DS918+ or something else?

Plex Media Server NAS & Devices
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Hi,

I’m looking to get a new PMS.

I currently have an Nvidia Shield Pro, that I use both as a server and player.
I does okay, but with multiple users transcoding or a single 2K/4K stream, it crashes.

I’ve been having a look at the DS918+, with the 8gb upgrade.
Is this still “the best” affordable choice or should I be looking somewhere else?

I’ve seen people talk about the HP Microserver too, but it seems like the Gen8 is no longer for sale anywhere and the Gen10 doensn’t match because of the limitations.

Any help thought the jungle will help :slight_smile:

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The Synology DS918+ (Intel J3455 CPU) and the QNAP TS-453Be (Intel J3455 CPU as well) are solid and proven processors.

Each vendor has Demo web sites. I would recommend taking a look at both and test-driving them. While both are a learning experience, see which feels better and is the easiest to master.

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I’ll take a look :slight_smile:

However, should I be looking for something “better” than those two as for NAS? Or should I move over and get a Microserver of some sort (and if yes; which one is recomended?)

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Consider building a Linux box with an Intel CPU that supports Quicksync. Could be significantly less expensive.

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Sounds interesting.
Anything you can recommend?

I see that some is talking a bit about the Dell PowerEdge T30

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I prefer building the computer myself.

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Well that could be possible too.
Any suggestions on hardware?

If I can get the same or better performance than the 918+ I’ll be willing to go that way.

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How much storage do you need?

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Well about 6 TB should do

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8th gen i5, 8MB RAM, 250GB SSD for the OS and Plex, mirrored 8TB drives for media, your choice of case and motherboard, external backup device of some sort. That’s it.

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Well, what kind of performance should I be able to push out of that setup?

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I’ve had four remote transcodes, a local direct play, and two DVR recordings at the same time. Same setup except a 7th gen i5.

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Should you be looking for something “better” (meaning more CPU power), QNAP is your vendor.

Synology does not offer any models which are Plex-friendly.

QNAP offers processors from the the smaller J1900 through J3455 up through and including the current i7-7700

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Well, yea, but at a totally different pricetag :sweat_smile:

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Chuck, have you ever had a NAS fail and had to get parts? If so, how was the experience?

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I know of folks with Synology failures. They needed to send the whole unit back taking several weeks.

The only issue I’ve had was the SkyLake CPU (CPU manufacturing fault itself).
QNAP shipped me the new NAS (i7-7700 KabyLake) replacement. I then transferred everything and shipped the SkyLake unit back.

I should caveat by also stating, I’m an Electrical and Computer Engineer myself. I can handle a lot of repairs (power supply, motherboard components, etc) most cannot. If I could have replaced the QNAP CPU myself I would have. They suggested I accept the new unit in order to preserve the warranty. This is what I did

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I’ve been reading a bit more about the DS918+ and the TS-453Be.

As far as I can see, the QNAP supports running Plex on the SSDs you can install.

Is there any real benefits in doing this, regarding Plex?
The two NAS’es are almost identically hardware-wise, but is there anything I should consider while choosing?

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