FookLai Posted February 12, 2020 Posted February 12, 2020 bro, late to the games, I am looking to build a NAS to stream movies and music. I have been using external harddisk to play movies with my Zidoo. My setup as follow: 1) My desktop PC in my study room is wirelessly connected to Netgear Orbi mesh wifi. 2) My HT is in dedicated HT room wirelessly connect to my Orbi satelite unit. (This is where Zidoo is) 3) I have a second setup in living room which I like to play music via streaming as well. (I plan to buy bluesound node 2i for streaming spotify, BT music and NAS music files) Now looking to get a NAS where I can connect to my Orbi main unit then a) Copy UHD/Bluray iso and music files from my desktop PC to NAS wirelessly. b) Zidoo to play movies and musics in HT room C) Bluesound to play music files in living room. Now the most important question is what is the NAS you guys would recommend to buy that would not burn a hole yet can fit this purpose?
DJQ Posted February 12, 2020 Posted February 12, 2020 :) following your thread. i myself late bloomer in this. i have always bought CDs and BR discs. guess its time.
Highonthehog Posted February 12, 2020 Posted February 12, 2020 Either get Synology or QNAP. Been using Synology for years and has been great. The next question will be the amount of storage you need depending how much media you have or gonna have in the future. But remember, a NAS is not a backup solution. Since you using Zidoo, thus the NAS need not do all the decoding etc. You can use this calculator https://www.synology.com/en-sg/support/RAID_calculator
FookLai Posted February 12, 2020 Author Posted February 12, 2020 Either get Synology or QNAP. Been using Synology for years and has been great. The next question will be the amount of storage you need depending how much media you have or gonna have in the future. But remember, a NAS is not a backup solution. Since you using Zidoo, thus the NAS need not do all the decoding etc. You can use this calculator https://www.synology.com/en-sg/support/RAID_calculator I am thinking to get a Synology too but unsure how should I pick a model. Beside the storage size, what else to look at for connection with my desktop and Zidoo? What kind of software to use in Zidoo? I heard some people using Plex?
Highonthehog Posted February 12, 2020 Posted February 12, 2020 I am thinking to get a Synology too but unsure how should I pick a model. Beside the storage size, what else to look at for connection with my desktop and Zidoo? What kind of software to use in Zidoo? I heard some people using Plex? Synology itself does have a Plex media server app with their DSM. Not too worry so much. Most important is to calculate the storage you need for now and in the future. I'm running a NAS which allows me to add expansion module like the DX models for future expansion. The software used by Synology, DSM, is very user friendly. For zidoo, with their home theatre app, just need to either samba/NFS, the zidoo will detect the media files from the folders in the NAS. I don't use plex at all for zidoo but Plex is good for smart tv or mobile devices. Even for Apple TV, i use infuse. Further, there are many bros here willing to assist if you need. :)
FookLai Posted February 12, 2020 Author Posted February 12, 2020 Do you mean that any Synology NAS model will do the job just fine? Even very old model 2 bay on sale at second hand also can do the job just fine?
arsene Posted February 12, 2020 Posted February 12, 2020 For Synology, better to get the + models. They are faster.
Highonthehog Posted February 12, 2020 Posted February 12, 2020 Do you mean that any Synology NAS model will do the job just fine? Even very old model 2 bay on sale at second hand also can do the job just fine? If money not the issue, as bro arsene mentioned, get a + model for better specifications. Of course, you can get a 2nd hand model, but depends on the specs and the risks of it being 2nd hand. I'm using a 4 years old model DS1515+. This model came with 2GB ram which i upgraded to 8GB myself. No issue so far. but i started from a 2 bay to a 4 bay then to this 5 bay with the DX213. So if depends on your consumption and requirements. https://www.synology.com/en-global/support/nas_selector
rayleh Posted February 12, 2020 Posted February 12, 2020 Noob question: why can't we connect a HDD to the home router and share media files with DLNA devices?
