Topic: 2011 Mac Mini can't power Impact Twin - not enough bus power

I got a mid-2011 Mac mini recently and found (only after purchasing) that it doesn't provide enough bus power (via Firewire) to power the Impact Twin. I thought that anybody experiencing problems with a TC interface and a Mac mini should know about this. You just have to use the external power supply for the audio interface.

This seems like an unwise design decision on Apple's part but I guess you don't get a computer with low power consumption without some tradeoffs. My two year old 13 inch Macbook Pro can power the Impact Twin without any trouble, even on battery power (though the battery won't last long). I was disappointed that a newer machine (the current Mac mini model), which is constantly plugged into the wall, couldn't provide enough power.

I'm not using the Mac mini server model, it could be different. Anybody tried it?

Last edited by tyrosine (2012-01-07 21:15:41)

Re: 2011 Mac Mini can't power Impact Twin - not enough bus power

The Impact Twin reads <14 W as power consumption, and your Mac mini according to http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4806 as 8 W. Just for curiosity: which MacBook Pro is it in detail?

Re: 2011 Mac Mini can't power Impact Twin - not enough bus power

Thanks for the link.

The Firewire port on the most recent Mac mini (Late 2012) also puts out 8W max: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5539

My laptop is a mid-2010 Macbook Pro, 13 inch screen, Core 2 Duo chip.

They really need to release a new Mac Pro... 18,000+ others agree:
https://www.facebook.com/MacProsPlease

Last edited by tyrosine (2012-11-12 00:03:04)