flambot Posted March 24, 2015 Share Posted March 24, 2015 My server has drive cages that hold 3 HDD's and sports a 120mm fan. They are a pain to change drives. I found these locally and wondered if anyone has any experience with this brand and or these hot swap cages. http://www.ascent.co.nz/productspecification.aspx?ItemID=368255 They look like you just screw a handle (supplied) to the HDD to pull it out. Not sure if the HDD locks in place. There is also a 4 HDD one http://www.ascent.co.nz/productspecification.aspx?ItemID=420428 Last time I looked at hot swap cages they were a wicked price. These seem reasonable. Quote Link to comment
garycase Posted March 24, 2015 Share Posted March 24, 2015 Haven't used these, but as for "What do you think?" ==> These look VERY nice. I suspect they're typical Lian-Li quality, and from the description, the drives should be VERY easy to swap out when necessary. They've done an excellent job with their cooling design, with a centralized 120mm fan pulling air directly across the drives. Definitely look like a great choice for a 4-in-3 (or 3-in-3 if that's all you need) cage. Quote Link to comment
flambot Posted March 25, 2015 Author Share Posted March 25, 2015 Haven't used these, but as for "What do you think?" ==> These look VERY nice. I suspect they're typical Lian-Li quality, and from the description, the drives should be VERY easy to swap out when necessary. They've done an excellent job with their cooling design, with a centralized 120mm fan pulling air directly across the drives. Definitely look like a great choice for a 4-in-3 (or 3-in-3 if that's all you need) cage. I think I might get one of these to see what they're like. Any idea how the cables attach to it? I'm assuming there is a back panel that the drives slide on to (similar to the bits in a HDD dock??) - and that the Mobo SATA cable plug into this board. What about the power connectors? I've never seen any sort of quick swap cages, so I have no idea. Thx Update: I finally found a pic (not of this unit, but a Lian Li backplane panel. Shows the connctions quite clearly. Now I wonder if the fan hinges out of the way?? Quote Link to comment
garycase Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 Don't know ... the detailed pictures on Newegg don't show if there's a hinge arrangement or not. The cables come out the side so they don't interfere with the airflow, which is much better than most of these kind of cages. You can look at the pictures here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811995055 Quote Link to comment
flambot Posted March 25, 2015 Author Share Posted March 25, 2015 Excellent. Now I'll have to track down some female molex to 6 pin PCI-e connector is I can plug straight into the power supply like my existing sata power cables. Quote Link to comment
pkn Posted March 26, 2015 Share Posted March 26, 2015 Excellent. Now I'll have to track down some female molex to 6 pin PCI-e connector is I can plug straight into the power supply like my existing sata power cables. Ahem... just yesterday I was kinda doing same search... and searched... and searched... and then realized that the thing simply does not exist. Because PCI-e power connector carries only GND and +12V, while SATA and MOLEX power connectors carry GND, +12V, and +5V... And just as a friendly reminder: playing with wrong power connectors could be deadly to your disks Quote Link to comment
mr-hexen Posted March 27, 2015 Share Posted March 27, 2015 Excellent. Now I'll have to track down some female molex to 6 pin PCI-e connector is I can plug straight into the power supply like my existing sata power cables. Ahem... just yesterday I was kinda doing same search... and searched... and searched... and then realized that the thing simply does not exist. Because PCI-e power connector carries only GND and +12V, while SATA and MOLEX power connectors carry GND, +12V, and +5V... And just as a friendly reminder: playing with wrong power connectors could be deadly to your disks Bingo! Was going to comment but you beat me to it. PCI-e have blank/yellow which are gnd/+12v ABSOLUTELY do not use those on your hard drives!! Quote Link to comment
pkn Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 ... and then realized that the thing simply does not exist. Because PCI-e power connector carries only GND and +12V, while SATA and MOLEX power connectors carry GND, +12V, and +5V... ... I stand corrected... the thing does exist! http://www.ebay.com/itm/251884665660 Quote Link to comment
garycase Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 I almost made a comment about it being possible with a simple voltage regulator to convert the 12v line to 5v, but didn't bother. Looks like somebody already had that idea and built a product with it I think it's a good bit simpler to just use a molex to SATA adapter http://www.monoprice.com/Product?c_id=102&cp_id=10226&cs_id=1022604&p_id=8796&seq=1&format=2 Quote Link to comment
flambot Posted March 29, 2015 Author Share Posted March 29, 2015 I'm just about to ring the supplier to see what cables come with the unit. Then I'll have to think about the best way to get power to them. Currently I have a cable with 4xsata connectors on it that comes straight from the power supply. I'm pretty sure all my HDD's are supplied directly from the PS with the same type of cable. My setup only uses the molex for the fans. The PCI-e plug is what the plug on the end of the cable is. I have a single molex to sata (female), but I need the reverse - a molex to sata (male). Best to get on the the supplier first. Thx EDIT: I'm wrong about the PCI-e plug - they all look to same unless you look real closely. The power ones have a different shape to the plastic pins. Further, I have found some cables that came with my PS. They come straight from the power supply and have female molex connectors on them. They look like this Quote Link to comment
garycase Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Those are standard molex connectors. You can use the adapters from Monoprice with those to get 2 (or 4 ... they also have a molex to 4 SATA adapter) SATA power outputs. Wait until you get the cage, however, before deciding what you need. The picture on Newegg looks like it uses molex power connections ... NOT SATA connectors. Quote Link to comment
