[sweatynipples]

Hey everyone, I just received the Denon AVP-A1HDCI pre/pro along with a new A/V rack that is going to be installed next week. I want to be able to store music on a file server and stream the music via ethernet to the pre/pro to play. I also want to have this storage server mount on the A/V rack. I want this server to be low power and under $1000 in price and HTPC is probably not an option. Should I set up NAS storage? Are there any NAS boxes that are compatible with A/V racks?


Thanks!

 

[MikeSM]

How much storage do you need? You can find HTPC cases which will fit an A/V rack well, or use an inudstrial rackmount case, but in general I recommend against putting NAS servers next to A/V gear unless they are in a remoted area due to the noise issues (lots of disks need lots of air to stay cool, and lots of air means noise).


For a couple of disks it's not an issue, but if you have something like 5 or 6 or more, you should think about putting in the garage or other parts of the house where noise is less of a problem.

 

[dondu]

Do you want just a simple rack-mount PC? You could start with a case like this...

http://www.servercase.com/miva/miva?...tegory_Code=3U


And put anything you want in it. (Note that this particular case is a 3U case. A "standard" desktop PC is 4U, so this particular case will not take tall expansion cards. However, not very many expansion cards are actually any taller than 3U, so only the rare card is not going to fit in this case. http://www.servercase.com also has 4U cases, if you want one. When shopping, be sure to look at the depth of the cases, since your AV rack is probably not as deep as standard computer racks are.)


--Don