Buy Sonnet Technologies ENC-G5-3HD Hard Drive Mounting KitSonnet Technologies ENC-G5-3HD Hard Drive Mounting Kit Product Description:
- Supports mounting of three Serial ATA hard drives(1) inside Power Mac G5
- Most cost-effective way to add high-performance storage capacity
- Includes all necessary mounting hardware and cables (SATA host controller card, such as Tempo SATA E4i or Tempo SATA X4; sold separately)
- Custom-designed 3-drive power cable simplifies installation and reduces clutter
- Installation does not interfere with PCI cards
Product Description
Looking to add more drives to your perforated performer? Out of the box, your Power Mac G5 provides mounting support for only two hard drives (and one slot is already occupied), so if your needs are limited, that might work out just fine - but, what if you need more storage space than two drives can muster, and you don't want the added expense or desktop clutter of external storage? Check out the G5 Jive! G5 Jive provides secure anchorage for three additional drives and all the cables necessary to connect them to a Serial ATA host controller card - just add SATA drives to create the most cost-effective solution for adding high-performance storage capacity to a Power Mac G5. Using Mac OS X Disk Utility or third party software and multiple drives, you can create a striped (RAID 0) set to achieve great read/write performance, or a mirrored (RAID 1) set for data security. For even greater flexibility and performance, an additional drive in the Power Mac G5's second drive bay can be included with the G5 Jive drives in a RAID 0 set - a four drive striped set can achieve data transfer rates up to 274 MB/s!G5 Jive consists of a custom metal base plate and mounting bracket, mounting screws, three internal SATA data cables, and a custom-designed 3-drive SATA power cable. It mounts in the space at the bottom of the case beneath the optical drive, and its installation has zero impact on PCI slots and adapter cards. When combined with a high-performance Serial ATA host controller card like our Tempo SATA E4i or Tempo SATA X4i, G5 Jive makes it possible for you to add up to three additional internal drives for the best performance on the inside.
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
17 of 20 people found the following review helpful.
It's not the greatest, but it serves it's purpose.
By R. Ocampo
There are a handful of companies that offer internal hard drive expansion for the PowerMac G5. I looked at similar products such as:1. The "G5 Jam" which replaces the original air baffle from the OEM clear Polycarbonate-like material to their aluminum material which helps dissipate heat better. The price is way off my budget and I don't like the new cosmetic appearance of not being able to see the internal components for a quick inspection. This is the most expensive solution among the bunch.2. The "G5 Drive Bracket" is the cheapest solution and is made out of Polycarbonate. The construction of the material looks well done and elegant to look at. I would have bought this, but I don't like the fact that I have to source my own cables (power and data) and start scavenging the internet for manufacturers that help specialize in cables that provide a clean look. They should have provided that additional option for the buyers to make it a little bit more convenient, but with the flexibility of buying just the expansion bracket.3. Max Upgrade's "MaxConnect" is the most flexible company among the bunch. They offer a multitude of options at a reasonable price. You can choose PolyAcetal material (similar to Polycarbonate) which is black in color, or you can choose the more expensive Aluminum material which, again, offers a better chance of heat dissipation. Apart from the two materials, they also offer the option to purchase the bracket along with either the power cables alone (in case you have other data cable ideas apart from the PowerMac G5 standard of SATA interface), power cable+SATA data cable together, or power cable+SATA data cable+SATA controller card. I like what they thought of and I almost purchaed from them. However, I decided on the simplest design idea for the expansion project that had a good stable product offering within the company specializing in data products and expansion.Which leads me to choosing Sonnett Technologies and their G5 Jive. This company is well known for data products expansion cards like FireWire, USB, SATA and SATA II controller cards as well as corresponding data and power cables that support the Mac. Their image in the Mac community helps make my buying decision easier.I liked the idea of the G5 Jive because the product is a two-piece design versus everyone else's four piece and the G5 Jam's one LARGE cosmetically altering piece. Their idea is one full metal bracket that houses all three hard drives that rests on top of a similar metal plate screwed on the internal floor of the G5. It comes with all the necessary screws to attach the base plate to the G5 and the to the hard drives. The only thing you will be needing is a Philips screw driver and your good to go and connect it to your SATA hard drives and host controller.Furthermore, they created the data and power cables specifically for this expansion option. Which means the proper length of each piece and the proper design - L-shaped SATA data cable connectors for a low profile look and a power cable with three connectors in one simple piece that taps into the socket of the internal DVD drive versus buying three separate power cables that tap into each other and end up bulky and messy in the G5.In addition their manual is straigh-forward and full of pictures to guide