tsammyc Posted February 12, 2020 Posted February 12, 2020 Most NAS will fit your bill. Qnap & Synology are the most reliable. I have at a QNAP TS453Be, which has a Celeron processor and a 10 Gbit Ethernet support, which is a few years old. In the past Synology software was a bit more reliable and easy to use than QNAP, but QNAP has caught up and there is little difference between them. Generally, I've found QNAP to be cheaper, and there are very good prices on amazon.sg. If you a a Prime member ($2.99 per month), there is free shipping to Singapore. If you are running music off your server, you might want to look at running Roon on your NAS, which works well with the Bluesound Node 2i. Roon requires a fairly powerful processor in the NAS, which normally means an expensive NAS, but the QNAP TS-473 is a relatively inexpensive NAS that supports Roon fully with a powerful AMD R Series Quad Core processor, yet is fairly inexpensive. The other nice thing about the TS-473 is that it has two PCIE expansion slots that give you flexibility for the future. For example, you can put in a 10 gigabit LAN card or future high speed WiFi cards. You can even put in a Nvidia GEForce 1030 card and connect it directly to your display with full 4K transcoding support. A powerful processor and expansion slots means a long lifetime for the NAS possibly into 8K and beyond. https://www.amazon.sg/QNAP-TS-473-4G-US-IP-SAN-Quad-core-10G-Ready/dp/B07BMYKYKJ/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=qnap+ts-473&qid=1581496680&s=gateway&sr=8-1
FookLai Posted February 12, 2020 Author Posted February 12, 2020 Most NAS will fit your bill. Qnap & Synology are the most reliable. I have at a QNAP TS453Be, which has a Celeron processor and a 10 Gbit Ethernet support, which is a few years old. In the past Synology software was a bit more reliable and easy to use than QNAP, but QNAP has caught up and there is little difference between them. Generally, I've found QNAP to be cheaper, and there are very good prices on amazon.sg. If you a a Prime member ($2.99 per month), there is free shipping to Singapore. If you are running music off your server, you might want to look at running Roon on your NAS, which works well with the Bluesound Node 2i. Roon requires a fairly powerful processor in the NAS, which normally means an expensive NAS, but the QNAP TS-473 is a relatively inexpensive NAS that supports Roon fully with a powerful AMD R Series Quad Core processor, yet is fairly inexpensive. The other nice thing about the TS-473 is that it has two PCIE expansion slots that give you flexibility for the future. For example, you can put in a 10 gigabit LAN card or future high speed WiFi cards. You can even put in a Nvidia GEForce 1030 card and connect it directly to your display with full 4K transcoding support. A powerful processor and expansion slots means a long lifetime for the NAS possibly into 8K and beyond. https://www.amazon.sg/QNAP-TS-473-4G-US-IP-SAN-Quad-core-10G-Ready/dp/B07BMYKYKJ/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=qnap+ts-473&qid=1581496680&s=gateway&sr=8-1 bro, I just narrow down to Synology DiskStation DS918+ which has quad core 1.5Ghz and 4GB ram. It looks fairly similar to Qnap TS-473 except that the CPU clock is lower and there seems to have no PCIe slot for expansion later. I wonder in what does these translate into real world difference.
tsammyc Posted February 12, 2020 Posted February 12, 2020 Noob question: why can't we connect a HDD to the home router and share media files with DLNA devices? You can, but performance is terrible compared to a NAS, so its impossible for example to stream 4K movies smoothly. Even 1080p may stutter if the NAS gets busy. The Router software for handling a HDD is also quite primitive, hence you constantly have glitches such as corrupted drives, and even intruders hacking into your NAS drive. In comparison, the NAS have multiple complex backup and restore options as well has hardware redundancy. More importantly they are quite secure with constant security updates to ensure the hackers stay out. My QNAP implements 2FA for logins using Google Authenticate. Some NAS support 10 gigabit ethernet connections, which are crucial say for editing 4K movies on the NAS. The iPhone and Android apps for the NAS are miles more sophisticated and secure compared to the router apps and you can control and monitor almost every aspect of your NAS from your mobile device. An extremely good experience, especially with QNAP and Synology.
tsammyc Posted February 12, 2020 Posted February 12, 2020 bro, I just narrow down to Synology DiskStation DS918+ which has quad core 1.5Ghz and 4GB ram. It looks fairly similar to Qnap TS-473 except that the CPU clock is lower and there seems to have no PCIe slot for expansion later. I wonder in what does these translate into real world difference. That's a fine NAS. However, it has a Celeron J3455 processor, which is a couple of years old. It's more than fast enough to support everything you want, but its a bit slow for running Roon Core, which requires an i3 for best performance (like the AMD R series). I know because my current QNAP has the same processor as the 918+. Roon will run, but indexing will be slow for a large database. https://www.qnap.com/solution/roon/en/ https://kb.roonlabs.com/FAQ:_What_are_the_minimum_requirements%3F As for expansion slots, its always nice to have the option of going to faster LAN or Wifi in the future for a NAS. Otherwise you can use the slots for caching the NAS using M2 SSD. There may be a point in the not so distant future that everyone goes 10 gbits/sec and if you have a NAS that has no expansion slots, it becomes a bottleneck in your network
Audio Posted February 12, 2020 Posted February 12, 2020 This is what happened when you have 10Gb ethernet between your NAS and PC. I recommend buying 8-bay NAS, make sure it comes with 10Gb ethernet port or you may buy a 10Gb card to fill up the PCIe slot (mostly available for 8-bay models) I prefer QNAP than Synology because it is easier and more reliable to setup NAS for remote access. The more drives, the faster will be your NAS. (Audio)
rock123 Posted February 12, 2020 Posted February 12, 2020 This is what happened when you have 10Gb ethernet between your NAS and PC. I recommend buying 8-bay NAS, make sure it comes with 10Gb ethernet port or you may buy a 10Gb card to fill up the PCIe slot (mostly available for 8-bay models) I prefer QNAP than Synology because it is easier and more reliable to setup NAS for remote access. The more drives, the faster will be your NAS. (Audio) Many thanks guys. good sharing. Been looking out to invest in a NAS too. Bro Not sure if model HS-453DX is recommended for movies storage and playback? https://www.qnap.com/en/product/hs-453dx Thanks so much.
