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Written by [t0rc]
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Mods that require 12v or more power are usually found on the inside of
your case. Not anymore. The 3 Port External LP4 Modding Backplate from
StarTech.com allows you to hook up mods externally. Nice concept,
unique thought, but how much use can you get from it?
As the site states:
| Providing
you with more flexibility than an Olympic gymnast, Mutant Mods'™
external LP4 plate lets you connect your mod gear to the exterior of
your system. No longer are you trapped by the confines of your case.
Freedom at hand! |
It came
packaged within a retail wrapping, of course inside the popular "Brown
Box" with plenty of damage-preventing padding. The retail wrapping was
very similar to that of the Mutant Mod's 80mm Fan.
The LP4 mod plate allows you to connect three devices with male
connectors to the plate for power. With the usage of
extenders/splitters it is possible to hook-up more than three. You
simply put it inside an empty PCI slot on your computer case, connect
the Male LP4(Molex) to a female from your power supply and your good to
go. Make sure you shutdown and unplug your computer before doing this.
The biggest problem and annoyance with products that use consecutively
lined molex's is that the pins on occasion are loose. After tugging on
the wires and pins, connecting/disconnecting them each multiple times,
I needed a real stressor for the pins. I picked up the plate by the end
and started spinning it in a circle as fast as I could and happily
discovered that after several minutes of twirling, the pins still were
neither loosened nor were the connectors loosed from the plate. The
modding backplate is well constructed and a sturdy product.
Supplying external mods with power isn't very popular yet, as most mods
are found on the inside of the case. But for those that do use external
mods, the largest issue is: How clean will it look? The majority of
computer users already have a mess of wires behind their PC's for
printers, mice, keyboards, monitors, speakers, microphones, webcams,
and what not. To do external lighting, you want to minimize the lengths
of wire outside the case and when there is wire exposed, you want to
have it wrapped; neatly contained to avoid visual degradation and
possible entanglements. Supplying power to external CCFL's (Cold
Cathode Fluorescent Lamp(s)) using the plate became rather messy when
the mod was located on/near the tower. The wires were in the back of
the computer becoming further acquainted with the plethora of wires
traveling to other PCI slots and the I/O panel. While you could sleeve
the wires, there would still be at least one left to wrap around your
case.
If you constructed a peripheral that needed more power than a standard
PS/2 or USB port could supply by adding cold cathode(s) or fans to it,
you'd need to run another line out to the tower for power. In this
instance, the modding backplate makes it very easy to connect to your
power supply without having to fabricate a PCI plate or drill a hole
for the wires to travel to the PSU. A prime example is putting cold
cathodes in a keyboard. They require 12v and connect to a molex, so
instead of having to make a PCI plate or having an open slot with just
wires scampering through it, get this plate and your in business.
For supplying power to the likes of CCFL's, fans, and most mods,
internal wiring has the advantage of being cleaner looking. Avoiding
wire mess when you use internal wiring is simple with some good
sleeving. If you want to have external mods and make a small hole for
the wires to pass through the side of the case for external usage.
Racking my brain in the evening for other ways this plate could be
used, I was conversing with RotoSequence when he suggested that it
could be used to test products easier. I had never thought of that, but
it really made testing many products easier to a degree. You could test
fans, cathodes, anything that needed only the LP4 connector to run and
if in the future, external IDE backplates are manufactured, you could
also hook-up external drives for testing. Although for testing it would
be easier to access if the panel was somehow situated in the front.
The 3 Port External LP4 Modding Backplate can be useful in certain
situations. If you have external mods and need to power them, but don't
want to cut a hole in your case, check out this product. While it's
overall usefullness is debateable, it's definitely something unique.
While most people would opt to buy an internal splitter, if you have
some modded items that need extra power, and the only place your going
to get it is from a 4-pin molex, buy this one instead. Not having
protective covers for the molexe's is a downfall. Covers should be
included with this to avoid any accidents. I present the Bronze Award
to this product, and give it a ranking of 76%. While it serves it's
intended purpose and makes providing external power easier, you won't
find too many occasions where you will need it.
| Pro's | Con's | - Sturdy/Durable construction.
- Allows external use of internal components.
- Easy on the wallet.
- If used, avoids extra holes or panel creation.
- Allows easy access for testing.
| - Rarely useful.
- No covers for empty connectors.
- Increases cabling mess.
- Makes it easier, but not cleaner.
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