Why Don't USB Hubs Work?

    Hi,


    I know from reading the manual that I should connect my Virus TI directly to my computer's built-in USB ports, but I am wondering if there is an actual technical limitation that prevents USB hubs from working, or if this is just a "best practice" to help users from seeing any issues and as a result Virus Control enforces that the connection is through a built-in port.


    Specifically, I am using a late 2008 MacBook Pro with a PCI Express slot. This laptop only has two built-in USB ports. I bought a PCI Express expansion card that gives me an additional four USB ports, and I can easily use these additional ports for less demanding peripherals such as a USB mouse (which is really what I bought it for). However, I was hoping that I would be able to use the Virus TI on this hub if I wanted to. Sadly, Virus Control doesn't like it when I connect the TI via the hub, saying that the "audio driver failed to load" when I open up the Virus Control plugin in Logic.


    So, my questions are these.


    1) Since a PCI Express card slot is so fast and gives me direct connectivity to my computer's bus (much like a PCI expansion card on a tower's motherboard would do), what's the real technical difference between using a built-in USB port and using USB ports on a PCI Express expansion card?


    2) Does Virus Control actually perform explicit checks to see if the Virus is connected to a USB hub and then prevent the device from working, or is the driver actually failing due to a real connectivity issue? My guess is that the USB bus check is explicit, since if I connect my Virus via the PCI Express card, it shows up as an audio interface as normal everywhere except for Virus Control (i.e. in the Sound preference pane). Also, Virus Control Center did not have any issues connecting to it via the PCI Express bus.


    If a USB bus connection is checked for programmatically in the software and forced to fail, I would like to request that a feature be added to Virus Control allowing advanced users to turn off this check at their own risk. Each system is unique, so if I have a system that uses expansion cards but is using a hub fast enough to support the Virus being connected to it, I feel like I should be allowed to do so. Each user can then experiment with their system and fall back to built-in USB ports if they have problems. I'd really like to have an engineer from Access weigh in on this issue if possible.


    Thanks as always for the attention to the forums and for making such a great instrument; I have to admit that the Virus is the best piece of kit I have ever purchased and I am always babbling about it to my friends! I'm also looking forward to the support for Snow Leopard, with which I see you guys are making great progress.


    Cheers,


    - max

    I second this request.
    I understand the "no hub" check is there to avoid countless support questions, but let advanced users try it at their own risk, unless there's a real technical reason.

    The real issue is that when you install USB drivers - you install a device to a specific port (note they always tell you to plug into the same port).


    If you want your virus to work on a different port, you basically have to reinstall it to make sure all the drivers are working happily - I don't think there should be any problem using that PCIe card's USB slots, you may just have to reinstall your virus (I think with the added multi virus functionality they make sure each virus sticks to a specific port, too?).


    I guess when using a hub, keeping to the same port becomes troublesome - I dont know if, when you remove the hub, it loses track of which port is which or something (my knowledge of USB is very poor) or whatever, or just that it may create some extra latency...


    The solution is, of course, to have the Virus in one of the ports, then attach the hub to the other port for everything else if you only have 2 ports by default - but as i said, your virus should work in your PCIe device, its not a hub its a completely new host...

    I appreciate the speculation, but I'd really like to know for sure from an Access engineer or support tech. I can plug my MOTU 828 in to whichever USB port I like regardless of which one it is connected to when I install the driver, so unless there is a specific reason I need to do this for the Virus, it should work in any port.

    if you want real support why don't you send this request to tech support instead of posting it on the forums? this is about discussion about these questions and more.



    Best regards,



    Stef

    http://www.myspace.com/monoproductionstm


    DAW: Cubase 5
    OS: Windows 7


    MB: Asus Rampage Extreme
    RAM: 4x 2GB DDR3 @ 1600MHz
    CPU: Intel core 2 quad @ 3.0 GHz
    GPU: ATI EAH 4890 1GB
    Sound: t.c. eletronic Konnekt 8
    Monitoring: 2x KRK rp6 g2 + 1x KRK rp10s
    DSP: UAD, t.c. eletronic Powercore 6000 including virus powercore
    USB: Virus Ti Polar
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