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Quiet, fast-starting NAS server?

Konteebos

Surfing on the lake of fire
I've been using a QNAP NAS server for a few years now to store my ripped CDs and some HD files. I use a Naim ND5XS to stream these files. It's been reliable, but it's pretty noisy - both the fans and the drives are pretty loud and I don't have a useable location for it where the noise isn't a problem. If I switch it off it takes a considerable amount of time (like 15 minutes) to boot up and index all the music (using Twonkyserver).

I've been considering a few options - the first is to replace the ND5XS and the NAS server with a Bluesound Vault 2i, I already use a Chord Qutest DAC with the Naim, so there shouldn't really be any downgrade to the SQ.
Another option would be to use a NUC as a storage server - has anyone on here done this? They look to be a bit expensive by the time you add software and a hard drive.
I had also considered a second-hand Melco N1A which looks to be about the same price as a decent NUC with a drive.
Any thoughts?
 
Melco kit is excellent. If you want hassle free, ease of use, excellent sound quality, go Melco.
 
How about keep the QNAP but stick an SSD in it instead and use a less cumbersome server like Minimserver?
 
Or a uniticore can be picked up fairly reasonably now...and will hold its price ...like most Naim gear
I've only ever seen the Unitiserve available second hand, I did consider one, but I'm sure there was some issue with them that made me remove it from my list.
 
This is what I use, with 2 x 6TB WD Reds and 1 x 100gb Samsung SSD for Roon Core. Upgraded the RAM to 8GB and it powers everything from Roon Core to my 4K movie server etc.

https://www.qnap.com/en-uk/product/hs-453dx

Quiet as a whistle. The only squeak you ever may hear is when the hard drives fire up for some heavy transferring.

Or if you only need this for Audio, Innuos Zen or Zenith.
 
This is what I use, with 2 x 6TB WD Reds and 1 x 100gb Samsung SSD for Roon Core. Upgraded the RAM to 8GB and it powers everything from Roon Core to my 4K movie server etc.

https://www.qnap.com/en-uk/product/hs-453dx

Quiet as a whistle. The only squeak you ever may hear is when the hard drives fire up for some heavy transferring.

Or if you only need this for Audio, Innuos Zen or Zenith.
Looks good - but pretty expensive by the time it's loaded with drives.
 
Looks good - but pretty expensive by the time it's loaded with drives.

Quality costs I guess?

But it does have a HDMI out so you can stream direct to the your TV, and a USB out, which can be used say if you house a Roon core on the NAS to a USB DAC, so its pretty versatile. As I have a small flat, the NAS has to go in the living room on my rack, so I needed it fanless. Boot up time is about two minutes.

A couple 1tb reds don't cost much though. You don't need two drives, I just use two , one as mirror backup. You dont need the SSD either, I just opted for it to enable Roon to run quicker.
 
How much space do you need? Using SSD’s makes it all quieter - not just the drive noise, but the NAS runs cooler so the fans don’t come on to the same extent. I have a Synology with SSDs and it’s very quiet indeed.
 
How much space do you need? Using SSD’s makes it all quieter - not just the drive noise, but the NAS runs cooler so the fans don’t come on to the same extent. I have a Synology with SSDs and it’s very quiet indeed.
2Tb should easily cover it.
 
I have a QNAP NAS where I store TV on a Seagate Ironwolf PRO drive and music on an SSD. The Seagate is very noisy when it spins up so the QNAP is not located near the stereo. I would agree with one of the previous posts about Melco. I have one and it's silent and you can probably pick one up quite cheaply second hand but it will likely be more expensive than a NAS (£/Gb) and might not be very upgradable. I wouldn't recommend a Seagate Ironwolf PRO drive as an upgrade and avoid PRO drives altogether. The WD Reds are much quieter.
 
No idea about raid capability, but you could very easily set up a raspberry pi with a SSD, install LMS and use that to stream from. Totally silent and instant access as far as I can tell.
 
I believe that it's tricky to get Tidal on a Pi-based streamer setup and as I use Tidal most of the time on my Naim streamer that would rule out a Pi streamer, but I guess a Pi-based NAS setup would be possible?
 
Tidal has a plugin in LMS I believe, as does Spotify.

https://www.picoreplayer.org/landingzone_option2.html

If you have a pi knocking around you could in theory test it as a streamer without investing in the hard drive yet, just get LMS running on the sd card and set the plugins up and see if streaming works ok to the Naim. Failing that, it will work perfectly fine as a server for your local music library with a HD attached. One caveat, don't accidentally switch off the power without gracefully shutting the server down first, as I discovered, it completely corrupted the LMS install and I had to start from scratch again...
 
It’s tricky to contribute having experience of only one NAS and being less IT literate than some here so I’ll just add that the Synology DS215j I have used for a handful of years now hasn’t missed a beat and seems quick, quiet and sensible on auto wake up and not needlessly spinning - which one or two smart mates talk about being a nuisance with NAS alternatives they have tried.
 
Tidal has a plugin in LMS I believe, as does Spotify.

https://www.picoreplayer.org/landingzone_option2.html

If you have a pi knocking around you could in theory test it as a streamer without investing in the hard drive yet, just get LMS running on the sd card and set the plugins up and see if streaming works ok to the Naim. Failing that, it will work perfectly fine as a server for your local music library with a HD attached. One caveat, don't accidentally switch off the power without gracefully shutting the server down first, as I discovered, it completely corrupted the LMS install and I had to start from scratch again...
I'll maybe have a play around with a Pi, I should be able to sell it if I get nowhere. I do hate computers, though (despite having worked in the IT Industry for the last 3o years...).
 


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