may both.

Will the Apple Thunderbolt to FireWire Adaptor allow me to connect to my ProFire 610?

Was using this for recording live instruments & vocals on a G5, but there's no Firewire port on the current iMacs.

When you plug the projector into the computer, with the projector on, dose the computer reconize a second a 2nd display is connected?
ie: Menu bar, click on the Apple menu, chose System Preferences, click on displays, do you see an arragment tab?
if you do see an arragment tab, try clicking gather display windows. a window should pop up for the projector. What resolution is it set to? is there a lower resolution you could set?

Macbook w/Apple Display Questions

Hi,
Two questions:
1. Would there be three connections between a Macbook and a Apple Display?
a. DVI
b. USB
c. Firewire
2. How would the Macbook (1 FW 400 and 2 USB 2 ports) treat the 4 USB's and two FW 400 ports on the display?
Thanks!
Donny

To connect one of the current (aluminum) Apple displays to your MacBook, you'll first need the mini-DVI to DVI adapter. This will connect to your MacBook's mini-DVI port and then the display will connect to the full-sized DVI port on the adapter. You can connect the USB and/or FireWire cables from the display if you want. It's not required.
If you do connect the FireWire cable to your MacBook, the display acts as a FireWire hub and will allow you to connect two FireWire devices. These continue to run at the full 400Mbps speed of FireWire.
If you do connect the USB cable to your MacBook, the display acts as a USB hub and will allow you to connect two USB devices. The hub inside the current displays is a powered USB 2.0 hub so you should be able to plug-in any USB 1.1 or 2.0 devices.
-Doug

IRONY: 2 Apple Displays & 1 Firewire Port

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