Model:  DS351

Manufacturer:  Silverstone

Provider:  Silverstone

Reviewed By:  Miguel

Review Date:  05/20/07

Introduction

  One of the key areas you need to focus on in any HTPC setup is storage. Without sufficient storage, you'll find yourself in a situation where you will simply be unable to take advantage of one of the its main features.  However, finding an adequate storage solution for such a build has proven to be quite difficult.  Silverstone, primarily known for some of the highest quality products money can buy, has released a highly unique and impressive product designed to end the search for the ultimate and most economical storage solution for your HTPC.  Their new DS351 is not to be mistaken as your average external drive enclosure.  Sporting its own internal power supply and full RAID support across a total of five drives, this is one product that will highly appeal to even the most demanding HTPC enthusiast.  Let's have a very detailed look at this exceptional and truly unique product...

Packaging & Contents

Our sample was not double-boxed but did arrive undamaged.  There were a number of punctures but thanks to the large box and excellent packaging, it prevented damage from the mishandling of packages from a number of shipping carriers.  The DS351 does come bundled with plenty of goodies.  Included is a brief installation manual, software CD, five SATA/Power cables, one quality eSATA cable, one standard power cable, some tie wraps and most importantly, a PCI-Ex1 controller card.

Design - A Quick Glance

The DS351, like all their products, is one high quality product.  The only thing that was quite unexpected was its overall size.  It has a much larger footprint than what I was originally anticipating.  Anyways, back to its design, the front features a quality black brushed aluminum finish, LCD, LED's and an aluminum power button.  The rear sports two 80mm fan mounts with honeycomb-style vents.  You'll also find the eSATA port near its center.

The DS351 comes only in black and like all of their enclosures, it does have a quality finish.  The housing itself has a cutout to accommodate the extra large hard drive cage that is designed to provide passive cooling.  The bottom, like the rest of its body, is made of very thin aluminum.  No, there is absolutely no plastic here folks!  To accent its overall design, there are component-style feet that will blend in well with the rest of your audio/video equipment.

Specifications

The official specs are slightly misleading.  For those wondering, the DS351 does offer full support for all SATA drives, including those labeled as SATA II.  The specs below where taken from their website...

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