1394 - 4 pin no power / 1394 - 6 pin powered

James Emory · September 17th, 2005, 01:55 PM

I am thinking about getting a PCM/CIA card with dual USB 2.0 ports along with a 4 pin unpowered port and 6 pin powered 1394 port all on one card. My question is why is the 6 pin 1394 powered and the 4 pin 1394 not powered? Is it a standard for all 6 pin 1394 connections/ports to be powered? I don't want to short something out.

Matt Babinec · September 17th, 2005, 06:33 PM

some devices like the ipod use the 6 pin powered ports to charge their batteries.. and i do think all 6 pin ports are powered... the two extra pins are used ot carry the power.. and i dont knowe if you can short something like a camera out by plugging it into a 6 pin port when it doesnt need the power. i would like to know as well...

Edward Troxel · September 17th, 2005, 08:12 PM

Yes, 6-pin is powered and 4-pin is not. It is fine to plug a camera in to a 6-pin port via a 4-pin to 6-pin cable. The power is simply ignored by the cable.

Roger Moore · September 17th, 2005, 08:14 PM

My dell inspiron 8500 notebook has only one 4-pin firewire, no power. So I got a PCMCIA adapter with dual 6-pin firewire ports...but when I plugged in devices into the 6-pin ports, guess what? No power either...

Get the card, it comes in handy, but whether or not your devices will get any power from it depends on your specific system. The presence of 6-pin ports on my card didn't give me power at all.

But I got the card not for that reason but because it lets me use the hefty 6-pin plugs instead of the 4-pin plugs which slip out way too easily.

September 17th, 2005, 01:55 PM	#1
James Emory Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Atlanta, Georgia Posts: 1,892	1394 - 4 pin no power / 1394 - 6 pin powered - why? I am thinking about getting a PCM/CIA card with dual USB 2.0 ports along with a 4 pin unpowered port and 6 pin powered 1394 port all on one card. My question is why is the 6 pin 1394 powered and the 4 pin 1394 not powered? Is it a standard for all 6 pin 1394 connections/ports to be powered? I don't want to short something out.

September 17th, 2005, 08:12 PM	#3
Edward Troxel Sponsor: JET DV Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Southern Illinois Posts: 7,953	Yes, 6-pin is powered and 4-pin is not. It is fine to plug a camera in to a 6-pin port via a 4-pin to 6-pin cable. The power is simply ignored by the cable. __________________ Edward Troxel [SCVU] JETDV Scripts/Scripting Tutorials/Excalibur/Montage Magic/Newsletters

September 17th, 2005, 06:33 PM	#2
Matt Babinec New Boot Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: canada Posts: 17	some devices like the ipod use the 6 pin powered ports to charge their batteries.. and i do think all 6 pin ports are powered... the two extra pins are used ot carry the power.. and i dont knowe if you can short something like a camera out by plugging it into a 6 pin port when it doesnt need the power. i would like to know as well...

September 17th, 2005, 08:14 PM	#4
Roger Moore Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: toronto Posts: 99	My dell inspiron 8500 notebook has only one 4-pin firewire, no power. So I got a PCMCIA adapter with dual 6-pin firewire ports...but when I plugged in devices into the 6-pin ports, guess what? No power either... Get the card, it comes in handy, but whether or not your devices will get any power from it depends on your specific system. The presence of 6-pin ports on my card didn't give me power at all. But I got the card not for that reason but because it lets me use the hefty 6-pin plugs instead of the 4-pin plugs which slip out way too easily.