Epson USB cable. How long is too long?

Hello. I just purchased a beautiful Epson 2400 printer but because of it's size will have to be located far away from my computer. The cable would have to be around 30 feet long. Is this too long? If so any other recommendations? Your help will be appreciated.

 

There's no such thing as too long when it comes to computer cables!

Are you worried about how the electricity is going to conduct through 30 feet of cable? Don't worry about it, if it wouldn't do it, the cable wouldn't be made. The cable could be a mile long and it would still work fine.

 

It looks like you may be able to stretch it if you use a USB hub...but take it with a grain of salt.....


Quoting from USB.org:

Q1: How long of a cable can I use to connect my device?
A1: In practice, the USB specification limits the length of a cable between full speed devices to 5 meters (a little under 16 feet 5 inches). For a low speed device the limit is 3 meters (9 feet 10 inches).

Q2: Why can't I use a cable longer than 3 or 5m?
A2: USB's electrical design doesn't allow it. When USB was designed, a decision was made to handle the propagation of electromagnetic fields on USB data lines in a way that limited the maximum length of a USB cable to something in the range of 4m. This method has a number of advantages and, since USB is intended for a desktop environment, the range limitations were deemed acceptable. If you're familiar with transmission line theory and want more detail on this topic, take a look at the USB signals section of the developers FAQ.

Q3: How far away from a PC can I put a USB device?
A3: With the maximum of 5 hubs connected with 5m cables and a 5m cable going to your full speed device, this will give you 30m of cable (see section 7.1.19 for details). With a low speed device, you will be able to get a range up to 27m, depending on how long the device's cable is. With a straightforward cable route, you will probably be able to reach out 25m or so from the PC.

 

Not true

 

you can always go wireless, all do it's a bit expensive.
http://www.gefen.com/kvm/product.jsp?prod_id=4105

 

agreed, there are specs to every standard.

 

Ethernet would be fine if it supported it, which it doesnt. a good fix is a usb printer hub. its cheaper than wireless and can work at more than twice the speed (up to almost 5 times since USB 2.0 is @ 480Mbps)

not true, unless boosted USB is only 1.5V. if you ever look at a long stretch of home electrical wiring on poles there are transformers every so often, this is to bump up the voltage since it drops due to an imperfect world. if they didnt do this the 220V (amperage is a factor too though not as much with the USB) that enters your home at the the electrical panel would be less than half that, and then things wouldnt work.

 

Very untrue. A mile long USB cable would not work.

The spec for 100BaseT is 100 meters.


Both of these standards can be extended through the use of hubs, repeaters, switches, bridges, routers or another host acting as one of those other devices.

 

oops.

 

The USB specification limits the length of a cable between full speed devices to 5 meters (a little under 16 feet 5 inches). For a low speed device the limit is 3 meters (9 feet 10 inches).

USB's electrical design doesn't allow it to extend past this length. When USB was designed, a decision was made to handle the propagation of electromagnetic fields on USB data lines in a way that limited the maximum length of a USB cable to something in the range of 4m. This method has a number of advantages and, since USB is intended for a desktop environment, the range limitations were deemed acceptable.

 

I thought the 3rd post put this to bed quite nicely.

-S