QNAP TS-453D NAS Hardware Review

If you have been in the market to buy a new server device for your home or small business, then chances are that you are already well aware that NAS have evolved (much like most other technology) into quite alot more than the simple 'hard drive I connect to over the internet' architecture it once was. The abilities to this kind of tech are pretty well-marketed these days (yes, but me too), especially when compared with 3rd party cloud services and file streaming subscriptions (such as Google Drive and Dropbox). This has become even more true now NAS providers are working with collaboration platforms in Office 365 and GSuite. Buying a NAS drive in 2020 has become more than just about saving money over the years and enjoying your media (dropping Netflix and subscription renting limitations) and has become it's own standalone operating system and complete data storage solution. Into this remarkably well-explored industry, we find the new QNAP TS-453D NAS, the latest addition to the almost decade-old X53 series and one that on paper has the potential to massively out-deliver every generation in this series thus far. With improvements on each hardware specification that counts to carry it forward for several years for future-proofing along with continued innovations in QTS - today we want to look at the brand new 4-Bay TS-453D NAS from QNAP and see if it deserves your data?

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Are you interested in all things data storage. Perhaps you are a Mac users and want to know if this NAS, DAS, Cable or Drive will work for you? That is where and Robbie can help. For over 20 years has been helping companies and individuals worldwide with their digital archive and storage needs. Alongside that Robbie (Robert Andrews if you want to be delightfully formal) has been spending the last few years keeping you up to date on all things data and won't shut up about it!

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[tsenespace]

I've received my TS-453D today.
Time for assembly!

[Electricmoon]

Thanks very much for all your advice Robbie, much appreciated, placed my order for the QNAP TS-x453D today via Span. Can't wait for it to be delivered.

Keep up the great work you do!!!!

Cheers, Nigel Barnes

[paulz]

Great to see you mentioning the PCIe speeds NAS manufactures need to be more transparent regarding selling all these lovely 10gbe units and add on cards but interface throttles it. I think my next nas might be a TS253D unless someone makes a NAS with a M.2 NVme direct connection using PCIe not SATA.

[costenalolek]

PCIe x2 in 4 and 6 bay, are due to the specification of the processor used, which translates into the supported number of SATA ports and PCIe lines.

[doubadia]

I have 4 Ironwolfs waiting, still in package, for this model to be available.

[crate]

Hi,
Just spotted one other difference between the TS-253G and the TS-453D-8G. For IP camera recording bandwidth, the 2 bay only supports 160Mbps, but the 4 bay is 300Mbps. Not sure if this is only related to the memory, but good to know if you are planning to use this device for surveilance.

[sosen]

I 453Dit but this video made me realize the PCIe x2 limitation. I wanted to use it with QM2-2S10G1TA (2xNVME+1GBe) but it looks like the speed will be limited to 1GB/s - it doesn't make sense. Qnap should put this information on their webpage where they are advertising this combo.

[DavidM]

Since the TS-453A was such a popular model, how about a comparison between the 453A and the 453D.

[Peter_Cetera]

Excellent review! Is it possible to replace the RAM with 2x8GB or is 8GB (2x4GB) the limit?

[brich]

Glad you pointed out the difference in the PCIe slot. Think I'll start with the 2 bay and add a TR002 or 4 later. In the end it would be just a $100 US more and to me worth it but have the full capacity of 10GbE and NVMe.

[Robert-ughx]

That glossy plastic cover is a deal killer

[simondup]

So am I correct at thinking that installing a NVMe SSD via the add-on card with anything above 1000MB/s would hit the PCIe limit ?

[sweetdevilishere]

Hi Robbie, I am going to buy this TS-453D-4g for my plex server with 4x4TB HD, do you think it would be ok for Plex Server ?

[Kimberryburn]

Waiting for mine to come in. 453d with 4-4tb raid 5 and qm2 card with 2-1tb m.2 cache. Can't wait to see more videos about this one!

[Zingalto]

Just a heads up: I was able to upgrade the ram to 32GB on this one.

[StevenZeal]

So which PCIe card should I get if I want to install 2 NVMe drives? And if I install 2, can I use one for cache and the other for installing the apps on? I have had my TS-453d for almost 3 years now and used it in raid 5 for all my customer files, but recently I started adding my DVD and BD movies to it. I'm going to be upgrading the ram from 4gigs to 32 this week and then I'd like to add the NVMe. The reason for the upgrades is I am noticing some pixilation occurring when I stream movies from the Nas. But only when it's a BD and the action on screen is moving really fast. I'm using 4-4tb Ironwolf drives. If it's not possible to have 1 drive for cache and one for apps then would I get better performance from just using 1 NVMe drive and make it just for Cache? Also I am streaming across my ethernet, not the HDMI. I have a 2.5gig network but I dont think it's because of the ethernet because I get the same pixilation on my computer monitor and my PC is also a 2.5 ethernet as well as the switch I am using.

[angelayala]

Will this system be good for running a Windows VM?

[biobob]

I think I understand all that you have said and many thanks for that, I have been looking at one of these to replace my dead ts-251+ . Is this pretty much as good as it gets for this type of NAS as far as these type of features, Multimedis server, transcodeing, HDMI, handheld remote control, or is there a next step up?

[sanjaydamodaran]

should i buy this or Terramaster f4-422? im confused becuase of the btfrs offering from terramaster...!!! any suggestion is appreciated.

[stevejoslin]

Hi, great review - thank you.

Will the Plex server output video/sound through the HDMI? I'm interested because I want to run this into an amp for my home theatre system as my TV doesn't support DTS HD or Dolby HD, but my amp does. If I can do this it means I can enjoy the movie soundtrack as intended.

Cheers

Steve