Solved - Subway USB possible fault - One USB port not working?

[Jameson]

Hey guys,

hoping we have a Subway USB guru or two online... I have a Subway USB (not the 2021 model, was purchased around 2010) which was working perfectly in an A1200.

I recently transplanted it into another refurbished A1200 - Amigakit recapped MB (rev 1D4) with a TF1260, OS 3.2.1 ROMs running the latest OS 3.2.2, Indivision AGA Mk 2CR, A1200 4xIDE board with matching PCMCIA Reset/Fast IDE module (both from Amigakit) connected to a 256GB SSD, Lastly a PCMCIA to CF adapter with a 4GB Sandisk CF Card. Oh, and I have Poseidon 4.4 installed.

Now, the Indivision AGA and the Subway USB are both routed to an Alinea Omniport (fantastic bit of kit btw) which routes the Indivision AGA to a HDMI port and the Subway USB to two USB ports that fit nicely into the Expansion bay at the back of the A1200.

Sorry, just wanted to make sure I didn't miss out a piece of hardware/software that MIGHT be an issue.

Everything runs perfectly. except only the BOTTOM USB port is recognized by Poseidon. Anything I plug into this port is recognised and works perfectly, however the top USB port does not appear to work at all. The Subway WAS working perfectly on four USB ports in it's original A1200 installation.

The only thing that has changed is connecting the Subway USB to the Omniport using the optional Subway (pre 2021 model) to Omniport adapter. I have messaged Simon at Alinea and he is helping, however the first thing he mentions is it could be either the Omniport, the Subway to Omniport adapter or the Subway itself.

Now after all that (again, sorry, I didn't want to miss out anything that might be relevant) my question is - is it possible for a Subway USB card to become faulty in such a way that half its USB connectors fail, but the other half work perfectly?

I intend to reconnect the original 4 x USB port cable to the Subway this afternoon and see if all four ports are working, but in the meantime any tips etc on fault finding would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks guys.

 

[8 Bit Dreams]

Yes it's possible, I had that "bad luck" wile building up and testing Freeway's (it's basically same design to Subway)
Metal bracket touched +5v line by negligence and fried up ferrites and one track... USB Chip was partially broken....

 

[Jameson]

Ahhhhh, that's not what I wanted to hear.

I didn't notice anything untoward whilst installing the Subway etc - certainly nothing silly like plugging it in backwards on to the clock port (oh, I should mention I also have an Amigakit 4 way clock port expander connected) or anything shorting out etc. Still,. I guess I may have "zapped" it with a static charge (I never wear a static discharge strap).

Other than plugging the original four USB Port cable in and testing the four ports, is there any other way of checking the Subway? Could there be any ferrite links fried that I should do a continuity test on?

Thanks for your help.

 

[Jameson]

Wellllllll. The good news is my Subway is in perfect working order - I found the problem...... I think the fellow in charge of quality control at Alinea was away the day they assembled my Omniport - one of the pins that goes to the USB header was unsoldered! I must say I am not very impressed. Easy fix (and both USB ports are working perfectly now), however what if I was someone less technically minded who could neither solder nor know what to look for? It would have meant posting the unit back to Germany, then waiting for it to return.

I know these things happen, but this is a part that only has about two dozen through hole solder points on the entire PCB.... and I am not sure how it could have made it through "testing" before being posted?

Anywho, problem is now solved so this thread can be closed.

 

[8 Bit Dreams]

Have heard that Alinea had issues with quality control, hope this is fixed now.


It's good to know Your card is up and running!

 

[rimmer]

Look at this photo I "borrowed" from the Alinea website. Also here It looks like a pin is missing solder on the USB header. It might be the light, but it looks suspicious and I thought it funny & interesting.

 

[Jameson]

It's a shame - it is actually a very well designed port solution for the A1200, and as far as I am aware, the only ones being produced (they actually have variants for different setups - Vampire etc), but you are right, it DOES look suspicious.

 

[Jameson]

.....VERY suspicious.....

 

[Xanxi]

I have an Omniport in my A1200 and i have no problem at all. Both USB are working and the Indi as well. Might be bad luck.

There should be soon a new omniport to accomodate both Indi + HDMI out of Vampire or PiStorm. I am looking forward to it.

 

[Jameson]

I have an Omniport in my A1200 and i have no problem at all. Both USB are working and the Indi as well. Might be bad luck.

There should be soon a new omniport to accomodate both Indi + HDMI out of Vampire or PiStorm. I am looking forward to it.

My Omniport is working fine now...... after I finished soldering the USB header that they missed.

Looking at their own photo from their own website, and from customer experiences, it seems this is a bit of a common problem for Alinea.