Customer Reviews

SilverStone CFP52B 5.25-Inch to 3.5-Inch Bay Converter with Hot-Swappable Function (Black)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is an OK drive cage with some important caveats. It's really for a SilverStone case because of the way the fan and grill mount. And even in a SS case be aware that it's relatively deep.

I have a SS KL-01 case, which is a fairly shallow ATX case (nice mid-tower case, btw, if you need something not overly large and don't need it to look like an alien reactor core) SilverStone Aluminum Front Panel/SECC Body ATX Mid Tower Computer Case KL01B - Retail (Black). It came with one of these cages and it fits perfectly (obviously), but because the sides extend well into the case it came right up against the edge of my motherboard, conveniently blocking *all* of the SATA ports--kind of defeating the purpose of a hard drive cage. The fan also connects to power using contacts that are attached to the cage itself, not a straight through wire. This would be a nice feature except that it means that everything needs to mount and line up just right for it all to work (hence use in the right SilverStone case). I ended up using a Vantec cage Vantec Cooling System for Hard Drive HDC-800A (Black) because of the clearance issues (nice simple cage with a dust filter for the fan). I looked at a CoolerMaster cage also Cooler Master 4 in 3 HDD Module Device - (STB-3T4-E3-GP), which I liked because it was aluminum and had a little more space between the drives (both good for cooling). Went with the Vantec cage just because I could squeeze in one more drive and it matched the overall design on my KL-01 case.

The "hotswap" feature is also sort of a stretch. The cage only comes with one back connector, so you'd need to buy three more. And the caddy isn't the greatest because of the way you need to squeeze and wiggle the drive in to keep from distorting the rubber vibration mounts (works eventually though). And, big caveat, the hotswap connectors if you do get them have a SATA cable hardwired to the drive connector. Convenient in a way, but in my case I have a controller with SFF-8087 connectors, and this cage isn't compatible with this relatively common RAID connector.

So, two stars because this cage is not very universal/flexible for use in other manufacturer's cases, the potential clearance issues even in a SilverStone case, and the pseudo-hotswap capability.

If you are looking just for a RAID hot-swap SATA rack this is probably not the best answer if you don't have a Silverstone case. Using any company's case the CFP52B is not designed to be a server level constant hot-swap hard drive rack although the hardware is very good and the SEPARATELY PURCHASED rear power/SATA connectors are high quality. With only four drives there is additional room to allow plenty of air circulation between drives in this rack.

As in any installation, be aware of the position of your motherboard SATA ports as the rack will extend over the edge of most motherboards and block access to many SATA port configurations. Also, don't forget your operating system must support hot-swap as well as the hardware. Another unfulfilled expection linked to my lack of knowledge.

The front fan assembly works well but the door can be difficult to open and close at times (it is actually removed, not opened). The plastic spring clips work but sometimes jam. I would like to see a filter in front of this fan although the small openings on the front grill do filter larger dust and pet hair (you can see it around the front).

Bottom line is I would buy this product again in the configuration (heavy home backup computing)I built. If I had an entry level business server where I expected to swap drives daily or weekly, I would look at another product without the pretty fan/door.

After looking all over the Internet for something like this product I was quite pleased with the price/quality. There is another product that will give you five drives, mounted vertically, but for $150 each. Too rich for me, thanks!

A couple of notes about using this product in products not made by Silverstone:
First, getting the product into the drive bays was a VERY tight fit! Don't force it, just wiggle it from side to side and apply a gentle push. Do be careful about the fan power cables during install!
Second, the fans do not lock into place in my Thermaltake case. I had to make some major case modifications to get these to fit correctly to their locking mech. Buyers should be aware that Silverstone gave no thought to making this product compatable with other vender cases.

Curse Thermaltake for not having there own version of this product!



About the Hot Swap function:
Your mother board or SATA card must have AHCI (Advanced Host Controller Interface), which is what actually allows hot swapping. This product only MECHANICALLY facilitates hot swapping.

When I read the descriptions, it would seem that this is a complete disk cage (that I can just plug disks in). The pictures did not show the backside that well, so I was already suspicious. Anyway, for this price, it is worth a try. However, there is really no connector upon receipt of the cage. So, I have to shell out another $20 or so for 4 connectors (CP05). And they are out-of-stock with unknown availability. The make and finish seems good (especially the fan power connectors). I cannot fully test it until I have the connectors. So, there will be a follow up.

Followup:

Fan don't fit in my Cooler Master case (anything that has a front cover in front of the drive space probably will not fit). Without the fan, the drives run hot, esp. those high performance versions, e.g. WD Black or even Seagates). The plastic tray seems soft and fragile. The softness may be intentional to dampen any vibration. However, I don't know if this is the cause for the occasional "drive not recognized by BIOS" problem. Reseating seems to fix it, but I am not sure if this is the real cause. Each of the CP05 connector set has its own set of cables, so there is this mess of cables behind the cage (sticking out further into the case and over the motherboard). Overall, it is probably $10-$20 cheaper than comparable products, but I am not sure if it is worth it (other than maybe in a silverstone case).

Fit perfectly in my Lian Li Lancool case. No fitment problems at all don't need the extra cables if you're not going to hot swap. I don't know about other cases but the thing slide in and lined up perfectly. I was a little skeptical about the fan power arrangement but it turned out that the screw holes lined up at the very edge of the elongated holes in the case rack. Can't even hear the fan.

I chose this product over the CoolerMaster version because I have a Silverstone case and I think the way CoolerMaster splashed their brandname across the front of their product looks tacky. The other reviews here gave fair warning about the tightness of the fit and the need to buy additional cables if you want the "hot swap" capability. I didn't buy any of the additional cables because I don't need to hot swap these drives. But even in a Silverstone case, this is a tight fit. I think the trays this product comes with are both its best feature, and the reason why its such a tight fit. I like the trays because it makes it so you don't have to take the whole cage (and all the drives) out to add or change a hard disk as you would have to with the CoolerMaster product. Once I got the cage installed, its never coming out.

I give it 3 stars for ease of installation because of the tight fit. However, I give it 5 stars for ease of use, because once its in, the trays make it easy to replace drives even if you don't buy the special "hot swap" cables. I would also give it 5 stars for how it looks after its installed. Because of the tight fit, once its installed, the fit is perfect -- it looks like it belongs there.

Worked great in my server to mount additional 3.5" drives in 5.25" slots. Much better than the metal brackets.

I ordered the Silverstone drive bay converter for my matching case last winter and have had no problems what-so-ever. Functions as advertised. Converts your spare 5.25" drive bays into 3.5" bays to store more hard drives or other devices. Silverstone makes excellent cases and I wouldn't hesitate to look at their selection again when I'm in the market for a new case and accessories.