Peter Kronenberg said:
Does that mean I can't use them? Is there any physicall difference
between USB 1.1 and USB 2.0?
USB 2.0 is backward compatible with USB 1.1.
Both carry +5V down the cable, to power bus powered devices with
a maximum of 0.5 amps.
A USB 2.0 device will talk at USB 1.1 rates for a short interval
during the setup of the device.
A USB 1.1 device uses differential signalling (that is why there
is a D+ and a D- signal). The signals on the wires are the inverse
of one another. The amplitude is based on up to 3.3V signal swing
(i.e. the I/O pins are powered by what looks like a regulated 3.3V
source, possibly regulated from the bus power +5V signal).
A USB 2.0 device, when talking at 480Mb/sec, pumps current into the
line, such that 0.4V is developed. In a sense, it uses differential
signalling as in USB 1.1, but the signals are smaller in amplitude.
The smaller amplitude reduces electrical interference with devices
external to the cable.
About the only question you have to ask of your equipment, is whether
the components are rated to carry a 480Mb/sec signal. Due to the
legacy of USB 1.1 devices, there are still components around,
such as the wiring on the case of your computer, that may only
be suitable for carrying the lower speed signals. To carry 480Mb/sec
requires good transmission line quality cable that controls the
impedance and loss over the length of the cable.
For example, if the case has long lengths of loose wires for the
D+ and D-, that spells doom for the USB 2.0 signals. Loose wires
must be kept very short, and the majority of the wire should
be shielded.
For example, look at the way this Asus USB/Game Port bracket is
constructed. There is only a short length of unshielded wire
near the blue connector. The rest of the wire is carefully
shielded.
http://www.newegg.com/app/Showimage.asp?image=13-131-206-01.JPG
If your USB wiring has a lot of loose looking wires like some
of the cables in this picture, it is less likely to work at
USB 2.0 rates.
http://www.jmallard.com/MyComputer/LianLiUSB.htm
In the case of Antec, people have been contacting Antec and
getting a replacement USB assembly rated for use at USB 2.0
rates.
When the wiring is bad, I presume what happens is the equipment
tries to run at USB 2.0, get a lot of CRC errors, and downshifts
to USB 1.1 rates. Obviously, your chipset has to support USB 2.0
to even try to use the protocol, and you need an "Enhanced" entry
in the USB entries of the Device Manager to indicate that a
USB 2.0 driver is installed.
The standards are here (I didn't read the whole thing today...)
http://www.usb.org/developers/docs/usb_20.zip (650 pages)
http://www.usb.org/developers/docs/usbspec.zip (327 pages)
HTH,
Paul