After you add up your USB audio interface(s), USB microphone(s), camera source(s), Stream Deck, foot pedal and external drive(s), you have likely surpassed the USB capabilities of your computer, even if it’s a MacBook Pro. There are many USB hubs on the market, but many are unpowered—or underpowered—for proper use with your multimedia setup. Enter the new RØDE Hub to save the day, with enough speed and wattage to power all of them. In addition to being a leader in microphones and audio mixers, in the past couple of years, RØDE has also become a leader in the video mixer field, so the company knows very well the speed and wattage required for professional USB mics, interfaces and webcams. I am glad they sent me a review unit to facilitate testing it and sharing my impressions after using it.
The RØDE Hub features:
- Six USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 ports with high-speed data transfer of up to 10Gbps, ideal for camera sources, fast external drives and RJ-45 Ethernet adapters, if your computer doesn’t have RJ-45 natively. You can also use one of these fast USB-C ports with your 5G wireless data, as covered in Review: TCL Linkport IK511 5G RedCap with Calyx Sprout truly unlimited data. (For fast legacy devices, any of the USB-C ports these can be also used with USB-A to C adapters, or—even better, when possible—direct cables that go from A-to-C.)
- A single USB-A port with up to 5 Gb/s, so use it for your least-demanding device in terms of data speed, like a Stream Deck, foot pedal, keyboard, trackpad or mouse. This lower data rate port is also more than enough for a high-end audio interface like the Elgato Wave XLR MK.2 (review pending), which fortunately demands less than haff this data rate, even with its uncompressed 24-bit resolution at a 48 kHz sample rate.
- Both microSD (UHS-II [312 MB/s]) and full-sized SDXC (UHS-II [312 MB/s]) card slots. I am so happy to see the full-sized SDXC included in the RØDE Hub, after seeing so many variations of the RØDECaster models which have only had microSD.
- An included 100 watt power supply, 100 to 240 VAC, 50/60 Hz with international plugs included.
- Pass-through charging of up to 60 watts to charge a laptop while passing data through a single USB cable.
- Up to 40 watts to power your other devices, divided among the USB ports.
Build quality/construction
The RØDE Hub is made out of sturdy metal. The build-quality is high, with the RØDE logo embossed on the metallic top panel.
Conclusions
The RØDE Hub seems to be the «missing link» between many of today’s computers and multimedia devices, since today’s computers are often missing enough ports and/or sufficient wattage to connect multiple demanding devices for a complete professional multimedia setup. The only feature I would like to see added in a future version (or via a firmware update, if this device has firmware) would be the option of connecting an external video monitor. One authorized dealer website had published this feature to be included, but both RØDE’s PR and my testing have both proven that it’s not there (yet).
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Reseña: RØDE Hub, para interconectar y alimentar tu computadora y tus dispositivos de forma óptima
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FTC disclosure
None of the listed individuals or companies mentioned above has paid for this article. RØDE sent the device to Allan Tépper to facilitate this review. Some of the manufacturers listed above have contracted Tépper and/or TecnoTur LLC to carry out consulting and/or translations/localizations/transcreations. So far, none of the manufacturers listed above is/are sponsors of the TecnoTur, BeyondPodcasting, CapicúaFM or TuSaludSecreta programs, although they are welcome to do so, and some are, may be (or may have been) sponsors of ProVideo Coalition magazine. Some links to third parties listed in this article and/or on this web page may indirectly benefit TecnoTur LLC via affiliate programs. Allan Tépper’s opinions are his own. Allan Tépper is not liable for misuse or misunderstanding of information he shares.