First Thanks to all the people who helped other people in these forums…you helped more than just the person you replied to…Greatly Appreciated
Secondly I plan on keeping my posts as To-The-Point as possible…

1st Background Info to put the issue in perspective…
I’m planning to purchase a PowerBook G4 for Two Dedicated Purposes:
1) Music Production and Recording (Cubase, Pro Tools)
2) Live Performance (V-Stack)…so in essence A VST Beast!

I plan on buying:
Akai MPC2500
M-Audio Semi-weighted 88 Keys
M BOX II

I just realized that these devices are mainly connected via USB…

************************************

*My question for The Gurus is:
If the G4 only has 1 USB port…How should I connect these devices? USB HUB? If so, is it stable?

I’m was raised on PCs but I’m not ashamed to admit that I’ve been seduced by The Mac and I’m a tip away from totally going Mac …Somebody sell me on it…PLEEEAAASE!!!

I have a Powerbook & it has 2 USB ports & 2 firewire ports - you may want to look into maybe one of m-audios firewire interfaces instead of the Mbox 2 & think about PT m powered - I use a PC as well (first computer I ever made music on & I still do some editing & run alot of freeware PC only synths with the PC slaved out to the mac) - but I have never had any regrets about getting a mac-

Thanks for the advice

maybe i am missing a deeper part of the question, but ....

the answer to me is the same way you would connect a usb mouse, printer, laptop cooler fan and any other number of usb devices to your laptop... something like this:

http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProductPage...oduct_Id=158910

need more? just daisy chain 'em. problem solved.

You are correct sir. I have never tried to use a Hub to connect several devices (I try to keep my stuff strictly for music & just never needed that many ports) but I understand that you can use a hub & connect up to 6 (I think) devices with a Powerbook. The notion of using a USB hub hadn't really crossed my mind....Duh.

This post has been edited by mortalengines: Mon 20 Feb 2006, 02:52

just 6? theoretically you can keep adding more until your machine craps out...

I was just thinking back to my Powerbook owner's manual & thought that was what it said. Don't hold me to it.

Word of caution: I had my Tascam US-122 run into my Mini through a Belkin 4 port hub. Spent days wondering why the computer didn't "see" the interface. Then someone on this wonderful site recommended plugging direct into the computer and I was in business. With only 2 ports on the mini, I use one for the hub which chains mouse & keyboard and one for the audio interface. If someone can recommend a "better" hub (if this is the issue) I'd love to hear about it as my expansion options are currently limited...

Ok - firstly it isn't really a Mac vs PC question - it is more like a USB vs Firewire question. The PowerBook should have 2 USB ports. But if you are connecting 3 USB devices then you will need a hub. Someone in this thread said that you can daisy-chain them - not USB - you cannot.

I also agree that some USB devices will only work and work well if plugged in direct. Some will not work across a hub - even a powered hub. I have an early EyeTV USB device and it only works when connected direct - not through the powered USB hub. The powered aspect of a USB hub is for devices that pull electrical current through the USB connections, and it is cumulative thing. You may need to be careful with your loads.

I would recommend changing one of these to a Firewire device. They can be daisy-chained, but some devices like to be at the beginning or the end of the chain. Your PowerBook will have a FW400 port (this will be faster than USB2 for many things). FW can supply current as well as long as it is a 6 pin connection.

I use a Presonus Firebox which is a) driverless- a class device b) PSU less as it gets its power through the FW400 connection. As someone else has suggested change the Mbox for a FW device from M-Audio that can use ProTools M-powered. I also have a M-Audio Oxygen (small USB keyboard).

If you want to go back and ever use a PC again there are plenty of FW cards around either PCMCIA cards for laptops or PCI cards for internal use.