harddrive server PSUs

shunx · Post by **shunx** » Sat May 01, 2004 11:37 am

Anyone running a lot of harddrives in one PC? If so, I'd like to know what kind of PSU you're using. I need as many as 7 in one machine.

mg1394 · Post by **mg1394** » Sat May 01, 2004 4:43 pm

Operating power isn't much - figure about 15w max for each drive (12v). Startup is another story - each drive will draw about 2.5-3 amps (12v) for about 5-8 seconds on startup. However, most supplies don't mind some amount of overcurrent for a brief time, so any supply that has 15-20 amps of 12v current should be fine.

You can also purchase (or build) delay circuits (usually I use 15 second delays) if you really want to keep the initial load low.

sthayashi · Post by **sthayashi** » Sat May 01, 2004 4:50 pm

I'm running 6 hard drives in one machine. I don't know the exact brands and models, but they are sized as follows:
8GB
3GB
34GB
60GB
23GB SCSI (full height)
23GB SCSI (full height)

They appear to peak at just over 300W at startup, and I'm currently using the Antec 350 Power Supply that comes with the BQE in them. It should be noted that this is in the dual PIII machine, which doesn't draw that much power to begin with.

DynamicalSystem · Post by **DynamicalSystem** » Sun May 02, 2004 2:10 am

The delay circuit is good - my NAS server does this with 4 drives, and the start up load is nice and even.

Takes a while though.