Which case and PSU for 9 HDDs?

dan_aka_jack

dan_aka_jack

dan_aka_jack

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Hi there,

Please may I ask for case and PSU recommendations? I need a case which can take at least 9x 3.5" hard disks and 4x external 5.25" devices. I'd like the case to be as quiet as possible although I realise that I won't be able to build a silent system with 9 disks in it!

It looks like my best (and only?) choice is the Lian Li v2100 PlusII case. My main concerns about the case are noise and cost. I found a thread here on OcUK which suggested that rubber grommets can be used to reduce HDD noise though.

In terms of PSU... I have a quad-core Xeon, quite a few PCIe and PCI cards but my graphics card is fairly modest. I'm guessing that I need at least a 650W PSU??? Any recommendations would be great. Reliability and stability are my priorities.

Many thanks,
Jack
 
lian li v2000+ or v2100+2 along with a corsair 620W or higher (get the one that has the highest build quality (i think its the modular design)) and some splitter cables to give enough connectors i think is your best option

the lian lis may seem expensive but think of them as a long term investment, they are huge and built to a very high standard. it could outlast most if not all of your other parts and unless the standard sizes of parts change such as hdd sizes (physically) it could last several builds*

not if you need more then 12 x3.5 and 7x 5.25 bays though
 
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I'm not sure if it's feasible, it depends on max SATA cable length but you could get a normal case and build an enclosure for your HDDs that can be kept away from your main rig to reduce noise. Get something like 1m SATA cables and just feed them in through a spare PCI plate at the back of your case. Power cable would be needed as well but you can get power cable extenders easy enough or even a crappy PSU to power your HDDs in their enclosure. I'd imagine a simple perspex build would do for the HDDs. Layer it for each drive and screw holes for mounting them. It'd save you money as you'd be able to get just about any case with 4x 5 1/2" bays then.

EDIT:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_ATA#Cables_and_connectors said:
SATA cables can be up to 1 m (39 in) long
Click to expand...
 
dan_aka_jack said:
It looks like my best (and only?) choice is the Lian Li v2100 PlusII case. My main concerns about the case are noise and cost. I found a thread here on OcUK which suggested that rubber grommets can be used to reduce HDD noise though.
Click to expand...
9 HDDs in a V2100 is easily do-able, I used to have 10 in mine - all bungee slung to reduce the resonance. I didn't manage to get all 10 downstairs, instead I had 8 in the bottom section and 2 in a couple of the 5.25" drive bays. You need to remove the vertical dividers and take the drive rails off them first if you want to suspend the drives.

There is another option - the Lian Li PC343B. They're tricky to find and expensive but superb to work with, the PC is in one half of the cube and the drives and PSU in the other so there's a huge amount of room to move about.
 
Schnippzle said:
When you say bungee slung, do you mean using cable ties to form a "bridge" across the hdd bay for the hdd to sit in?
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No, thin bungee cord from an outdoor shop. Like this although I had a twist in mine so that the top part of the loop goes under the drive and the bottom part goes over it. It's not so necessary in a small bay like the ones pictured but if you suspend a drive in a 5.25" bay then the twist supports it in the centre of the bay.

dan_aka_jack said:
I'm interested in bungee-slinging. When bungee-slung, are the drives secure enough to allow the system to be chucked in the back of a car every few months?
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I wouldn't recommend it, the ones in the bottom section might be OK as it's quite a tight fit but the ones in the top bays do fall out if you move the case too much.
 
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I've got the front fan (120mm yate loon with sides chopped off to fit) in my Antec Titan bungee modded with elastic bands ;)

It was the only way it would work. Humming along well for the last month or so.

FrontofCase.jpg
 
I have a bungee'd drive in my eclipse using sewing elastic, used a couple of screws too and wrapped the elastic round so the drive was "secured" in the elastic and wouldn't fall out. only had 2 car trips with it thogh but it's stayed in place.
 
jak731 said:
lian li v2000+ or v2100+2 along with a corsair 620W or higher (get the one that has the highest build quality (i think its the modular design)) and some splitter cables to give enough connectors i think is your best option

the lian lis may seem expensive but think of them as a long term investment, they are huge and built to a very high standard. it could outlast most if not all of your other parts and unless the standard sizes of parts change such as hdd sizes (physically) it could last several builds*

not if you need more then 12 x3.5 and 7x 5.25 bays though
Click to expand...

This is the way to go, I would do this for sure.
 
Hi there,

What are the differences between the Lian Li v2000+ and the Lian Li v2100+ apart from the former being only £162 and the latter being £205? The v2100+ looks prettier but I'm not too bothered about looks.

Many thanks,
Jack
 
Hi, thanks loads for the quick replies.

In terms of powersupplies... what is a "modular" power-supply and why would I want one? At the moment, I'm thinking of getting the 750W Corsair TX PSU. 750W is probably over-kill for my system at the moment but it's possible that, at some time in the future, this PSU might be powering an 8-core system with 12 drives.
 
A modular power supply allows you to connect only the tails that you need to supply the individual compnents you have installed at any one time. For example my HTPC has a PCIe loom, an 8 pin 12V supply and at least 2 if not 3 molex lines unused and taking up space in the case. With a modular supply I could remove these at the PSU end and only have the ATX 2.0, 4 pin 12V and 1 molex loom connected.
 
modular just means the cables can come off the psu and be reattached back on when needed (if you dont break them)
 
dan_aka_jack said:
Hi there,

What are the differences between the Lian Li v2000+ and the Lian Li v2100+ apart from the former being only £162 and the latter being £205? The v2100+ looks prettier but I'm not too bothered about looks.

Many thanks,
Jack
Click to expand...

The v2100 has a door, and the v2000 doesnt... and the v2000 is much prettier! :eek:
 
Hi,

The deal is done!

Last night I splashed out on my PC. I'm getting a Lian Li v2100 +, a Corsair 750W TX PSU and 4 more 500GB WD AAKS hard disks. What fun ;-)

Thanks loads for all the advice.

Thanks,
Jack
 
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