you with the very simple installation procedure. You don't even have to read the text they wrote. Just look at the step-by-step pictures and you will know what to do. Bravo on this aspect (although a booklet would have been more impressive).So with all this highlights, why only 3 stars?For one, price. This is certainly a bargain for a majority because it specifically meets the standard option of building an internal SATA RAID. It isn't a good buy for others who are still stuck in the older IDE connection or for other more expensive options of SCSI or Fiber Channel devices. (Although higher end options are not supported with this bracket due to excessive vibration. Besides if you can afford those, it would be better to purchase an external RAID).Second, construction. Build quality is a robust metal piece. It isn't smooth in construction or thick in make. In fact it's the ugliest base plate and bracket I've seen for the beautiful G5.Three stars because there is nothing fancy in the design to highlight the additional internal drives. No Polycarbonate, PolyAcetal or Aluminum material here. Just your basic metal bracket with a very simple design that serves its purpose. No questions asked.And for the suggested retail price of USD99.00, it may turn most of the people away from the product. But at Amazon you can buy it for less with free shipping and no tax. Which then makes it very attractive.I purchased this to gamble in the hopes that it looks better than the pictures. It does not. I used the savings on this product to spend more on a Sonnett Tempo-X eSATA 4+4 (SATA II PCI-X controller card) and three SATA II Hitachi IBM hard drives to complement the expansion.If you're looking for a more aesthetically pleasing option, I'd recommend MaxConnect and G5 Drive Bracket. Their price is worth the construction and material. If you're looking for a no-nonesense robust SATA expansion KIT complete with specially designed cables at a decent price then look no further than here.In the future, with their simple design they could venture into better materials and smoother construction/fabrication similar to the competitors above.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful.
What I'd buy if I could do it again
By BH
I used to have a G5 Jive back when I still had my first G5. Recently I got a new G5, so I wanted to get a new mounting system for it. Instead of going for the G5 Jive though, I went for the aluminum mounting system from MaxUpgrades for a number of reasons:1. It was more aesthetically pleasing.2. The aluminum brackets seemed like they'd be better for cooling.3. It came with a fan to help aid cooling4. It came with SATA and power.5. It was pretty much the same price.Big mistake.1. Yeah, the MaxUpgrades looks better, but I honestly don't care anymore. Installing the HDs in the G5 Jive is easy. With the MaxUpgrades you have to screw each HD onto its own bracket and then screw each bracket (3 total) into a base plate you previously installed into the G5. This is especially annoying because you can only screw the screws in about a quarter of a turn before having to reset your wrench (pray a HD never dies). As for the Jive, screw the HDs into the cage that you see in the main picture and then use an easy to access screw to screw the cage into the computer.2. I don't know if they are better for cooling. Maybe they are, but I don't care anymore. I will say that the G5 Jive is probably less restrictive, to airflow, though thanks to it bolting to the sides of the drives and not the bottom.3. Really, I don't care about this either anymore because it just meant for more wire clutter. Besides, I never had a cooling problem with the G5 Jive in my last G5 anyway.4. The MaxUpgrades SATA cables are all ridiculously long and have left a huge mess of wires in my PCI bay. The G5 Jive came with perfect length cables that made install look much nicer and didn't impede air flow. As for the power, the MaxUpgrades power came with five miles of wiring, one more SATA power connector than I could even use (4 when only 3 drives can be mounted in front of the CPUs) and didn't even allow me to plug my optical drive back in. I had to add another molex splitter to get power back to it. The G5 Jive had just enough wiring and didn't exclude my optical drive, making for a clean looking and functional install.5. MaxUpgrades was a huge hassle for about the same price. Lame.So, if you want a pretty bracket that's a pain in the butt to install and makes for a very messy, quasi-functional install get a MaxUpgrades bracket. If you don't mind a bracket that isn't very pretty (and inside your computer, where you can't see it, anyway), but comes with purpose made wires that make for a very clean and clutter free install, get a G5 Jive.Normally I don't write reviews for things I buy, but I just installed my MaxUpgrades cage and was absolutely pissed. I'm going to contact Sonnet to see if they'd let me buy the wires separately. If they say no, then I'm going to get another G5 Jive and eat the extra cost. Honestly, it's that much better, to me.Trust me, get the G5 Jive.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
Five eSATA drives mounted internally in my G5
By Zetau
I am so glad I happened upon this product. I had a tough time believing it was going to install as smoothly as it did.Along with a Tempo 4CH SATA II PCIe Card (your G5 may need the PCIx) driving three striped Seagate 1.5 TB eSATA Barracudas (with no problems, I might add), this unit has added at least a few more years of life to my DualCore G5.If I had another G5, I'd buy another one of these.The product is excellent.
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