MikroTik CRS312-4C+8XG-RM 12-Port 10GbE Switch Review

Our MikroTik CRS312-4C+8XG-RM review shows why this rackmount 12x 10Gbase-T switch with four combo SFP+ ports is a great value at around $500

The post MikroTik CRS312-4C+8XG-RM 12-Port 10GbE Switch Review appeared first on ServeTheHome.



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offtopic: why would anyone chose 10gbe instead of 10g fiber? i can hardly see use case for this port configuration.

 

10gbe started out as the standard before SFP+ took off and likely popular because it is familiar for many people.
That said the only use case I can think of is alot of newly built homes are run with cat6.

 

For SMB or SOHO, CAT6 is still considerably simpler than fiber. And most 10GbE workstations use 10GBaseT.

Does anyone have the fan model/spec used in this? I wonder if say Noctua A4x20s would be powerful enough to keep it cool.

 

What @Spartacus said. For homes or other finished structures looking to go 10gb, Ethernet offers a lot more freedom compared to Fiber. I'm actually encountering that right now, where I've just moved into a new home. I have Cat6 available that I could use directly to wire from the main floor to the basement, or I'd have fish and terminate fiber into the walls to a main floor of the house.

It's really too bad about the noise levels. I'd have paid extra if they had just shoved a much bigger chunk of metal in there and allow for quieter fans.

 

How much of a price difference there is between products with native RJ45 Ports for 10GBase-T compared to a SFP+ Cage plus a 10GBase-T transceiver so that you get the best of both worlds? Been recently reading about SFP+ and fiber and it seems like a better technical solution, and more flexible.

 

Look up the price of 10GBaseT transcievers. 12 of them will cost you more than this switch.

 

Doesn't mikrotik basically have the cheapest RJ45 to SPF= transceiver? I think its like 40-45$ each. I've also always wondered if something like that adds latency when changing media.

 

They have two, the S+RJ10 is a 6 speed for about 50 typically and the S+RJ01 which is ~30 and is single gigabit. What the CRS312 is really missing from my point of view is POE out on those 10GB ports, some of the wave2 and wifi 6 access points are coming with 10gb plus poe in(the unifi XG being an example)

 

In the review the Netgear XS708T was mentioned. Aside from the port count and redundant suppliers, is there anything different between these two?

 

Cost(the netgear is just under 700 on amazon the mikrotik is just over 500)
Noise(The most recent firmware helped if you look at the 10gig switches under 500 thread but the netgear is quieter still)
Cooling direction(The mikrotik is front to back the netgear is side to side)
The mikrotik is built more like a switch intended to live in a rack, a few have mentioned replacing the fans with noctua models to tame the noise which won't put you at the 700 point of the netgear but for a office switch were people might hear it the netgear is a more logical choice since it's silent out of the box.

 

Looking at the pictures, those are standard form factor fans and connectors. AKA, with a little ingenuity it could be MUCH quieter. Of course, if it's a super hot set of chips on that board, it might be better to just use what's there.... I'll wait for one of you brave souls to give it a shot as the WAF is of terrible importance on these things (lol).

 

https://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-Gigabit-Ethernet-Lifetime-Protection/dp/B01ELW0QM4

The Netgear is currently $569.99.

However, the Mikrotik does 5g/10g per tech details. Wonder what happens if you try to connect a 1g client? For the price of the Mikrotik,though, you are not gonna get a rj45 10g switch with as many ports.

The Netgear does not do 5g, but the 100/1g/10g.

Neither covers 2.5g/5g with POE, which will be pretty important for ax APs.

 

Was review written this before or after the new firmware we've seen mentioned in other threads on the forum? If it was before can we possibly get a update at some point?