Is vertical mounting a bad idea?

[John H.]

Say for a test, if you were to repeatedly knock the rear of a computer
case one way and then the other by a good amount, which would be more
likely to fail, a horizontally or vertically mounted hard drive?

I ask because I'm considering a Lian-Li case that has vertical HD
mounting but I worry about the possibility of gyroscopic effects
causing a head crash if the computer is accidently moved while
operating. Is horizontal mounting safer? Maybe there's a reason why
practically every other case manufacturer uses horizontal mounting
even though vertical mounting is more space efficient.

Who makes the best mid-tower cases for a home system?
Who makes the best power supplies?

 

[Rod Speed]

Rod Speed (e-mail address removed) wrote

Which would seem to give the advantage to horizontal mounting since
rotating the computer on the desk is by far the most likely movement,

Dunno, depends on the case. Cant see thats most likely with tower cases.

not picking up the front or back or tilting the case over

I would have thought that last is most likely.

(although my dog did get hung up in the cables once

Yeah, had the same problem, some dogs tend to panic
a bit when they get snarled up in the cables a bit.

and pulled my running computer (am IBM PS-2
model) off the desk and onto the carpeted floor.

Never got that result.

Believe it or not it still worked afterwards).

I believe it, its surprising what they can survive.

In the Lian-Li case with vertical mounting, 5 drives can go where
only about 3 1/2 horizontally mounted drives could go because the
case is wider than a horizontal drive is - true for any tower case.

And its rare to bother with more than a couple of drives.

In the case I have now there's 2 unused inches
to the right of the 3.5" bays. That's wasted space.

Big deal.

The Lian-Li PC-60 (=<$94, supply extra), if not the
best for a home system must be getting close to it
(4x 5.25" bays, 8x 3.5" bays (3 exposed), 4 fans).

Thats only 'best' if you need lots of 3.5" drive space. Few do.

Most cases at maxpoint.com seems to be for the kiddies
(LEDs dancing to music) but a couple of them might be
alright too if you can get them without a supply.

Can't beat the access to stuff inside.

Thats not really true with some cases
having swing out bay stacks etc.

But but is arguable if its worth paying
for that when few change things much.

http://www.maxpoint.com/products/pccase/spec_pg/csa102_6/A102_06.htm

There must be others that I don't know about yet.
The main features I'd want is EXCELLENT cooling
and plenty of drive bays in a mid-tower design.

And thats not what most need in a case.

Best regulation

No point in better than the ATX specs require.

and cooling (2 fans), lowest ripple,

No point in better than the ATX specs require.

(ideally) adjustable voltages,
Pointless.

temperature and fan speed monitoring.

Some of the PC Power & Cooling power supplies have the
best regulation (1% and 3%) and lowest ripple (1% p-p)

No point in better than the ATX specs require.

but are more expensive (which is ok if they're worth it)
and have no temp and fan speed monitoring.
Just one fan, too, I think.

I'm not sure what the biggest brands are, maybe EnerMax and Antex?

Who cares ?

I've looked at their specs and wasn't impressed.

No point in better than the ATX specs require.

Light shows from inside the supply (blue LEDs in the
fans and the like) might be nice if you're a kiddie

Yeah, they aint got much to do until they get into cars etc.

but the regulation (5% and 10%) and the ripple
(1% RMS I think (they don't say p-p) - 2.8 times
higher than PCP&C) aren't so good.

No point in better than the ATX specs require.

But at least the cooling features look better.

Does PCP&C even make their own stuff anymore (if they ever did)?

Dunno, I've never bothered with theirs, silly prices.

Maybe there's an Asian supplier that makes their
supplies and even better ones that I don't know about.

Very likely.

What I care about is MUCH more fundamental stuff like the
supply is designed to ensure that it wont fry anything if/when
it dies. And thats something the specs usually dont even mention.

 

[John H.]

And its rare to bother with more than a couple of drives.

