Need Advice on Supermicro Chassis Purchase

[WhenKittensATK]

I purchased a SUPERMICRO 3U CSE-836BE16-R920B chassis from an eBay seller. The spec sheet for the chassis states it has a BPN-SAS2-836EL1 backplane (link was included on product description). The chassis arrived yesterday and I found a BPN-SAS-836TQ backplane inside.

I ask the seller about this, because it looks like they sent me the wrong model. The seller told me the listing was generic and the spec sheet link for this model is also generic. The seller also told me I should have called them if I wanted the specific model in the product listing title. It really sounds like they are just giving me the runaround.

At this point it seems like I have solid false advertising dispute claim. I’m trying to resolve it through just private messages with the seller, but it seems like it’s going nowhere.
Should I just open an eBay claim and try to get a full refund + shipping costs to return it? Here is the posting for clarification.

If this backplane works with 5 TBs fully populated, then I have no issues keeping it. That was the only reason I wanted a SAS2 backplane, because I've been reading a lot of conflicting information about 2+ TB support on the SAS backplanes and whether or not they will work fully populated with 2+ TB HDDs. I also currently own and use 2x M1015 in IT mode for my current build.

 

[ttabbal]

Looking at the listing model number and link to a spec sheet, they listed an SAS2 expander backplane. If that's not what they sent you, it's on them and I bet EBay would back you up on it. IMO, a generic listing would be something like "Supermicro 24 bay server chassis". If they list a model number, that should be what they send you.

What you have is a TQ backplane. It's the same one I have, it's a passthrough style, so 2+TB is fully supported. The downside is cabling. You need to connect 24 individual SATA/SAS cables to the backplane. Personally, I don't mind this for a single server. If I were maintaining many boxes in a rack, I would demand the expander version. So your 2x M1015 cards will let you run 16 of the 24 drive bays. You need SAS->SATA breakout cables for that. They are pretty cheap on ebay. You also need another controller and pair of cables if you want the other 8 bays active. Or you need to provide an SAS2 expander. I have the slots and don't mind the extra controllers. Mine was also clearly labeled though, so I knew full well what I was getting.

IMO they should replace the backplane, or refund you the difference in the price of the two backplanes on ebay. And it should be your choice which one. The backplanes are pretty easy to replace, so it's not a big deal for them to pull the right one and send it. It also saves them the rather expensive shipping for the chassis.

 

[Patrick]

You are probably not going to like my thought process but here it is:

1. You are probably OK filing a claim.
2. I prefer direct attach backplanes over expander backplanes. The exception to this is if I am building an external disk shelf or I have limited PCIe expansion slots in a platform (e.g. mITX Xeon D)
3. If you are using dual port SAS, I think you need the dual port expander anyway so that is moot.
4. I would probably see if the seller is willing to give you a partial refund to not go though the return process and use the funds on another controller. If you do not want to go direct attach, just file the claim.

 

[WhenKittensATK]

Thanks for the replies. I took the risk of installing my hardware and the SAS-836TQ combined with my 2x M1015 works fine with my 3 TB and 5 TB drives. I only have 3 empty slots left so I think I'm save enough to keep it. I'm going to resell the motherboard and power supplies, since I'm just using my consumer grade hardware. That'll be much more manageable than shipping this behemoth for a refund.

 

[BlueFox]

Most hardware recyclers don't know too much about what they're selling. I saw that very listing a week ago and could tell it was mislabeled. No one built 771 based servers with new chassis and the PSUs corresponded to the first gen chassis. Generally with this sort of hardware you'll need to do a bit of research (also the photos didn't match).

 

[Terry Kennedy]

I purchased a SUPERMICRO 3U CSE-836BE16-R920B chassis from an eBay seller. The spec sheet for the chassis states it has a BPN-SAS2-836EL1 backplane (link was included on product description). The chassis arrived yesterday and I found a BPN-SAS-836TQ backplane inside.

At this point it seems like I have solid false advertising dispute claim. I’m trying to resolve it through just private messages with the seller, but it seems like it’s going nowhere.
Should I just open an eBay claim and try to get a full refund + shipping costs to return it? Here is the posting for clarification.

It isn't a B chassis (you can tell by the grounding lug on the panel below the power supplies in the seller's picture) and it certainly isn't a -R920B as that would have the ultra-desirable 920W SQ power supplies. They posted a link to a specific chassis spec sheet in their listing, which is for the CSE-836BE16-R920B.

I'd be pissed off and make a note of them as "clueless seller", but OTOH $142.50 is a pretty good deal if you can make use of it, it really came with everything else as described, etc.

 

[cheezehead]

Price seems about right for what you ended up getting, what they are were advertising and what they actually shipped you IMO is a bit of bait and switch.

I have a TQ backplane as well and love it outside of the cabling mess. I'd love an A-style backplane but they are hard to find. The TQ backplanes as others have mentioned work fine with any capacity hard drive but given the SATA connectors any SAS drives will be running single-ported. Also because it is a passive backplane, while never specs for it you can run 12GB drives off of it.