5m usb 3 cables?

[h0ughy]

ok i realise that i need to directly connect one of my cameras so i can image comfortably without doing cord yoga from the back of the observatory pc. it the moment i am using a 1.8m extension a to b usb3 lead

i have found but an wary of some leads, so i was looking at https://www.lindy.com.au/5m-usb-3-0-type-a-to-b-cable-cromo-line and this one https://au.grandado.com/products/bochara-usb-3-0-printer-cable-built-in-ic-chipset-usb-3-0-type-a-male-to-usb-3-0-type-b-male-foil-braided-shielded-5m-10m?variant=18270347657273&currency=AUD&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI-Myx4K6o6QIVBFRgCh1wgwdkEAkYBiABEgIN WfD_BwE


so seeing as though this may be grounds that have been trod upon before i am seeking some wisdom from the forum?:question::screwy::help:

[Startrek]

I’m sick of using the cheap 5m USB3 cables ( $20 to $30 range ) that fail or intermittently fail all the time so I lashed and bought a Startech 5m USB3 cable ( $190 , yes I know a ridiculous price ) to run my new ZWOASI2600MC camera when I pick it up in a few months
These cables are guaranteed to perform at optimal bandwidth

Sorry but I can’t give you a review yet , but I’ll post a review once I’ve used it for a few months

Cheers

[glend]

I have used a 5m powered (active) USB3 cable for a couple of years, for my ASI1600. Direct connection camera to laptop, plug your supplied camera cable into the powered extension. No problem with it at all. Just need to plug into a dedicated USB3 port on your laptop. Don't try to run it through a hub. Uses a 5V power supply, which is sold separately.

https://www.jaycar.com.au/active-usb-3-0-extension-cable-5m/p/XC4126

David the two you listed are passive cables, which numerous people have had problems with when used with ASI cameras, they just don't have the punch needed.

[Merlin66]

Glen,
The JayCar USB3 5 mtr power cable doesn’t mention or show the 5v “extra” power connection.
It’s mentioned and shown on the 10 mtr version??????

Looks like you’d still need a USB 3 cable between the extension and the camera. Would be better if the powered cable was a direct one piece connection to the camera??

[h0ughy]

Was hoping for an option that didn't require power so that would work in the field and at home

[Camelopardalis]

I use a cheapie 5m USB3 cable I bought from MSY for either $6 or $8 a couple of years ago. I use it for deep sky and planetary. I figure if it fails early I haven’t lost much :shrug:

[h0ughy]

did you find how much speed difference you lost with the length?

[h0ughy]

Glen do you know what cables people decided on or how they failed?

[glend]

David, I was following the original ASI1600 buyers thread on Cloudy Nights, where people were trying various extension cables and hub combinations. The active cable recommendation came out of the experience of those users. You could probably find the original CN ASI1600 thread but you need to go back to around June 2016 I believe. There are folks here on IIS that have taken similiar steps, but it's up to them to speak about their experiences. I am just relating what I did that worked for me.
As to how alternatives failed, it seemed to come down to passive extensions being the problem, and once they went to active cables those 5m extensions worked just fine.

Tell you what, I still have my active 5m extension cable and power supply, your welcome to try it out, I could post it to you. Let me know via PM if you want to try it.

[h0ughy]

for steps Glen - can you put up a picture of the cable and the power supply? how did you find the data throughput - was it still high ? i am mainly looking for capturing for solar and lunar, planets with high speed video grabs with the asi174mm and the asi183mc. thank you for the offer

[h0ughy]

https://www.megabuy.com.au/startech-15ft-active-usb-30-usb-a-to-usb-b-cable-p702601.html

[Camelopardalis]

None that I can discern...my 183 will pump out about 17fps at full resolution, if that makes sense?

[glend]

My active cable is the Jaycar one shown in the link, the power supply is just a little AC plug pack that outputs 5V, the plug end goes into the female end of the cable. Throughput was exactly as per the short USB3 cable that came with the camera, download speed from the 1600 never changed. My use was traditional single sub imaging sequences, over night, so a hundred subs or so, mostly 5min narrowband, and shorter RGB, etc, . No high frame rate video.

[h0ughy]

OK thanks Glen

[jamespierce]

For what it's worth I've found the Lindy cables (the top spec double shielded ones, which are still quite cheap) to be very good... and my very expensive Startech hub has been unreliable... so your millage may vary.

