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    Please do not post a support request without first reading and following the advice in https://retropie.org.uk/forum/topic/3/read-this-first

    Issues supplying power to HDD

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    psuusb hddconverterpower
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    • madmodder123M
      madmodder123
      last edited by madmodder123

      Raspberry Pi 3
      1 TB 5400 RPM internal HDD: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007RE0EQC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
      Power supply: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MZX466R/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

      So I had my project all set up using an external HDD which ran perfectly with no lightning bolt when it was plugged and powered by the Pi, I then upgraded to the internal HDD listed above because it was slimmer.
      I removed the board from the PSU listed above and have it all wired up.

      I tried to connect the internal HDD directly to the Pi using the following:
      #1 https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16812232053
      Results: Works just fine, except I am getting the lightning bolt symbol (power issue)

      I then tried the following with both USB connectors connected to the Pi:
      #2 https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA2RB16J0694
      Results: With this one It didn't work correctly, Retropie wouldn't fully boot and would launch to the command line with an I/O error.

      Is there a way I can have this all wired up to the one PSU? Or does it legitimately not have enough power?

      Could I connect this to the PSU (maybe modifying #1 to split up the power/data on the USB connector? [so it looks like the #2])
      https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00LNHAQHG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

      To make it more clear my idea would be to connect the Pi to one of the ports for power, and then connect the USB power to the other port, and finally connecting the USB data directly to the Pi)
      Sexy MS Paint picture to explain:
      http://puu.sh/uR2KK/f5d1f1c4e7.png

      I would really like to use the same PSU I have because It is all wired up and ready, but if I have to change it I guess I could... I am limited on space though so please take that into consideration.

      Please let me know if you have an ideas, need something clarified, or have ran into something like this before.

      EDIT: solved this, it was a cheap micro USB cable, i got my Pi running fine after I replaced it with a quality cable!
      Thank you, this community is awesome!

      edmaul69E 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
      • edmaul69E
        edmaul69 @madmodder123
        last edited by edmaul69

        @madmodder123 can you post pics of your setup. I would like a good idea of what you have with case and all so i can give you the best suggestion.

        madmodder123M 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • madmodder123M
          madmodder123
          last edited by

          This post is deleted!
          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • madmodder123M
            madmodder123 @edmaul69
            last edited by madmodder123

            @edmaul69
            I don't mind switching out the PSU for another one, but space is pretty limited...
            I could also remove the plastic barrier between the PSU and middle of the console if needed.
            De-soldering USB connectors and hard wiring them is no problem either.

            edmaul69E 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • madmodder123M
              madmodder123
              last edited by

              I was thinking of just buying one of these:
              https://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-Canvio-Portable-External-HDTD210XS3E1/dp/B00DM5EVBY/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&qid=1490054002&sr=8-14&keywords=1+tb+thin+external
              https://www.amazon.com/Black-Passport-Ultra-Portable-External/dp/B00M1VICHO/ref=sr_1_33?ie=UTF8&qid=1490054407&sr=8-33&keywords=1+tb+thin+external
              https://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Backup-Portable-External-STDS1000100/dp/B00H4YGR48/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1490054002&sr=8-1&keywords=1+tb+thin+external

              Which I will probably do if there is not an easier solution

              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • edmaul69E
                edmaul69 @madmodder123
                last edited by edmaul69

                @madmodder123 i would buy this. It is a powered rockband usb hub. But dont buy one that isnt self powered. Some dont use a power supply. You need one that does. I would then run power straight from the power supply to this. I use one of these. When there is no signal from the pi it will shut off the hard drive attached to it. Even with power going from the power supply straight to this hub. I split the power to my playstation raspberry pi and it works great.
                http://m.ebay.com/itm/Rock-Band-ViPowER-USB-4-Port-Hub-Power-Adapter-2-Headset-Adapters-Xbox-360-/262834643638?hash=item3d322a62b6%3Ag%3AFegAAOSwImRYk1hx&_trkparms=pageci%253A615baa71-0dd2-11e7-bcb7-74dbd180e30a%257Cparentrq%253Aee651dab15a0a7884999427ffffa67db%257Ciid%253A2

                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • P
                  PetroRie
                  last edited by PetroRie

                  @madmodder123 said in Issues supplying power to HDD:

                  So I had my project all set up using an external HDD which ran perfectly with no lightning bolt when it was plugged and powered by the Pi, I then upgraded to the internal HDD listed above because it was slimmer.
                  I removed the board from the PSU listed above and have it all wired up.

                  3'5 inch harddisks need 12v USB is only 5v bro that is why it doesn't work. Thats also a reason why external 3.5inch HD's always come with a power supply. The harddisk in your case needs a separate 12v supply. Even if you're using a USB hub it won't matter, it still needs 12v.

                  The harddisks without power supply are the smaller ones (2.5inch), you can feed them directly trough USB. In the past I experimented with this and I noticed that you need a short USB cable, for some reason the harddisk wont get enough of juice if you use a long USB cable.

                  You need to use a smaller HD of 2.5inch. You can run it directly via the Pi, but you need to see how much amps it's using. If you do so you also need to count the amps of the peripherals which are connected to the Pi (controllers, Bluetooth USB dongle etc.) Lets say;

                  You have one 2.5' USB harddisk which needs 1000mA
                  You have two USB controller which need 700mA per controller so it is 1400mA

                  In total you would need a power supply of 2400mA, your current power supply is 2500mA so it should be fine.

                  EDIT: ignore this post.

                  edmaul69E 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                  • edmaul69E
                    edmaul69 @PetroRie
                    last edited by

                    @PetroRie where did you see a 3.5" hdd? I looked at all his images and they are all 2.5".

                    P 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                    • P
                      PetroRie @edmaul69
                      last edited by PetroRie

                      @edmaul69 said in Issues supplying power to HDD:

                      @PetroRie where did you see a 3.5" hdd? I looked at all his images and they are all 2.5".

                      Woops, on the Amazon link I clicked on the picture below quickly which led me to an another page. Shame on me :(

                      The drive of TS uses 800mA. TS also said he had the lightning bolt symbol, I really wonder if his power supply really has an output of 2500mA. I think its safely to say that if you get that lighting bold icon you need to use a power supply which delivers more than 2500mA

                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                      • I
                        iggy
                        last edited by iggy

                        An option that you can use is a DC-DC buck converter such as the one found at:

                        https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0159W0UL2/ref=sxts1?ie=UTF8&qid=1490088557&sr=1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&th=1&psc=1

                        This one is nice as it has current and voltage adjustments with onboard display. If you go this route, you would want to get a 12v power supply for your input to down convert to 5v. (I went 12v @ 5A supply) Another design note is to make sure that the wire coming out of the buck converter for your 5v needs meet your current requirements (ie minimum 22 gauge if you are designing the circuit for 5A max draw on the buck... When I worked on my NES R2-D2 build, I was constantly getting the lightning bolt indicator (even when i shortened the cables). When I got this buck to power everything and adjusted the voltage output, I didnt have any further issues with the lightning bolt indicator. You can see pics of it at:

                        https://retropie.org.uk/forum/topic/6729/my-first-retropie-project-nes-r2-d2

                        Let me know if you have any questions and ill try to answer to the best of my knowledge.

                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                        • madmodder123M
                          madmodder123
                          last edited by

                          It turned out that I was just using a cheap ass micro USB cable, when I replaced it with a quality one the issue stopped happening, thanks anyways guys

                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
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