Question Silencio S600 - Adding a Drive Cage/More HDDs

[virtualdanger]

Background: I have a Cooler Master S600 case. I've been happy with it, for its obvious minimalist design, no lights, and sound-dampened nature.

Ask: Unfortunately, it has only 5 possible 3.5 inch HDD bays. How do I add more?

Existing HDD Bays:
- 3 in an HDD cage beside the PSU (down below).
- 1 vertically mounted on the back of the motherboard.
- 1 5.25-inch bay, in which I have used a 5.25 to 3.5-inch convertor, to mount a 5th HDD.

Other Storage Options:
- There are 3 mounting spots for 2.5-inch SSD's or HDD's. These are currently unused, as I am looking to add high-capacity 3.5-inch HDDs.

Additional Notes:
- My Asus ROG Strix motherboard has 3 additional SATA ports for HDDs.
- The case has some space below the 5.25-inch bay which is unused.
- There is also the space where there are provisions made for 2.5-inch drives.

Would appreciate any creative solutions to be able to add more 3.5-inch drives.

Click for Photo of Case

 

[Lutfij]

Would appreciate any creative solutions to be able to add more 3.5-inch drives.
How many are we talking about here?

Your case can accommodate a total of 4x3.5" drives without any adapters. With an adapter you can add one more to the 5.25" bay. On the NR400, there was a mounting location underneath the 5.25" bay where you can mount an HDD upside down, maybe see if that's visible in your chassis.

You could look into these adapters;

Universal Multibracket - Type A (2-pack)

Convert a standard 120 mm fan slot to an HDD, SSD or pump mount to increase your case’s hardware capacity and expand your installation options.

www.fractal-design.com

I have this in my Fractal Node 202, to mount 2x 2.5" drives just under my discrete GPU. So in your predicament, since I don't see any fans mounted at the top of your case, you can add two more 3.5" drives to the top but upside down. Anything mounted to the front will block off airflow.

I think you need a larger case...like something from the XL range of cases from Fractal-Design.

 

[USAFRet]

What will all these new drives be used for?

Are you looking for more drives, or greater capacity?

I might recommend a 4 bay external USB enclosure, or simply a couple of larger capacity drives.

 

[virtualdanger]

Would appreciate any creative solutions to be able to add more 3.5-inch drives.
How many are we talking about here?

Your case can accommodate a total of 4x3.5" drives without any adapters. With an adapter you can add one more to the 5.25" bay. On the NR400, there was a mounting location underneath the 5.25" bay where you can mount an HDD upside down, maybe see if that's visible in your chassis.

You could look into these adapters;

Universal Multibracket - Type A (2-pack)

Convert a standard 120 mm fan slot to an HDD, SSD or pump mount to increase your case’s hardware capacity and expand your installation options.

www.fractal-design.com

I have this in my Fractal Node 202, to mount 2x 2.5" drives just under my discrete GPU. So in your predicament, since I don't see any fans mounted at the top of your case, you can add two more 3.5" drives to the top but upside down. Anything mounted to the front will block off airflow.

I think you need a larger case...like something from the XL range of cases from Fractal-Design.

These are awesome tips, thank you.

- I will check the possibility of mounting under the 5.25" bay.
- First time I hearing of these fan to HDD mounts; they would be perfect.

 

[virtualdanger]

What will all these new drives be used for?

Are you looking for more drives, or greater capacity?

I might recommend a 4 bay external USB enclosure, or simply a couple of larger capacity drives.

Yes, I'm aware that swapping out the lower capacity drives for higher capacity would be the simple solution. But I'm looking at alternatives, given that my motherboard has the additional SATA ports.

1) The drives are for media storage.
2) More capacity, but looking to do it by adding and not replacing existing drives.
3) Yes, also a straightforward option, but I am looking for options similar to the Universal Multi-bracket suggested.

 

[USAFRet]

Yes, I'm aware that swapping out the lower capacity drives for higher capacity would be the simple solution. But I'm looking at alternatives, given that my motherboard has the additional SATA ports.

1) The drivers are for media storage.
2) More capacity, but looking to do it by adding and not replacing existing drives.
3) Yes, also a straightforward option, but I am looking for options similar to the Universal Multi-bracket suggested.

For media storage, you absolutely do not need "speed".

4 bay USB connected enclosure, is my recommendation.

 

[virtualdanger]

For media storage, you absolutely do not need "speed".

4 bay USB connected enclosure, is my recommendation.

I'm not looking for speed, but I am looking for an internal storage solution.

Thanks for the suggestion though, I agree that it would solve the problem. That or swapping out to larger capacity drives; just not the route I'm looking to go.