A couple drives is all I have now and my current case is poorly
designed for it. I have 3x5.25" bays containing a CD, DVD and a HD in
the middle, plus 3x 3.5" bays containing a floppy and a HD, with the
middle empty. I have no front fan and it wouldn't help if I did
because it'd be below all the bays. Typical layout for a mid-tower
but not very good. I noticed recently that when I play a DVD the HD
above it heats up by 6-7 degrees C.

I'd rather have all my 3.5" devices in 3.5" bays with 1 or 2 fans in
front of the ones intended for HDs. The Lian-Li with 8 3.5" bays is a
little more than I need right now, but in the future it would allow me
to have 3 HDs with an unused space between each. How's that for
cooling. Having multiple HDs mounted right next to each other in
3.5" bays has never seemed like a good idea to me. I like plenty of
space for air to flow.

What I care about is MUCH more fundamental stuff like the
supply is designed to ensure that it wont fry anything if/when
it dies. And thats something the specs usually dont even mention.

Any decent PS should have OV and OC protection (which IS usually
mentioned) but I wouldn't count on it with $18 power supplies.

They seem to be going the wrong way in power output. They're up to 650
watts already, as though it's a horsepower race. Maybe I should wait
for a 1 kilowatt model.

I do think that a power supply isn't something you should try too hard
to save money on - get a high quality one with at least 50% more power
out than you think you'll ever need with all bays full. The power
rating goes down fast with heat. I'll probably get a 400+W model this
time since the price isn't much higher.

 

[Rod Speed]

Rod Speed (e-mail address removed) wrote

A couple drives is all I have now and my
current case is poorly designed for it.

Or you have some rather silly ideas.

I have 3x5.25" bays containing a CD, DVD
Fine.

and a HD in the middle,

Why ?

plus 3x 3.5" bays containing a floppy
and a HD, with the middle empty.

Why ?

I have no front fan

Most systems dont need one.

and it wouldn't help if I did because it'd be below all the bays.

Because most systems done need a fan for the bays.

Typical layout for a mid-tower but not very good.

Oh bullshit. Works fine.

I noticed recently that when I play a DVD
the HD above it heats up by 6-7 degrees C.

Hardly the end of civilisation as we know it any time soon.

You're mindlessly obsessing about complete irrelevancys,
just like you are with the power supply ripple and regulation.

I'd rather have all my 3.5" devices in 3.5" bays with
1 or 2 fans in front of the ones intended for HDs.

Gets sillier by the minute. You never need two fans
for them. You dont need even one fan unless you are
silly enough to use very badly designed hard drives.

The Lian-Li with 8 3.5" bays is a little more than I need right now,

Just a tad.

but in the future it would allow me to have 3 HDs

What's the point ?

with an unused space between each. How's that for cooling.

More silly stuff.

Having multiple HDs mounted right next to each other
in 3.5" bays has never seemed like a good idea to me.

More fool you.

I like plenty of space for air to flow.

Trivial with most cases to have one spare slot between 2 hard drives.

Any decent PS should have OV and OC protection

Pity that problem happens even with those that claim to have that.

(which IS usually mentioned) but I wouldn't
count on it with $18 power supplies.

Pity about the expensive name brands that have fried stuff while dying.

They seem to be going the wrong way in power output.
Nope.

They're up to 650 watts already, as though it's a horsepower
race. Maybe I should wait for a 1 kilowatt model.

I do think that a power supply isn't something you should try too
hard to save money on - get a high quality one with at least 50%
more power out than you think you'll ever need with all bays full.

Gets sillier by the minute. What matters is
what makes any sense with installed drives.

The power rating goes down fast with heat.
Bullshit.

I'll probably get a 400+W model this
time since the price isn't much higher.

Should be fine for most systems.

 

[John H.]

Why ?


Why ?

The same reason I've seen mentioned in this group many times. I don't
want both HDs on 0 and the CD and DVD on 1, and IDE cables won't reach
unless the devices are mounted where I have them. I have a paging
file on both drives and I want the OS to be able to read both drives
simultaneously at full speed whenever possible. I also want to be
able copy a CD on the fly.

