6085 error question about 6085 error mbox2 pro MacBook pro unibody 13". HELP

[TREXROCK]

Question about a 6085 error and mbox2 pro
I just recently upgraded to a new unibody 13 " MacBook pro from the MacBook white. I started receiving 6085 FireWire errors when I started using the new computer. I found in another thread that mbox 2 pro and FireWire 800 hard drives are not compatible with one another. That said I was using the same drive as I did with the white MacBook. Is the error happening because the new MacBook pro has an 800 port as oppossed to the 400 port on the white mb? What is the issue and can or will it be resolved with software updates? What can I do on my end to fix this?

[Obsidian Dragon]

Some folks have resolved this issue by using a Firewire 400 drive that has two Firewire 400 ports and a Belkin Firewire 800 to Firewire 400 adapter cable. Connect the Belkin Firewire 800 to Firewire 400 adapter cable from the MacBook Pro's Firewire 800 port to one of the the a Firewire 400 ports on the Firewire 400 drive and then daisy chaining from the drives other Firewire 400 port to the Firewire 400 port on the Mbox2Pro.

I know, you're asking what about my Firewire 800 drive? Save it for the day Digidesign makes a Firewire 800 interface. Or use it when you aren't using the Mbox2Pro. Apple really did Digidesign wrong when they removed the Firewire ports on the first unibody Macbook and Macbook Air and then stuck it to them again with just having Firewire 800 on the newest Macbook Pros, iMacs, and Mac Minis. At least on a Mac Pro, you can add a PCI card to get Firewire 400. Oh and on the 17" Macbook pro you can add an express card adapter for Firewire 400 too.

[Carsonic]

Just wanted to say thanks O.D. I had the same problem. Putting the MBox 2 Pro after the FW400 drive made it work for me. Hallelujah!

[webnub]

Sorry if I sound silly but when you say "drive" you mean hard drive? I searched in google for firewire drives but all I got was pci cards and external hard drives..
In that case we have macbook-> harddrive-> soundcard and this is supposed to work?

[Obsidian Dragon]

Originally Posted by webnub

Sorry if I sound silly but when you say "drive" you mean hard drive? I searched in google for firewire drives but all I got was pci cards and external hard drives..
In that case we have macbook-> harddrive-> soundcard and this is supposed to work?

Yes. That is exactly how it is supposed to work.

[webnub]

Ok thanks a lot for the answer! though I cant really figure how the driver could work through the hard drive, probably the hard drive acts like a simple bus in this case.. anyway thanks a lot!

[Banana]

Originally Posted by Carsonic

Just wanted to say thanks O.D. I had the same problem. Putting the MBox 2 Pro after the FW400 drive made it work for me. Hallelujah!

I had the same problem, and this is what I did to remedy it too. It would be nice if there was a genuine fix for this, as it's not recommended to hook it up this way.

[DigiTechSupt]

Originally Posted by Banana

I had the same problem, and this is what I did to remedy it too. It would be nice if there was a genuine fix for this, as it's not recommended to hook it up this way.

Where are you reading that? This is a perfectly acceptable way of connecting those devices...

[Banana]

Originally Posted by DigiTechSupt

Where are you reading that? This is a perfectly acceptable way of connecting those devices...

Well, I seem to be reading something about risks of corrupting the HDD if the Mbox fails for some reason. I've always been told that the proper way to connect it is to connect the HDD to the Mac, then the Mbox to the HDD. This only resulted in the 6085 error, but switching places so the Mbox is connected directly to the Mac fixed the problem.

Are you saying that this is also a totally acceptable way of connecting the hardware? I may have misunderstood the information given, that's always an option.

[DigiTechSupt]

Originally Posted by Banana

Well, I seem to be reading something about risks of corrupting the HDD if the Mbox fails for some reason. I've always been told that the proper way to connect it is to connect the HDD to the Mac, then the Mbox to the HDD. This only resulted in the 6085 error, but switching places so the Mbox is connected directly to the Mac fixed the problem.

Are you saying that this is also a totally acceptable way of connecting the hardware? I may have misunderstood the information given, that's always an option.

It's perfectly acceptable, yes. The 'recommended' way that you're describing (Mac>HDD>Audio hardware) is better, but not absolutely necessary.

The reason we gave the recommendation was mainly for 002/003 owners - who could turn off the unit without consideration for the drive attached. It was mainly to avoid that situation - though it's easily avoidable, just don't turn off the 002/003 while the drive is mounted.

In the case of an Mbox 2 Pro, that situation is unlikely, as a vast majority of users run it via bus power, so it can't be turned off.