flambot Posted March 30, 2015 Author Share Posted March 30, 2015 Those are standard molex connectors. You can use the adapters from Monoprice with those to get 2 (or 4 ... they also have a molex to 4 SATA adapter) SATA power outputs. Wait until you get the cage, however, before deciding what you need. The picture on Newegg looks like it uses molex power connections ... NOT SATA connectors. Will do. Just waiting to hear back from the supplier concerning all my questions. Seems my WD red 6Tb drive was faulty as they are sending a new one. Fingers crossed. Quote Link to comment
pkn Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 ... I think it's a good bit simpler to just use a molex to SATA adapter http://www.monoprice.com/Product?c_id=102&cp_id=10226&cs_id=1022604&p_id=8796&seq=1&format=2 Sure... but not in my particular case. I was in a hurry and did not think and research enough, so I put an el cheapo PSU from Frys into my experimental server. The PSU turned out to be +12V-multirail, and, adding insult to injury, not powerful enough to power 10 HDDS from one rail. 8 HDDs - yes, 10 - no. And the second +12V rail goes, it seems, solely into PCIe power connectors. So, for this particular case, the PCIe-to-SATA power adapter is what is needed, just to power few more HDDs. Yeah, I know, I know - don't skip on PSU... but this is temporary server put together for tests only, so considering how much I've already spend on hardware :'( I did not want a mediocre PSU and did not want to pay retail on high quality PSU... so I bought the cheapest. And, you know, so far it works. Except for not being able to start all 10 HDDs, but that's really not needed for planned tests - when I'm trying 4+4TB parity, I simply disconnect 4x2TB parity pool, and vice versa. Anyway, I'm keeping an eye on quality PSU deals, still don't want to pay full price. Quote Link to comment
garycase Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 I suppose that's indeed a way to take advantage of the 2nd 12v rail to power a couple extra hard drives. But I mostly just agree with what you already know ==> "... don't skimp on PSU... " :) Quote Link to comment
flambot Posted March 30, 2015 Author Share Posted March 30, 2015 These Lian units don't come with SATA cables (pity) - only the cable to power the fan. I was told they are 215mm deep from their face. I am looking at a 4xpack of coloured Lian SATA cables (0.85m long), which have locking connectors (something my current ones don't have). They are only 3Gb/p cables. Do I need 6 Gb/s cables?? I think only one drive I have does 6Gb/s and the Mobo is old so that is doubtful. Quote Link to comment
mr-hexen Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 Those will work but I'd shop around as I bet the price from lian is quite high. Check out monoprice.com Quote Link to comment
garycase Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 +1 for Monoprice => definitely "the" place to buy most cables. An exception is when you need "left hand" SATA cables ... Monoprice doesn't offer those ... or if you want very specific lengths. For both of these needs, this is the best source I've found: http://www.cpustuff.com/left-angle-to-straight-sata-cable/ Quote Link to comment
flambot Posted March 31, 2015 Author Share Posted March 31, 2015 Thx guys for the imput. I'm in New Zealand, so all those off-shore sites, while great, are out of the question - too long to receive. Locally, most things are overnight, or two days. Anything off-shore is at least two weeks or more. Most SATA cables here are at least $5.00+NZ for the basic type. The Lian ones at $20NZ which includes free shipping and a 4 year warranty is a good deal. Rule of thumb - In New Zealand, we're robbed blind! Why not get 5in3s? Not quite sure what this ref means. Is this a similar hot-swap type thingee that holds more drives?? Quote Link to comment
SSD Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 Yes. 5in3 holds 5 drives in the space of 3. Can't help you with finding locally, but here is an example of a good one. Supermicro 5in3 Quote Link to comment
flambot Posted March 31, 2015 Author Share Posted March 31, 2015 Yes. 5in3 holds 5 drives in the space of 3. Can't help you with finding locally, but here is an example of a good one. Supermicro 5in3 Thx. Those are nice. Couldn't find any listed locally. I'm in the process of reducing server to 8 drives. So 3x 3x5 - gives me one extra slot. Good for a preclear. I like the idea of only 3 HDD's in a unit as the drives should run cooler. Quote Link to comment
garycase Posted April 1, 2015 Share Posted April 1, 2015 ... I like the idea of only 3 HDD's in a unit as the drives should run cooler. Agree. I don't have any 3-in-3's, but I do have both 4-in-3's and 5-in-3's, and the drives in the 4-in-3's definitely run cooler than those in the 5-in-3's => clearly there's better airflow in those, as they have more space between the drives. [Not the only factor, since the size and speed of the integrated fans also matter, but in at least one case they have the same fans in both units ... both 120mm units at the same rpm] Quote Link to comment
SSD Posted April 1, 2015 Share Posted April 1, 2015 My 5in3s keep my drives nice and cool. If you don't need the higher density I.guess it's not an issue but most people buy 5in3 cages for internal case use. Quote Link to comment
garycase Posted April 1, 2015 Share Posted April 1, 2015 Didn't mean to imply my 5-in-3's didn't adequately cool the drives ... they do just fine (both the SuperMicro and the IcyDock units). But the 4-in-3's do a BETTER job ... keeping temps 1-3 degrees lower than the 5-in-3's. It's a simple matter of airflow ... and they have more of it Quote Link to comment
Esse Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 Hi guys! Did anyone buy this SM 5in3? If so, did you notice any drop in performance as noted by some former buyers here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817121405&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleAdwords-Mobile&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleAdwords-Mobile-_-pla-_-Server+Accessories-_-N82E16817121405&gclid=Cj0KEQjwi-moBRDL4Omf9d_LndMBEiQAQtFf84hZKRi3n8iL7bAVVwRwiLldB0FjjEmOgcmit4_VzFcaAtyZ8P8HAQ&gclsrc=aw.ds Cheers Esse Quote Link to comment
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