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Ron, I'm not a 100% sure, but majority of new computer cases on the market do not have optical drive slots. The last 3 towers I purchased do not have. I had to purchase external optical drive, to transfer music cd to comp. Even my new Chrysler doesn't have cd player, but uses usb flash drive. I believe the reason being, all content can be downloaded online to drives. Example Itune music, Netflix, Xbox/Playstation games, etc..... Almost anything can be downloaded off the internet. I'm sure older cases still have optical drives.
Jason Galterio, thanks for the NewEgg info. I'll take a closer look at it later. NylonGirl, the Synology setup would really only give me two hard drives for storage. The other two would be backup drives.
In addition to everything else, I want the ability to actually use the computer to watch TV. XFinity allows us to watch tv online. An example: I get HBO Max for free, but can't use Roku or the TV's own apps to watch HBO Max. However, I can watch it online.
No problem. I'be ordered from New Egg many times in the past... For individual components as well as fully built machines. I've never had any issues.
I have to warn you that you're going to be hard pressed to stay below your $600 ceiling. Any way you cut it, the bare bones are going to come real close to that ceiling. Your biggest hits will be the processor and the OS (~$250-300), the secondary hits will be the MB, RAM, power supply, and case (also ~$250-300). You will go over when you toss the SSD, tax, and shipping in.
You could wait and hope the prices go down, but then you run into obsolescence issues where the low priced item is no longer available.
I speced a system at $520. Why would you ever buy an OS for a NAS? I get if you have lots of cash and want to tinker getting Unraid ($60 to $90 for most setups) but even for me its a bit much compared to FreeNAS.
Also if you have a cable sub or an antenna connected to your system then Plex will let you stream live TV through any device.
Because he isn't trying to build a NAS?
You're really aggressive on this topic and I don't know why, but I am just going to back out of the conversation now.
The OP asked about assistance finding parts that worked together. I provided an example from a site that will make sure that parts are compatible.
At this point, I've provided what I can, I'm moving on.
HOLY CRAP you all have a lot of media. I have... like... 3 movies on DVD. All of my music I purchased from iTunes doesn't even take up a quarter of my iphone memory...
I can't even imagine how much something like 14 TB would be!
Yes, he's trying to build a NAS. A Plex server is just a NAS by another name.
I'm not aggressive BTW I just get bored very easily by people spreading incorrect information and then getting mad when corrected.
Kenshaw011267. no, I'm not trying to build a NAS. I want a full-fledged computer that will allow me to rip DVDs, BluRay discs, etc. I want at least three 3TB hard drives for various data.
I've laid out all my media on one 6ft shelf. I like the ability to rip those discs, and use Plex to watch them later. But I also want a multimedia computer that will allow me to watch tv online. The multimedia computer will be connected to a 55" TV via HDMI.
My ultimate price can be over $600. I just think it should be under the $1,000 Dad paid for this computer that I use for DAZ Studio, mostly.
It will rip DVD's just fine. If you know how to use Plex you'll be fine. But why spend $100 on Windows when you don't have to? FreeNas is free and is meant specifically for what you want. Beyond the fact that I use more cabling, I use an old server rack for my NAS and its loud, I have a setup essentially identical to what you want.
I've looked at "reconditioned" servers. Many of them appear to be rather inexpensive. I was unable to find out how many internal drive bays they had. I would consider a reconditioned server if I had that info. Some of them even come with Windows! (Maybe an old version of Windows.)
They wouldn't work for your use case. They are very loud. You could not keep one near your TV. I keep mine in my basement, in a closet that I've soundproofed.
But the number of drive bays is pretty easy to count for most. The drive bays are hot swappable so the number of visible "modules" with a handle are the number of drive bays. You do need to be aware of the differences between SATA and SAS (a lot of servers have SAS interfaces for their HDD's rather than the SATA interfaces that you are likely to find on most commercial HDD's so you have to be a little more careful either when buying the server or when buying the HDD's).
I have mixed feelings about this discussion. I get easily lost in the intricacies of parts, and what goes together. My original chief interest was in getting a good computer setup to work with DAZ Studio. You helped get me the insight that led to the purchase of my current desktop PC.
It's easy to get excited about such ideas. I'm a technology geek, nerd, etc. I just salivate at the thought of getting new tech.
