I assume this is the same or similar to the backplane in the AV15, which I believe supports both SAS and SATA drives. Is that accurate?
Can you share information on the data/power connectivity into the backplane? It looks like there’s an interface mounted to the side of the chassis, forward of the PSU. I would love to see more on that.
I am hoping that the data cables from the backplane are going to be long enough to connect to an HBA. I am really interested in the powering solution they are using too
Hi @pxpunx — that is correct. It does support both SAS and SATA drives.
Regarding data/power connectivity, the unit was designed with a Corsair ATX PSU in mind. That being said, more information about power requirements will be found in our FAQ — this will be provided very soon. We’ll make sure to pin it so everyone can easily find it.
Hey @Ashley-45Drives, RE: the data/power connectivity, I was more interested in a close-up of the actual interface, connectors, etc. than the power draw.
Saw a quick shot of the power bus in this video:
Looks like 4x 4-pin Molex connectors (or some other variant), 3x 4-pin fan headers, and a 24-pin ATX connection that runs to the backplane.
The data connections appear to come straight from the backplane.
I am also curious about the power connectivity. I understand that all of the 15 drives at the front of the case will be powered by the backplane, which supports staggered spin-up, but what about if one intends to install some 2.5" SSDs at the rear of the case? e.g. for boot drives and/or cache?
Does the RM750e / power board have any spare connectors to power those? I guess one would also need to consider the remaning power budget on the +5V rail in this case. Would appreciate some clarification on this from the 45drives team. A wiring diagram / hookup chart would also be nice in the event that the RM750e isn’t sufficient for those who intend to install 15 HDDs + 4-6 SSDs, to help us in planning for a PSU better suited to these requirements.
https://www.printables.com/model/583519-45drives-ssd-mounting-bracket
There are some notes here about the RM750e and additional drives.
Thanks for sharing the link! So if my interprtation is correct, the RM750e will not be able support any additional drives beyond the 15 slots at the front of the chassis.
Just pasting here to avoid the extra click through:
- The RM750e supply only has a 5V current limit around 20A. Which means that even if you decide to rob any connections from the supply to power more SSDs that you want to put in this bracket, you need to be aware that this current limit can be exceeded with the demand that an additional 6 SATA SSDs could add.
- The dedicated storage bays that come with the HL15 can be used to hold 7mm and 15mm SSDs by using 3D printable caddys that are also available on our Printables page.
So yes, it looks like if you go with the RM750e, you should print or buy 2.5->3.5" caddies and put your SSDs into one or more of the 15 slots at the front, to stay within the 5V rail power budget.
There are some power supplies that can handle more amperage on 5V, so it might be nice to call those out here if anyone finds and tests one!
Alternatively, I’ve hacked together a Molex AC power adapter to SATA before, and powered four drives off it… there are a few on Amazon to pick from. Not the best solution but you could get at least a few more SSDs in that way.
Just a quick note to add that while the ATX, EPS, SATA, etc power connections are a universal standard on the motherboard side, the same cannot be said for the connector on the PSU side. Most vendors have their own cable pinouts and specs.
If anyone is looking to change their PSU from the Corsair in the HL15 complete system, keep in mind that you’ll need to change the power cables to the ones supplied with your new PSU.
Corsair themselves have a few different types. However, if you keep that in mind while selecting a new PSU, you may be able to use the existing cables!
Here’s their chart for anyone interested:
I will research what PSUs are available supplying more than 20A on the 5V rail and report back in the forums.
In the interim, I stumbled upon this 5V “load balancer” from Corsair that seems to draw power from the 12V rail to supply more current on the 5V rail. Interesting gadget.
Though I am still unsure as to which connectors on the RM750e would be available/unusued once it is hooked up to the HL15 in the default configuration.
I’m not sure I’ve ever seen the words “Load Balancer” used in this type of context.
So looking into it, it seems to split an EPS12V out into 3x SATA outputs. Now, EPS is 12v (hence the name haha) so they must be using some sort of step-down or voltage regulator circuit in that box to pass 3x 5v out of it.
(Screenshot off the product page)
More interesting to me is why this exists from Corsair. Mainly because SATA (outside our use cases here) is starting to die off in gaming builds in favor of the 3-5x m.2 slots, and NVME is racing to meet 2.5 SATA SSD’s price wise. My only thought could be to go along with their new custom loop cooling products, and the increasing demand for SATA for fan controllers, LED’s, pump displays, etc.
All that aside, it’s a product I’m certainly not upset seeing and a good find at that @hakunamatata! I’d just caution that anyone looking into this ensure they have a spare EPS12v as I’m seeing less and less builds only needing a single.