Thinking of a small form unRaid vs pre-built NAS - thoughts on a build?

[GoodOmens]

So I'm toying with the idea of building a small form factor unraid server instead of buying a pre-built NAS.  My primary use will be to store Blu-Ray ISO's to stream to a media box.  No transcoding will be needed. 

 

As my only real requirement is speed, silence, and ease of expansion - I figured UnRaid was the way to go vs ReadyNAS.  I also don't want a case that's flashy.  Will speed be a factor if I'm just using onboard SATA ports?

 

So this leads me to components - my price target for the build minus drives is $500 (The price of the DS413 I am looking at) so anything below is bonus.

 

Case:

 

Looking at the Fractal Design 304 - $88.  I'm open to other suggestions but it seemed to be the smallest case that offered what I was looking for (simplicity, expansion etc)

 

Motherboad:

 

I'm a little lost on this.  My only real requirement is at least 4 SATA ports (6 is better) as I want to avoid having to buy a RAID card.  I also need something with HDMI (I can probably get by with DVI) as my only monitor is a HDTV with only HDMI inputs. 

 

Currently looking at the ASUS C60M1-I AMD Fusion APU C-60 but it doesn't have HDMI. -$90

 

Anything in the pipeline that would fit the 6 SATA ports / HDMI?  I don't care if it's a Atom or AMD processor.

 

Ram:

Was just going to get like a 2~4GB stick.  Any reason for more? ~$20

 

Power supply:

I'm at a loss.  While I'll start with about 3 hard drives I imagine I'll end up with 4~5.  What would you recommend?  Again I would put weight on power efficiency and silence.

 

SeaSonic SS-400FL - $$$ but fan-less - any other comparable PSU that are cheaper?

SeaSonic SS-300ET  - Significantly cheaper but has a fan.  Will 300W be enough?  What do you think the power savings would be between the two?  I assume the gold 400FL will be more power efficient.

 

Anyways based on my calculations I'm looking at roughly $240~340 depending on what power supply I choose.  As I will start with three drives I assume I won't need a license for how basic of setup I will be using.

 

[vca]

So I'm toying with the idea of building a small form factor unraid server instead of buying a pre-built NAS.  My primary use will be to store Blu-Ray ISO's to stream to a media box.  No transcoding will be needed. 

 

As my only real requirement is speed, silence, and ease of expansion - I figured UnRaid was the way to go vs ReadyNAS.  I also don't want a case that's flashy.  Will speed be a factor if I'm just using onboard SATA ports?

 

The only limit to speed during playback is your network, you'll want gigabit connections.  Of course just about every current motherboard will have a gigabit LAN built in, so this will not be a problem.  Note: there are known issues with some of the Realtek chip sets, so when you have narrowed down your motherboard a bit do a search on this forum to make sure unRAID works well with that particular version.

 

So this leads me to components - my price target for the build minus drives is $500 (The price of the DS413 I am looking at) so anything below is bonus.

 

Case:

 

Looking at the Fractal Design 304 - $88.  I'm open to other suggestions but it seemed to be the smallest case that offered what I was looking for (simplicity, expansion etc)

 

Nice looking, unless you are really space constrained (like this has to go into an existing AV cabinet...) I would really recommend just going with a regular tower and probably a microATX size motherboard.  Once you have a bunch of drives installed you will find the bigger cases are much easier to work on and they generally cool easier (which can help with the fan noise issue).  A lot of people here like these:

 

Cooler Master CM690:  http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX39436

 

Antec 300:  http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX37559

 

I quite like this NZXT H2: http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX33136 as it has 8 pull out trays for 3.5 inch drives.

 

 

Motherboad:

 

I'm a little lost on this.  My only real requirement is at least 4 SATA ports (6 is better) as I want to avoid having to buy a RAID card.  I also need something with HDMI (I can probably get by with DVI) as my only monitor is a HDTV with only HDMI inputs. 

 

You can get a DVI to HDMI dongle if you can't get a motherboard with HDMI (check out: http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=104&cp_id=10419&cs_id=1041902&p_id=2080&seq=1&format=2 )

 

If you go with a microATX motherboard you should have no problems finding one with 6 SATA ports, the gigabit LAN and a video solution that will work.  Just make sure to double check the LAN chipset as I mentioned above.  For unRAID the CPU really does not matter, but if you were to run some other services on it a dual core chip would be best.  Same for RAM, these days you'll probably have to get a 4GB stick anyway.

 

Power supply:

I'm at a loss.  While I'll start with about 3 hard drives I imagine I'll end up with 4~5.  What would you recommend?  Again I would put weight on power efficiency and silence.

