Proware DP-405CI In Detail
The setup of the DP-405CI is easy to explain: up to four UltraATA hard drives can be inserted in simple aluminum removable frames. A small LCD screen situated at the top of the device's front serves as a status display, with four control buttons to configure it. Alternatively, the device can be configured via a Web interface; for this, you must have a free serial connection and install the supplied software.
Inside the box, a RAID chip from Areca and a multifunctional interface are in charge. USB 2.0, FireWire 1394a and 1394b with up to 800 MBit/s are all supported. By the way, 1394b is often fast enough in practice to not slow down even modern hard drives. Although a RAID array pushes transfer rates beyond even 1394b's capabilities, overall the bandwidth should be sufficient for most purposes.
A total of three fans keep the storage system cool. Two 2.4" (60mm) fans are positioned on the rear of the device; they create a strong airflow through the housing, protecting the electronics and the drives from overheating in all conditions. Right at the bottom is the power supply, which comes with its own 1.2" (30mm) fan. Unfortunately, none of the three fans can be speed-regulated - neither manually nor based on temperature. This produces a noise level of around 55 dB(A) - far too high for use in an office environment. 35-45 dB(A) would be more desirable, and not too difficult to achieve without much extra cost.
The power supply (below) is taken from the world of servers: three of them are used in professional systems to protect against failures.
