[Dracule1]

Hi all, I've contemplating whether to get external firewire HD (as you can see from my previous post) or NAS to store my music.  The cool thing about NAS is I can place it in a separate room using the ethernet connections I have between my bedroom and audio room.  That way it's completely silent...no worrying about HD noise, light, placement on rack.  Is anyone doing this with his Mac?  Seems like HP makes a good NAS.  Are there issues I should know about using NAS in terms of software requirements or can I just run iTunes to access my music just the way I would from an external drive?  Thanks.

[skunark]

I've used two different NAS solutions in the past and really didn't like the performance with iTunes.  I know i'm not the only one on this forum that wouldn't recommend running iTunes from a NAS drive, but I can't comment on the HP solution and a couple of recommendations if you are going to try: First, check your wireless router first as you can sometimes add a USB drive to create a NAS. Second, look for a NAS that has built in iTunes support so that it can do the streaming vs your computer running iTunes.   

One downfall for a NAS is it becomes more difficult to back up.

[Dracule1]

Thanks.  Appreciate your experience.  I'm a novice when in comes to this stuff.  I'm just having a hard time finding a good external firewire HD for the Mini.  Many have given me good suggestions, but when I research them further, I find issues that detracts me from buying one.  Like, for example, WD drive has this background "smartware" that automatically loads into the Mini and you can't truly get rid of it.  Others have issues to bright lighting (Seagate), mechanical noise coming out of sleep mode (G-tech), overheating (Iomega), fan noise (Glyph), etc.  Confused 

[skunark]

For the WD drive check out this link to remove the smartware:
http://www.wdc.com/wdproducts/updates/?family=wdsmartwareutilitiesmac

I do think WD are pretty silent so I do like them but I've had issues with the FW port when the drive wakes up locking iTunes so I've ended up using the USB port.   I've also been a fan of g-technology HDD but they can be pricey and if they have a fan they are noisy (i.e. raid versions).   Every Lacie HDD I've owned had issues with the power cord going out as well.   Sadly not every brand is perfect and there are a few that I haven't mentioned because I've had horrendous luck where my friends swear by them...

For a mac mini music server I would get two drives of about the same capacity and might as well experiment with different brands until you find one you like, make the louder of the two the "time machine drive" then consider something like backblaze for off-site storage.   I've spent the last several years ripping all of my CDs to a lossless format and believe me I don't want to do that again.    But having both the data and backup drive connected via FW or USB will give you a much faster experience without the two main issues i have with NAses today.... Speed and Ability to backup.   

Good luck, and hopefully others will post their experiences so we can learn from them as well ...

[Dracule1]

Thanks.  I saw your link on removing the smartware on WD drives, but my understanding is that only disables the software.  You can't delete it from the HD. But I guess if it is quiet and reliable, I might bite the bullet and get WD drive.

What is your opinion on the OWC drives? Seems well built.

[Bemopti123]

Thanks.  I saw your link on removing the smartware on WD drives, but my understanding is that only disables the software.  You can't delete it from the HD. But I guess if it is quiet and reliable, I might bite the bullet and get WD drive.

What is your opinion on the OWC drives? Seems well built.

I have one of the RAID OWC drives, 500GB mirrored HDs.  The PS and the fan failed, OWC replaced NP.  Nevertheless, it is not the "quietest" of drives.   

The SingleStack drives are incredibly quiet, but they are not RAID/NAS. 

[Dracule1]

Bimopti, thanks for suggesting the singlestack drives buy I'm not sure which model you are referring to.  Can you give me the link to the drive you are talkin about?  Do you own one of h
them?

[Bemopti123]

Bimopti, thanks for suggesting the singlestack drives buy I'm not sure which model you are referring to.  Can you give me the link to the drive you are talkin about?  Do you own one of h
them?

This is the noisy drive I was telling you about...

http://eshop.macsales.com/Customized_Pages/Framework.cfm?page=mepal_splash_raid.html

This are the famous "MiniStacks" I mistakenly called them "SingleStacks..."

http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/ministack/

Their own version of a NAS...but without the capacity of redundant backups, I wonder how useful they are...

http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Newer%20Technology/MSU2NAS/

I personally would "daisy" chain 2 of the ministacks and connect them directly to your setup for faster access.  One would back up the Mini and the other would be back up to the other. 

[jtwrace]

I use two iomega MiniMax drives.  One is for music files then the other is partioned and backs up the OS and Music files.

[Dracule1]

Bemopti, do you own the Ministack to attest to its quiet operation?  Read a review from a user who had noise problem.

[Atlplasma]

I thought I resurrect this thread and see if anyone has tried this NAS from OWC.

http://eshop.macsales.com/owcpages/guardianmax_mini.html

I'm curious about the amount of fan noise. I find that fan sound is a big distraction.

[lokie]

Thumbs up on OWC external HD. Thumbs down on NAS w my MAC Mini.