6-bay direct-attached storage enclosure: recommendations

[InquiringMac]

Dear experts,

I simply need to store lots of files somewhere, but don’t need the full NAS or RAID experience, and would very much like to learn your opinion on the recommended available options, please.

TerraMaster D6-320 6-bay External USB DAS is the only product I found so far…

I do need your input badly indeed. Please chime in!

 

[LeeW]

I have a lot of experience with Synology which I and most reviewers I have come across rate significantly higher than TerraMaster. I know you are saying you don't want the full NAS or RAID experience but you don't need to if you don't want that. It's there if you ever need it though.

I use mine for file storage, Plex, backups, VPN, and more. But it's whatever you want it to be.

 

[InquiringMac]

I have a lot of experience with Synology which I and most reviewers I have come across rate significantly higher than TerraMaster.

This information is a dealbreaker for me: TerraMaster is OUT. Thank you very kindly!

Synology 6 Bay NAS DiskStation DS1621xs+ (Diskless) at $2,324.99 is definitely an overkill for me…

May I please learn your opinion on more affordable solutions from OWC: ThunderBay Flex 8 and ThunderBay 8? No information on noise level for any of these products found anywhere, unfortunately, and this parameter is quite important for my use case (I am running a small home sound recording studio)…

Any similar solutions from other reputable manufacturers you know of and would recommend as viable alternatives, please?

 

[ekwipt]

https://www.areca.com.tw/products/thunderbolt-8050T3.html

 

[satcomer]

then there is this one:

OWC ThunderBay 4 RAID 4-Bay Storage Enclosure

Bigger and faster than ever. Now with the unbelievable performance of Thunderbolt 3 - up to 1527MB/s - it's the ultimate external storage solution.

eshop.macsales.com

 

[InquiringMac]

Wow! Areca looks very professional indeed, but the specified Sound Pressure Level at 37dB is a bit high… The mean A-weighted Sound Pressure Level measured at operator position for Mac Studio is only 15 dB (if I am reading the data correctly).
Any experience with the above 8-bay enclosures from OWC, please?

 

[ekwipt]

Wow! Areca looks very professional indeed, but the specified Sound Pressure Level at 37dB is a bit high… The mean A-weighted Sound Pressure Level measured at operator position for Mac Studio is only 15 dB (if I am reading the data correctly).
Any experience with the above 8-bay enclosures from OWC, please?

they do get loud with mechanical drives, but you can cut down on noise with SSD if that's your priority. Also OWC uses Software to provide raid and Areca is a hardware card. Areca is as professional as you can get

 

[InquiringMac]

Thank you very kindly for your input, dear experts!

1. May I please learn your opinion on QNAP TL-D800C and QNAP TL-D800S NAS Expansions?
2. Could you please help me understand what the most significant differences between them are?
3. Which one would you consider to be the best fit for my use case?

I plan to replace my aging Mac Mini with the Mac Studio (I think I should wait for the M3), in case this is important.

 

[ekwipt]

One is SAS and 1 is USB-C, you could get SAS into a Mac Studio, but you'll need to bu a thunderbolt to PCIE chassis and then put a SAS card into it.

You're better off just getting a USB-C for your use case it sounds like