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I want to buy a DXP4800 Plus, but I'm having a hard time choosing what kind of drives to put in it. My old NAS had a Seagate IronWolf - 8TB - ST8000VN004, and I found that one to be kind of loud.
So I want to have quiet drives, or at least some that are easy on the ears, but I have no idea what to go for. Nobody online seems to agree on a certain model.
My plan is to buy two drives at the beginning and then add more down the line.
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Good question — drive noise is something a lot of people overlook until the NAS is sitting in their living room. The Seagate IronWolf 8TBs (like the ST8000VN004 you had) are known for being a bit clicky during seek operations, so I’m not surprised you found them distracting.
For quieter drives in the 12–16TB range, here are some good options:
1. WD Red Plus – These are 5400RPM drives, so they run quieter and cooler than most. They’re not the fastest in sustained performance compared to enterprise drives, but for a home NAS and even light Plex use, they’re usually the sweet spot for low noise.
2. Toshiba N300 – These are NAS drives similar to WD Red Plus, but opinions on noise vary. Some users say they’re nearly as quiet as Reds, others find them closer to IronWolf in sound.
3. Seagate IronWolf (non-Pro) – The newer 12TB and 16TB models are a little better tuned for home use than the older 8TB you had. Still not “silent,” but less harsh in their noise profile.
What to avoid:
Enterprise drives (like Seagate Exos or WD Gold) — they’re very reliable, but the seek noise is much louder. In an office rack they’re fine, in a living room they’ll drive you mad.
Since you’re planning to start with two drives and expand later, I’d recommend WD Red Plus 12TB or 14TB as the quietest and most widely used for home NAS. They should fit your storage goal and keep noise levels acceptable, especially if the NAS is within earshot.
If absolute silence is the goal, then you’d need to consider SSDs — but the cost per TB at 12–16TB is still much higher than HDDs.
