What firewire controller does 5792 use???

Hi everybody!!!! I've been using this website for the past month or so to do some research on purchasing my first laptop. (been a desktop computer person my whole life, and finally need to become mobile) My primary use for this laptop is going to be audio production work while on the road with Ableton Live and Protools, and some gaming here and there. I was planning on ordering a 5792, (9262 is a bit out of my price range) but after doing some reading on digidesign's website, I realized that their firewire audio devices are very picky, and don't work on many laptops. I have a Digi 002 audio interface, which HAS TO be able to work with the laptop I purchase.

My question is what brand is the firewire controller that comes in the 5792??? Can somebody check their system settings and see what it says, or even better, anybody else out there doing audio stuff have any input on this matter??? I'd love to hear some feedback from other people using their 5792's for audio work, and see how it's working (or not) for them.

Thanx for providing an excellent forum for information!!!!

Dave

 

I use my M-Audio FW1814 on my Clevo D900K (aka Sager 9750) notebook for Nuendo and SONAR... works great with the Texas Instruments firewire controller.

 

I know the Digidesign products work well with the texas Instruments controllers.... that's one of the ones they're designed to work with. I don't know if the 5792 uses that or another one though. I'd love to step up to the 9750, as it would be a much better audio laptop, but unfortunately, the dust bunnies inside my wallet are telling me it's not gonna happen. =) Thanx for the info though, Gophn. Appreciate it!!!

 

Most high-end Clevo notebooks (17"+) use Texas Instruments firewire controllers.

If you want an official confirmation, call the vendor that you are interested in purchasing from... they will answer you anything questions you have.

Justin@XoticPC and Donald from Powernotebooks are great sources for information.

 

Don`t throw rocks at me , but what do you guys use the firewire port for?

 

DAW'ers/Audiophiles/etc...... would usually prefer it.

Texas Instruments firewire is highly compatible with most audio editing/mixing programs... especially if you are using a pro-audio soundcard (using firewire)

Creative's Sound Blaster line (Audigy, X-Fi's) is crap compared to most/any pro-audio sound card (like M-Audio, MOTU, Echo cards).

Professionals do not use Creative.

 

Well then, I`m not a professional, I use Creative,but on USB..since the audio jack is dead.
I figure than in the future it might be useful to have it but for now I don`t use it..

 

The NP926x uses a Texas Instruments Firewire chipset.
The NP579x uses a VIA VT6311S.

 

Any real time difference between these 2?

 

@Eleron911:

I've not tested any firewire audio recording/editing (my sound setup is sadly limited to my 1/8" line-in jack), but I know that audio professionals swear by TI chipsets, and they also say that non-TI chipsets can be very choppy.

 

goph, are you satisfied with that piece of m-audio equipment? it sure is a fast and honest portal...

 

So basically the firewire is used for mixing and such? I was looking for some regular activity,since that port is not being used and I hate a waste...all my ports are used,or covered so that dust will not inhabit them and buggs me that this firewire with such imense speeds is not put to a good use..

 

you can plug in an external soundcard to connect your nearfields to them, or your mixer, yes.

 

I mainly use my on-board sound for 99% of what I do.

But its nice to have a pro audio card when I am going to listen to music or movies... and planning to connect it to a multi-channel receiver.

There are many good M-Audio sound cards starting from $50.

One of our members here got a M-Audio Transit (USB) for his Clevo M570U (Sager 5760)... its inexpensive and is awesome for listening to music and movies... and connecting to a receiver.

Firewire has many purposes... mainly:
- video camcorders (for editing and ripping)
- storage (external HDDs)
- sound cards

As for TI vs. VIA firewire controllers, I have used both... they are both fine overall. But some particular setups (hardware/software) for audio editing/mixing has a few hiccups with non-TI controllers... but can be remedied with a bit of configuring or patching.

or just get an expansion card (PCMCIA or ExpressCard) with a preferable firewire controller.

 

One disadvantage is that port is an Firewire 400 4-pin, so doesn´t have build in power supply, unlike the 6 pin standard ones.

One the other side I thing that is about the time that Clevo starts using Firewire 800 controlers, they are 2 times faster and retro-compatible with Firewire 400 if you need it.

 

Its not a big issue for my uses... as well as pro audio stuff.

Because the equipment requires external power anyways.

 

Tim, THANK YOU!!!! This is exactly what I was wondering about. I'm gonna jump on the phone w/ Digidesign tomorrow and have a chat w/ them and see what's up. Their website is one of the worst for information.

I like to help people who help me, so I'll be calling u when I get this all figured out to spend all my money.

Dave

 

has anyone had any experience using an external hd or blueray drive using firewire? i'm wondering how the performance is.

 

the performance for firewire storage is par with USB 2.0

 

I say better than USB 2.0...

Firewire 400 have better sustained rates than USB 2.0, even with less 80Mbits/s(400 vs 480)... that why professional hardware uses it, especially important for audio and video editors.

Other advantage of Firewire is the higher power supply VS USB 2.0.

Firewire doesn´t need a host computer like USB 2.0, consuming less resources.

 

on latency firewire may be the best option, on price, usb.

 

For those that want firewire ports w/ Texas Instruments controller:

Best Connectivity USB 2.0/FireWire 1394a ExpressCard/34 Card (TI chipset)
Price: $24.99



General Features:
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* 1394a Interface:
* Two (2) 6-pin 1394a ports
* IEEE 1394 OpenHCI Specification v1.0 & v1.1
* IEEE 1394-1995 and 1394a-2000 standard
* Fully interoperable with FireWire and i.LiNK implementations

* USB 2.0 Interface:
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* Built-in 5V DC power for low-power USB devices

* Regulatory Approvals:
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Link:
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_______________________________

Best Connectivity IEEE 1394A Firewire ExpressCard, 34mm (Texas Instrument Chipset)
Price: $31.95



Description
* Product Condition: Brand New Retail Packaging
* Texas Instrument Firewire Chipset is the most expensive and the best quality firewire chipset on the market.
* TI XIO2200 Chipset
* 2-ports FireWire 1394a with 400Mb/s
* Compliant with ExpressCard/34 standard
* IEEE 1394-1995 Standard compliant, for High Performance Serial Bus and P1394A Supplement 4.0
* 1394 OpenHCI Specification V1.0 and V1.1 compliant
* Data transfer rate: 100/200/400 Mbps
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* Driver supported MS Windows 98SE/Me/2000/XP/XP 64-bit/Vista
* Includes ExpressCard 2x 1394a card, CD Driver, and User manual
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Link:
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Reseller Ratings (good):
from Shopzilla (Froogle)
Resellerratings.com

 

thats expansion right?

 

Great find Gophn!!!! I'm waiting to hear an official response from Digidesign. Knowing their customer service, I'll be lucky if I hear back in 2008.

Anybody live in the San Diego area and wanna do a firewire experiment???

 

Yes expansion for those that want firewire ports using Texas Instrument chipset.. which the M570RU does not have.

the D900C/D901C is using TI controller, the M570RU is using VIA