I have a bunch of CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays and digital images that I’d like to digitize, and centrally locate on a local computer (home based) that I can access from anywhere in the house, and remotely on laptops, cell phones, tablets, etc.
On the software side, I’ve read about PLEX and XBMC and think that might be what I want/need to accomplish my goals. I have a bunch of boxes in the garage that I’d love to get rid of to free up space (CDs & DVDs).
The hardware side is where I’m completely lost. I understand the need for a NAS, storage for all of my digital media. I’m also thinking RAID for redundant backup. Some of the data is priceless to me. I also understand that I will have a need to rip/transcode(?) the data from the discs to the NAS. That requires a media server(?), or if I have a strong enough NAS, everything could be done on the NAS?
End goal is to be able to consolidate all my Smugmug data, Dropbox data, local data, CDs, and DVDs all to one NAS with a backup. I’d like to be able to access that data from any TV, laptop, cell phone, or tablet within the house. I’d also like to be able to stream/access the data remotely on my portable devices.
If you want to keep the blue-ray video in size of 4K then I would recommend TS-x53B series (253b,453b,653b). This NAS comes with HDMI port for direct connectivity to a TV for heavy 4K file streaming and better video quality. You can link all your cloud backup accounts together and keep a backup on the NAS. The 53B series also features transcoding engine for automatic video conversion function on the fly. This will allow you to watch videos over the internet on different playback devices. It will also enable some devices to play video in the format they would normally not allow you.
An alternative to this NAS would be DS918+ from Synology if you like simplicity and don’t need extra configuration options. It doesn’t come with HDMI, but you can still stream 4K as long as you have your TV and connected with LAN cable. Mobiles devices will receive transcoded video files on the fly.
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