Virtual-Hideout | Norcotek RPC-450 Rackmount Enclosure Review

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Norcotek RPC-450 Rackmount Enclosure Review

Date Published:
08-08-2008

Written By:
Tulatin

Edited By:
Diceman

Provided By:
Norcotek

Where to Buy:
Newegg

Discuss Article:
VH Forum link

Pages: 1 2

Introduction:

Normally speaking, we don't end up reviewing server hardware, and rack mountable equipment here at Virtual-Hideout very often for the simple reason that we are primarily gamers, overclockers, or patrons of storage. In that respect, I was a little surprised to find an offer in my inbox for one of Norco's products. No surprise in the fact that it was a new name to me, but in the fact that it was a fairly unknown product, and region to be in. The gimmick? This chassis has been marketed as a rackmount that the gamer can buy into too - considering that 11 hard drives can be shoehorned in stock, and there's room for another 4 more if you use a converter, this case does have a lot of potential - potential delivered at a very high quality. In that respect, my interest had suddenly piqued, which means this versatile little rackmount (complete with comically small feet) is up for a dissection. Let's see how it looks in the wild.

Before that, however, here's a little blurb about Norco technologies, straight from the horse's mouth:

NORCO, formed in 1991 through the merger of leading industry innovators, is the leading worldwide supplier of server rackmount, storage systems, network appliances, industrial PC parts and solutions distributed by 100 companies around the world. Headquartered in mainland China, NORCO has locations in the US, Canada, Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen, China.

We are a leading manufacturer of server rackmount, storage systems, network appliances, industrial PC parts and solutions in mainland China. The company also manufactures enclosures, primarily for industrial computers. Since its listing in 1990, the company has grown significantly in terms of revenues and profit. We now have a market capitalization of over $1 billion USD.

NORCO's objective is to maintain our position as one of the leading manufacturers of server rackmount, storage systems and other industrial computer accessory. We also aim to successfully develop products and market for use in network communication and embedded system products. A number of strategies have been developed to attain this objective:

Develop strategic relationship with industry leaders - By working closely with top-tier chipset and bois companies, NORCO is able to predict market trends accurately and introduce new products ahead of our competitors.

Achieve further vertical integration - Further integration of the production process allows NORCO to exercise better control over the quality of our products.

Maintain technologically advanced and flexible production capabilities - This increases NORCO 's competitiveness relative to our peers and allows us to stay one step ahead of the opposition.

New products - NORCO leverages from our manufacturing expertise, and continues to move tirelessly into new areas of related business.

For those who are curious, the remainder of this bit of press can be found here; now without any further adieu, the product!

Features & Specifications:

Okay, so I lied. We'll be taking a quick pass over this product's features and specifications before we get to see the actual product and the loveable monstrosity which is it's packaging.

Features:

4U rackmount design,meets EIARS-310C standard.
3 x 5.25" drive bays, 11 x 3.5 " drive bays
Easy drive mounting with 24 screwless rails
Support EEB (12"x13"), CEB(12"x10.5"), ATX (12"x9.6") motherboard
Screwless top cover
2x120mm front fans, 2x80mm optional rear fans for better ventilation
Lockable front panel door
Front accessible USB port
Easy-accessed front changeable air filter
Smooth border prevent lacerating your skin

Drive Bay	Supports eleven 3.5" drives and three 5.25"drives
Air Filter	easy accessed, changeable
Cooling Fan	2 x 120mm front fans,2 x 80mm optional rear fans
Switch	Power ON/OFF x 1, System reset x 1
Indicator	Power ON/OFF x 1, HDD x 1, NETWORK X 2
Connector	One front accessible USB port
Motherboard Compatibility	Support EEB (12"x13"), CEB(12"x10.5"), ATX (12"x9.6")
CPU Compatibility	Support DP Xeon (Intel), DP Opteron (AMD), UP P4/LGA775 (Intel), UP Pentium-D (Intel), DP Nocona (Intel)
Power Supply Options	Standard ATX, mini redundant power supply
Dimensions	( W x D x H ) 16.9" x 21.6" x 7" (430mm x 550mm x 176mm)
Packing	Double boxes
Weight	15.5 kg/34 lb (NET) 17 kg/37.5 lb (GROSS)
Environment Temperature	0/55 °C, 32/131 °F (Operating) -20/60 °C, -4/140 °F (Non-Operating)
Relative Humidity	5% to 95%,non-condensing
Vibration	( 5-500 Hz )1 Grms (Operating), 2 G (Non-Operating)
Shock	10 G(with 11ms duration, half sine wave) (Operating), 30 G (Non-Operating)

With that out of the way, now it's finally time to crack open the double boxes (a great feature if your chassis has to travel along a route where it can possibly get soiled), and greet the beast within.

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