I sincerely regret if anyone's excitement turns into feelings of intimidation, etc. All of us should feel welcome and safe here. I value everyone's thoughts, feelings and experience deeply.
I think it would help if everyone understood I have a pretty firm idea of what I want. It's a full tower desktop computer that will allow me to have at least 3 internal 3.5" hard drives, and a BluRay burner. Yes, I'll likely go for a setup that has the GPU as part of the motherboard or CPU....
OK, I will forget about the server. If I ever get that new Stimulus Payment, I might just build the best freaking computer I can get for $1,200!
GPU's aren't built into motherboards anymore. That hasn't been a thing, at least not on desktop HW, for a very long time.
Where are you getting your information from?
First of all, I’m pretty sure RAID 0 will let you use all of the hard drive space. I don’t see anything in the product description that says you have to use disk mirroring or any RAID at all.
The new Google Chromecast has HBO Max and a remote control. But now I know you don’t want that.
You have a tendency to go back and edit your pre-existing posts, adding information or changing things, which makes the replies seem like the people didn’t even read what you said. For instance, I’m pretty sure your first post didn’t specify that you wanted a PC. I think you just said you wanted a device for watching movies and music. So of course you got people suggesting Rasberry Pi and other small, inexpensive, but effective devices. Now your first post says “I'd like to build a server/entertainment center PC.” And now the early replies all look like they didn’t read the original post because the original post changed.
If you were now to go back and edit it to say you would like a desktop computer with as many drive bays as possible and definitely don’t want a NAS device, then all of my previous suggestions would seem like I wasn’t paying attention. But I was.
Do you really want me to go back and dig up some news article citing when Nvidia and Intel parted ways? It was back around 2005.
Motherboards having video outs doesn't mean the motherboard has a GPU. No idea which B460 you found but the good ones say check the CPU for accurate data since the GPU is integrated into the CPU not the motherboard and the F series doesn't have one at all.
But here's a bunch of images of a B460 board.:
https://www.computeralliance.com.au/asus-s1200-microatx-prime-b460m-a-ddr4-motherboard
Where's this mythical GPU?
For AMD you can find very explicit statements about this as Ryzen doesn't have an integrated GPU on most of their CPU's so it is entirely possible to build a system without a discrete GPU and not have a working computer.
The website link you provided shows that this motherboard has an integrated GPU. We can split hairs and say that it also depends on the CPU, but that's not the point.
The point is the MB can run without a dedicated video card.
This is a pointless conversation and I've wasted enough energy on it.
No, it does not. There is no such chip on that motherboard.
This page: https://www.computeralliance.com.au/asus-s1200-microatx-prime-b460m-a-ddr4-motherboard
Has a link to this page (as manufactuer's link): https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/PRIME-B460M-A/
Then click on specifications: https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/PRIME-B460M-A/specifications/
Right in the middle of the page:
Integrated Graphics Processor- Intel® UHD Graphics support
1 x DisplayPort 1.4
1 x HDMI 1.4b
1 x DVI-D
*Graphics specifications may vary between CPU types.
**Support DisplayPort 1.4 with max. resolution of 4096 x 2304 @60Hz. Please refer to www.intel.com for any update.
So yeah, it does.
And I thought I was the one being snippy.
Oh, I know I am. I am just sick of false information being presented as absolutes.
The point is the motherboard supports cpu based graphics (intel K series or amd G series cpus), and if the cpu provide graphics support only then this motherboard is useful for display otherwise graphics will disable, or motherboard does not contain any standalone gpu.
No, it has video outputs to support integrated graphics on the CPU's installed in the motherboard socket. But please buy one and get an F CPU and see how that works. Go for it prove me, Intel and Asus wrong.
Now, unless the motherboard is going to be used without a CPU, does it matter how much the graphics hardware is distributed between the motherboard and CPU?
Discussion of integrated graphics vs onboard graphics aside, I'm sorry that your discussion is getting sidetracked Ron.
Just wanted to jump in here to point out that as far a lots of storage, there are a lot of high capacity HDDs that you can get. I have a 6 TB one, but could have installed a higher capacity one in retrospect. I picked the 6 TB one as I wasn't sure if my SFF case supported 'server layout' screws, but it turns out my case could have handled those as well.
