Looking for a more practical NAS & audio PC solution
For years I've been using what seems like a wildly over-complicated storage and computer setup to feed the rest of my system. Specifically, it's a commercial HP DL380-G7 server running Win10 with an external HD chassis (25 bays) and an Asus Xonar Essence STX II. It's running 15k rpm commercial HP drives. I rip CD's, LP's and use it as a feed for my primary audio system via JRiver. Typically I use the Xonar spdif output to feed my DAC. It also feeds 4K video throughout the house via 1Gb wired network. The whole thing has about 6Tb of video files and 1.5Tb of lossless music. To that add another 2Tb or so of pictures, GoPro movies and misc stuff. All the volumes are set up as RAID 10 arrays with hot spare drives so there's nice redundancy and enterprise reliability.
So what's not to love? Well, this is really a commercial setup and seems like overkill. It's noisy, the HD enclosure is hard to power off and so runs 24/7 and it's just not very friendly in general. It's also a power hog. I feel like I'm killing a gnat with an elephant gun. When I first set it up there wasn't nearly as much out there in the way of NAS's, integrated digital boxes, etc and it was pretty much unbeatable. Maybe it still is. Or not? So here I am looking for better, simpler solutions. OTOH, maybe it really is a great solution as it stands. Hope to hear some helpful comments on possible next steps. Thanks,
So what's not to love? Well, this is really a commercial setup and seems like overkill. It's noisy, the HD enclosure is hard to power off and so runs 24/7 and it's just not very friendly in general. It's also a power hog. I feel like I'm killing a gnat with an elephant gun. When I first set it up there wasn't nearly as much out there in the way of NAS's, integrated digital boxes, etc and it was pretty much unbeatable. Maybe it still is. Or not? So here I am looking for better, simpler solutions. OTOH, maybe it really is a great solution as it stands. Hope to hear some helpful comments on possible next steps. Thanks,
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