Which Harddrives

[Enquiries]

Start off. Really learning from the YouTube vids.

Just waiting form my DS923+ to arrive at the door but I’m still waffling on harddrives Synology or Ironwolf or ironwolf pro. Your advice needed.

And a big thanks.
Scotty B.

[ed]

Congrats on ordering the DS923+. That’s a solid NAS with a lot of headroom for a home setup. On the drives, all three options you mentioned are good choices, but here’s how I’d break it down for you:
• IronWolf (standard): These are great for most home NAS setups. They’re quiet, reliable, and designed for smaller arrays (up to about 8 bays). Perfect if you just want dependable storage without overspending.
• IronWolf Pro: These are built for heavier workloads and larger arrays. You get longer warranties, higher endurance, and slightly better performance. They’re overkill for most home users but worth it if you really want peace of mind and plan to hammer the NAS day and night.
• Synology HAT3300: These are essentially rebadged Toshiba N300 drives, tuned for Synology’s own DSM software. They’re a good middle ground — a bit more expensive than standard IronWolf, but fully supported by Synology with no compatibility warnings in DSM.

For a typical home network storing media, backups, and general data, the regular IronWolf is more than enough. If your budget allows and you like the idea of the longer warranty and slightly more robust specs, the IronWolf Pro is nice to have. Synology’s own drives make sense if you want everything as “official” and fully supported as possible.

If it were me building an 8TB setup at home, I’d probably just go with 2x IronWolf 4TB drives mirrored, or a single 8TB IronWolf with room to expand later.