Supermicro SC750-A Extended ATX Full Tower

One of the big advantages of a case this size is the expansion possibilities that raw size provides. The SC750-A comes with a total of 10 drive bays, split up as 6 external 5.25", 1 external 3.5", 1 internal 5.25", and 2 internal 3.5". That's a lot for just about any tweaker and sufficient for a good sized server. It's interesting to note that there is 1 internal 5.25" bay- quite a rarity since the days of the old AT - mounted at the top rear of the case. An adapter bracket can be used to mount a standard 3.5" hard drive in that location. Very few, if any, users will actually have any internal 5.25" devices, so it is a surprise that Supermicro chose this configuration. It would have been a lot easier to simply have a 3.5" bay back there in the first place.

The other 2 internal 3.5" bays are contained with in a single metal bracket that's mounted to the bottom of the cross bar that runs across the middle of the case. The bracket can actually slide along the entire length of the bar and screw holes are available to mount it at any of those locations. Further, it can even be mounted to the bottom of the upper cross bar in the case. If you're lucky, you may be able to come up with a couple extra brackets to increase the expansion capabilities of the SC750-A even further.

External 5.25" devices are installed by simply sliding the device in the bay and securing it with screws. Older SC750-A's featured rails, but the current model uses this more traditional method. The external 3.5" bay sits at the top of the case and features a removable bracket to mount to your drive. This assembly then slides into the case and is secured by a single screw.

Supermicro offers a number of power supply options with the SC750-A, and, as expected, they're all pretty beefy as the high-end market can be quite demanding. Our test sample was the "low-end" in this respect and featured a 300W Sparkle Power FSP300-60GT. The FSP300-60GT is on AMD's Athlon Approved Power Supply Listing as well as approved for the FIC's SD-11, which has been known to be quite picky with power supplies. Sparkle is well known for their excellent power supplies, which they provide to a number of case manufacturers, including Supermicro.

Supermicro offers two optional power supplies with the the SC750-A - the SP301-RA and the SP401-RA. These power supplies are 300W or 400W respectively and both offer a redundant cooling fan. One of the most common failures in a power supply is the fan. The redundant cooling offered by Supermicro uses a backup cooling fan and an internal temperature sensor. The sensor allows the speed of the primary fan to adjust accordingly as the temperature inside the power supply fluctuates.

At 104F/40C and above, the fan runs at full speed. If this temperature exceeds 154F/68C, the back up fan kicks in, an alarm sounds, and a warning LED on the supply lights. The alarm could get annoying, so there is a reset button for the audible alarm, but the warning LED remains lit until "corrective measures have been taken." This allows the system to be safely shutdown and the fan replaced. While it's not quite as good as a true redundant power supply (which is effectively two power supplies in one), it's definitely a useful feature in a mission critical environment.