USB hub for FIP gauges

hi all. i have been trying to find an acceptable 2.0 USB hub with 3 or 4 input ports, with enough amps to power my Logitech FIP gauges. Anyone have one that consistently works? thanks, mike

Hi, I run 9 fpi guages and use the atolla Powered USB 3.0 Hub 20W, 7… Amazon.co.uk
I have 2 of these hubs and yoke, rudder etc powered from them. They have individual switched on each connection.
Hope this helps …Dave

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thanks, i will look in to it. tell me, do these fip’s of yours always power up, or do you spend time switching them on and off to get them all up at one time? the FIP website says to use USB 2.0 only, with a minimum of .5 amp per port, i believe. mike

They always power up the only exception i get is if the windows updates and restarts then some do and some dont. I tend to shut down the pc , pause and restart and all ok.
Go through your windows device manager and make sure the pc cant turn the usb ports off to save power…

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interesting. i’ll check in device manager, but my issue is getting the FIP’s turned on at the start, not having them shut down during a session. is your “atolla” hub 3.0? the FIP website says the gauges need 2.0 - i’m wondering if it matters. thanks again, mike

FIPS take allot of power, the Logitech radio and AP panels are good examples of this also.

Grab a 60W external powered USB hub and you’ll be fine.

I run 2 of them and have all USB devices plugged into them, the only USB connections to the PC are the hubs.

I was using a setup with a few of these hubs:-

7 Port USB Hub - Plugable USB Hub for Multiple Devices and USB 2.0 Data Transfer with a 60W Power Adapter : Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories

currently unavailable, but maybe you can use the info to find a similarly specced hub.

I also used a bunch of these hubs with 2 FIPS only connected to each:-

SABRENT USB Hub 4 Port USB 2.0 Portable Travel USB Docking Station with Individual LED lit Power Switches [Charging NOT Supported] for Mac & PC (HB-UMLS) : Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories

This is because I found the only reliable way to get them to all work at the same time is to turn on 2 at a time at most. trying to turn 3 or more on at once, the srceens would blank out.

Only turn on 2 at a time, wait for those 2 to finish the little flashing red light sequence and verify that the screens are lit up, then do the next 2.

I had been successfully running a total of 15 FIPs, along with all the logitech gear (BIP, TRIM, MULTI, SWITCH, RADIO, RUDDER, YOKE) using this setup for about a year now.

I’ve actually recently stopped, because my logitech yoke died, so I’ve just replaced it with the turtle beach velocity one, so I’ve actually slimmed my setup down quite a lot (now just the V1, radio panel, switch panel and 3 FIP. I also run 2 G1000 units with audio panel, and have now reinstalled airmanager to display gauges for non Garmin aircraft).

But yeah, agree with the above, a 60W powered hub, but also try to spread the load if it’s one with many ports…that’s why I ended up with I think 6 hubs with all the stuff I had connected. As long as you get a USB 2.0 (not 3.0) hub with enough power, and then only power on 2 at a time, you should be fine.

you should also look in to (if you haven’t already) the custom gauges from fsxtimes and also www.fipgauges.com.

the fsxtimes can be run either with logitech plugin, or with spad.next, the fipgauges ones do require spad.next though (although this is a good investment if you’re going to be using the fips and other logitech panels).

Thanks for the suggestion. Funny, I have no issues with my logitech radios and their power. For them I the the same USB hubs that failed to properly power my fips. Hopefully this will be the last time I have to buy USB hub, haha. Mike

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fingers crossed. like I said, the key is also to only power them on 2 at a time at most.

I have 2 FIP, Autopilot, radios and switch panels with this hub since Dec 2022, no problems since.

https://www.amazon.es/dp/B01N631DZ9?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

The hub is usb 3.0 but works with 2.0 no problems. I use Spad to control the fip’s and purchased guages online.

Thanks, all! Mike

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