Railfan Technology > Connecting a Nikon Coolscan 9000 to a Laptop

I recently picked up a Super Coolscan 9000 ED which outputs via FireWire (only). I would like to run it with a Sony laptop equipped with a Type II Cardbus slot (...but, unfortunately, NOT with a dedicated FireWire port).

Does anyone have experience with this sort of setup using an IEEE 1394 FireWire Notebook Adapter plugged into the card slot?

Nikon provides an IEEE 1394 interface board for use with a PC (desktop), but nothing for a Windows XP laptop setup.

Any issues that I should be aware of, or recommendations as to the best Type II adapter card to use?

Thanks.

Greg

I have used the Adaptec AUA-1422 cardbus adapter with both Firewire and USB2 connections on my Dell with good success with both connectors. You get two USB 2 ports and one full size 1394 and one mini 1394. All work well.

Thanks for your reply, FBE.

There seems to be some tech talk that the Nikon-supplied IEEE 1394 interface board protocol does not match the Texas Instruments standard protocol and that, therefore, a generic TT standard IEEE 1394 interface board does not work well with the 9000. So my concern was that a generic TT protocol Type II Cardbus plug-in may likewise have issues.

It appears from your reply, though, that you have successfully hooked up a 9000 via the Cardbus port. So I'll give it a try and see what happens.

-- Greg

Greg,

No, sorry if I misled you but I do not have a 9000 with fire wire. I have used external HDs and an Epson R2400 printer with firewire. All have worked well with my Dell inspiron laptop. I had not heard of different standards for the IE 1394 components.