Help with HD selection

Plex Media Server NAS & Devices
1

First - thanks to everyone who helped with my other question.

I have decided to go with the QNAP TS-453Be which I will use for general NAS storage, Media storage and also running PLEX.

Now I am looking at drives to put in it - I am thinking of starting with 3 - 6TB drives running in Raid-5 for 12TB of storage and have the ability to easily add another 6TB when I need it.

Now for my questions -

  • 5400 vs 7200 RPM - will I really see any difference?
  • Does the Cache size matter WD Red has 64MB where the Segate Ironwolf has 128MB?
  • Suggestions WD Red vs. WD Red Pro vs WD Gold vs Segate Ironwolf

Thanks
-Bill

2

I would recommend inventing the few extra $$ for the following reasons:

  1. 5400 RPM drives do have a bit of a ‘sluggish’ feel to them. Great for general storage and normal streaming but when you’re accessing a lot of files (e.g the Plex metadata database), there is a distinct difference. The math is: 7200 RPM is 50% faster in positioning the sector under the heads.
  2. The WD Red Pro 8TB drives are the same 128 GB cache and come with a 5 year warranty. The 6TB drives have the 64MB cache.
  3. To date, I have only had trouble with the first group of WD Red drives (a firmware issue only) some 6 years ago. Since then, they have been flawless and run 24/7/365.
WD Red Pro 8TB 3.5-Inch SATA III 7200rpm 128MB Cache NAS Internal Hard Drive (WD8001FFWX)

I currently have 112TB of raw storage, all with WD Red Pro drives (8x 6TB and 8x 8TB). I outgrew the 6TB drives quickly so made the jump to 8. Now I am much more future proof for my needs.

Suggestions for a new PC build for PMS
3

This topic was automatically closed 90 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.