Newbie

[Enquiries]

I have 4K movies, Music and files to backup. The Asusstor 5402T seems a good bet. Why does one need HDD as well as NVMe and which is preferable? Also I have seen that the WD Red HDD should be avoided. Is this so?

[ed]

Thanks for reaching out – welcome to the NAS world! The ASUSTOR AS5402T is a solid choice for a home setup, especially for backing up 4K movies, music, and files.

For your question about using both HDD and NVMe drives: HDDs (traditional hard drives) are typically used for main storage because they provide a lot of space for a lower price, making them ideal for storing large media collections like movies and music. NVMes (solid-state drives) are generally used as cache drives, which means they help speed up data access by caching frequently accessed files, improving loading times without needing to store everything on pricier SSD storage.

For a setup like yours, starting with HDDs is usually more than enough, especially if you’re mainly backing up media and files. NVMe cache can be added later if you find you want faster access to frequently watched 4K movies or larger files.

As for WD Red HDDs, they are widely used for NAS, but it's best to go with the WD Red Plus or Pro series if you decide on WD, as they’re designed for continuous use and NAS reliability. The standard WD Red SMR drives, however, have gotten some mixed reviews, so it’s good to double-check specs or go with NAS-optimized drives like Seagate IronWolf or Toshiba N300 if you want other options.

For 8TB storage, 1–2 WD Red Plus/Pro or Seagate IronWolf HDDs should serve you well.