Hello All! Have been lurking here for a bit, and doing research on two separate builds that I want to execute on.
NAS
NAS. Just a NAS, either running TrueNas or Unraid, I haven’t decided yet. Not much else to say here, it’s purpose is to provide network attached storage
Cooler Master Elite V3 600 W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply
Open questions: I don’t know what I should do for the actual storage portion. I see reccomendations for 2d reds, but I don’t know if there’s a better option. Still researching this. It’s not clear whether I should use SAS drives. Any insight here would be appreciated.
Media Server / Hardware Transcoder.
This will either be running plex or jellyfin. The basic requirements are to be able to handle around 10 concurrent streams, with hardware transcoding. My vision for this is to be mostly media server, with enough general purpose compute if I want to play around with other general home networking stuff.
My ideas here are:
Intel Core i5-8400T 1.7 GHz 6-Core
ARCTIC Alpine 12 CPU Cooler
Asus Prime H310I-PLUS R2.0/CSM
32GB (2x16GB)
Silverstone ml05b Case
SAMSUNG 970 EVO Plus SSD 500GB NVMe M.2
(a 600w power supply that I already own)
What do you fine folks think about the above builds? Are they overkill / not enough? Happy to hear any and all criticisms or inputs.
You’re gonna have a really hard time with a mini ITX case if you’re buying the listed micro ATX motherboard.
The “general purpose compute” you mention should probably be on the shoulders of the file server. We usually recommend a transcoder stand alone with its single task, since a sufficient small device can be had around 70ish dollars, even in a uSFF form factor. Building ITX anything is only going to cost you more. i5 isn’t necessary for transcode, but 8th gen Intel is a good spot to be in. If you really want to divide duties this way I’d still recommend just getting a recommended QuickSync prebuilt and tasking that. Links are available in the Discord > QuickSync channel. Storage options are in the Discord > Vendor deals. You should probably be looking at SAS drives for value.
You’re gonna have a really hard time with a mini ITX case if you’re buying the listed micro ATX motherboard.
Good call out, much appreciated. Total oversight on my part!
The “general purpose compute” you mention should probably be on the shoulders of the file server.
Interesting recommendation. That seems backwards from how I would divide concerns: if I want to tinker with something, I don’t want to tinker with the thing that has all my data on it. That’s typically the standard approach that I’ve seen in the industry – but hey, I’m a software guy not much into hardware.
If I’m understanding correctly, the recommendation for a standalone transcoder is simply based on price point. Is that correct?
My goal is to have a freestanding server to play around with, but primarily does transcoding / runs a media server. With that in mind, do you think this build is going in the right direction? Or do you think I should reconsider entirely?
