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Written by RotoSequence
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Looks good, works great; but there is a little more to be asked for.
| Product: | Silverstone SST-FP53 |
|  | | Manufacturer: | Silverstone Technology | | MSRP: | $29.99 | | Submitting Company: | Silverstone Technology | | Features: | - Attractive aluminum bezel
- Light weight
- High quality engineering
- Hard drive vibration dampening
- Compatability with all 3.5" hard drives
- Silence
- Available in both silver and black
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Silverstone States: "For
some, the hard drive is the most important part of their computer as it
stores critical data. To help protect this asset, we introduce the FP53
to not only help increase the reliability of hard drives, but also to
quiet them down during operation. Features such as the thick aluminum
casing, internal fan, and vibration dampening pads all contribute to
make FP53 a solid investment for any computer user seeking extra hard
drive protection."
Box Shot
As computers run hotter and hotter, not just in processors, but in
video cards, memory, and even hard drives, new cooling solutions are
being designed to handle the increased amount of heat output. For hard
drive cooling, Silverstone has their SST-FP53. How well does it cool a
hard drive? Read on and find out!
The Silverstone SST-FP53 Itself
The Silverstone FP53 is an attractive item. Made out of solid aluminum
that has been brushed to a good sheen, there is a definite attraction
inherent in its design. In the front, there is a barbell shaped opening
with a grill behind it providing airflow for the hard drive. Cooling is
provided by a 40mm 3 bladed fan. The rest of the unit is designed to
act as a sort of heat sink, with a high quality extruded aluminum
cover.
Back side view displaying the beveled aluminum and fan molex
Installation of a hard drive was unfortunately a little more difficult
than I would have hoped. The SST-FP53 is made out of three sections;
the large die cast aluminum top, the front bezel, and the support panel
on the bottom. This panel is what the hard drive is mounted to. With
rubber washers between this panel and the hard drive itself, vibrations
are greatly reduced. Unfortunately, this design also results in a
certain level of difficulty without a magnetic screwdriver; you have to
maneuver your screwdriver in through a hole in the bottom in order to
attach the hard drive to the bottom panel. After the panel has a hard
drive attached, the same routine needs to be repeated in order to
attach the rest of the cooler.
More complex than preferable bottom side
With assembly of the cooler complete, it was time to insert it into my
system for testing. To put a load on the hard drive, temperatures were
measured while loading the Half Life 2 demo. Operational temperature of
the hard drive was 24* Celsius inside the cooler, and 25* outside.
Using my 80mm chassis fan, the hard drive was 29* Celsius on the top
and 26* Celsius on the side while loading the same demo. The 40mm fan
really does its job!
The active cooling element, with the filtering visible
This temperature improvement does not come at the cost of your hearing
either. The 40mm fan is quieter than the two fans that came with my PC
case.
The improvements in temperature and the fact that this device allows
you to install another 3.5  drive into a 5.25  drive bay, combined
with great aesthetics and vibration dampening make the Silverstone
SST-FP53 a highly recommended device. While it is slightly difficult to
install the hard drive, the performance improvements make it worth your
attention.
Pros:
Aesthetics
Temperature improvements
High quality construction
Silence
Cons:
Front design could be changed to improve airflow
Slightly difficult to install
The Silverstone Technology SST-FP53's admirable performance earns it an
80% on our ratings scale, and our silver award; with improvements in
installation methods, the SST-FP53 will be ready for Gold.
Special thanks go out to Silverstone Technology for making this review possible.
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