Microsemi / Adaptec SmartHBA 2100?

[AveryFreeman]

Hey,

I'm curious if anyone has any experience with this HBA. Its datasheet makes it look really cool, but I can't find any reviews or anecdotes in forums from people who own them.

Positives:

• SAS3 - but much cheaper than most other SAS3 cards
• In the ESXi 7.0U1 HCL
• ESXi, MAAS and OpenStack web gui management plugins
• Made with software defined storage in mind
• Capable of JBOD+ RAID simultaneously on one card (e.g. ch 0-1 single channels, 2-3 raid1, etc.)
• RAID is OK w/ "Advanced Format" drives (4Kn)

Negatives:

• Not so sure about Adaptec brand, looks like it's turned over at least twice recently (but then again, so has LSI...)
• Have no idea how well it performs (can always count on a 2008 to be a solid performer)
• Firmware release changelog has a loooot of bug fixes... :/

Before someone says, "SAS2 with spinning drives won't matter," or, "everyone uses LSIs, and they're cheap" - I know. I already have 4 2008 controllers. I was looking for a controller that is compatible w/ ESXi 7, and SAS3 would be nice in case I want to add some SSDs later.

Anyway, has anyone actually even seen one before? If so, what'd you think?