USB reader won't recognise my Compactflash 2 card....

[swayzak]

hi again

I'm having a problem with my mates USB reader (POI travelflash).

Windows recognises the reader (with some effort) but Zero's recovery tool doesn't see the flash card :(

Is it possible that this reader doesn't work with CF 2 cards ?

swayzak

[psychedelic_never]

Is your CF card good ? Try reading some other CF card in the same reader. If none of these try reading the card by connecting the camera to the PC itself.

[swayzak]

thanks

I definitely think it's the reader as, even without a card in it, Windows XP has real problems detecting it properly.

Sometimes it appears in the Device Manager but never in My Computer or Explorer.

I'm gonna buy a new reader......

[Jon]

Is the reader plugged into a powered hub? an overloaded, or underpowered, hub can give you fits trying to read memory devices. Go to Device Manager (right click "My Computer", then Properties | Hardware | Device Manager), expand the USB controllers tree, and click on the various "USB root hub" entries. On each, examine the "Power" tab. That'll tell you how much power is available on that hub and how much each device is using. Do you have any other devices plugged into that hub, and do they function normally?

[swayzak]

Is the reader plugged into a powered hub? an overloaded, or underpowered, hub can give you fits trying to read memory devices. Go to Device Manager (right click "My Computer", then Properties | Hardware | Device Manager), expand the USB controllers tree, and click on the various "USB root hub" entries. On each, examine the "Power" tab. That'll tell you how much power is available on that hub and how much each device is using. Do you have any other devices plugged into that hub, and do they function normally?

No - no other device at all.

All other USB devices I've tried work fine so the ports are OK.

I'm getting a LaCie 8 in 1 reader tomorrow so I'll post an update.....

[paullacatus]

Is quite interesting that my USB reader don't recognize the Canon Card that came with the camera (FC 32-MH). My reader is recognizing without problems other CF cards. Only the Canon card is not recognized. My reader is Vantec . Contacted their support but they cann't understand why.

[Jon]

What brand are your other cards? Have you tried the Canon card in someone else's card reader?

[paullacatus]

Other card that I have is a 256 M TwinMos and is working great. Also the Canon Card can be read with a noname usb reader and a PCMCIA adapter. My reader is using an ALCOR MICRO chip. If interested I can give you the full code from the chip. [/quote]

[Jon]

Other than an incompatible card/reader combo (a friend says she needs a Delkin reader for her Delkin cards), I don't see a straightforward explanation since obviously both the card and the reader work, just not with each other. Is the reader, or the hub it's connected to, self-powered or bus-powered?

[paullacatus]

the reader is directyly connected on a usb 2.0 port of the computer.

[Jon]

Yes, but does the hub have its own power supply (wall wart)? The USB specification has standards for how much power a single device can draw, but some USB accessories out there actually draw more than they should. A combination of a CF card and card reader might be enough to push an unpowered (bus powered) hub over the limit.

[Moppie]

Yes, but does the hub have its own power supply (wall wart)?

He's not useing a USB Hub.
The reader is pluged directly into the USB port which is soldered onto his mother board.

[Jon]

Yes, but does the hub have its own power supply (wall wart)?

He's not useing a USB Hub.
The reader is pluged directly into the USB port which is soldered onto his mother board.

OK - sorry. Then is it a laptop or a desktop, and what O/S and computer make? Cut-rate builders may scrimp on the power supplies, leaving the system without enough power to handle everything on the computer (one clue that this may have happened is frequent crashes). And have you tried this card/reader combination on someone else's computer?

[paullacatus]

Yes, I have tried the reader and card on my laptop, my desktop and a friend's laptop. Wasn't working in any case. It must be a compatibility problem between my reader and card. Obviously the card and reader are working but not one with the other. My questions is : Had someone on this list some similar problems ?