 

SeaSonic SS-400FL - $$$ but fan-less - any other comparable PSU that are cheaper?

SeaSonic SS-300ET  - Significantly cheaper but has a fan.  Will 300W be enough?  What do you think the power savings would be between the two?  I assume the gold 400FL will be more power efficient.

 

I'm uncertain about the power savings part, some people here have gone as far as "undervolting" their CPUs or using a laptop CPU to reduce power consumption.  If you really want to get into low power then a mini-ITX motherboard might be what you want - but these can be difficult to hook up more than 4 SATA drives to.

 

For power supplies the big issue is getting one with a "single 12V rail".  For up to about 8 drives this would be fine:

 

http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX41857

 

for more than 8 drives I would go with:

 

http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX41859

 

I've used both of these and they are very quiet.

 

Regards,

 

Stephen

 

[GoodOmens]

Stephen,

 

Thanks for the reply.  Unfortunately I am constrained by size as I live in a small apartment and don't have the space or desire to have a large tower laying around. 

 

In regards to power supplies - the more research I do the more I realize how little power this system will draw.  With a maximum of roughly 20 watts per drive (6 max drives) - I'm looking at a full load rating of around 130~140 (as the board/processor draws almost nothing - I think like 9 watts).  Someone said their system with this board idles at like 30 watts!

 

I really don't need a high wattage PSU as from I've read they are most efficient at 50% - so looking at things I need something that will be the most efficient (among the choices) at low wattage - like in the 30~80watt range.

 

There doesn't seem to be any efficient sub 300watt drives - the best I could come up with is SPARKLE 80+ GREEN 250 R-SPI250EP.

 

I was also looking at the SPARKLE SPI180LE 180W but it's rated at 67% efficiency - ouch!  I guess time to break out the calculator? A sub 300w gold certified PSU would be the most ideal but I don't think it exists for the end users - only OEMs. 

 

IE Something like the  FSP/Sparkle FSP250-60EGA (250w Gold),  FSP/Sparkle FSP250-60PFK (250w Gold) or the FSP/Sparkle FSP250-60GHN (250w bronze) - but both only appear to be available to OEMs.

[korith]

 

I went through this not too long ago, was able to get a good deal on a N40L hp microserver. After a bios patch you can put in 6 3.5" drives. Small in size and very quiet as well which were two things I was looking for. Here is the thread which led me to find one for my own http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=11585.0

 

 

[mexicanmike]

Have to second on the HP N40L. Currently I am running this and have a useable capacity of 15TB. 4 3TB drives in the stock bays, 2 in ODD area and a 2.5inch drive as the cache drive.

[BLKMGK]

I really like the looks of the newest HAF case. $99 and it has 2x hot swap in front, 2x regular 3.5, and room for I think 4x inside maybe more. It's squat not tall and might not fit your needs but thought I'd mention it. I'm building a couple of serves for gifts and really wish I'd seen this case!

[GoodOmens]

 

I went through this not too long ago, was able to get a good deal on a N40L hp microserver. After a bios patch you can put in 6 3.5" drives. Small in size and very quiet as well which were two things I was looking for. Here is the thread which led me to find one for my own http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=11585.0

 

Interesting - if you can do that with the included 150w PSU I wonder if I could get by with a 160w picoPSU and just internally mount the AC/DC adapter.

 

I know they had a fire sale for the N40L a few months ago but now they seem about $320....

[korith]

 

I went through this not too long ago, was able to get a good deal on a N40L hp microserver. After a bios patch you can put in 6 3.5" drives. Small in size and very quiet as well which were two things I was looking for. Here is the thread which led me to find one for my own http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=11585.0

 

Interesting - if you can do that with the included 150w PSU I wonder if I could get by with a 160w picoPSU and just internally mount the AC/DC adapter.

 

I know they had a fire sale for the N40L a few months ago but now they seem about $320....

 

I think one of the threads here mentioned the pico psu in the n40l. The stock power supply with it works just fine though. I was able to pick up my n40l for $150 off of craigslist. Think the cheapest I seen them on ebay has been around $200. Very compact box and small, was able to put it in the living room.

[lionelhutz]

Here's another good power supply option;

 

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/130W-mini-ITX-ATX-Power-DC-PicoPSU-AC-adapter-120W-Y5-/170926277956?pt=PCA_UPS&hash=item27cc000544

 

I got one of these in my HTPC and it dropped the wall power draw from 52W on the cheap case supply to 38W with it. Nice improvement for a power supply at that power level.