2.5 Inch Bracket

bigmck · 19 Jun 2012

I was looking online for a 2.5 inch bracket for my SSD. I found this "Dual Bracket"
Newegg.com - BYTECC Bracket-35225 2.5 Inch HDD/SSD Mounting Kit For 3.5" Drive Bay or Enclosure Are you able to put two drives in the one bracket and thus double your space? I have never heard of these. My question is, if I get one of these now, can I just put one drive in it now and possibly use the second space for later or do you have to put two in at one time to make them secure? Thanks,

DavidE · 19 Jun 2012

From what i can tell looking at the pictures it seems like it should work with one or two SSD's. Some of the user comments seem to say it works with one SSD ok. The good news - it has free shipping. Very often on cheap items the shipping costs more than the item. And it comes with a free 18" SATA cable if you need one.

bobkn · 19 Jun 2012

You can use one or two drives.

Read the reviews, though. The adapter is not compatible with some 3.5" mounting methods.

That seems to be a common issue with 2.5" to 3.5" adapters, though. Some SSD makers include simple ones made from sheet metal, which may not work with some 3.5" mounts.

There are other makers of adapters that will fit two 2.5" drives in a single 3.5" port, but compatibility may be an issue.

I'm using an adapter from Icy Dock. The 2.5" drive mounts internally, and the shell resembles a 3.5" drive. It's plastic, but I haven't observed any overheating. My main complaint was that it cost more than $20. Apparently its square edges cause some compatibility (there's that word again) issues, but it works for me.

Bytecc appears to make really cheap stuff. As it's also inexpensive, that's fair enough.

bigmck · 19 Jun 2012

bobkn said:

You can use one or two drives.

Read the reviews, though. The adapter is not compatible with some 3.5" mounting methods.

That seems to be a common issue with 2.5" to 3.5" adapters, though. Some SSD makers include simple ones made from sheet metal, which may not work with some 3.5" mounts.

There are other makers of adapters that will fit two 2.5" drives in a single 3.5" port, but compatibility may be an issue.

I'm using an adapter from Icy Dock. The 2.5" drive mounts internally, and the shell resembles a 3.5" drive. It's plastic, but I haven't observed any overheating. My main complaint was that it cost more than $20. Apparently its square edges cause some compatibility (there's that word again) issues, but it works for me.

Bytecc appears to make really cheap stuff. As it's also inexpensive, that's fair enough.

You mention incompatibility, That had not crossed my mind. I have a PC case with "screwless bays". Do only certain brackets fit in those?

Dwarf · 19 Jun 2012

Standard adapter brackets should fit. However, you need to be aware that not all brackets are the same. Logic would dictate that you would mount these brackets (after installing the SSD drive(s) in them) inside the drive cage using the same screws that you would normally use to install a HDD. Unfortunately, not all brackets are standard in this respect. I had this problem with mine, as I needed to use specific screws supplied with the case. These screws did not fit the brackets I had, so I needed to get an alternative bracket that I could use with the screws.

bobkn · 19 Jun 2012

bigmck said:

You mention incompatibility, That had not crossed my mind. I have a PC case with "screwless bays". Do only certain brackets fit in those?

You may simply have to try it. If the bays fit on the outside of the drive and don't pick up the screw holes, there's likely to be a problem.

One problem I've had is that a standard 3.5" HD has three mounting holes on each of its two sides. Some cases (with screws) only use two of those. Some 2.5" adapter brackets present only 2 of the 3 holes. The wrong two, of course.

The Icy Dock unit that I mentioned:

Newegg.com - ICY DOCK MB882SP-1S-2B 2.5" to 3.5" SATA 6Gb SSD & Hard Drive Converter / Adapter / Bracket

basically works, although some users had to modify the case because it has square edges, while an actual 3.5" HD does not.

Some people just stick the drive down with duct tape. It's not as if you'd have to worry about coupling drive vibration into the case.