[h0ughy]

In the interim I have bought a powered cable from jaycar so I will try to run it through its paces tonight

[h0ughy]

I was leaning towards that, but will wait and see with the jaycar one

[Merlin66]

David,
Did you go for the 5mtr extension?
What about the 5V supply? Where does it plug into the cable????

[h0ughy]

I made sure the techie at jaycar setup the power before I left

[Merlin66]

David,
Thanks for that, appreciated.
I assume a 1A supply is all that's needed.....
Look forward to hearing your feedback.

[h0ughy]

Well if it kept Glen happy I thought it would be worth a try :thumbsup:

[Merlin66]

Yeah but.....
I'm doing solar imaging, fast frame in FireCapture.
With the ASI 174MM I can get up to 400 fps (using the ROI on the Spectroheliograph)

[h0ughy]

ok that experiment didnt work

[Merlin66]

David,
Hmmm,
What didn’t work as expected????

[multiweb]

I would have thought the Lindy active leads would be enough. I have two 5m USB2 lengths that I daisy chain. Never really had any issues. :shrug:

[Merlin66]

Marc,

The issue of concern is with the USB3 cables and the ability to handle the latest CMOS cameras.

[h0ughy]

Connection with the camera through the usb3 ports wouldn't see camera

[multiweb]

ah ok, my bad.



Are you connecting the camera direct to the laptop or through an intermediate hub?

[h0ughy]

Direct with a powered extension 5m usb3 cable

[multiweb]

And it doesn't see the camera at all? Could be the driver, the USB port on the computer. Have you tried different ports? Another laptop? To rule out the cable.

[h0ughy]

Will do later

[Merlin66]

David,
Any update??

[h0ughy]

No didn't work. For some reason the lead isn't compatible with my usb3 ports

[Peter Ward]

I was having similar problems with my QHY183C

I bought one of these
https://www.megabuy.com.au/startech-15ft-active-usb-30-usb-a-to-usb-b-cable-p702601.html

But...wait there's more....got it on Amazon for $A105 delivered.

It works very well!

The full-resolution frame rate is now faster than the useless short-ass OEM cable that comes with the camera.

Full-frame RAW16 format now tops out at about 7.5 frames per second. RGB24 at 10 fps and RAW8 at 14 fps.

I am using a Toshiba WIn10 pro Tecra i7 with a 2Tb SSD ...a SSD makes a measurable improvement to the capture rates. If you have a
laptop with standard spinning-disk SATA drive, I'd suggest you replace it with a mirrored SSD. (they are quite cheap these days)

I have also used the Jaycar 5m "active" extender...very unreliable...and when it did decide to connect 3fps was typical.

[h0ughy]

Thanks Peter Just ordered the last 2 on Amazon au

[Peter Ward]

You bought the last TWO?! So you were the guy in the toilet paper aisle eh? :)

[h0ughy]

Always good to have a spare ;)

[chromus]

The top and bottom of this topic is this.

The IEEE dont rate USB 3, 3.1 or 3.2 for more than 2metres and any company selling you any cable that says that they can achieve this are going way outside the engineering standards.

Even so called "active" extenders are bending the edges of the process.

If its longer than 2m you should be prepared for it to fall back to USB 2 speeds.

What you should be doing is getting the computer MUCH closer to the mount and either use it there or use wifi or LAN networking to connect to that computer if you want to control from further away.

I have a nearly lag free system when at home as my PC is mounted on my dovetail bar and I can get nearly the same experience anywhere in the world I can get more than 20Mbit bandwidth using Microsoft RDP. I can use any computer that has an MS RDP client installed and get the exact same experience, whether it be from home/work/internet cafe in Oslo.

The BEST USB cable for your job is the shortest you can possibly use.

Cat 5e/6/6a/7 cables are all designed to carry at least 1000mbit at distances an order of magnitude higher than USB.

[Startrek]

Thanks Peter
I bought one of these Startech 5m USB3 cables a month ago ( prior to my new ZWO camera arriving ) thinking they just have to perform as I’ve given up on the cheap ones
Thanks
You’ve answered my question

[h0ughy]

Well my retirement investment turned up today. Cheaper but not cheap whenever this weather clears it should be good testing it out.