Interesting Problem

[mizdahsparklez]

Hello,

A few weeks ago I built a pc. One thing that I just figured out that I did wrong was attach the cases' front USB 2.0 connector to the IEEE 1394 socket on my motherboard instead. I did not know I did this for a while and was wondering why the front USB connectors did nothing when I connected my flashdrives or... my printer. After a while I noticed that whenever I plugged them into the wrongly connected USB hubs and then connect them to my laptop, I would get an error stating "USB device not recognized." I realized that whatever I was plugging into these USB connectors on my pc, they were pretty much frying the peripheral. I finally opened my case and saw the problem and fixed it, but I fear it may be too late.

My question is: I attempted to connect my USB printer to my pc and ultimately it won't connect to any pc now. Is this something I can fix my simply replacing the USB cord? Or did I kill the entire printer?

Any and all replies are appreciated. Thank you!

 

[ssddx]

possibly. i'm not an expert on ieee1394 but from some quick research:

typical usb port power output is 4.75-5.25v, wikipedia has a section detailing that ieee1394 can output at max 30v.

if for some reason devices were receiving this difference in voltage then yes it could be frying them. its hard to call without physically inspecting to see if they got fried but if you tested it out then this is probably the case.

---

if your printer has a network cable connection you could set it up on a home network and print that way instead of direct-connecting by usb.

in this way even if you burned out only the usb connector circuit you might be able to still use the printer.

if you don't have a network cable and everything else fails.. at least printers are fairly cheap nowdays.

 

[CompTIA_Rep]

+1 to SSDDX. If you can switch connections, that would be your best bet (after switching the cable).

 

[mizdahsparklez]

Sounds great! Yea I don't think I can install the wireless network without first installing with the USB cable. And unfortunately I un-installed all the drivers and software prior to doing anything else.

I'll order a cable off amazon.

 

[ssddx]

we weren't talking about wireless. many printers come with an actual (wired) networking port. i know that this wired port can be used without the usb connection being used at all. you would need the drivers to be able to print.

i would doubt that the actual usb cable went bad. i'd be more inclined to think that you burned up some circuit inside the actual printer relating to usb.

 

[CompTIA_Rep]

*yep the cable just the cheap double-check-you-never-know-but-worth-doing-at-the-very-least.