So I have been thinking of incorporating a USB Hub to my set up since I ordered a MIDI fighter and I have an S4. I’ve been using a Verbatim 500gb hard drive to carry all my data. But it’s such a hassle @ gigs since the hard drive requires a power adapter and it’s length is short. So I wanted to purchase a bus powered external hard drive, possibly a seagate with the same storage space. Would it be possible to run the MIDI Fighter and a Seagate on the same USB hub? Should I invest in a triple interface external hard drive? That way I can use Firewire and individualize each device’s power supply.
Right there are two big questions which you need to answer when considering a USB hub (just been through this myself after a Serato SL1 & Dicers issue)
Power
You need to work out the total power requirement of all the gear you intend to plug into the hub
If it’s <= 500mA you can use a bus powered USB (as 500mA is the maximum a single USB port can provide)
If it’s < 500mA you need a mains powered hub
Protocol
This is less of an issue, but if you’re plugging multiple USB 1.1 devices into a hub you may need to be looking at multi TT hub to ensure that each device is allocated its full allowance of bandwidth (especially if your devices move a lot of data around)
A multi TT hub allows multiple USB 1.1 devices to operate at full data rate , those without multi TT may not.
Then it comes down to size/weight/shininess considerations
