Hard drive covers

[fastcar123]

Hello,

I have the Corsair Carbide air 540 case. I like the case because it looks very industrial.

What I don't like abou8t the case is the way they put the 3.5 hard mounts in. 

They are hot swappable bays with nothing over the top.

Generally hard drives aren't the most aesthetically pleasing parts ever and here I am looking at a white Seagate sticker all the time.

 

I want to put something over the hard drive to make it look nicer.

Keeping with the industrial style of the case and everything else, I was wanting to find some passive heat sinks that didn't look stupid. 

 

This was actually a surprisingly difficult endeavor 

They could be super tall if they need to be but I would prefer something low profile. 

 

Could I ask the community for assistance in finding something like this.

Alternatively if someone out there has any ideas (other than paint) to cover a hard drive, I'm open to suggestions 

 

Thanks in advance

[LienusLateTips]

I think it might be a bad idea.

[fastcar123]

Just now, JDE said:

I think it might be a bad idea.

whys that?

[Tsuki]

you could make a shroud out of plexi

[LienusLateTips]

Just now, fastcar123 said:

whys that?

Last time i checked my HDD has a huge hole with arrows pointing to it that say "do not cover"

 

IDK if modern ones still have them

[Creed1]

3 minutes ago, JDE said:

Last time i checked my HDD has a huge hole with arrows pointing to it that say "do not cover"

 

IDK if modern ones still have them

I believe my WD from 2014 has that. I think its due to thermals and unwanted materials used for the covers. 

 

[SCHISCHKA]

you can buy 5.25" drive bays.

You can buy drive heat sinks.

Seriously there are shit loads of options i dont know why you cant find anything.

https://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Description=hard drive heatsink&Submit=ENE

https://www.ebay.com/sch/items/?_nkw=hdd+heatsink&_sacat=&_ex_kw=&_mPrRngCbx=1&_udlo=&_udhi=&_sop=12&_fpos=&_fspt=1&_sadis=&LH_CAds=&rmvSB=true

[Tsuki]

6 minutes ago, JDE said:

Last time i checked my HDD has a huge hole with arrows pointing to it that say "do not cover"

 

IDK if modern ones still have them

 

2 minutes ago, CmzPlusHardware said:

I believe my WD from 2014 has that. I think its due to thermals and unwanted materials used for the covers. 

 

they still do, its to equalize the pressure between the inside and the outside.

as long as you dont tape over it, or put something directly on it, he'll be fine.

 

so creating a shroud would work great, but covering it in electrical tape would be less than ideal

 

 

EDIT: i should also mention that it would probably be fine to cover it with tape too honestly.  operating the drive at a different altitude (thus different pressure) than what its sealed at can cause failure, but if you seal it, then never move to a different pressure zone or onto an airplane, its probably fine.

but, If the air pressure is too low, then there is not enough lift for the flying head, so the head gets too close to the disk, and there is a risk of head crashes and data loss.

[fastcar123]

32 minutes ago, Tsuki said:

you could make a shroud out of plexi

Yea and I thought of doing that too. I did that on my graphics card and it works. Ill hold on to that

33 minutes ago, JDE said:

Last time i checked my HDD has a huge hole with arrows pointing to it that say "do not cover"

 

IDK if modern ones still have them

That's actually a good point that I didn't think about. However looking at my drive I don't actually see one of those holes. Now I realize that it looks weird without it. lol 

30 minutes ago, SCHISCHKA said:

you can buy 5.25" drive bays.

You can buy drive heat sinks.

Seriously there are shit loads of options i dont know why you cant find anything.

https://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Description=hard drive heatsink&Submit=ENE

https://www.ebay.com/sch/items/?_nkw=hdd+heatsink&_sacat=&_ex_kw=&_mPrRngCbx=1&_udlo=&_udhi=&_sop=12&_fpos=&_fspt=1&_sadis=&LH_CAds=&rmvSB=true

I have seen these but these are active. I don't actually need the cooling as my drive never overheats. This is purely for aesthetic. 

31 minutes ago, Tsuki said:

 

they still do, its to equalize the pressure between the inside and the outside.

as long as you dont tape over it, or put something directly on it, he'll be fine.

 

so creating a shroud would work great, but covering it in electrical tape would be less than ideal

 

 

EDIT: i should also mention that it would probably be fine to cover it with tape too honestly.  operating the drive at a different altitude (thus different pressure) than what its sealed at can cause failure, but if you seal it, then never move to a different pressure zone or onto an airplane, its probably fine.

but, If the air pressure is too low, then there is not enough lift for the flying head, so the head gets too close to the disk, and there is a risk of head crashes and data loss.

I never actually knew what would happen if I covered that. Now I do. 

