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#874 - A.C. Ryan AluBoxDuo LAN |
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Written by Zach Jeffers
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Wednesday, 26 September 2007 |
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Page 5 of 5
Results:
Testing of the A.C. Ryan AluBoxDuo LAN external hard disk enclosure featured the following hardware:
Enclosure: Antec P190 (Noctua NF-S12 intake fans) with included PSUs
Processor: AMD 3800+ X2 (Socket AM2)
Motherboard: ECS
KA3 MVP
Memory: Crucial
Ballistix 2gig (2 x 1gig) DDR2 PC2-6400
Video: GECUBE Radeon X1950 PRO 256MB DDR3 PCIe x16 HDCP Edition
Internal Storage: Seagate 7200.10 320 GB SATA2
External Storage: 2 x Western Digital SATA RE 250gig 2500YS
Optical: Plextor PX-740UF PATA
Installation of the A.C. Ryan AluBoxDuo LAN via the USB connection was as easy as plugging it in. Windows XP SP2 recognized the drives instantly and where able to be accessed and formatted right away through the Windows Disk Management utility.
Installation of the Ethernet based solution required you to install the included software. When we first started off, the included disc allowed us to use only a single drive without any recognition of the second drive. Another email to the A.C. Ryan support group and we instantly had an answer. There was a newer release of the software available on their website. At that time there was no link to this download area but this has since been added under the ‘Main’ menu on their website.
With the Ethernet functionality being based off the software integration, this creates the ability to have the drives paired up as software RAID. You have the option of aggregating, striping or mirroring the two drives. If you utilize a switch or multiple NICs, you can also combine more of these enclosures for RAID5 utilizing 3 to 8 hard disks. Remember that all the RAID functionality is only able to be done via the Ethernet connection and using the included software. USB users will simply have two available disks via a single enclosure.
Results:
Conclusion:
Some may find that the Ethernet results seem a bit low. My theory on this is that A.C. Ryan has incorporated a 10mb Ethernet interface rather than a 100mb. There is also network overhead that comes into play thus not showing a 10mb throughput.
I would have really liked to have seen some vibration grommets included in the mounting process. This would help eliminate transfer of disk vibration to the desktop. Our Western Digital drives do not make much noise nor do they vibrate much at all, but if you have a Seagate 7200.9 series drive, you may want to think about upgrading as I am sure the noise would annoy you greatly. That said, the enclosure is not creating the noise; rather it is simply allowing it to continue.
Also during testing, I accidentally dropped the enclosure from about 2’ onto an Oak hardwood floor. This caused one of the internal (plastic) screw threads to crack allowing the back plate to separate from the drive cage. This allows the back plate to be come somewhat loose but does not affect the integrity of the drives. This shows the durability of the aluminum housing and the weakness of using plastic. I would expect most users to not be dropping their enclosures on purpose, but if it does, the important stuff will remain intact.
A.C. Ryan has carried their quality manufacturing process throughout the entire AluBox line of enclosures. Their commitment to the computer enthusiast has not been silenced and their efforts come through in a beautiful and high quality line of products. With great transfer speeds over USB and maxed speeds over their Ethernet connection, I do not see anybody being unhappy with this product. The limited network transfer rates are more than acceptable in this price range. If a user needs faster network transfer or uses an operating system that is not supported by the included software, USB is a great answer and can be easily shared on a network. Overall, the A.C. Ryan AluBoxDuo LAN is a Kickass product. Our thanks go to A.C. Ryan for providing this awesome product for review and their continued support of 3dGameMan.com!
> ADDITIONAL INFO/COMMENTS IN THE FORUMS <
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Pros |
Cons |
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- Great Looks
- 1.8mm Aluminum Housing
- Both USB2.0 and Ethernet
- Two Drive Capability
- Excellent Transfer Rates
- Stackable
- Comes in Both SATA & IDE Versions
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- No Anti-Vibration Features
- Software Required for RAID Functions
- 10mb Ethernet
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