running out of usb ports. pci card add on?

[knightrdrx]

Do those usb pci cards work okay?
In my set up I will have 4 snes usb controllers, one dual tankstick with trackball, one spinner (..maybe 2 spinners), and a keyboard.
I guess I won't need a mouse with the trackball.
I only have 6 ports and need one free for a flash drive.
I have an old Dell Dimension PC.

[jaharr01]

Get on of these. It's powered so you won't run out of voltage and put all your arcade stuff on it.You don't need a new card.
Jay

http://www.amazon.com/Port-USB-2-0-Adapter-Black/dp/B007EHK49Y/ref=sr_1_19?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1404572056&sr=1-19&keywords=powered+usb+hub

[ChanceKJ]

I have one of those hubs. got it for $5 on ebay    or Aliexpress... one of the two.

[yotsuya]

I have one of those hubs. got it for $5 on ebay    or Aliexpress... one of the two.

Personally, I like using the add-on cards myself.

[jaharr01]

oh Yotsuya, You just have to be different don't you.
Jay

[ed12]

try here
startech.com
personally i run 5 of there card's pcmia
never a hick-up

ed

[yotsuya]

oh Yotsuya, You just have to be different don't you.
Jay

Jay-

A pci card means 1 less power outlet and 1 less USB cable that I have to deal with. 

[Nephasth]

PCI card all the way!

[dkersten]

I have wondered if you use a hub for multiple devices if you will run into a problem with interrupts and too many inputs at once, or even use up the bandwidth of the bus.  Most computers these days have two or three USB controllers with 2 ports on each, so if you spread out your devices across multiple controllers, there is less going on with one controller, whereas with a hub you are running all those devices on one interrupt and one controller chip.  I always just figured it was good practice to spread things out, so I would add a PCIe card with another controller before using a hub, but that might not be necessary.  Anyone here use a hub and tried to run a 4 player game where everyone is pressing multiple buttons at once to see if there is any conflicts or glitches?  I am curious to know if the USB bus can handle 6 or 7 HID devices at once on one chain.  I know that originally the USB (being serial) could theoretically handle 128 devices per chain, but I have run into problems with too many devices on one chain in the past which might have been a bandwidth limitation of the early USB formats.  I have been looking for an answer to these questions for some time now.

[Malenko]

if it was a laptop Id say go with a powered hub, but a desktop? No shame in getting a PCI card, as stated one less USB cord and one less power cord.

[DaveMMR]

It was so long ago I can't remember the exact details but I do remember having control and LED-Wiz issues using a hub that were solved with a PCI card.  That was close to 10 years ago so it may be a non-issue now. But since then, I've always leaned toward cards myself.

[dkersten]

I remember reading that the ipac ultimate, which has some 96 outputs and something like 42 inputs doesn't have any problems with multiple keys being pressed at once because it is on usb 2.0 and the bandwidth is more than enough.  But since I don't know the requirements of multiple HID devices, I just wouldn't put more than a few on one single line (ie on a hub).  However, using different controllers that will not be used simultaneously shouldn't be an issue I would imagine, even if bandwidth or interrupts are a potential problem.

I would also suggest using usb 3.0 ports with a hub, but then I have had issues with usb keyboards on 3.0 ports.. So maybe not a great idea for other HID devices.. ?