macbook/mboxpro/external firewire...setup question

[twig]

i have a macbook. it has ONE firewire port connected to my mbox 2 pro. the mbox2 pro has TWO firewire jacks. i have a lacie external drive running usb for now.( because of the one firewire port.) the lacie 230gb 7200rpm external is firewire/usb . i assume someone makes a firewire hub?
a few questions...
1. can i run my macbook firewire.... to my mbox2 pro...and run firewire from the mbox to the lacie?(daisy chain?) if so, is the jack passive when daisy chaining? is this recommended by digi?
2. can i access the external drive as if it was direct from the macbook?
3. is a hub a better solution?
4. is the external drive meant to run from the mbox2 pro? what is the other firewire jack normally used for? unless i have missed it , none of this info is covered in my manual.
5. am i wasting time? is firewire actually that much faster? ive heard different opinions.
6. is it better to open the session from the desktop (using the internal drive which is 5400rpm i believe) or the external. i have received different answers from digi techs about this. its probably a pref thing, but i was just wondering.
thanks for the help as always!

[Ziko]

Firewire400, while in maximum speed is no better than USB2 (in fact slightly slower I think), is generally preferred for two reasons:
1. It can read and write at the same time, USB is a one way protocol so it can only read or write at one time
2. Firewire is considered more stable and reliable, you're less likely to get random issues like the device disappearing suddenly.

Running both your MBox2Pro and an external disk is supported and is a common config. It should however go macbook -> ext disk -> mbox3pro. The reason this is recommended is that if the mbox2 suddenly disappears it won't take the disk with it and potentially cause corrupted data on your disk.

You should keep your PT sessions on your firewire disk for sure, otherwise why have it? You'll get a quite considerable performance benefit from the session files being on a different disk to the OS and app. No reason not to put an alias to the .ptf file on your desktop though if you like doing that.

Hope this helps.

[twig]

Originally Posted by Ziko

Firewire400, while in maximum speed is no better than USB2 (in fact slightly slower I think), is generally preferred for two reasons:
1. It can read and write at the same time, USB is a one way protocol so it can only read or write at one time
2. Firewire is considered more stable and reliable, you're less likely to get random issues like the device disappearing suddenly.

Running both your MBox2Pro and an external disk is supported and is a common config. It should however go macbook -> ext disk -> mbox3pro. The reason this is recommended is that if the mbox2 suddenly disappears it won't take the disk with it and potentially cause corrupted data on your disk.

You should keep your PT sessions on your firewire disk for sure, otherwise why have it? You'll get a quite considerable performance benefit from the session files being on a different disk to the OS and app. No reason not to put an alias to the .ptf file on your desktop though if you like doing that.

Hope this helps.

thank you for the help. there is only one fw400, one fw800, usb2.0, and two different fw800 ports on the lacie. is there an in and out? how exactly do i hook it up in the configuration you are talking about? i'm working with only one port on the macbook. do i go in fw 800 and out 400fw? i know nothing about hooking external drives up for this application. do i need a hub?

[twig]

im so confused....do i go macbook to usb2.0 in the external.....and then 400 out? out to mbow2 pro?? do externals work that way? in and out? ahhhgrrr....help!!!!!!

[DigiTechSupt]

Given the type of drive you have, you are really limited in what you can do in this situation.

In your case, I would try putting the Mbox2 Pro in the middle of the chain:

Macbook>Mbox2 Pro>Drive

Keep the chain all firewire 400 - do NOT use the fw800 ports, as that definitely will NOT work.

If this performs well, you should be good to go. Keep in mind, however, that we do not necessarily recommend putting the interface in the middle - the reason being that, should the interface lose power for some reason, you could lose data on your drive. Not such a big deal if you're backing up your data. You are backing up all your data, right?

If this setup does not work, you really have only one option - get a firewire 400 drive that has 2 firewire 400 ports on it, so that you can put it in the middle of the chain between your Macbook and the Mbox 2 Pro.

[twig]

ahhhhhhhhhh sigh.....thank you soooooooo much! finally details. i hope this also gets to everyone else mailing me. if the mbox is in the middle of the chain, and power is an issue, do i use fw power or plug the mbox in? when shutting down wont the mbox shut down first causing probs with the external? sorry for the extra question...thanks again.

[DigiTechSupt]

Originally Posted by twig

ahhhhhhhhhh sigh.....thank you soooooooo much! finally details. i hope this also gets to everyone else mailing me. if the mbox is in the middle of the chain, and power is an issue, do i use fw power or plug the mbox in? when shutting down wont the mbox shut down first causing probs with the external? sorry for the extra question...thanks again.

You should ONLY use the power supply with the MBox 2 Pro if the firewire port on the computer is 4 pin and doesn't supply it's own power.

When shutting down - assuming you're using 'Shut Down' from the Finder menu, all devices are unmounted automatically so you won't need to worry about that.

[twig]

thank you for all of your time. its much appreciated. i have to figure out what you are talking about by "backing my data up". im not sure how to do that. as far as just burning to dvd to save some mixable files, is there a suggested way? i think i will by another hard drive anyway. would that be what i would back up to?

[DigiTechSupt]

Backing up your files means making copies of it somewhere - whether it's on DVD, CD or another hard drive is entirely up to you and your needs.

Typically the best backup method is to either manually or automatically (via a program like Super Duper, Carbon Copy Cloner, etc. to another hard drive. This will give you the quickest and easiest access to the backed up material.

Backing up to DVD can work as well, though it takes longer, costs more in the long run and is not as easy to 'update' and keep current, since you have to burn a DVD every time you back up. With the hard drive option and software, you can just have the software update only those files that have changed since your last backup.

Hope that helps.

[twig]

Originally Posted by DigiTechSupt

Backing up your files means making copies of it somewhere - whether it's on DVD, CD or another hard drive is entirely up to you and your needs.

Typically the best backup method is to either manually or automatically (via a program like Super Duper, Carbon Copy Cloner, etc. to another hard drive. This will give you the quickest and easiest access to the backed up material.

Backing up to DVD can work as well, though it takes longer, costs more in the long run and is not as easy to 'update' and keep current, since you have to burn a DVD every time you back up. With the hard drive option and software, you can just have the software update only those files that have changed since your last backup.

Hope that helps.

yes that helped 100 percent...i will now use my lacre for backups and will get another "approved digi hard drive with the proper firewire ports for my mbox2 pro. i was about to return it . now it has a perfect use. unless im missing something and shouldnt use it for backing up....lol i doubt that would be the case. but my luck....thanks again digi.. i owe you a beer!