Most systems dont need one.

Good cooling never hurts.

Because most systems done need a fan for the bays.

Good cooling never hurts.

Oh bullshit. Works fine.

Oh, so your case is like mine.

Hardly the end of civilisation as we know it any time soon.

Maybe not, but it's not something I like to see.

You're mindlessly obsessing about complete irrelevancys,
just like you are with the power supply ripple and regulation.

You asked what I think defines a good power supply. Well, good
regulation and low ripple are certainly two items on my list. That's
hardly being obsessive. Being *just* good enough to meet the ATX
specs (whatever they are - haven't read them) is probably nothing to
brag about.

Gets sillier by the minute. You never need two fans
for them. You dont need even one fan unless you are
silly enough to use very badly designed hard drives.

What's silly are _your_ comments. I thought you of all people would
appreciate good cooling. I guess not. If HDs can be made to run 10
or more degrees cooler by spending a few more bucks for the case for
more bays and an extra fan in front of the drives, what's wrong with
that?

Just a tad.


What's the point ?


More silly stuff.
BS.


More fool you.

You don't think that having one hot drive practically on top of
another hot drive doesn't increase the temperature, especially since
you don't think front fans are needed? More fool you I'd say.

Trivial with most cases to have one spare slot between 2 hard drives.

Not with only three 3.5" slots to start with, unless you don't plan to
have a floppy or add a MOD or any other 3.5" device.

Pity that problem happens even with those that claim to have that.


Pity about the expensive name brands that have fried stuff while dying.

Yes it is. Shit happens, or so I hear. I guess I should knock on
wood, I've never had one fail yet. But I don't buy low quality power
supplies either.

Nope.

They're going UP. That's not the wrong way? 400W seems to be about
par now. Not too many years ago 175-250W was par. Wouldn't it be
nice to have a desk PC that used so little power and ran so cool that
it needed no fans?

Gets sillier by the minute. What matters is
what makes any sense with installed drives.

You MIGHT want to add a device or two or three later on.

Bullshit.

Apparently you've never looked at any specs.
One of the EnerMax supplies is rated at 100% power out at 25°C and 70%
out at 50°C. Another one is rated full power at 25°C decreasing to 0
watts output at 70°C. My HDs are at 40°C right now not doing a damn
thing, and they don't generate anywhere near the heat of a power
supply. Power supplies are at best 70% efficient, meaning that for
140 watts out they're generating at least 60 watts internally,
probably much more if you have, say, a 400W supply because that 70%
number is for a full load only - they're less efficient for lower
loads. Those dinky DC fans help cool a supply but the air being
sucked in may already be *very* warm if your system is fairly loaded
and the room temp is on the high side (as mind usually is in the
summertime). So I wouldn't be surprised if 50°C (or higher) isn't
normal for inside a supply. That would mean that a 300W power supply
can really only supply 210W (or less). For truly good PS cooling you
need a 115VAC fan that can move some serious air (the way they used to
be).


You know Rod, it's a shame your posts so often degrade to the level
you're infamous for, because you actually can be quite helpful at
times when you want to. I don't play your game and will simply stop
responding when you start to get silly. This post is one too many
already for this thread

If you don't mind telling, how old are you? Under 21 or over? I'm
wondering if you're bad mouthed or beaten by your dad every day (or
wife or boss) and you try to make up for it with insulting posts to
strangers in newsgroups.

 

[Timothy Daniels]

Does any company make a cooling kit for
vertically mounted HDs? I plan to add a
lot of stuff to my PC, including a 2nd HD
next to the first, and I'd like to improve the
airflow past the two drives which are
vertically mounted at the base of the tower.

*TimDaniels*

 

[Rod Speed]

The same reason I've seen mentioned in this group many
times. I don't want both HDs on 0 and the CD and DVD on 1,

Bet you wouldnt be able to pick it in a proper double blind trial.

and IDE cables won't reach unless the
devices are mounted where I have them.

Thats the main problem with that rather silly arrangement.

