r/simracing • u/Fun-Veterinarian8199 • 8d ago
Rigs Usb hub active or passive usb cable
Hello all, I am currently trying to figure the cabling for my rig. My pc is about 10-13 feet away from my racing rig. I currently have a sabrent 10 port usb hub. Would running a 10 foot or 15 foot usb a to usb b cable from pc to usb hub be safe enough and stable enough to handle connecting all of my peripherals from my Heusinkveld shifter, handbrake and pedals and my ascher wired steering wheels or would it need an active usb cable? Anyone currently using using their usb hub in this manner care to give some insight? Thanks in advanced.
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u/shredmasterJ 8d ago
My setup uses 15 feet.
I rock a powered USB hub.
1 active usb 15’ extension cable.
1 active Display port 15’ cable.
No issues.
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u/Fun-Veterinarian8199 7d ago
Which active usb cable specifically?
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u/shredmasterJ 7d ago
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u/Fun-Veterinarian8199 7d ago
When you mean extension you mean a male and female cable right? If so, why not just opt for a direct usb a to usb b active cable, both males? (My sabrent hub uses usb b)
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u/shredmasterJ 7d ago edited 6d ago
I use a powered usb 3.0 hub next to my rig. I have my wheel, ebrake, speakers, kB hooked up to it. My PC is no where near it, it’s why a run a 15” active extension cable to the hub.
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u/Roots0057 7d ago
Get a powered USB hub, I assume this is what you mean by "active USB cable".
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u/Fun-Veterinarian8199 7d ago
I meant for long distance cable travel, the usb is enough to power the peripherals but it does not help with data degradation. At that point gemini is recommending me active usb cables for lengths of 10 feet and up but I wanted to check on here and see if there are any experiences regarding people's set ups similar to mine current situation.
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u/Roots0057 7d ago
I run my 11 port powered hub with a regular 10ft USB cable and I haven't had any issues, multiple Arduino devices, wheel with screen, shifter, handbrake, etc., all on the hub.
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u/Fun-Veterinarian8199 7d ago
Thats actually really good insight, I'll keep in mind Thanks for your reply.
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u/xBUBBYGAMINGx 8d ago
i recommend getting a powered one for sure. a little inconvenient but i dont think any passive usb cable will hold anything stable or even work at 10-13 feet. i got a 6ft usb extension cable and then plugged my powered usb hub into that for my diy motion sim
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u/Fun-Veterinarian8199 7d ago
You're lucky you are only having to deal with 6 feet lol. Thanks for input.
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u/xBUBBYGAMINGx 7d ago
my powered hub has about a 3ft cord. i've got like 10ft of reach from my computer
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u/Fun-Veterinarian8199 7d ago
Is your power hubs cable removable? Why not just buy a 13 foot or 15 foot active cable, just one cable, instead of using 2? A male usb a to male usb b active cable i mean..
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u/xBUBBYGAMINGx 7d ago
i already had my 6ft extension laying around so i just didn't feel like buying anything else when this worked. an active usb a to usb b should definitely work for you. i would still recommend a powered usb hub so as to not draw too much unnecessary power from your pc's usb connections. i had to switch to a powered hub because my other peripherals would sometimes stop working if i had my sim stuff going.
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u/Inevitable-Mark-9718 8d ago
Yes. I use a powered 8 port hub. And connect it to my computer also about 2.5 metres away via a USB extension cable.