tickerguy Posted July 10, 2014 Report Share Posted July 10, 2014 What would be the purpose? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
hella356 Posted July 10, 2014 Report Share Posted July 10, 2014 What would be the purpose? My goal is to maximize the total amount of storage - and as affordably as possible - so if a hub allowed for adding 4 USB flash drives, it would be an easy and cheap way to add more storage. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jhren Posted July 10, 2014 Report Share Posted July 10, 2014 The operation manual states a "Connection via a USB hub is not possible." Quote Link to post Share on other sites
hella356 Posted July 10, 2014 Report Share Posted July 10, 2014 The operation manual states a "Connection via a USB hub is not possible." Thanks, jhren. I did read that, but since there have been users who've successfully used larger than 32GB SD cards despite Pioneer saying it won't work, I was just curious if anyone had actually tried it.  In the meantime, I've ordered a USB cable with dual USB-A connectors (one is data + power, the other is power only) to test if an external HDD will power up properly by utilizing both USB ports. If it works, this would be a cheap ($13) stop-gap for me to use my existing 500GB WD My Passport Ultra as a source until I can save up for a 480GB SSD + external enclosure, and free up the 2nd USB port.  I'm so glad I found this site. Lots of useful info. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jhren Posted July 10, 2014 Report Share Posted July 10, 2014 Thanks, jhren. I did read that, but since there have been users who've successfully used larger than 32GB SD cards despite Pioneer saying it won't work, I was just curious if anyone had actually tried it.  In the meantime, I've ordered a USB cable with dual USB-A connectors (one is data + power, the other is power only) to test if an external HDD will power up properly by utilizing both USB ports. If it works, this would be a cheap ($13) stop-gap for me to use my existing 500GB WD My Passport Ultra as a source until I can save up for a 480GB SSD + external enclosure, and free up the 2nd USB port.  I'm so glad I found this site. Lots of useful info. Get a hard-wired USB charger for the power-only USB plug.  It's cheap and will free up your second HU USB port. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jhren Posted July 10, 2014 Report Share Posted July 10, 2014 FWIW, I'm currently looking at upgrading my iPod with an mSATA SSD in the 500GB capacity range, along with an mSATA to ZIF adapter.  I ordered the adapter, but I went with the cheapest route... and that unfortunately means it got shipped via China mail.  Tentative arrival is anywhere from late July to late August  ...but I'm not in any rush on that as I have other higher priority projects in progress.  And the reason I've decided to go this route is because USB/SD drive functionality do not support playlists.  I did send a request to Pioneer to include playlist support in a future firmware update.  I received an email back that said the request would be sent to the development team, but that's all I know for now. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
hella356 Posted July 10, 2014 Report Share Posted July 10, 2014 Get a hard-wired USB charger for the power-only USB plug.  It's cheap and will free up your second HU USB port. Thanks, that's a great idea, one that I will look into for the future. I don't yet have the 4000, so I will be testing the cable on both USB ports it at a helpful local dealer. Trying to get all my ducks in a row so I know what is achievable before I plunk down for a new head unit. A big issue is to get the required cabling all mapped out in advanced so I don't have to pull the unit from the dash once it's installed. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tickerguy Posted July 10, 2014 Report Share Posted July 10, 2014 Thanks, jhren. I did read that, but since there have been users who've successfully used larger than 32GB SD cards despite Pioneer saying it won't work, I was just curious if anyone had actually tried it.  In the meantime, I've ordered a USB cable with dual USB-A connectors (one is data + power, the other is power only) to test if an external HDD will power up properly by utilizing both USB ports. If it works, this would be a cheap ($13) stop-gap for me to use my existing 500GB WD My Passport Ultra as a source until I can save up for a 480GB SSD + external enclosure, and free up the 2nd USB port.  I'm so glad I found this site. Lots of useful info. That should work but costs you the other USB port.  I have a USB-3 enclosure with said "dual" cable, but I don't need it since I have a SSD in the enclosure, and I don't want to rip the unit out of the dash again to get to the back or I'd test it for you (I do have a decent assortment of old laptop drives laying around.) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
