Introduction
I love convenient accessories for my every day computer needs. Where it could be a simple usb fan or a hard drive enclosure they all play a big role in my every day activity. Being a computer freak like myself, one has to understand that the access to their files is very important and could be a hassle at times. Very recently we had a chance of taking a look at Thermaltake BlacX. We had a great time reviewing that product and immediately fell in love with it. BlacX is a screw less hard drive enclosure for getting to your files as fast as turning on the unit. Today we are going to take a look at the newest family member of BlacX, BlacX Duet. BlacX Duet is a double version of BlacX which is designed to provide acceptional accessibility to your files. Let us take a closer look at BlacX Duet and see what it has to offer.
About the Product
Following information is taken from the Thermaltake website.
Features
Read & Write 2 Hard Drives simultaneously
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Supports All 2.5” & 3.5” SATA Hard Drives up to 2TB (per slot) |
Hot-Swap Capability for Rapid Multi HDDs Access & Exchange
* When utilizing eSATA interface, Port Multiplier feature is required on the host system’s eSATA
controller for two hard disk drives to be seen at the same time. All USB supports Port Multiplier function.
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Supports eSATA Transfer Speed up to 3.0 Gbps |
Supports USB 2.0 Transfer Speed up to 480 Mbps |
| Windows & Mac OS Compatible |
Rapid Data Access & Exchange w/ Single eSATA or USB Cable Connection |
| Open docking station design maximizes heat dissipation |
| RoHS Compliance |
| SSG (Solid State Grip) Technology: Anti-Slippery Grasp Base |
Specification
| Enclosure Interface |
eSATA
USB 2.0 |
| Transfer Rate |
eSATA: up to 3Gbps
USB 2.0: up to 480Mbps |
| HDD Compatible |
SATA I
SATA II |
| HDD Capacity |
All 2.5” or 3.5” SATA HDD up to 2TB (per slot) |
| OS Compatible |
Windows 7 / Vista / XP / 2003 / 2000 ; Mac 10.3 and later |
| Material |
ABS Plastic |
| Power |
Input: 100-240V / 50-60Hz ; Output: 12V / 2A |
| Dimension |
140 (W) 120.82 (D) x 69.49 (H) mm
5.51 (W) x 4.76 (D) x 2.74 (H) in |
| Accessory |
eSATA Cable
USB 2.0 Cable
Power Adaptor |
| Fan |
N/A |
| Weight |
3 lbs |
| Special Features |
- Copy & Transfer data between Hard Drives & Computers
- Hot-Swap Capability for Rapid Multi HDDs Access & Exchange
- Compact Docking Station Design maximizes Heat Dissipation & Exhaust
- Supports eSATA Transfer Speed up to 3Gbps
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Now that we got basic information out of the way, lets take a closer look at BlacX Duet.
Closer look
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Front shot |
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Rear shot |
The packaging of this unit is very similar to the previous version of the BlacX. On the front of the box there is a gorgeous shot of BlacX Duet. BlacX Duet is designed to have two drives at the same time so the convenience is two times. This is exactly what the Thermaltake is pitching " Two Times the Convenience". On the back of the box there are some helpful images along with the features and specifications of the BlacX Duet.
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BlacX Duet |
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Up to 2 TB Support |
So what can BlacX Duet support? BlacX Duet supports 2.5" and 3.5" SATA hard drives. So you can take your laptop drives or regular size drives and access the files on them with BlacX Duet. BlacX Duet has two interfaces eSATA and USB 2.0. Many newer motherboard have eSATA and USB 2.0 so you should have no problem finding the right interface.
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Out of the box |
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Stylish logo |
BlacX Duet comes with a eSATA cable, USB 2.0 cable, a power adapter and of cource, instructional manual. If you run in to trouble or have issues, you can always check the manual or go online to Thermaltake to check out for FAQs. BlacX Duet body has a similar and yet stylish body as the BlacX. On the front of the unit we found a very similar logo as well.
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Rear of the BlacX Duet |
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Top of BlacX Duet |
On the back of the BlacX Duet we found eSATA connector, USB 2.0 connector and power supply connector. Very much self explanatory for an average user. From the top we can see the two slots for the hard drives and a power button. When pressed the power button will stay lit according to which hard drive is inserted. With BlacX Duet you can have two hard drives at the same time! Awesome!
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Sata Support |
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HDD1 and HDD2 slots |
As we mentioned earlier in our review, BlacX Duet supports only sata hard drives. How cool would it be if it also supported eide? :) On the side of the BlacX Duet there are two hard drive release buttons, which are used to pop the hard drives out of their respected sockets.
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BlacX Duet vs BlacX |
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2.5" and 3.5" |
BlacX Duet is a little bit bigger than the BlacX enclosure in the size. This is expected as it has the second slot for the second hard drive. There is no additional installation required, just plug and go.
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Ready to rock |
Lets take a look at some performance data of BlacX.
Testing
| ASUS P5K-E LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard |
| MSI RX2600XT Diamond Plus Radeon HD 2600XT 512MB 128-bit GDDR4 PCI Express x16 HDCP |
| Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz LGA 775 Quad-Core Processor |
| 4 Western Digital Caviar SE16 500GB 7200 RPM SATA-300 Hard Drive |
| 2 OCZ Reaper HPC 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit |
For testing BlacX Duet we are going to be performing standard benchmarks with HD Tach. Our test hard drive for the today will be Seagate Constellation ST9500530NS Hard Drive SATA. This is a new breed of hard drives from Seagate so it would be a great test.
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HD Tach USB 2.0 |
Our first benchmark was done with 8Mb vs 32 Mb mode with USB 2.0. From the graf you can clearly see that the average read speed is close to the 34.5 MB/s. This is pretty much all you can get out of the USB 2.0 connection.
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HD Tach eSATA |
Our second benchmark was 8 Mb vs 32 Mb over the eSATA channel. The average speed in this benchmark was 76.1 MB/s, much higher than the USB 2.0 connection.
Conclusion
Once again Thermaltake has done it. They have managed to increase the convenience of their world famous BlacX by releasing BlacX Duet to the market. Dealing with BlacX Duet has been nothing but pleasure and with having two drive in it, makes all the difference! I really liked the BlacX Duet and it looks like it is going to be another winner. The interface speeds of BlacX Duet are pretty much maxing out what we can currently have on the market, but i am sure when USB 3.0 comes out, BlacX Duet will have other modifications to it:). It gives me a great pleasure to award BlacX Duet with highest rank of 10/10!
Some pros we found:
Easy to use.
No set up required.
Convenience of two hard drives.
Supports 2.5" and 3.5" drives.
Some cons we found:
None
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