Synology DS1624+ NAS

Overview

When your AI models, video footage, and datasets outgrow your internal SSD, you need a proper storage solution. The Synology DS1624+ is a professional-grade NAS that offers up to 200TB+ of redundant storage accessible at 10Gbps over your network.

For video editors, it’s a game-changer — you can edit directly from the NAS without copying files to your local drive. For AI engineers, it’s a centralized home for model files, training datasets, and backups.

Who Is This For?

• Video editors who manage terabytes of footage across projects
• AI/ML engineers with large model collections and datasets
• Creative studios needing shared storage for teams
• Content creators who need reliable backup for irreplaceable content
• Homelabbers who want a powerful, reliable NAS

Storage Configurations

For Video Editors (Recommended)

Config	Drives	Usable Space	Redundancy	Cost
4x 20TB SHR-2	Seagate IronWolf Pro 20TB	~36TB	2 drives can fail	~$2,400 total
6x 16TB SHR-2	Seagate IronWolf Pro 16TB	~60TB	2 drives can fail	~$2,800 total
8x 20TB SHR-2	Seagate IronWolf Pro 20TB	~108TB	2 drives can fail	~$3,800 total

For AI Engineers

Config	Drives	Usable Space	Best For	Cost
4x 8TB SHR	Seagate IronWolf 8TB	~22TB	Model files + datasets	~$1,700 total
4x 16TB SHR	Seagate IronWolf Pro 16TB	~44TB	Large dataset collections	~$2,200 total

SHR vs SHR-2: SHR protects against 1 drive failure, SHR-2 against 2. For irreplaceable data (video footage), always use SHR-2.

10GbE Setup for Video Editing

The killer feature for video editors is editing directly from the NAS. Here’s how:

What You Need

1. Synology E10G22-T1 10GbE adapter (~$120) — installs in the NAS
2. 10GbE NIC for your workstation — ASUS XG-C100C (~$80)
3. Cat6a cable — direct connection or via 10GbE switch
4. Switch (optional) — MikroTik CRS305-1G-4S+ (~$130) for multiple devices

Performance

Connection	Read Speed	Write Speed	Good For
1GbE (built-in)	~110 MB/s	~100 MB/s	Documents, small files
10GbE (adapter)	~1,100 MB/s	~900 MB/s	4K ProRes editing, datasets
Thunderbolt (via adapter)	~1,100 MB/s	~900 MB/s	Mac direct connection

1,100 MB/s is fast enough for:

• 4K ProRes 422 HQ editing (up to 3 streams)
• 4K H.265 editing (5+ streams)
• Moving large model files (~30 seconds per GB)

Not fast enough for 8K RAW — for that, use local Thunderbolt 5 storage.

Synology DSM Features That Matter

For Video Editors

• Synology Drive: Sync active project files to your workstation automatically
• Hyper Backup: Scheduled backups to external drives or cloud
• Snapshot Replication: Point-in-time recovery — undo accidental deletions
• Video Station: Browse and preview footage from a web browser
• Active Backup for Business: Back up all team workstations automatically

For AI Engineers

• Container Manager (Docker): Run Ollama, Jupyter, MinIO, or any Docker container directly on the NAS
• Synology Drive API: Programmatic access to files for data pipelines
• iSCSI: Mount NAS storage as a local drive on Linux for ML workflows
• SSH access: Full Linux terminal for advanced operations
• Scheduled tasks: Automate model backups, dataset syncing

Docker Containers You Can Run

# Example: Ollama on NAS for always-on LLM server
# (limited by NAS CPU — fine for small models)
services:
  ollama:
    image: ollama/ollama
    ports:
      - "11434:11434"
    volumes:
      - /volume1/docker/ollama:/root/.ollama

Note: The NAS CPU (Ryzen V1780B) is fine for serving small models (8B) but not for heavy inference. Use it as a storage server, not a compute server.

Noise & Power

State	Power Draw	Noise
Idle (drives spinning)	45-55W	20.7 dB(A) — barely audible
Active file access	60-80W	25-30 dB(A) — quiet room
All 8 bays active	80-100W	30-35 dB(A) — audible hum
Drives spinning down	25-30W	Near-silent

Tip: Enable drive hibernation for bays you access infrequently. This reduces noise and power significantly.

DS1624+ vs Alternatives

NAS	Bays	CPU	Max RAM	Price	Best For
Synology DS423+	4	Intel J4125	8GB	~$500	Budget, personal use
Synology DS1624+	8+4	Ryzen V1780B	32GB	~$1,300	Video, AI, prosumer
Synology DS1823xs+	8	Ryzen V1780B	32GB	~$1,400	10GbE built-in
QNAP TVS-h874	8	Intel i5-12400	64GB	~$1,500	Performance, VMs
DIY TrueNAS	Any	Your choice	Any	Varies	Maximum control

Setup Checklist

1. Install drives (slide-in trays, tool-free)
2. Power on and find NAS via find.synology.com
3. Install DSM (Synology’s OS) — takes 10 minutes
4. Create storage pool with SHR-2
5. Create shared folders (one for Video, one for AI/Models, one for Backups)
6. Install 10GbE adapter if you have it
7. Set up Hyper Backup to external drive for 3-2-1 backup rule
8. Enable snapshots on critical folders
9. Install Container Manager for Docker
10. Set up user accounts and permissions for team access

Total Investment Calculator

Setup	NAS	Drives	10GbE	Total
Starter (4x 8TB SHR)	$1,300	$520	—	$1,820
Video Pro (6x 16TB SHR-2)	$1,300	$1,500	$200	$3,000
Maximum (8x 20TB SHR-2)	$1,300	$2,400	$200	$3,900

Final Verdict

The Synology DS1624+ is the best NAS for video editors and AI engineers who need serious storage. Synology’s DSM software is unmatched in usability, and the 10GbE option makes it fast enough for real-time 4K editing.

Yes, the total investment is $2,000-$4,000 when you add drives. But losing a project’s worth of footage to a dead drive costs infinitely more. This is insurance that also makes your workflow faster.

Rating: 4/5 — Excellent NAS with great software. Loses a point because the total cost (NAS + drives + 10GbE) adds up quickly, and the initial setup isn’t beginner-friendly.