InnocentBlood Posted February 12, 2020 Posted February 12, 2020 should you go ahead with your NAS, i would second the idea of installing Roon on your NAS. it's a beautiful music streaming experience that will help you maximise your hardware investment https://www.qnap.com/solution/roon/en/ https://roononnas.org/en/synology/
FookLai Posted February 13, 2020 Author Posted February 13, 2020 Thanks sigurros, arsene, tsammyc, Audio and InnocentBlood for recommendation, I have second thought on Synology 918+ now after reading all your comments, might give QNAP 873 8GB a shot when I have time and ready to venture into NAS.
kardtoon Posted February 13, 2020 Posted February 13, 2020 I’m a Synology NAS user. Been on their system for many years and also running Docker apps in the NAS. when you consider what NAS to buy, you might want to get CPUs that supports Intel QuickSync. This features enables HW decode of H.264 and H.265. If you use clients like Plex and need to transcode 4K movie to play on a device that doesn’t support 4K (eg on your phone or tablet), the weaker CPUs will suffer. Here is a list of Synology NAS and what transcode formats they support in Plex. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1MfYoJkiwSqCXg8cm5-Ac4oOLPRtCkgUxU0jdj3tmMPc Plex is a very useful server/client platform for movies/tv series.
FookLai Posted February 17, 2020 Author Posted February 17, 2020 Thanks kardtoon for the tip. Bro tsammy, the QNAP 473 specification said that in order to do 4k transcoding, it need an additional entry level graphic card, is that the reason?
tsammyc Posted February 18, 2020 Posted February 18, 2020 Yes, the Celeron series and the AMD BD series have a built in GPU, but the QNAP 473 uses the ND series AMD CPU, which has no GPU. The onboard GPU on the best Celeron processors are just able to do 4K hardware transcoding. When I was looking around, Celeron NAS didn't have HDMI 2.0 output to do 4K/60Hz. A GPU like a Nvidia 1030 is around S$120 and should be able to handle 4K hardware transcoding and HDMI 2.0. More flexible overall.
FookLai Posted March 6, 2020 Author Posted March 6, 2020 Just pull the plug to buy qnap 873 from Amazon Sg after spent some times to research on everything. I don't need transcoding for now since I using zidoo to decode. I have to agree the 2 pcie can be used for 10gb LAN and graphics card expansion in the future is great feature. I wonder can I buy any brand of graphics card and 10gb LAN card or must stick to qnap brand?
desray Posted March 8, 2020 Posted March 8, 2020 Just pull the plug to buy qnap 873 from Amazon Sg after spent some times to research on everything. I don't need transcoding for now since I using zidoo to decode. I have to agree the 2 pcie can be used for 10gb LAN and graphics card expansion in the future is great feature. I wonder can I buy any brand of graphics card and 10gb LAN card or must stick to qnap brand? Congrats on your new purchase. You will enjoy the benefits of NAS - not just streaming but other neat features as well.
FookLai Posted March 8, 2020 Author Posted March 8, 2020 Congrats on your new purchase. You will enjoy the benefits of NAS - not just streaming but other neat features as well. Thanks bro, you are right, actually the main consideration for me to buy the NAS is not for streaming. I buy it for a dedicated centralise backup for all my files, not just movies or music. Streaming is second purpose and third is potential possibility of accessing files outside my home network (this still not sure whether I can manage to configure qnap for that purpose since I am novice.) A lot to learn how to use it, hopefully I can achieve what I want to do.
desray Posted March 8, 2020 Posted March 8, 2020 Thanks bro, you are right, actually the main consideration for me to buy the NAS is not for streaming. I buy it for a dedicated centralise backup for all my files, not just movies or music. Streaming is second purpose and third is potential possibility of accessing files outside my home network (this still not sure whether I can manage to configure qnap for that purpose since I am novice.) A lot to learn how to use it, hopefully I can achieve what I want to do. I’m sure u will. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Jag Posted March 11, 2020 Posted March 11, 2020 After getting a simple 2-Bay NAS to supplement my notebook’s 500Gb SSD, I found that it works as a great replacement for external HDD for my movies. A dedicate drive for demo material. Remote streaming by Plex. Unlimited cloud drive. Offsite backups. Photo backups. Mostly, I now have the mindset that limited notebook Hdd Space is no longer a concern. I’m considering to go for another 4 or 5 Bay NAS.
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