swells Posted November 4, 2011 Share Posted November 4, 2011 Anyone know a good source for these? Newegg is out and Amazon only has one from a 3rd party vendor. Im looking to buy two of them, if i cant find them i guess i'll have to go with something else and mismatch my cages. I saw some on ebay but i dont like spending that much on ebay, just not comfortable with it. Link to comment
mikejp Posted November 4, 2011 Share Posted November 4, 2011 http://www.mwave.com/mwave/SKUSearch_v3.asp?px=FO&scriteria=BA31120 Link to comment
swells Posted November 4, 2011 Author Share Posted November 4, 2011 Thank you so much. Ordered the 2 i needed. Link to comment
swells Posted November 4, 2011 Author Share Posted November 4, 2011 Well crap..... I hate when you can purchase something and payment goes through, only THEN do they tell you they don't have it. Dear Valued Customer: We regret to inform you that the following item requested on your order, has recently been placed on back order: BA31120 - NORCO SS-500 5 bay SATA / SAS hot swap rack module Unfortunately, we do not have a current ETA as to when we can expect this item in our warehouse. Link to comment
Rajahal Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 3btech used to have them, but they are no longer listed on their site. Since there's only one company that manufactures and imports the drive cages to the US, it actually happens somewhat frequently the entire country's supply drops out for a bit. IPCDirect is Norco's online storefront, and they claim to still have them for $100 each (plus shipping). If you are willing to pay extra for them, they should be able to help you out. If not, then I suggest waiting for the next shipment to arrive from Asia. Link to comment
swells Posted November 5, 2011 Author Share Posted November 5, 2011 I wouldn't have any problem with a different cage, but I like a clean look and not sure what would look ok. The iStarUSA one linked below doesnt seem like it would look too terrible with a norco cage, maybe sandwich the norco in the middle of two of those? I dunno. Also, this is in an antec 900 if anyone has opinions on how it would look or an example maybe? http://www.mwave.com/mwave/SKUSearch.asp?scriteria=BA25916&pagetitle=iStarUSA%20BPU-350SATA-BPL%203x5.25%20to%205x3.5%20SATA2.0%20Hot-Sw Link to comment
Rajahal Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 The iStars don't have easily replaceable fans (soldering is required), so I would recommend against them. The stock fans are reportedly loud. Again, either go with IPCDirect or just wait a few weeks. I also have a single SS-500 that I would be willing to sell you just to tide you over until you can buy a 3rd. I've only got one, though. PM me if you want it. Link to comment
swells Posted November 5, 2011 Author Share Posted November 5, 2011 PM Sent. I would get the ones from IPCDirect, but I have a feeling the refund from mwave isn't going to be as fast as payment was sent. I want to make sure these are actually cancelled and I have my money back before I order 2 more. Link to comment
Whaler_99 Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 I just checked on NCIX and they are stating the SS-500 is no longer available. Usually if it is, they will at least tell you they can back order it for you, so maybe those have been discontinued. For some pics of how these cages look, you can read my cage review which has pics of them in a Antec 1200 case, similar.... Shawn Link to comment
swells Posted November 5, 2011 Author Share Posted November 5, 2011 I sent a message to IPCDirect asking them to confirm that they had the SS-500 in stock. If they do i'll order a couple from them. Otherwise i'll start looking at other cages. I really like the Norco cage so trying for those if i can. Link to comment
Johnm Posted November 6, 2011 Share Posted November 6, 2011 Interesting.. I know they changed the backplanes in the 4224's in the last 2 weeks to these new yellow PCB ones and they stated "they are not compatable with older RPC-4224's" makes me wonder if they are doing some sort of across the board change on all of their hot swap trays.... or maybe it is just a coincidence. Link to comment
ohlwiler Posted November 6, 2011 Share Posted November 6, 2011 Johnm, Is this the new 4224 backplane? http://www.ipcdirect.net/servlet/Detail?no=315 If so, it looks like they shifted the SFF-8087 connector to the middle and may have reduced component count as well. My guess, after closely comparing the two pictures, is that the drive cages won't change. Who knows with Norco though. Link to comment
swells Posted November 8, 2011 Author Share Posted November 8, 2011 So I called IPCDirect since I never got a response via email. They said that they would have the SS-500 in stock again by Novemeber 25th (black friday). His response when I asked about the item was rather quick so im assuming there may have been alot of interest. Just an FYI in case anyone else is looking for these. Link to comment
