PSA - Vantec DX2 SATA port is very weak. Fix provided!

[Unwound1]

I recently picked up a Vantec DX2 enclosure for my drive and immediately partially broke the SATA port off the board while setting it up. The port broke during the installation of the rear cover, as the cables bunch up and apply a ton of force to the SATA port. Thankfully the electrical connections were fine, but the plastic legs that hold the port onto the board snapped off.

The problem is that the SATA port on the PCB is really cheap, and is held on in only two places. The entire section outlined in purple has 0 connection to the board, it is literally just connected by the two metal pieces at the sides. The plastic broke at the orange lines:

Vantec DX2 PCB - Purple-circled part is not directly connected to the board, my port broke at the orange lines.

DX2 PCB.jpg (273.65 KiB) Viewed 947 times

Thankfully, there's an easy fix! I found some packaging foam and cut it to size such that it fits nicely under the pcb without moving around. The PCB needs to be removed to do this (very easy, just four screws). The foam needs to be quite dense and thick such that it firmly presses the SATA port against the PCB:

DX2 foam top.jpg (612.32 KiB) Viewed 947 times

With the foam in place, the port does not move at all.

If you have a Vantec DX2 or are considering buying one, I'd highly recommend that you do this mod before attempting to install your drive into it!!

Overall I'd still definitely recommend this enclosure, it fit my Pioneer drive perfectly and feels great once the drive is installed.