NAS recommendations please

sonicxtc · « **on:** 24 Nov 2016, 10:52 pm »

Okay, it's almost Black Friday then Cyber Monday; time to buy a NAS.

Please offer some specific brand and model recommendations. i'm probably looking at 2 bays, but might consider 4.
Is Synology better than Qnap?

Thanks for your input.
Happy Thanksgiving.

glynnw · « **Reply #1 on:** 25 Nov 2016, 12:34 am »

I use a 2 bay Synology and have no experience with Qnap. When I first got the Synology, there was so little to it physically that I at first felt like I was ripped off. But after 2 or 3 years, it has performed flawlessly and given me no reason to regret the purchase.

Phil A · « **Reply #2 on:** 25 Nov 2016, 01:25 am »

I use a Synology as well

GentleBender · « **Reply #3 on:** 25 Nov 2016, 01:53 am »

I'm a Synology user as well and have only had two Western Digital disc failures that were covered by the WD warranty over the three years I've had it. I have the four bay with a 5 bay expansion for about 20TB total. My friend has both and is working on his second Qnap unit replacement in under six months. The Qnap seems to have better specs and more features, but reliability seems lacking. That may not be fair since that is the only Qnap experience I know of.

srb · « **Reply #4 on:** 25 Nov 2016, 06:52 am »

The Synology hardware is among the most reliable and I've had mine for 6.5 years.

Most of the Synology applications are pretty good, but I was disappointed with the unreliable and quirky Synology Cloud Station backup software and have reverted back to the older but more reliable Synology Data Replicator 3 backup client software, although it only backs up computers to NAS drives and not to cloud storage.

Steve

Anonamemouse · « **Reply #5 on:** 25 Nov 2016, 01:08 pm »

I had a Qnap which retired in a small explosion, resulting in quite some data loss and physical damage. The safety backup died...

Bought a 4 bay Synology, never looked at anything else. Quite expensive, but worth the money.

Phil A · « **Reply #6 on:** 25 Nov 2016, 01:13 pm »

The Synology I have is a DS716+. It has two bays but you can get a 5-bay expander. I have two 8TB drives (configured in Raid 1). I use it for music storage only and I have about 5TB of music.

sonicxtc · « **Reply #7 on:** 25 Nov 2016, 06:59 pm »

Thank you for the replies.
This will sound like an un-NAS like question, but is it POSSIBLE to use the usb ports on a NAS to output music files to a mac mini (or any usb device)? I'm wondering if, in effect, the NAS COULD be used like an external HDD because the Sotm sms-200 can receive files via a usb port. I'm all for the NAS, just wish to know if this is possible. Thanks.

Phil A · « **Reply #8 on:** 25 Nov 2016, 07:42 pm »

This should answer your question - http://files.qnap.com/news/pressresource/datasheet/TS-x51+_51000-023995-RS(EN)A_0107.pdf

"Connect the TS-251+/451+ to an HDTV or A/V receiver via HDMI and use the HybridDesk Station (HD Station)
with the free QNAP remote control to enjoy rich multimedia content for the best audiovisual experience.Use
the bundled QNAP remote control for watching movies, listening to music, or enjoying a slideshow of treasured
photos. Just grab the remote control and enjoy the best in QNAP NAS convenience.Every family member can
enjoy entertainment on demand, and from different locations. Centrally manage and stream photos, music, and
videos from the TS-251+/451+ to different rooms from a single device using Bluetooth®, USB devices, HDMI,
DLNA®, Apple TV® and Chromecast™. The TS-251+/451+ supports Roku® and Amazon Fire® TV™, and Google TV
™ in addition to fully supporting Plex media server for the ultimate in flexibility. Search for, install, remove, and
update apps through the App Center to extend the functionality of your QNAP NAS. "

sonicxtc · « **Reply #9 on:** 25 Nov 2016, 08:09 pm »

Thank you, Phil.
Intuitively, it seemed the case, but I wanted to make certain.
Below is from a friend of mine.

Quote

A NAS can appears exactly like an external hard drive and it can be used as such provided you don't have 10 other transfer going on at the same time. Remember , you have to compensate for LAN speed and activity. External drives don’t have firmware to handle disruptions. My NAS can pickup from a broken transmission and resume a copy or transfer like nothing ever happened. The NAS has extra electronics vs a simple file server. A higher end file server like a Windows 2012 server has the same level of reliablity.

Phil A · « **Reply #10 on:** 25 Nov 2016, 08:15 pm »

I'm still getting used to my NAS. I have two music servers and just re-did settings on JRiver on both. Prior (will have to test the new settings), the local attached hard drives (to the music servers) sounds a bit better. I use the NAS to stream music (on occasion - in addition to a small local hard drive) to an Oppo 103D in a spare system.

sonicxtc · « **Reply #11 on:** 25 Nov 2016, 08:35 pm »

Quote

Prior (will have to test the new settings), the local attached hard drives (to the music servers) sounds a bit better.