I have a paging file on both drives and I want the OS to be able
to read both drives simultaneously at full speed whenever possible.

Bet you wouldnt be able to pick it in a proper double blind trial.

I also want to be able copy a CD on the fly.

You can do that fine with both cd drives on the one cable,
because the output rate of the burner is nothing like going
to saturate the cable, even with the reader on that channel.

Good cooling never hurts.

Thats as silly as demanding ripple and regulation
much better than the ATX specs specify.

Good cooling never hurts.

Thats as silly as demanding ripple and regulation
much better than the ATX specs specify.

Oh, so your case is like mine.

Yep, and its fine layout wise.

Maybe not, but it's not something I like to see.

More fool you, just like with the ripple and regulation.

You asked what I think defines a good power supply.

Nope, I actually said "Depends entirely on how
you define 'best'", a different matter entirely.

Well, good regulation and low ripple are certainly two items on my list.

More fool you.

That's hardly being obsessive.

Corse it is.

Being *just* good enough to meet the ATX specs

No one said anything about JUST. You were rabitting on
about specs that are MUCH better than the ATX specs require.

And just is fine anyway, thats what specs like that are about.
The system is guaranteed to work fine with those specs.

(whatever they are - haven't read them)

You complete pig ignorance is your problem.

is probably nothing to brag about.

Wrong. Again.

What's silly are _your_ comments.

Pathetic, really.

I thought you of all people would
appreciate good cooling. I guess not.

What matters with cooling is if the drive
temp doesnt get too high above ambient.

You dont need two fans in front of
the 3.5" bay stack to achieve that.

You dont normally even need one.

If HDs can be made to run 10 or more degrees cooler
by spending a few more bucks for the case for more bays
and an extra fan in front of the drives, what's wrong with that?

Its a hell of a lot more than 'a few more bucks'

And you wont drop the drive temp by 10 degrees
with an two fans there instead of one anyway.

BS.

Fraid not. You're mindlessly obsessing.

You don't think that having one hot drive practically on top
of another hot drive doesn't increase the temperature,

Completely trivial to measure whether it does or not.

especially since you don't think front fans are needed?

They arent with a properly designed case.

More fool you I'd say.

Your problem. You're always welcome to
piss you money against the wall uselessly.

You'd better invest in some ear muffs to cut
down the noise of all those useless fans too.

Not with only three 3.5" slots to start with,

All that says is that 4 slots is desirable,
no need to go mad and demand 8.

unless you don't plan to have a floppy
or add a MOD or any other 3.5" device.

Only fools bother with MOD.

Yes it is. Shit happens, or so I hear. I guess I
should knock on wood, I've never had one fail yet.
But I don't buy low quality power supplies either.

Pity about the expensive name brands that have fried stuff while dying.

They're going UP.

Because the cpus are using more power, stupid.

That's not the wrong way?
Nope.

400W seems to be about par now.
Nope.

Not too many years ago 175-250W was par.

Because the cpus are using more power, stupid.

Wouldn't it be nice to have a desk PC that used so
little power and ran so cool that it needed no fans?

They're buyable now if you want one of those.

You MIGHT want to add a device or two or three later on.

You dont need 'at least 50% more power out than you think
you'll ever need with all bays full' for that. The absolute vast
bulk of the power ends up in the motherboard and cpu etc.

Apparently you've never looked at any specs.

Wrong. Again.

One of the EnerMax supplies is rated at 100%
power out at 25°C and 70% out at 50°C.

That aint 'fast' and no one with a clue runs their power supply
at 50C anyway.

Another one is rated full power at 25°C
decreasing to 0 watts output at 70°C.

Completely academic, no one runs their power supply at 70C, stupid.

My HDs are at 40°C right now not doing a damn thing,

That aint the temp of the power supply, stupid.

and they don't generate anywhere
near the heat of a power supply.

Completely irrelevant to the temperature the supply runs at.