There's also some high capacity SSDs. Sabrent now offers an 8 TB NVME .m2 drive, as does at least one other manufacturer, and as for 2.5" SSDs, well they do make 100 TB versions, but you probably can't afford those... Also, beware of which technology is being used. QVE is cheaper, but it has some issues that various reviewers have pointed out.
There's a bunch of 12 TB HDDs in the $300-$400 range. As you are looking for a place to store your media, HDDs should do you fine, as the faster access of SSD's isn't really needed when loading a movie into your movie player software of choice. Once it buffers, yeah HDDs can keep up just fine. If you were doing serious 8K movie editing or something, then going the SSD route might be nice, but your usage case don't strike me as a 'power user'...
You should still get at least one NVME drive for your OS though. You can make do with a HDD, but you might as well enjoy the faster boot times that come with NVME drives, at least for your 'C' partition. Keep in mind that you can still install Daz Studio on a larger drive on another partition without too much trouble, in which case you might be able to get away with an inexpensive 512 GB or 1 TB NVME for your OS partition.
So I'd suggest watching for good deals on high capacity HDDs. Other can comment on the pro and cons of using a drive advertised as NAS in a 'traditional' computer, which is according to your comments is what you are trying to build. You mentioned using it as a 'normal' PC to do your Daz stuff on, and presumably to browse the internet and such, so people should keep that in mind.
Hope this helps!
I do not go back and edit previously-posted messages once they've gone live. I wanted the first post to be concise and easy to understand. As the discussion progressed, I clarified my desires.
I tend to get lost on some details. In reference to GPUs, I may have confused the idea of CPUs having built-in GPUs with the idea of GPUs built into the motherboard.
I am trying to meld my new computer setup to match my old, in a sense. I have two external 3TB Desktop hard drives for data. Then I have two 3TB Passport Portable hard drives for backup. I thought about getting two 3TB internal hard drives to eliminate two 3TB external hard drives from my setup. But yes, it would be nice to have larger internal hard drives. Yes, I want an NVME internal SSD boot drive. My current new HP desktop has one.
So are you considering transplanting your current system into a new case? I've done that before, but of course at that point getting a motherboard with more connectivity options (more SATA, NVME, PCIe slots, etc) might make more sense depending on your eventual goal.
Also, why are you specifically looking at 3 TB drives? Is it a price thing? My suggestion is to watch the sales and when a larger drive goes on sale (say for Black Friday/Cyber Monday) jump on it. Also, in a number of cases (not all though), you should be able to transplant an external drive inside a computer case, unless it's using some proprietary interface. I mention this because, if you see a killer deal on say an 8 TB external drive at say Best Buy, you may be able to take it out of the enclosure and put it inside of your case, as long as you have the appropriate HDD cable to attach it to your motherboard, and of course a spare power connector, and if no 'proprietary' nonsense is going on.
Hope this helps!
I'm not exactly looking to transplant the old system into a new one. I got the 3TB hard drives years ago. The price was right at the time. Then I made a matching set, using a 3TB Desktop external hard drive as the main data drive, and a 3TB Portable hard drive as backup. The iMac had no room for extra external hard drives.
If I go ahead and get larger internal hard drives for the new computer, all those external 3TB hard drives will be unused. Oh, but I love the idea of having a massive new internal hard drive. Cost is an issue here. I was thinking $600 might be enough to get what I want. All this depends on whether we'll get a new Stimulus check. Now I'm thinking I might spent $1,200 to build the entertainment PC.
3Tb is pretty much out of production now. WD and Seagate aren't really making them any more from what I can tell. When they were prices were nearly the same as 4Tb so...
Looking over the state of lower end HDD's right now 4Tb seems like its pretty decent right now. At $140 US you can get either WD Red Pro or Ironwolf Pro 4Tb drives (those are the enterprise grade NAS drives with the extended warranties which include data recovery if the drive fails) which is not an unreasonable option if you have a reasonable amount of data. You can get the 6Tb versions for $200 which is pretty sweet IMO. Of course you can get the 8Tb Ironwolf for $205 if you can live with the shorter warranty and no data recovery.
Of course if you have a lot of data and cash Seagate and WD both have an 18Tb for ~$580. ;)