July 16, 200817 yr All, I've spent many days now trying to educate myself on unraid and what components "I think" I need. I think I have found a suitable case, but I haven't heard a lot of talk about it. It is the Chenboro RM41416T2-B http://www.digiconcepts.com/chenbro_cases_11.htm. It looks like it comes with hotswap-able backplane already so I think this case has everything I need to get the drives connected to the sata controller(s). Is this correct? All I think I would need is normal sata cables. Also if anyone has any recommendation for other cases that similar to this(14 to 16ish sata hotswap bays, but an extra bay for dvd/bluray drive,etc...) but cheaper I'm all ears.. It doesn't have to necessarily be rackmount either, and yes I have looked at the coolermaster centurion and the stacker is pretty much hard to find... Thank you all for the adivce . Gustovier
July 16, 200817 yr That's a nice case. I almost bought this one. http://usa.chenbro.com/corporatesite/products_cat.php?pos=28 In the end I thought it might be too deep (and loud) for my needs. I ended up with a supermicro case (for my main workstation) and the CM-590 for the file server. I may one day go for the SR109 model. In any case, if you can afford the RM41416T2-B, I think it's a stellar case. Normal SATA cables should do fine if the backplane is already hot swappable. http://usa.chenbro.com/corporatesite/products_detail.php?serno=41
July 16, 200817 yr In these cases with multiple hotswap backplanes, the middle fans are critical... they pull air in over the drives to keep them cool. They need to move a lot of air, and handle static pressure (suction head) to pull air in over the drives. The RM41416B has 80mm fans in the center of the chassis. I nixed this case for that reason. 80mm fans are LOUD, and don't move as much air as 120mm fans. I got a similar case, that took 120mm fans, and then replaced them with some better fans that are quiet and good with suction head.
July 16, 200817 yr There are 5 80MM PWM fans at the front. with PWM fans the speed is usually adjusted according to the heat level. With my Supermicro, The fans run at a lower speed when it's cool and can sound like a jet engine when it's hot out. They are PWM 120MM. So placement and heat condition will be a primary factor. One caveat with the Chenbro rack mount case is the power supply. If it has those 60MM fans, that is going to be allot of noise in itself regardless of heat. Therefore it all depends on where you are putting this vs the average temperature of the location. Plus how many drives will be running simultaneously and the CPU/Motherboard combination. Another factor that needs to be considered is replacing the 80MM PWM hot swap fans. How easy will it be to replace them? As much as I loved the Chenbro SR109, This was another deciding factor for me to use a Supermicro for my workstation and easy to get parts for my unraid server.
July 16, 200817 yr Author What as the case that you decided on that took the 120mm fans? Do you have a link and is it in the same price range? In these cases with multiple hotswap backplanes, the middle fans are critical... they pull air in over the drives to keep them cool. They need to move a lot of air, and handle static pressure (suction head) to pull air in over the drives. The RM41416B has 80mm fans in the center of the chassis. I nixed this case for that reason. 80mm fans are LOUD, and don't move as much air as 120mm fans. I got a similar case, that took 120mm fans, and then replaced them with some better fans that are quiet and good with suction head.
July 16, 200817 yr Author There are 5 80MM PWM fans at the front. with PWM fans the speed is usually adjusted according to the heat level. With my Supermicro, The fans run at a lower speed when it's cool and can sound like a jet engine when it's hot out. They are PWM 120MM. So placement and heat condition will be a primary factor. One caveat with the Chenbro rack mount case is the power supply. If it has those 60MM fans, that is going to be allot of noise in itself regardless of heat. Therefore it all depends on where you are putting this vs the average temperature of the location. Plus how many drives will be running simultaneously and the CPU/Motherboard combination. Another factor that needs to be considered is replacing the 80MM PWM hot swap fans. How easy will it be to replace them? As much as I loved the Chenbro SR109, This was another deciding factor for me to use a Supermicro for my workstation and easy to get parts for my unraid server. Also what was the supermirco case that you decided to go with as well? Do you have a link and place where you found it the cheapest?
July 16, 200817 yr This is what I went for in regards to my WORKSTATION. I'm not really recommending this for an unRAID server. Mine is in black. http://www.buy.com/prod/supermicro-superworkstation-7045a-3b-barebone-system-intel-5000x/q/loc/101/203320930.html http://www.supermicro.com/products/chassis/4U/743/SC743TQ-650.cfm On this workstation I have CentoOS 64Bit, with vmware workstation. 2 3GHZ dual core LGA771 XEONS with 16GB of Ram. under VMware I set up. 3 Windows versions, 2 Llinux versions(including my slacker development host) and 2 versions of Solariss. 2 SATA 300GB drives. This is great as a Workstation, For a server you want to maximize drive slots per work space. The SC942 or SC846 might be worth a look. I almost selected the SC942, but the barebone system I selected had everything I needed and was pre-wired. http://www.supermicro.com/products/chassis/4U/942/SC942i-650.cfm http://www.supermicro.com/products/chassis/4U/846/SC846E2-R900.cfm
July 16, 200817 yr Author Ok, so now you have me liking the Chenbro SR109. The only thing that is concerning me is that it is unclear on many re-seller sites if it does come with the 2 (5in3) sataII backplanes that it is showing in the pictures the price range seems to be 290-$310 US dollars. Do you know if those 2 5in3 sataII backplanes come standard? The supermicro SC942B also looks to offer about the same in the same price point. Again all the pictures show 1 (5in3) sataII backplane but I'm not sure if this comes standard with it. The other big thing I like about these cases is that they are convertible to rackmount, I haven't seen that in really any other case..
July 16, 200817 yr I really like the chenbro case, the caveats are, cost and acquisition of parts I like how it has a floppy, CD slot and an internal drive for 16 drives. On the pro side, the PWM fans are managed by a special board separate from the motherboard. I believe it does NOT come with any 5in3 slots. The Supermicro is nice too, beef with that is the power supplies. You may have to find just the right one to keep noise down. I did get the low noise version for my chassis. The Fan speeds are managed by the motherboard. The SC942 does not come with any 5in3 either (at least from what I saw) if anything it MAY come with oine. Contact Supermicro directly. Note that each of these cases is designed for an EATX motherboard. You can use the standard ATX, however, I'm not sure how well the cables will reach. Replacing fans in the supermicro is very easy. They are well made machines and the motherboards are ROCK SOLID. expensive, but rock solid!
July 16, 200817 yr I got a generic 4U, 9-bay rackmount, and added my own 5-in-3 cages and Noctua fans, and added a thermal control circuit for temperature dependent fan control. http://www.servercase.com/miva/miva?/Merchant2/merchant.mv+Screen=PROD&Store_Code=SC&Product_Code=RA466&Category_Code=4UA
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