Power supplies are at best 70% efficient,

Complete and utter drivel.

meaning that for 140 watts out they're generating at least 60 watts internally,

Wrong. Again.

probably much more if you have, say, a 400W
supply because that 70% number is for a full
load only - they're less efficient for lower loads.

Wrong. Again.

Those dinky DC fans help cool a supply but the air being sucked
in may already be *very* warm if your system is fairly loaded

Wrong. Again.

and the room temp is on the high side
(as mind usually is in the summertime).

It wont be anywhere near 50C, let alone 70C

So I wouldn't be surprised if 50°C (or
higher) isn't normal for inside a supply.

Soorree, that temp is the temp outside the power supply.

That would mean that a 300W power supply
can really only supply 210W (or less).

Wrong. Again.

For truly good PS cooling you need a 115VAC fan that
can move some serious air (the way they used to be).

Wrong. Again.

You know Rod, it's a shame your posts so often degrade
to the level you're infamous for, because you actually can
be quite helpful at times when you want to. I don't play your
game and will simply stop responding when you start to get
silly. This post is one too many already for this thread

Even you should be able to bullshit your way out of
your predicament better than that pathetic effort, child.

If you don't mind telling, how old are you? Under 21 or over?

Very likely old enough to be your father thanks, child.

Reams of your childish attempts at insults any 3 year
old could leave for dead flushed where they belong.

Lift your game, child.

 

[Timothy Daniels]

Those flout the ATA specs. I wouldnt use them myself.

Where can one find these ATA specs on the Web, and how do
"round" cables flout them? Is the flout by physical arrangement
of the individual wires or by electrical measurement of cross-
talk, degree of noise isolation, and echo? IOW, is the flout
of the ATA specifications the methods of prevention of bad
things or the actual measurements of bad things?


*TimDaniels*

 

[Rod Speed]

Rod Speed wrote

Where can one find these ATA specs on the Web,
http://www.t13.org/

and how do "round" cables flout them?

The main problem is that the 80 wire standard has a ground
line between each signal line to provide something close to
a reasonable transmission line and to isolate the signal lines
from each other. Even if the round cable is just a ribbon cable
rolled up, you clearly get signal lines next to each other in a
way that you dont with a flat ribbon cable. Even worse when
the round cable isnt a ribbon cable rolled up.

Is the flout by physical arrangement of the individual wires

Yes. Thats obviously completely different.

or by electrical measurement of
cross-talk, degree of noise isolation,

Yes, because of the different physical arrangment.

and echo?

Just the fact that its round isnt necessarily a problem
with reflections, but they are often illegally long too
and that certainly does affect reflections.

IOW, is the flout of the ATA specifications
the methods of prevention of bad things
Yes.

or the actual measurements of bad things?

Yes.

If you do want a round cable to say improve airflow
inside the case, you should be using SATA drives
which have a round cable designed in properly. And
thats considerably thinner than those ATA round cables
too and the connector detail is much better as well.

 

[J.Clarke]

What case do you have? There's no cutout for a front fan?
A fan is the only "cooling kit" I know of for vertically mounted HDs.

Actually I wish I had a case with real fan cutouts. Mind and all I've
seen just have a lot of small holes (except for the power supply
opening) that passes for fan cutouts. "Cutouts" like that do two
things: increase noise and reduce air flow. I'm tempted to cut them
out myself with a hacksaw. I guess they don't have the right machine
to make a big opening and can't do anything except drill the small
holes.

The case manufacturers have to consider RF emission regulations. Big
holes in the case let RF out, so they make a lot of small holes over the
fan mounting positions instead.

 

[Timothy Daniels]

The main problem is that the 80 wire standard has a ground
line between each signal line to provide something close to
a reasonable transmission line and to isolate the signal lines
from each other. Even if the round cable is just a ribbon cable
rolled up, you clearly get signal lines next to each other in a
way that you dont with a flat ribbon cable. Even worse when
the round cable isnt a ribbon cable rolled up.

