Hi
Over the years I've had multiple problems with USB cables and extenders that worked for several months, then inexplicably stopped working or caused intermittent issues.
Can anyone please advise USB cables, and powered extenders that works reliably for a couple of years? Not looking for cheap, but definitely looking for reliability.
Most USB cables available are Chinese or Taiwanese
Mass produced, questionable quality and not manufactured to last, hence the low cost $$$
Are you referring to USB cables in general or a specific type and length
I exclusively use Startech and Alogic brands ( Chinese ) and have purchased from Lindy , Mwave and Cable Chick etc..
Startech USB cables ( USB2 and USB3 ) up to 5m in length, over the past 3 or 4 years have been the most reliable in my experiences
Most of my USB cables are no longer than 5m
My Obs at my retirement getaway is cabled in Cat 5e UTP data 25m away from my Study in the house ( wouldn’t even consider running USB )
The only 5m long USB3 cable that has performed flawlessly over the years is the
Startech 5m Active USB3A to B cable part no USB3SAB5M at a cost of $120 ea ( my ZWO cameras are connected by these cables ) Ive tried all other 3m and 5m long USB3 cables around the $25 to $60 mark and none of them were reliable
This one is !!!!!
+1 for lindy.com.au. You get what you pay for. I have a variety of active extensions and cables. Still got them to date. Some are over 10 years old. At the end of the day you still need to be aware of corrosion and dew with your gear but if you look after it then it will go the distance. On the scope side I still have my hitechastro mount hub pro (the very first iteration). It's a must for USB and power to minimise cables between your laptop and everything else. In my case from home I'm under a veranda on a outdoor setting about 7m from the pier. I have two daisychained active USB extensions going to the mount hub pro and one power line.
I had similar issues. I get the feeling that the USB3 spec doesn't have much 'play' in it's tolerances so I had constant issues with extenders.
My solution was to just connect everything to an NUC and use a micro router to connect wirelessly from my laptop. Best decision of my life. It's a little bit of messing around to get it set up, but for around $500 it's worth it. No cables to trip over in the dark, either. I know it's possibly not where you were thinking of going, but it's worth considering.
Thank you all for the replies and suggestions - I'll have a look at the brands suggested and buy a quality 5m powered extension. I'm over the cheap stuff!
cheers
Gary
Thank you all for the replies and suggestions - I'll have a look at the brands suggested and buy a quality 5m powered extension. I'm over the cheap stuff!
cheers
Gary
Thanks for creating this post Gary, I’ve been asking myself the same questions and found some great suggestions here.
I still wonder though how one balances USB2 “slow but reliable” vs USB3 “fast but slightly less reliable”.
Thanks for creating this post Gary, I’ve been asking myself the same questions and found some great suggestions here.
I still wonder though how one balances USB2 “slow but reliable” vs USB3 “fast but slightly less reliable”.
Cheers,
Stéphane
My 5m long Startech Active USB3 cables have been 100% reliable for years
But they are costly ( $120 ea )
If I get +5 years out of them , they have paid their way
Cheers
Martin
Another thanks for this thread - finally got around to trying to use the comsol lead I got 18 months ago - utter crap with everything continually dropping out, even when I connected extra power. Will check out the recommendations from here.
USB 3 I find is definitely less reliable than 2. Yes it's faster, but it's prone to more drop outs and connection issues.
edit and +1 to the NUC. Also the best decision I made. One cable running down for power, and everything else up top. Perfect!
Hello Markus, can you show some more detailed pictures of your set up, I have been thinking of this route for some time and would love more info. Looks like a very neat setup.
Hello Markus, can you show some more detailed pictures of your set up, I have been thinking of this route for some time and would love more info. Looks like a very neat setup.
Hi Bart
I'm going to guess you mean me? (Adam) as you quoted me. Apologies if that's wrong.
I hope to shoot up the mountains tonight so will take some pictures of the setup when complete. Let me know what you want me to focus on for you.
Actually, I have the following on my phone. I can still take more if you need them.
Firstly this is the scope sans cables. I wanted to make it a platform where the guide scope and compute section could easily come on and off at the beginning and end of a session. Both items are just connected to the scope on via losmandy/vixen clamps
I made sure to put a very long Losmandy-type bar at the top of the scope to allow for this functionality.
Here are slightly more detailed pics of the setup. Note this was before I purchased additional clamps to connect the compute section to the scope. This was when I had them screwed via M6 socket head screws from Bunnings.
Like I mentioned above, the first consideration was to be able to setup quickly and dismantle.
But I also wanted to ensure I could pack the scope away in a case without the additional height of a screwed in compute platform, and also if I wanted to shoot with a different setup, that I could transfer it to another setup easily.
For cable management, I purchased cables that were slightly over (as close to as possible) the lengths I need. Obviously that's not possible for everything, which means a bit of loom, and neoprene zip covers as well were used. The latter items were purchased from Jaycar, Bunnings and Amazon where appropriate.
And to try and minimise cables sliding about in the covers (it still happens a little bit though), I used black electrical tape to try and lock them in.
In the distant future, maybe when I switch to mono, I will spend a couple of months trying to make custom cables from scratch. That should be a fun project
I just loom my cables (2 x droppers) using tiny zip ties either side of the Losmandy scope support bar and form a strain relief loop tied off on the west tripod leg near the spreader plate using Velcro
I found that supporting the cables this way significantly improved my PHD2 guiding Ra movements. Previously the cables just use to drop to the ground with no additional support which did affected guiding Ra movements.
In addition I tie off the cables on the Losmandy scope support bar as close as possible to the worm shaft or central shaft of the mount thus reducing cable sway on Dec movement.
This method of supporting my cable looms has improved stability and hence allowing good guiding.
Cable drag or cable resistance is a major factor in PHD2 guiding performance. I was guilty of not realising that when I first set up my AP cabling.
No issue anymore
Cheers
Martin
Hello Markus, can you show some more detailed pictures of your set up, I have been thinking of this route for some time and would love more info. Looks like a very neat setup.
Well I'm less neat than these guys. I tried squaring everything off, but found that invariably the telescope would find some position in the sky that would pull on the cables, so the system I have is to have the powerbox and the NUC sitting at the base of the tripod, and I just run power in a loom up one side, and data cables in another loom up the other. My tension solution is a bit of elastic bungee around the RA axis which is the point of least movement. It is secured with a knot that goes through a loop so that it will pop open if pulled too much, yet it is strong enough that the cables are supported, and are not just a dead weight on the scope.
I use a BLKNuc7I3DNK4E, a 7th Generation i3 based NUC. It has WIFI and is more than fast enough to run Voyager, PHD2, Platesolving, CartesDuCiel, etc all at once. I just find it a lot easier not being tethered to my telescope. I also like that these ones will work on an input from 12-24V. I *also like that I don't have yet another learning curve. It's all windows. I don't have to learn Linux, Raspberry Pi, NIDI or any new software, except maybe remote desktop.
Sorry, I did mean Adam, although the more the merrier, so thanks to Marcus as well.
I like this approach, and as I do not use a guide scope, there is less weight up there already.
Very neat setup, Adam. Some PC gear is very exxy at the moment so I will wait a bit before pulling the trigger. What I have works well and has done for years. I would like to tidy up the cables is all.
