Roon on a Synology NAS

[Johnseye]

Has anyone installed Roon Core on a Synology NAS?  If so what model NAS, how was performance, did you upsample or use other DSP functions?

[The Computer Audiophile]

I've done it on a DS1812 and it was really slow with a 50,000 track library. The Synology units tend to be best at serving files over file sharing protocols like smb, and not the best for things like running apps. They are pretty weak when it comes to power compared to QNAP. 

[Johnseye]

3 hours ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

I've done it on a DS1812 and it was really slow with a 50,000 track library. The Synology units tend to be best at serving files over file sharing protocols like smb, and not the best for things like running apps. They are pretty weak when it comes to power compared to QNAP. 

 

That's a similar model to mine. Good to know, I guess I won't try it. Thanks. 

[scottcocoabeach]

I have it on an 1817+ and had it on a much slower one that worked fine as well. Just need to upgrade the RAM if you haven’t already and make sure the database is on a small SSD (I have mine hooked up via USB). Works great. 33k library and no concerns with going larger. 

 

 

[scottcocoabeach]

I checked my on my older Synology NAS and it's a DS415+ upgraded to 8GB of RAM. It worked fine with Roon as well. The key is to have the Roon Database on an external SSD drive (or internal) the music files can be on the NAS HDD drives. The RAM upgrade is necessary as well.

[Johnseye]

Good to know. Thanks for checking!

[ale76]

I have Roon installed on a Synology 916+ with 8GB RAM.

The offline usage works really well, accessing he library is very fast. 

However, I have a bit of an issue with Tidal because it is considerably slow compared to Roon on 2012 Mac Mini. I discussed this with Roon support and they told me it is due the NAS processor which is slower than the one on the Mac Mini. 

Anyway, if you do not use Tidal then you should be ok. 

 

 

[Philippe Bill]

I've done it on a DS918+ with 4GB RAM and It worked fine with Roon as well

[Philippe Bill]

I compared Roon-on-NAS  with  Roon-on-Nuc +NAS
for me, with my library, both hardware works just as well!
NAS = new Synology DS923+ and DSM7.2 (Roon core on usb key)
Intel NUC = I3 - SSD with Windows or Rock (the latter easier to manage)
library size = 2100 ripped CDs
my Roon-on-NAS findings:

• a single Nas costs less (than 2 devices)
• a single Nas pollutes less (than 2 devices)
• the Nas is in the wine cellar, I can’t hear it
• Processing speed - example 1 : 16/44 >> 24/176 = 94
• Processing speed - example 2 : DSD64 >> 24/176 = 20
• the real limitations do not concern me (DSD256/512, multi-room, HQP,…)
• Syno DSM 7.2 offers everything (backup, redundancy, Wol, …) and is stable
• as an alternative on the same Nas : UPnP MinimServer, aso ...

finally, I unplugged the Nuc I3 which adds nothing (in my case..)

less is more ?

[Bones13]

Depends on library size, and the NAS in question, of course.

 

IF, you have a nicely powered NAS ($$$), a good network, and appropriate renderer, great results can occur.

 

I ran a Synology NAS for a few years. As my library grew, and the processor got older, I noticed sluggishness of Roon. (I had an m.2 cache drive, and SSD disk for ROON) At some point you out kick your coverage.

 

Two other points

1) a NAS that will have this kind of processor is expensive, if you don't need a NAS for other duties, it makes for an expensive server.

2) if you do need the NAS for appropriate duties, it will be slower as well

3) {bonus} NAS software is cryptic to the non-initiated.

 

For a fraction of the cost of a NAS, and with a much better processor, a dedicated music server can be had. I currently run a NUC board, in a fanless case, with an internal m.2 driver for ROCK, and a PCIE SSD for music storage. It lives in the wife's closet with the Modem, Router, Switch, and Wireless Access Point. (a floor away from the music room)

 

Now, if you need a NAS, and have the wherewithal to manage it, and your library is manageable, the appropriate NAS will run the ROON server program. Your mileage may vary based on library size, and NAS specs.