Johnm Posted November 8, 2011 Share Posted November 8, 2011 that looks to be a new product. the switches are new. the color is yellow the sas connector has been pretty much centered for a while now. It is possible that the height is different in the quick release slots for the backplane itself. if that is the case, that would make them incompatible with all previous generations. you cant really change to much for the physical fitting of the drive. that part is an industry standard. Link to comment
ohlwiler Posted November 8, 2011 Share Posted November 8, 2011 the sas connector has been pretty much centered for a while now. Yes, but this small shift of 2-3 cm also caused the middle thumb screw to be shifted as well. I think that is why compatibility with earlier versions of the 4224 was lost. Link to comment
Rajahal Posted November 12, 2011 Share Posted November 12, 2011 So I called IPCDirect since I never got a response via email. They said that they would have the SS-500 in stock again by Novemeber 25th (black friday). His response when I asked about the item was rather quick so im assuming there may have been alot of interest. Just an FYI in case anyone else is looking for these. The latest is that the Norco SS-500 won't be available until December 20th... Link to comment
elkay14 Posted November 18, 2011 Share Posted November 18, 2011 At least it hasn't been discontinued. I want another one (eventually.) Link to comment
Johnm Posted November 19, 2011 Share Posted November 19, 2011 i'm guessing they will be getting the new drives sleds like the rack mounts did. norco has been out of stock on almost everything lately. i think they are just now doing catchup. Link to comment
Rajahal Posted November 19, 2011 Share Posted November 19, 2011 i'm guessing they will be getting the new drives sleds like the rack mounts did. I hope that is not the case, but of course you are probably right. I might start looking into other options if the quality of these units goes too far downhill. Link to comment
Queball Posted November 27, 2011 Share Posted November 27, 2011 Back in stock on Newegg. Edit: Nevermind, I bought one and now shows out-of-stock. Link to comment
bigsing Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 I was hoping to find these back in stock on NewEgg soon to use some christmas gift cards. My biggest concern is not being able to find them eventually, my server having different brand 5x3s would kick my OCD into high gear . Link to comment
WeeboTech Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 This is why I always recommend getting all you need at once. That OCD thing can be a pain. I've seen all to often how you build something piecemeal, then find the parts unavailable as you start to require them later. With the Supermicros I've always seen them available in one place or another. You can use the same holder/sled in many of the rack mount/desktop cases as well as the 5x3 units. Which is why I choose them. Link to comment
bigsing Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 hmm...i may just pick up 3 new supermicro's and be done with it. Link to comment
WeeboTech Posted December 30, 2011 Share Posted December 30, 2011 hmm...i may just pick up 3 new supermicro's and be done with it. See our other thread on suggested replacement fans. I choose the Geil fans, which are really quiet, They were not all that expensive. The fans that come with the supermicro's are loud. They are "easily" removed and replaced. Also there are many opinions on the Supermicros, but they are built really well and very strong. They can be a lil tough to install as they are solid metal sheaths. http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=12405.0 See this thread. Also, if I were to choose a different 5x3, I would probably go with the ICY docks, Only thing though, is they changed a lil over the years... and if you want a consistent look, then just purchase all 3 at once and be done with it. In contrast, the Supermicro 5x3's have been the same for almost 10 years. Link to comment
Rajahal Posted January 4, 2012 Share Posted January 4, 2012 See our other thread on suggested replacement fans. I choose the Geil fans, which are really quiet, They were not all that expensive. I believe that's a typo, as the recommended replacement fans are made by Gelid. I definitely agree that replacing the fans on these Supermicro units is important if noise levels concern you. I recently bought some of those fans from AxionTech and had a pretty bad experience with them (3 weeks after placing my order they still haven't shipped the fans, and I had to call them to get them to ship them out), so I would recommend sourcing them elsewhere if you can find another vendor. The Norco SS-500's were supposed to be back in stock at Newegg on Dec. 20th. Instead of that, they are now discontinued. Quite the disappointment...I may have to start using the Supermicros or Icy Docks as the default drive cage in Greenleaf builds. Link to comment
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