How many HDs can I cram in an Antec Sonata

go1ge

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Jan 3, 2007
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I have an extra Sonata case w/ 380W PSU and had been thinking put it in use as an enclosure for gateway, file server (RAID) and firewall, possibly using clarkconnect.

By using the eXtreme calculator http://www.extreme.outervision.com/psucalculator.jsp, it seems PSU will be sufficient for 4 7200RPM SATA drives. I'm mostly concerned about the case becoming too hot (4 SATA, maybe 1 or 2 PATA, at least one optical drive).

Any input on this is welcome
 

piratepast40

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Nov 8, 2006
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If it's the Sonata II version, you've got 4 holes on the back of the drive rack that line up with the mounting holes on a 120mm fan. With a fan mounted in that configuration, you can draw air from the front of the case directly over the drives. That should help.
 

go1ge

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Thank you all for the info. :D
Now it seems that there's not much to worry about as long as I increase airflow a little bit. I have the original sonata, but I believe there's room for 12" on this one as well. Too bad, I don't have to upgrade to p180 :roll: , which I like better, but WAF (wife acceptance factor) is the primary parameter.

I was worried about temp because when I touch these 7200 rpm drives, they seem quite hot compared to older 5400 rpm drives.
elevated temperatures+increased densities+lower profit margin (i.e. lesser quality) all make me worry about data loss. I'm hoping to reduce reinstall/rebuild frequency to less than once a year!