Here’s what I currently have:

  • Ryzen 1700 w/ 16GB RAM
  • GTX 750 ti
  • 1x SATA SSD - 120GB, currently use <50GB
  • 2x 8TB SATA HDD
  • runs openSUSE Leap, considering switch to microOS

And main services I run (total disk usage for OS+services - data is :

  • NextCloud - possibly switch to ownCloud infinite scale
  • Jellyfin - transcoding is nice to have, but not required
  • samba
  • various small services (Unifi Controller, vaultwarden, etc)

And services I plan to run:

  • CI/CD for Rust projects - infrequent builds
  • HomeAssistant
  • maybe speech to text? I’m looking to build an Alexa replacement
  • Minecraft server - small scale, only like 2-3 players, very few mods

HW wishlist:

  • 16GB RAM - 8GB may be a little low longer term
  • 4x SATA - may add 2 more HDDs
  • m.2 - replace my SATA SSD; ideally 2x for RAID, but I can do backups; performance isn’t the concern here (1x sata + PCIe would work)
  • dual NIC - not required, but would simplify router config for private network; could use USB to Eth dongle, this is just for security cameras and whatnot
  • very small - mini-ITX at the largest; I want to shove this under my bed
  • very quiet
  • very low power - my Ryzen 1700 is overkill, this is mostly for the “quiet” req, but also paying less is nice

I’ve heard good things about N100 devices, but I haven’t seen anything w/ 4x SATA or an accessible PCIe for a SATA adapter.

The closest I’ve seen is a ZimaBlade, but I’m worried about:

  • performance, especially as a CI server
  • power supply - why couldn’t they just do regular USB-C?
  • access to extra USB ports - its hidden in the case

I don’t need x86 for anything, ARM would be fine, but I’m having trouble finding anything with >8GB RAM and SATA/PCIe options are a bit… limited.

Anyway, thoughts?

  • sugar_in_your_teaOPEnglish
    3·
    5 months ago

    I’m thinking 25DB is a hard cap, ideally under 20DB.

    I think HDDs are typically around 5-10DB, and they should spin down at night. Quieter is better, but I don’t need to go completely fanless. So basically, those tiny pizza box server fans are completely off the table, but larger, slower fans should be fine.

    • JASN_DE@lemmy.worldEnglish
      3·
      5 months ago

      I’m thinking 25DB is a hard cap, ideally under 20DB.

      I think HDDs are typically around 5-10DB,

      Um no. More like 20-25db at idle, up to 30 during heavy seek activity, depending on model.

      I run 3x 5400rpm drives in my NAS, and the drives are definitely the loudest parts in the whole build, and are definitely noticeable in the office room.

      • aodhsishaj@lemmy.worldEnglish
        2·
        5 months ago

        Can confirm I am running what I am often is told is overkill here.

        7200rpm hitachi 12TB drives

        Just measured at 19DB at a meter away running a zpool scrub.

        So it definitely depends on which HDD you have.

      • sugar_in_your_teaOPEnglish
        11·
        5 months ago

        Really? I currently sit like 3’ from my current PC NAS, and while I can hear it, the fan noise seems louder (stock AMD heatsink and fan). This YouTube looks at very similar drives to what I have (my drives are WD 8TB NAS Plus 5400RPM, video is 8TB NAS Pro 7200), and the measurement is something like 10-15DB per drive. Mine should be quieter than the video, so I think it’ll be fine.

        I’ll probably need to replace my drives soon since I got them 5 years ago (though they were off 80% of the time), so I may consider SSDs if the pricing looks reasonable (I’m only using 2-4TB right now, but I expect that to double or triple in the next couple years).

        Anyway, this is a somewhat temporary situation. Quiet gives me options. If it’s too loud, I can keep it on my desktop. I’m more looking for lower power (currently use 50W-ish idle for whole system) and smaller form factor (current one is a massive ATX tower).

        • vividspecter@lemm.eeEnglish
          2·
          5 months ago

          and the measurement is something like 10-15DB per drive

          It seems to be a relative measurement, and so the values look to be 10-15dB above ambient, not the absolute dB of the drives. You can see he subtracts the background dB from the spl meter calibration early in the video.

          • sugar_in_your_teaOPEnglish
            1·
            5 months ago

            Ah, that’s too bad. Ambient in his office is probably way different than his bedroom, so that’s pretty lame.

    • narc0tic_bird@lemm.eeEnglish
      1·
      5 months ago

      Is your typical noise floor even under 20 dB? HDDs are also a lot louder than 5-10 dB, and manufacturers usually list dBA in their spec sheets, not dB.

      • kitnaht@lemmy.worldEnglish
        3·
        5 months ago

        A typical refrigerator is like 40dbA – 25dbA is ABSURDLY quiet. You’re not gonna hit that without a completely fanless system. If 25dbA is his hard cap, he can’t even be breathing in the same area as the computer, because that’s something like 28dbA…

      • sugar_in_your_teaOPEnglish
        1·
        5 months ago

        I’m honestly not sure, I’m just pulling stuff from various online sources to get an estimate. This YouTube video measures noise from a single 7200 RPM WD Red drive, and I have 2x 5400 WD Red drives, so I’m guessing mine will be similar, if not a little quieter. I’d measure it myself, but it’s next to 2 other PCs and fan noise drowns it out.

        Basically, I want it to work under my bed. It’s a large, thick bed (king size purple mattress; so basically foam), so I can stick it pretty far in to get some flexibility on what “quiet” means. We also aren’t particularly light sleepers, so our threshold is probably a little higher than others.

        That said, I’m using the stock fan for my Ryzen 1700 (Wraith Spire I think?), and that’s way too loud for a bedroom (40dba-ish?), and I can’t really hear my drives over the fan unless I get really close. The spec on the drives say something like 20-30dba for my drives (I’m guessing that’s right next to the drive), and I think that’s quiet enough for my room, especially if I can dampen vibration a bit. But since the drives will probably spin down, I’m looking for fan noise around that level or lower, if I need a fan at all.