hella356 Posted July 10, 2014 Report Share Posted July 10, 2014 That should work but costs you the other USB port.  I have a USB-3 enclosure with said "dual" cable, but I don't need it since I have a SSD in the enclosure, and I don't want to rip the unit out of the dash again to get to the back or I'd test it for you (I do have a decent assortment of old laptop drives laying around.) tickerguy, you are a complete jerk for not ripping your car apart for me! Hehe, my local dealer will let me test it on their easily accessible board, so no worries. I just have to wait about a week for the cable to arrive.  I agree, eating up both ports for this is not the ideal usage, but if it works, it would be an very inexpensive stop-gap that would provide a nice chunk of storage until I can afford the extra drives. The trick, I think, will be to arrange the cables in such a way that it will be an easy swap-out once I gather the required hardware. Current prices would mean adding about $400-500 worth of SSDs/enclosures to reach my ultimate goal. Already the $550+ for the 4000 (along with $70 for a SiriusXM tuner + $100 fee to transfer my lifetime subscription from my aging Eclipse Sirius setup) will be stretching my budget. After ripping hundreds of CDs to FLAC, I'm determined to do away with disks, although if need be I'd be OK with filling a DVD-R or two with MP3 files. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tickerguy Posted July 10, 2014 Report Share Posted July 10, 2014 SSDs are only getting cheaper.....  BTW ignore the naysayers on laptop drives not working ok in a car.  I have had a 100gb pile of spinning rust in my Phatbox that sits in the rear of my VW Jetta Wagon (in the CD changer location) now for a hell of a long time (coming up on 10 years!) and it's still working just fine. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
hella356 Posted July 10, 2014 Report Share Posted July 10, 2014 Thanks for the info, tickerguy. That's very encouraging! I figure if I can get the HDD to last 6-12 months, I'll be good to go. If it works, and I set up for the secondary USB connector to run off of a USB charger, I could actually double down and add a 2nd HDD for $50 and be done with it, at least until I can afford to go all SSD. This could all be shaping up very nicely.... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jhren Posted July 10, 2014 Report Share Posted July 10, 2014 I have a Seagate GoFlex 3TBÂ USB 3.0Â optical drive. Â Current price about $120. Should work with your dual-plug cable (but you'll lose the USB 3Â read speed with the HU being only USB 2), Â The GoFlex also comes in different sizes. Â A 2TB runs about $95. Â I also have 1TB and 500GB ($60) units. Â I checked current prices for the 1TB unit and they're actually running about just as much as the 3TB... eek! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
hella356 Posted July 11, 2014 Report Share Posted July 11, 2014 I'm thinking that adding something along these lines could provide power for two HDDs with the dual-plug cables (the order I made on newegg is a two pack) and be able to be hidden away with no exposed wiring.  http://www.parts-express.com/cigarette-lighter-socket--265-570  http://www.parts-express.com/dexim-dca154-dual-usb-car-charger-for-iphone-ipod--181-300 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
hella356 Posted July 11, 2014 Report Share Posted July 11, 2014 Link to the dual USB cord, in case anyone is interested: Â http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812705295 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jhren Posted July 11, 2014 Report Share Posted July 11, 2014 I'm thinking that adding something along these lines could provide power for two HDDs with the dual-plug cables (the order I made on newegg is a two pack) and be able to be hidden away with no exposed wiring.  http://www.parts-express.com/cigarette-lighter-socket--265-570  http://www.parts-express.com/dexim-dca154-dual-usb-car-charger-for-iphone-ipod--181-300 Here's a couple alternatives: http://www.amazon.com/DROK-Adapter-Double-Connector-Charger/dp/B00F0CS1EK/ref=sr_1_22?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1405111445&sr=1-22 http://www.amazon.com/RioRand-Supply-Converter-Inverter-Vehicle/dp/B00GQ48FCY/ref=sr_1_41?ie=UTF8&qid=1405111109&sr=8-41&keywords=12V+USB+charger Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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