DAC/AMP + Keyboard + Mouse + LAN +.... at USB hub of screen? Input lag?

Hey there,

I have quite a few things that I connect via USB 3.0 / 2.0 (external HDD, DAC (Audio-DG NFB-12 + AMP, Keyboard, mouse, lan, .....) and so I would need to connect most (or preferable) all via the USB hub of my screen / laptop stand. Could that cause any input lag ? Especially during games (mouse/keyboard) or general usage (sound = DAC/AMP, external HDD, etc). ?

Also what about LAN to USB adapter on USB HUB ?

Thanks

 

You are asking for trouble if all that is connected to a single USB 2.0 port via hub or through a USB2.0 hub regardless of the actual USB rev of the port on the laptop.

An external drive when transferring data and a DAC connected to the same hub is enough to get problems with audio. Network, mouse and kb would just eat even more bandwidth. If the hub is USB3.0, the likely bandwidth won't be an issue for some of those, but input lag might be. I would keep the network adapter, DAC and external drive on separate ports. Some NBR users reported input lag with mouse and kb on the same hub: http://forum.notebookreview.com/acc...ged-into-usb-hub-instead-laptop-usb-port.html, but I'd test that with your setup.

 

Hmm my main goal was to have "less cables" on my table. So I wanted to connect them all to one hub (or maybe 2 hubs) and then only have 2 usb cables visible on my table, while the rest is hidden.

If KB + mouse created input lag when connected to a hub.. well.. that would be really bad The new Dell XPS 15 has 3x USB 3.0 and 1x USB 2.0.

Also: If the hub is 2.0 , why would I connect it to USB 3.0 port.. the hub won't be able to handle more bandwith than 2.0 anyway ?

My total device list would be:

DAC
Mouse
KB
LAN
maybe external HDD
Charging/transfer cables (phone, camera,...)

 

The best thing I can recommend is connecting the DAC directly to the computer (preferably to a separate USB controller if you know how they're grouped internally) and everything else to the hub.

This would minimize problems with audio lag/latency (though USB has always been pretty bad at this - best to go ExpressCard/FireWire/Thunderbolt if possible) and let you have the rest of the cables off the desk.

Keyboard/mouse may lag (barely noticeable, mostly in games) especially when transferring data to/from the external hard drive, but overall it should work fine.

 

Hmm no idea.. its the new Dell XPS 15.

I could try putting the external HDD on my NAS and do everything via local network.. but I guess that would slow down things quite a lot. So far I am not sure about the need of an external HDD anyway.

My main concern would be lag in mouse,KB or DAC. oh and LAN ofcourse

 

USB to LAN (and vice versa) is to be avoided imo - even with USB 3.0 on a separate port/controller.

Mouse/Keyboard on it's own USB 2.0 port.

DAC on it's own/separate USB 3.0 port.

External HDD on it's own/separate USB 3.0 port.

Everything else on another/separate USB port.

Even with the above; you may still see lag on any of these (USB is not made to minimize/eliminate lag).


A USB 'hub' is for convenience, not performance - a 'monitor usb hub' is even less tuned for performance...

Pick your poison (try your workflow in different configurations...).


Good luck.

 

Mhh the new Dell XPS 15 doesnt have a LAN port.. my only solution is the USB to LAN ? :S

 

Doesn't have a Lan port? (That's why I don't have an XPS... ).


I wrote elsewhere in the forums that I saw a significant difference going from a wireless 'N' solution (Intel 6235) to a wireless 'AC' solution (Intel 7260AC) which (coupled with an appropriate 'AC' router) gave me up to 4x the speeds of the original single band OEM wireless card (Asus no-name/can't remember it now).

Even with such a significant increase in performance; it still can't touch GB LAN speeds (5x faster still...).


Tell me you at least opted for an 'AC' class wireless card in your XPS (or are at least considering upgrading to the Intel 7260AC card or higher)?

 

Intel® Dual Band Wireless-AC 7260 plus Bluetooth 4.0

thats what I ordered.... anyway, is there a way to test the input lag of USB ? For example I just connected my mouse + KB + DAC to my monitors HUB and can't notice anything yet.

@edit: I just connected everything to one USB 3.0 port (2 hubs) connected on it)... lets play some quakelive to find out about lag