USB 2.0

[Mike.C]

I have been given a Packard Bell ixtreme 9200i pentium 111 pc, which has a 1ghz processor and 4 USB 1.0 slots (2 at the front and 2 rear). It also has a free pci slot (is that what you call it?) at the rear, 512gb ram, 3 firewire slots, 60GB hard drive and a dvd burner. It also has XP Pro.

It is about 5 years old but at the time it was apparently a good computer, and as I only have a 20GB laptop I wouldn't mind using this one too. The only problem is I want to put my old vhs tapes onto dvd but the Avermadia DVD EZmaker USB plus software I am going to use needs USB 2.0.
I am not that good with computers so I need a bit of help in choosing the right USB 2.0 upgrade to buy.
First of all am I right in saying that I need a USB 2.0 PCI card which plugs inside the pc? And if so do I put this in place of the rear USB 1.0 card, or in the spare PCI slot?
When the USB 2.00 card is fitted what do I do about the USB 1.0? Have I got to remove them both or can I just switch them off some how?

As I have said I am not that good with computers so the following may be the wrong thing.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/PCI-8-PORTS-USB-2 ... dZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/5-Ports-USB-2-0-P ... dZViewItem

http://www.maplin.co.uk/module.aspx?Mod ... 4&doy=13m3

http://www.maplin.co.uk/module.aspx?Mod ... 4&doy=13m3

http://www.maplin.co.uk/module.aspx?Mod ... 5&doy=13m3

As you can see there is a big difference between ebay and maplins prices, but is there a big difference in quality?

Is there different types of USB 2 cards?

Any advice would be great.

Cheers

Mike

Thank you in advance

 

[Shultzy]

Hi Mike, You will probably find that there isn't much difference between the cards, so you might be better off with the maplins one. If the USB 1.0 is a card you can just replace it with the USB 2.0 card. Take the card out, switch pc on, this will take the old card out of the device manager. Switch off, put new card in and switch on. The OS should pick up the card. New card will have updated drivers.

You can identify whether your PC has Hi-Speed USB or not relatively easy. Open Device Manager and expand the Universal Serial Bus section. There should be an "Enhanced" USB host controller present.

More info here

http://www.everythingusb.com/usb2/faq.htm

 

[Mike.C]

Hi Shultzy,

Thanks for the info and the link.

Cheers

Mike

 

[Anonymous]

Mike

I used a USB 2.0 PCI card from PCworld when they came out - worked great and my 13-year old daughter is still using the PC with USB 2.0 as running as good as ever it did

 

[Mike.C]

Tony,

Mike

I used a USB 2.0 PCI card from PCworld when they came out - worked great and my 13-year old daughter is still using the PC with USB 2.0 as running as good as ever it did

Thanks Tony, so it sounds like a good upgrade then.

I was reading about how to exchange the old and the new PCI cards last night. Something about touching the metal casing or getting a kit which you attach to your wrist to take the static away before you start changing the cards. Does that sound right?

I have not opened the pc yet so I do not know what the situation is like inside, but Shultzy said to exchange the USB 1.0 card for the USB 2.0, but what happens about the other USB 1.0 card?, because I have 2 sockets at the front and 2 at the rear, so I presume that there are 2 cards, or would both the front and the rear be wired into the same card?

Cheers

Mike

 

[RogerS]

I was reading about how to exchange the old and the new PCI cards last night. Something about touching the metal casing or getting a kit which you attach to your wrist to take the static away before you start changing the cards. Does that sound right?

That is to earth any static charge that you may have on you...due to wearing nylon boxers and sliding up and down a nylon carpet !! Personally I've never bothered but it is good custom and practice...I wouldn't worry about the kit. Just touch the computer case before you start unplugging things and don't forget to make sure that you've turned it off and unplugged it from the mains. Best leave it five minutes after that just to make sure any residual DC has drained away and that the PC is well and truly dead.

I have not opened the pc yet so I do not know what the situation is like inside, but Shultzy said to exchange the USB 1.0 card for the USB 2.0, but what happens about the other USB 1.0 card?, because I have 2 sockets at the front and 2 at the rear, so I presume that there are 2 cards, or would both the front and the rear be wired into the same card?

Cheers

Mike

It could be anything and everything, Mike. USB ports can be built into mother boards, you can get double ports on a card, you can find that the port cabling is split between sockets. You won't know until you open it up.

 

[Mike.C]

Thanks a lot Roger. I think the best thing to do is to get the card, open her up, and then take it from there.

Cheers

Mike

 

[engineer one]

i think that since now most computers have usb slots at the front and rear, you might well find that one or other is connected by wires to the outputs, and a small connecter might well be capable of being pulled off and re-connected.

as roger says just take your time, but also buy a can of "air blaster". once you have taken off the case, blow through the psu and its fan, and across everything to get rid of any dust build up etc, will make the computer happier and more efficient.

in my few dealings with changing bits, the biggest problem is that often because of the way in which the machines are built, some of the screws are difficult to get at, so you might need a right angle screwdrive to undo those that hold the new board at the other end of mother board. one end just slots in, but the other normally is fixed by screws.

thought, use your digital camera to take photos before you take anything apart, in particular before removing any wires. make sure you mark them.

good luck
paul :wink:

 

[Mike.C]

engineer one,

thought, use your digital camera to take photos before you take anything apart, in particular before removing any wires. make sure you mark them

Brilliant idea Paul because I am bound to forget which wire goes where.

Cheers

Mike