# Starling 2 Max: WiFi dongle USB link (error -71,) - dongle tested good on PC

Source: https://forum.modalai.com/topic/5343/starling-2-max-wifi-dongle-usb-link-error-71-dongle-tested-good-on-pc
Category: General Questions (https://forum.modalai.com/category/2/general-questions)
Posted: 2026-07-24 17:53:52 UTC by kristi
Replies: 3 · Views: 180

## kristi · 2026-07-24 17:53:52 UTC

Hardware: Starling 2 Max, SKU MRB-D0012-4-V2-C29-T9-M22-X0 (V2, T-Motor)

Software: voxl-suite 1.3.5, system image 1.7.10-M0054-14.1a-perf 

Stock RTL8821CU WIFI dongle  keeps dropping off the USB bus: "device descriptor read/64, error -71", "device not accepting address", and "usb usb1-port1: Cannot enable. 

Fails with the aircraft untouched. Battery power-cycle revives it temporarily. 

Same day, I tested this same dongle on a Windows PC: clean enumeration, 0% loss ping. Fine on PC, dies in 12 s on the drone

Is this a known issue?

## Reply by electroAJ · 2026-07-28 04:18:14 UTC

Hi @kristi,

I'm experiencing a similar, though maybe not identical issue.  Would you mind sharing the repeatability of your problem? is it consistent? thanks.

## Reply by kristi · 2026-07-29 19:34:31 UTC

Hi @electroaj 

It's intermittent but it's gotten worse over about three weeks.  Dongle would vanished from the USB bus mid-session.   And then at boot the dongle enumerated for under a second, then went into the device descriptor read/64, error -71 .  No software  path recovered  adb reboot didn't help. Only a physical restart (unplugging and plugging back to power), would bring back now even that has been inconsistent. Sometimes it would last 30 minutes after physical restart sometimes just a few seconds.

## Reply by tom (ModalAI staff) · 2026-09-10 21:07:12 UTC

Hi @kristi ,

  Not a known issue. `error -71` on the descriptor read happens before the WiFi driver loads, and getting worse over weeks with only a power cycle recovering it points to a failing part in the USB path rather than software. 

Working on a PC does not rule out the dongle, since we have seen these Alfa dongles fail in service
  (https://forum.modalai.com/topic/4538).

  On Starling 2 Max the dongle sits in the M0141 breakout on VOXL 2 J3, so the likely fix is replacing one of them:

  1. Try a new AWUS036EACS or AWUS036ACS (https://docs.modalai.com/voxl-2-wifi-setup/).
  2. If a new dongle fails the same way, open an RMA so we can inspect the board: https://www.modalai.com/rma

  Posting `voxl-version` and `dmesg | grep -i usb` from a failing boot would help us confirm.