I called Vantec about pairing of signal polarities (such as is
done with Cat 5 cable), and they said that there is no pairing
of wires - they are all just bundled in the braided metal
sheath. So right there is a caution flag for me. I guess the
proof is "in the pudding", and the next question I have is
whether people experience increased error rates with
"round" cables.

BTW, the t13.org site doesn't give much of a clue about which
document might contain the pertinent ATA specs which describe
line configuration and electrical properties. Could you point me
at them a little more specifically? Thanks.


*TimDaniels*

 

[John H.]

:
. ...reason I've seen mentioned in this group many times.


I'm a newbie here, and I'd like to hear why both HDs on
same channel is bad.

It's not bad, just not as good IMO. If you run NT/W2k/XP and have
both your drives on one IDE channel, having a pagefile on both drives
will not increase the virtual memory performance as much as it would
if the drives were on different channels. If you have lots of memory
it may not matter much though.

In spite of what Rod says, I know that copying CDs on-the-fly can be a
problem if both CD drives are on the same channel. Maybe that's not
important to you, or maybe if your drives are new, their I/O speed and
buffering are high enough for it to work. It's easy enough to just try
it and see. If there's a problem, try something else.

Probably the main reason I have my drives on different channels is
because I didn't want them next to each other in 3.5" bays without
good cooling. If your case has a better layout or more 3.5" slots,
you have more options than I did.

If I get a Lian-Li case or something similar and want to take
advantage of its HD cooling, I'll have no option but to put both
drives on one channel unless I buy an IDE card to give me 4 channels.
Ever system is different.

As for cables, have you looked
into a set of "round" cables, such as by Vantec (see
http://vantecusa.com/ide.html ) which come in lengths
which may accommodate your drives' spacing?

I think Rod's right about those - I wouldn't use them either.

 

[John H.]

To tell you the truth Rod, your posts (when you start with the silly
stuff) make me laugh more than get angry. That must be why you've
gotten away with it for so long.

There was a case a few years back where some guy in New Jersey mouthed
off to a guy in NYC. Turned out the NYC guy was in a street gang.
The gang looked the Jersey guy up and put him in a hospital - damn
near killed him. So be careful, you never know who you're talking to.


I can believe you're an older guy, your language is far too clean for
a pimple-faced teenager.

 

[Rod Speed]

I called Vantec about pairing of signal polarities
(such as is done with Cat 5 cable),

That cant be done with a PATA drive because the differential
signals that are used in that config arent even present.

What can be done is to have a twisted
pair with one of the wires a ground wire.

and they said that there is no pairing of wires
- they are all just bundled in the braided metal
sheath. So right there is a caution flag for me.

Yep, they're 'designed' by pig ignorant fools who
dont understand even the most basic stuff like the
legal cable length, let alone the reason that every
second wire in an 80 wire flat ribbon cable is grounded.

I guess the proof is "in the pudding",

Nope, its in the standard specs.
Thats why that stuff is specified there.

and the next question I have is whether people
experience increased error rates with "round" cables.

Its not even possible for most to get a handle
on the error rate seen with a particular cable.

BTW, the t13.org site doesn't give much of a clue about which
document might contain the pertinent ATA specs which describe
line configuration and electrical properties. Could you point me
at them a little more specifically? Thanks.

The version number is just the development sequence that
the standard has gone thru, so ATA7 is later than ATA6 etc.
http://www.t13.org/docs2003/d1532v2r3.pdf
starting at page 27

 

[Rod Speed]

It's not bad, just not as good IMO.

And your opinion is clearly just plain silly when you cant
manage to grasp that there is no point in power supply
ripple and regulation levels better than the ATX specs require.

If you run NT/W2k/XP and have both your drives on one IDE
channel, having a pagefile on both drives will not increase the
virtual memory performance as much as it would if the drives
were on different channels. If you have lots of memory
it may not matter much though.

No if about it. When you care about that sort of thing, the ONLY
thing that makes any sense is sufficient physical ram, not mindlessly
obsessing about what might or might not theoretically be better when
the pagefile is heavily used because you dont have enough physical ram.

