Article: Thecus 5200B Pro IP Storage Server Product Review

[The Computer Audiophile]

Him Jim - Yes, still using the N5200B Pro with Hitachi drives and using AFP from my Macs and SMB from my Windows and Linux computers.

[jimim]

Thanks Steve and Chris,<br />

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Some more questions:<br />

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1. Are the Hitachi drives made for RAID5. I say this cause of the whole WD Green drives. WD says no RAID5 but Thecus and QNAP say yes. I tend to side with WD since they actually make the drives. <br />

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2. When you set up the Thecus in either the AFP environment or the SMB environment are you assigning a static IP to the Thecus on your LAN? My clients (computers and other attached devices) all run on a DHCP which is all auto IP. Was just wondering how this would affect things if a static IP was needed.<br />

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thanks so much,<br />

jim

[rmwjr]

This discussion was pretty intimidating to a neophyte. To dumb the discussion down a bit and get it to my level, I'd appreciate some advice on storage. I am trying to set up a simple but effective computer based audio system using a MacBook Pro with 4 mb of ram and a 500 mb hard drive;, an Ayre QB-9; and a Cary SLP-05 preamp. My music collection comprises less than 450 gb of data (assuming lossless compression). I am not a sophisticated computer user, have no experience with RAID configuration, and have only a moderate tolerance for tinkering. For now, I will use iTunes to organize the music. What I would appreciate your advice on is storing and backing up the data.<br />

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My assummption is that I should store the data on an external hard drive with external backup. I do not understand RAID and have no idea whether a simple RAID Level 1 setup (I looked this up so don’t mistake this as indicating knowledge or understanding) is all I need or a RAID Level 5 setup has any significant advantages and whether a Drobo or Thecus array is most suitable for a neophyte. I am willing to hire someone to do the initial setup but want automated operational simplicity once the setup is complete. Any advice?<br />