Either way I don't intend for a permeant fixture nor do I plan moving anywhere any time soon

[SCHISCHKA]

31 minutes ago, fastcar123 said:

I have seen these but these are active. I don't actually need the cooling as my drive never overheats. This is purely for aesthetic. 

buy a sheet of plastic/metal/wood. put it on top of drive with a spacer. The holes in the drive are just for pressure so you only need a 1mm gap between the cover and the drive. you can get foam double sided tape that is around 1-2mm thick that will do the job

[W-L]

3 hours ago, fastcar123 said:

Yea and I thought of doing that too. I did that on my graphics card and it works. Ill hold on to that

That's actually a good point that I didn't think about. However looking at my drive I don't actually see one of those holes. Now I realize that it looks weird without it. lol 

I have seen these but these are active. I don't actually need the cooling as my drive never overheats. This is purely for aesthetic. 

I never actually knew what would happen if I covered that. Now I do. 

Either way I don't intend for a permeant fixture nor do I plan moving anywhere any time soon

You can get HDD silencers basically a chunk of aluminum extrustion that goes over the drive. I've used these before to help keep the system aesthically pleasing when there is just a drive sitting in the floor.

http://www.performance-pcs.com/alphacool-silentmaxx-hd-insulation-rev-2-0.html

[fastcar123]

7 hours ago, W-L said:

You can get HDD silencers basically a chunk of aluminum extrustion that goes over the drive. I've used these before to help keep the system aesthically pleasing when there is just a drive sitting in the floor.

http://www.performance-pcs.com/alphacool-silentmaxx-hd-insulation-rev-2-0.html

As cool as that looks, my drive likely woildnt fit into the bay anymore. Still though that matches the look that I'm trying to go for perfectly.

10 hours ago, SCHISCHKA said:

buy a sheet of plastic/metal/wood. put it on top of drive with a spacer. The holes in the drive are just for pressure so you only need a 1mm gap between the cover and the drive. you can get foam double sided tape that is around 1-2mm thick that will do the job

Tjis is probably what ill end so doing

[W-L]

6 hours ago, fastcar123 said:

As cool as that looks, my drive likely woildnt fit into the bay anymore. Still though that matches the look that I'm trying to go for perfectly.

Tjis is probably what ill end so doing

Yeah those covers only fit in the 5.25" bays, I personally just have it in the bottom of my case since I don't have 5.25" drive bays. You can always just put the drive in the rear portion of the case if you want to keep things as clean as possible. 

[fastcar123]

1 minute ago, W-L said:

Yeah those covers only fit in the 5.25" bays, I personally just have it in the bottom of my case since I don't have 5.25" drive bays. You can always just put the drive in the rear portion of the case if you want to keep things as clean as possible. 

That us true but the rear of the case has no 3.5 mounts anywhere

[W-L]

1 minute ago, fastcar123 said:

That us true but the rear of the case has no 3.5 mounts anywhere

5.25" adapter to 3.5" drive, or just mount it on a sheet of plexi and a fix it somewhere in the case. 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005OJFASY/ref=psdc_160354011_t2_B009MGGWQE

[fastcar123]

53 minutes ago, W-L said:

5.25" adapter to 3.5" drive, or just mount it on a sheet of plexi and a fix it somewhere in the case. 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005OJFASY/ref=psdc_160354011_t2_B009MGGWQE

Yea I could do that. But at that point it would be easier, cheaper, and more convenient to just cover with the plexi

[Defyant]

Jeff does some great custom covers!

 

 

 

Pretty easy to DIY if you want to have a go your self.

[Marzen]

     Parts Express has a decent selection of vinyl sheets from VViViD for $20.  These are peel and stick, trim to fit.

https://www.parts-express.com/cat/cabinet-covering/310?N=19864+4294967118+4294961668&Ne=10166&Nrs=collection()%2Frecord[endeca%3Amatches(.%2C"P_PortalID"%2C"1")+and+endeca%3Amatches(.%2C"P_Searchable"%2C"1")]&PortalID=1
    

Burlwood perhaps?

 

And some pricey precut pieces from SlickWraps:

https://www.slickwraps.com/devices/cool-stuff/solid-state-drives/samsung-850-evo-2-5.html

 

[fastcar123]

On 09/16/2017 at 9:23 AM, Defyant said:

Jeff does some great custom covers!

 

 

 

Pretty easy to DIY if you want to have a go your self.

Yea I like that. But I dont have a laser cutter. I would probably just go without a design and have the leds coming out of the sides.

5 minutes ago, Marzen said:

Parts Express has a decent selection of vinyl sheets from VViViD for $20.  These are peel and stick, trim to fit.

https://www.parts-express.com/cat/cabinet-covering/310?N=19864+4294967118+4294961668&Ne=10166&Nrs=collection()%2Frecord[endeca%3Amatches(.%2C"P_PortalID"%2C"1")+and+endeca%3Amatches(.%2C"P_Searchable"%2C"1")]&PortalID=1

 

Burlwood perhaps?

What I think would look really cool is this kinda of vinyl on top of the rgb cover