That's interesting. I don't know if that's a general rule--attached HDD sounding better the NAS. My understanding is that NAS will provide galvanic isolation which is ONE advantage. But, there's always software and power supply noise to consider in the loop.

Phil A · « **Reply #12 on:** 25 Nov 2016, 08:46 pm »

Quote from: sonicxtc on 25 Nov 2016, 08:35 pm

That's interesting. I don't know if that's a general rule--attached HDD sounding better the NAS. My understanding is that NAS will provide galvanic isolation which is ONE advantage. But, there's always software and power supply noise to consider in the loop.

Sounded better with (Oyen Digital) local attached drives on both music servers and that was playing back files from memory. I had two fellow Space Coast Audio Society members over who know nothing about computer audio (and had no idea which version they were hearing) to verify I wasn't crazy. After talking to Meitner (who makes my DAC I use in the main system) technical support after I upgraded the Windows driver, I have changed one setting (that basically decodes and stores the file and it takes a hair longer) and it sounds better than it did. Will eventually get to try the streamed vs. local hard drive thing again and if I can't hear a difference, I will use the NAS. I have two PCs (main and back-up, Windows 10 pro and Windows 7 pro) where I use the NAS too (if I burn files I want to be able to hear them on something decent) that are not primary or back-up audio systems (but can be).

Mike-48 · « **Reply #13 on:** 28 Nov 2016, 02:05 am »

I got a Synology with 4 bays, which gives more space efficiency in RAID than a 2-bay system. But probably overkill.

If you want to run Roon on the NAS, you need to buy one with an Intel processor. (My DS414 has a Marvell processor.)

If you believe backblaze.com, there is evidence that HGST drives are more reliable than others. I use these: http://a.co/dJ8UpKc . That said, I use WD Red drives in my desktop system and have not had a problem.

Have fun!

dminches · « **Reply #14 on:** 28 Nov 2016, 03:09 pm »

Quote from: Phil A on 25 Nov 2016, 08:15 pm

I'm still getting used to my NAS. I have two music servers and just re-did settings on JRiver on both. Prior (will have to test the new settings), the local attached hard drives (to the music servers) sounds a bit better. I use the NAS to stream music (on occasion - in addition to a small local hard drive) to an Oppo 103D in a spare system.

Phil,

Which Synology do you have? I have an older DS416 and I am thinking of getting a DS916+ which has more memory and a faster processor.

I haven't tried using local drives in my CAPS-like machines since I have multiple music servers.

Philistine · « **Reply #15 on:** 28 Nov 2016, 05:39 pm »

I have a Synology DS1515+ that has an Intel Atom processor, I believe it's below the spec Roon requires to perform effectively. I stuffed it with addition memory , from what I recall 16MB, and added an external SSD for the database, it runs Roon fine.

Phil A · « **Reply #16 on:** 28 Nov 2016, 06:37 pm »

Quote from: dminches on 28 Nov 2016, 03:09 pm

Phil,

Which Synology do you have? I have an older DS416 and I am thinking of getting a DS916+ which has more memory and a faster processor.

I haven't tried using local drives in my CAPS-like machines since I have multiple music servers.

I noted it above - DS716+. For now I have just the two big drives configured in RAID 1. Still need to verify with my new JRiver settings that local hard drives (with my 2 music servers) don't sound better than streaming (they did last time I tried a comparison).

sonicxtc · « **Reply #17 on:** 29 Nov 2016, 06:29 pm »

Thank you to everyone for the suggestions.

dreamtheatervn · « **Reply #18 on:** 24 Dec 2016, 04:28 pm »

Hi Gentlements,
Thanks for the inputs. I read the whole topic but still have not found what I am looking for: Qnap vs Synology, which's one sound better? How does NAS sound comparing with some famous music servers (with internal HDD/SSD) such as Melco N1A? Ethernet connection is preferable than the USB.
Merry Xmas and Happy new year to All!

JRace · « **Reply #19 on:** 24 Dec 2016, 05:57 pm »

Quote from: dreamtheatervn on 24 Dec 2016, 04:28 pm

Hi Gentlements,
Thanks for the inputs. I read the whole topic but still have not found what I am looking for: Qnap vs Synology, which's one sound better? How does NAS sound comparing with some famous music servers (with internal HDD/SSD) such as Melco N1A? Ethernet connection is preferable than the USB.
Merry Xmas and Happy new year to All!

Niether will sound better. The NAS does not contribute to the sound.
Both will still require a music server like the Melco N1A to receive the digital stream from the NAS to output into a DAC.