Like I say, bet you wouldnt be able to pick between
two otherwise identical system on that drive per ribbon
cable question when there is adequate physical ram
and likely you wouldnt be able to pick it even in the
stupid config when there isnt enough physical ram either.

In spite of what Rod says, I know that copying CDs on-the-fly
can be a problem if both CD drives are on the same channel.

Bullshit it can with modern burnproof burners.

Maybe that's not important to you, or maybe if your drives are
new, their I/O speed and buffering are high enough for it to work.

They dont need to be new to get that result.

It's easy enough to just try it and see.
If there's a problem, try something else.

You werent suggesting trying it, you proclaimed that its necessary.

Probably the main reason I have my drives on
different channels is because I didn't want them
next to each other in 3.5" bays without good cooling.

You dont need the massive overkill of 8 3.5" slots to get that.

If your case has a better layout or more
3.5" slots, you have more options than I did.

Plenty of cases around with more than 3 3.5" bay slots.

If I get a Lian-Li case or something similar and
want to take advantage of its HD cooling, I'll have
no option but to put both drives on one channel
unless I buy an IDE card to give me 4 channels.

Wrong again.

Ever system is different.

Wrong again.

 

[Rod Speed]

Some pathetic excuse for a bullshit artist desperately cowering behind
just the puerile attempts at insults any 3 year old could leave for dead.

 

[Eric Gisin]

Rodney's down under is ausie land. He only has to worry about the dingos.

| To tell you the truth Rod, your posts (when you start with the silly
| stuff) make me laugh more than get angry. That must be why you've
| gotten away with it for so long.
|
| There was a case a few years back where some guy in New Jersey mouthed
| off to a guy in NYC. Turned out the NYC guy was in a street gang.
| The gang looked the Jersey guy up and put him in a hospital - damn
| near killed him. So be careful, you never know who you're talking to.
|
|
| I can believe you're an older guy, your language is far too clean for
| a pimple-faced teenager.
|

 

[John H.]

You werent suggesting trying it, you proclaimed that its necessary.

Necessary for ME, to do what I wanted. Judging from this group, both
configurations are common.

You dont need the massive overkill of 8 3.5" slots to get that.

Your "massive overkill" is probably no more than an extra $20 if you
compare cases with 4 or 8 3.5" bays from the same manufacturer.
What's your problem with that? So a $1500 system goes up to $1520.
Big deal. Most all cases intended for home use are cheap as dirt now
compared to what they used to cost. I usually spend more for one
night out.

The Lian-Li PC-60 is no taller, about an inch wider and 5 inches
deeper (~23") than my present case (~18"). That's not a problem for
me so I think it's a good trade-off for the extra good cooling and
add-on room. Other cases with 6-8 3.5" bays may be smaller - I
haven't looked around much yet. I've had much taller cases (full
tower) but not one this deep. Maybe the case is too big for you, and
that's fine, and why there's hundreds of cases to choose from - one
size does not fit all.

Plenty of cases around with more than 3 3.5" bay slots.

I know, the Lian-Li has 8. I could have bought an add-on cage to
hold two more 3.5" drives for the case I have now but I didn't do it
because I started with one drive and didn't plan ahead very well. Too
late now. The cooling would have sucked anyway.

Wrong again.
Wrong again.

Very helpful.

 

[John H.]

Some pathetic excuse for a bullshit artist desperately cowering behind
just the puerile attempts at insults any 3 year old could leave for dead.

That's a good one, Rod. You're getting 'better' (if that's the right
word) all the time.

 

[John H.]

The case manufacturers have to consider RF emission regulations. Big
holes in the case let RF out, so they make a lot of small holes over the
fan mounting positions instead.

That's sounds like a reasonable explanation. A round-wire finger-guard
like what a power supply uses wouldn't work well enough for that?

I wonder how many of us have cases that meet those regulations, with
missing slot covers and the like. I had to 'snap out' a slot cover to
install my HD in a 5.25" slot and there's no way to cover it up again.
I also have the side covers off my case for the time being.