Hacking Is a Y Cable realy needed for a Wii U USB HDD?

[Angelo Spagnol]

Hi Guys!

I have a USB 1TB 2.5" USB 3.0 HDD from Seagate. It came with 1 USB Cable (not that Y ONE) and it works pretty good on my PC, TV and on the ANDROID TV and even on a WII i used to have...

Now i'm going to format it and use it on the Wii U, but i've heard that Wii U USB POWER isn't good enough to keep it running. Is that true? When i connect it to the Wii U it prompt me to format the HDD, meaning that it got reconized, but i don't want to format if its going to give me headaches by the lack of that Y cable...

 

[Exavold]

Yes , because the Wii U doesn't give enough power for the HDD to stay on.

It will be recognized but you won't be able to install nor play games from it.

 

[SomeGamer]

Depends on the HDD. If it asks you to format, it's likely receiving enough power.

 

[PR0r]

Depends on the HDD. If it asks you to format, it's likely receiving enough power.

Not necessarily. Mine formatted fine and was able to partly install a game. The drive midway started losing power and was prompted to use the y cable.

 

[Exavold]

Depends on the HDD. If it asks you to format, it's likely receiving enough power.

Likely , but mine was recognized , I was able to install a game (very slowly) but then when I would go back to the home menu , It would say "A storage device has been disconnected [...] power off the console".

Sometimes I was able to launch a game , but It just gave me the error a few seconds after.

tl:dr : Recognized doesn't mean it works properly.

 

[Cuphat]

The Wii U's USB ports don't provide enough power. It's really dumb, but yes, you almost certainly need a Y Cable.

 

[migles]

Yes , because the Wii U doesn't give enough power for the HDD to stay on.

It will be recognized but you won't be able to install nor play games from it.

Not necessarily. Mine formatted fine and was able to partly install a game. The drive midway started losing power and was prompted to use the y cable.

even if the drive works perfectly on a wii?

 

[Exavold]

even if the drive works perfectly on a wii?

Never tested , but it worked fine on my PC , because it gave it enough power.

 

[PR0r]

even if the drive works perfectly on a wii?

There's no knowing without trying it. More likely it would work, but there's no sure way to know.

 

[Exavold]

There's no knowing without trying it. More likely it would work, but there's no sure way to know.

The Wii gives more power from USB afaik , so I guess it would.

 

[sj33]

even if the drive works perfectly on a wii?

Yes. I could power the drive with 1 USB on my Wii, but refuses to boot unless I use a Y-cable (or external power) on the Wii U. The USB ports don't gve enough power.

 

[final-echo]

You can use external SSD with a simple cable. But for external dd, Y cable is practicaly necessary.

FYI, this is why Smash Bros adapter for Gamecube pad need 2 USB ports... he need more power than USB can sent.

 

[migles]

Yes. I could power the drive with 1 USB on my Wii, but refuses to boot unless I use a Y-cable (or external power) on the Wii U. The USB ports don't gve enough power.

thanks for confirming i was kinda sceptical..

anyway, what are the usb ports officially used for? most wii accessories are plugged to the wii mote...

 

[Angelo Spagnol]

Yes. I could power the drive with 1 USB on my Wii, but refuses to boot unless I use a Y-cable (or external power) on the Wii U. The USB ports don't gve enough power.

TY. I will go get this damn Y cable ... eheheheheh

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

thanks for confirming i was kinda sceptical..

anyway, what are the usb ports officially used for? most wii accessories are plugged to the wii mote...

Microphones, Skylanders portals, and a bunch of Guitar Heroes stuff

 

[Exavold]

TY. I will go get this damn Y cable ... eheheheheh

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------



Microphones, Skylanders portals, and a bunch of Guitar Heroes stuff

heheheheheheheh

heh ?

 

[migles]

Guitar Heroes stuff

guitar hero stuff uses the wii mote inside...
i thought about the guitar hero guitars for example but they have a slot for the wii mote (so it uses it)

 

[Angelo Spagnol]

guitar hero stuff uses the wii mote inside...
i thought about the guitar hero guitars for example but they have a slot for the wii mote (so it uses it)

Man, most of the other instruments, despite the Guitar, go on the USB.

 

[TeconMoon]

anyway, what are the usb ports officially used for? most wii accessories are plugged to the wii mote...

Officially, here are a couple things the Wii U uses USB for:

• Ethernet Adapter
• GameCube Controller Adapter for Smash
• External Powered Hard Drive
• Guitar Hero / Rock Band Microphones (Guitars and drums use a Wii Remote. Source: I own them)
• Skylander / Disney Infinity Portals

Let's be honest it's not a very long list haha.

 

[Wiiunator]

Most HDD would need a Y cable however to my surprise I just bought a 1TB WD Element USB 3 HDD and it doesn't need a Y cable
link: https://www.amazon.com/Elements-Portable-Drive-Storage-WDBUZG0010BBK-EESN/dp/B00CI3BLPA

 

[migles]

Officially, here are a couple things the Wii U uses USB for:

• Ethernet Adapter
• GameCube Controller Adapter for Smash
• External Powered Hard Drive
• Guitar Hero / Rock Band Microphones (Guitars and drums use a Wii Remote. Source: I own them)
• Skylander / Disney Infinity Portals

Let's be honest it's not a very long list haha.

i was asking more about the wii (not u) because you don't need storage... (and the sd card is only used for pictures and to backup channels)
the list is so small it looks like nintendo give the console usb so we could pirate and load backups from it...