PCMCIA/USB card. Simple question

G

galatippen

New Member
Hello! :)

My first post is a simple question. I've been looking for a PCMCIA/USB card to use with my external USB sound card. It appears that such cards require an external power source, such as a USB-port or even a separate power adapter. Is this correct? I only need to use one single USB-port on the PCMCIA card, and it seems a bit strange that the power of my PCMCIA port on my laptop should be insufficient for a simple USB soundcard.. Are there any cards that don't need en external power source..?
 
I assume we're talking laptop here? can you give us the name of the sound card and model number to give us a clearer picture of the hardware involved ;)
 
sg1 said:
I assume we're talking laptop here? can you give us the name of the sound card and model number to give us a clearer picture of the hardware involved ;)
Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply! Laptop, yes. It is a Line6 Toneport UX2 soundcard. It has only a USB connection with the computer. There are two XLR microphone inputs with phantom-power. I'm trying to get rid of a problem with noise during playback and was tipped to try the PCMCIA port instead of the existing USB ports...
 
The PCMCIA socket/port DOES seem to push out better/more power than the 5V USB sockets which is why external PCMCIA wireless cards seem to perform better too.
I don't know if you have any documentation for your card but here's some if you haven't .

As for a PCMCIA to USB card - you CAN get them and they WOULD probably help things a bit. maybe you're just drawing too much power through it maybe with whatever you have connected(I'm assuming a guitar)

BTW... how old is the laptop? are you sure it's PCMCIA and not PC express?

OR....you could try a USB powered hub that plugs into the mains ;)
 
sg1 said:
The PCMCIA socket/port DOES seem to push out better/more power than the 5V USB sockets which is why external PCMCIA wireless cards seem to perform better too.
I don't know if you have any documentation for your card but here's some if you haven't .

As for a PCMCIA to USB card - you CAN get them and they WOULD probably help things a bit. maybe you're just drawing too much power through it maybe with whatever you have connected(I'm assuming a guitar)

BTW... how old is the laptop? are you sure it's PCMCIA and not PC express?

OR....you could try a USB powered hub that plugs into the mains ;)
Click to expand...

Thanks again :)

I'm not really sure what the difference between PCICIA and PC express is... :confused:. I have two ports on the side of my laptop. The smaller one says "ExpressCard/34" and the bigger is blank and about twice the size... I just assumed the bigger was the PCMCIA port.. My laptop is about two years old. Acer, 2gb RAM, Dual Core 1.66gHz, three USB ports..

The noise problem occurs even when there is nothing other than analog audio outs connected to the soundcard. I have tried adjusting latency & buffers, updated drivers etc, but nothing helps... I think the problem lies with the hardware. People on the Line6 forums recommend to try a PCMICIA/USB card in cases like mine... But if such a card needs an additional stupid power cable, I'm not sure if it's worth the bother.... If I could only find a card that does not require extra power, I believe I will just buy it and try, but those seem to be rare...
 
PCMCIA are mainly for older hardware nowadays and AFAIK you don't get PCMCIA usb cards with an extra power adapter needed ;)
 
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