Sonnet Technologies (www.sonnettech.com) has announced five new Mobile Rack Device Mounting Kits for the Echo Express III-R, a 2U rackmount Thunderbolt 2-to-PCI Express (PCIe) expansion system, and for the recently announced xMac Pro Server Thunderbolt 2-to-PCIe expansion system and 4U rackmount enclosure for new Mac Pro computers.

These expansion systems were designed to accommodate additional equipment within their enclosures, and the Mobile Rack Device Mounting Kits take advantage of that feature by offering users a way to add two 5.25-inch mobile rack devices to their equipment rack without taking up any more space. 

The new preconfigured mobile rack systems include the basic Mobile Rack Device Mounting Kit with internal 100-watt power supply and 40-millimeter fan; one or two devices such as swappable 2.5-inch and 3.5-inch drive cages, a Blu-ray burner, or a professional video media card reader; a PCIe controller card to support the devices; and the necessary cables to connect them together. Kits including drive cages require the user to purchase SATA hard disk drives or Solid State Drives. With the drive cages preinstalled in the mounting bracket, users need only install the PCIe card and Mobile Rack Device Mounting Kit in the expansion system, and connect the devices and card with the provided cables. 

The Storage Expansion x8 Edition is configured for those requiring access to high storage volumes and the ability to swap out drives easily. This edition includes the basic Mobile Rack Device Mounting Kit, eight swappable 2.5-inch 6 Gb/sec SATA drive cages, one eight-port 6 Gb/sec SAS/SATA PCIe 2.0 host bus adapter card, and all required cables.

The Blu-ray Mastering Edition is configured for users needing an easy way to create Blu-ray disc masters using files from multiple drives. This edition includes the basic Mobile Rack Device Mounting Kit; one 6x BD-R Blu-ray burner optical drive; two swappable 6 Gb/sec SATA 2.5-inch drive cages; one trayless, swappable 6 Gb/sec SATA 3.5-inch drive cage; one four-port 6 Gb/sec eSATA PCIe 2.0 host controller card; and all required cables. 

The Pro Media Reader Edition is configured to enable users to ingest files easily and quickly from just about any HD video memory card — SxS, P2, CompactFlash, SDHC, and SDXC — through one device, and offload the files to multiple drives. This edition includes the basic Mobile Rack Device Mounting Kit, one Qio MR Thunderbolt Edition pro universal media reader with Thunderbolt Interface adapter and Thunderbolt cable, four swappable 2.5-inch 6 Gb/sec SATA drive cages, one four-port 6 Gb/sec eSATA PCIe 2.0 host controller card, and all required cables. 

The Mac Pro Migration Edition is configured with the seasoned Mac Pro user in mind, providing a way to move drives from an old tower into a new Thunderbolt 2-to-PCIe expansion system. This kit includes the basic Mobile Rack Device Mounting Kit; three trayless, swappable 3.5-inch 6 Gb/sec SATA drive cages; one four-port 6 Gb/sec eSATA PCIe 2.0 host controller card; and all required cables.

The Data Archiving and Storage Edition is configured for those needing extra storage expansion and the ability to archive the data to an LTO tape drive. This kit includes the basic Mobile Rack Device Mounting Kit, four swappable 2.5-inch 6 Gb/sec SATA drive cages, one eight-port 6 Gb/sec SAS/SATA PCIe 2.0 host bus adapter card, and all required cables. The user must also purchase an LTO tape drive to complete the package.

Sonnet’s Mobile Rack Device Mounting Kits are priced as follows: The Storage Expansion x8 Edition (part number MR-STO-X8SSD) has a suggested retail price of US$999. The Blu-ray Mastering Edition (part number MR-BRM-X2S1H) has a suggested retail price of $899. The Pro Media Reader Edition (part number MR-QIO-X4SSD) has a suggested retail price of $1,899.

The Mac Pro Migration Edition (part number MR-MPM-X3HD) has a suggested retail price of $699. The Data Archiving Edition (part number MR-LTO-X4SSD) has a suggested retail price of $899. All five new kits are available immediately.