Synology DS923+ vs DS1522+ NAS - Which Should You Buy?

[@hoggerlogger020]

I love my DS1522+ I have had it for 1 1/2 months bought 8GB extra stick (179.99) bring it to 16GB, 5 WD Red Plus 12TB (WD120EFBX) loaded only 4 Running. Synology E10g22-T1 and 2 Synology SNV3410-400G. Your Videos are so insightful and informative. I wish I could use the SSD as a Pool and not Cache. Cache really did nothing for me. I am probably not using it correctly. Thanks and keep making videos.

[@azwb]

I believe you can pool now with 7.2 version. So not a waste.

[@_m.a-x]

Just came across your channel. As I was watching the review, I noticed that I possessed 7 items out of everything that you've got on the shelves in the background and none of them was a NAS. So I subscribed! :)))

[@gregwilm9221]

Synology Told me DS1522+ not the same Motherboard as DS923+ so no NVME Storage Pools , Below Synology Responded Kamal R 2022-11-30 12:11:06 Hi Greg, Thank you for getting back to us I understand your concerns, but the new model and successor to the 5-bay unit are only the DS1522+. We don't have any other 5-bay NAS that supports M.2 NVME storage pools, and we haven't received any updates to confirm that the newer Firmware DSM 7.2 allows this for the DS1522+ for the time being.

[@DR19X]

can you now create nvme storage pooling on the 1522+?

[@jimlarson4899]

Another item I don't recall you mentioning is the DS923+ is quieter than the DS1522+. Working in a very quiet environment gives the 923 a benefit here. Thanks for all you do. Great info!

[@nascompares]

VERY TRUE! I should have mentioned that Thanks for keeping me on the straight and narrow man. Have a great weekend

[@guyaustin5962]

he did say it was .2db quieter

[@Gustavo_St]

​@@nascompares Is the noise difference noticeable?

[@HackMonkey]

Excellent! You confirmed my suspicion that the DS1522+ was probably a better option for my use case.

[@TheCynysterMind]

Nearly a year later... I finally decided I needed to look for a replacement for my failing Drobo 5D3....and I dumped my drives into a UGreen RAID box. That was surprisingly much slower than the Drobo so I decided to try my hand at a NAS and I started with a DS220j with 2x 18TB drives in jbod mode... after playing with the DS220j I saw that there were some advantages to having a NAS as long as I could get the transfer rates better. I decided to get the DS1522+ and get another 18TB drive so I could run the Synology Hybrid RAID.... I have since added 2x1TB NvMe drives.. upgraded the RAM to 32Gigs... added a 4th 18TB drive.... and the 10Gb card I am now using it as a File Server, Media Server & VPN Server

[@dirkclaessens1152]

Is it possible to use the 2x1TB NvMe drives as storage or only as caching? What ram modules did you use? (i'm considering 1522+ myself)...Thx

[@TheCynysterMind]

@@dirkclaessens1152 For some reason I keep replying and the post evaporates... on try 3. the NvMe drives may ONLY be used for caching...and by the looks of it 1TB drives is probably serious overkill... the largest capacity that I have heard recommended was 400Gb. Drobo said anything above 128Gb was a waste for their systems.

[@rkdazet]

Excellent! Thank you! Unfortunately for me, I've already purchased the DS923+ at B&H for $600 US. I've got it mostly set up, thanks to your tutorials! (beginner here). Reality for me, a home user, the DS923+ is already probably overkill. Main purpose is photo storage and syncing my edits from On1 Photo RAW 2023 (sometimes also Photoshop) and thank you for that 3 part series! I decided on the Synology Drive Server as the best solution. Mapping on Windows works fine, but is a bit clunky on Mac OS, since if you reboot, you have to reconnect/login. Still trying to get this Mac Book Pro set up to connect. It does connect to the DSM but I get an error message when trying to login via Finder to map drive (this is remotely via WiFi of course. I'll figure it out. Love the seagulls!

[@pax0707]

All valid arguments if money is no issue. 150 euros is not pocket change. I went for 923+ because it was closer to my budget and for the foreseeable future extra ports, slot and memory would not be used.

[@SharKzZxX]

but the 1522+ has better Data throughput Over 736/796 MB/s sequential read/write1 The 923+ has 592/562 MB/s is this correct or only marketing numbers from Synology?

[@azwb]

The extra bay I believe give it that boost in speed. Now are those ssd,s? Was that test as JBODs set up? Those would be the fastest

[@stevenwaldstein2249]

Thank you for the very informative video. Really glad your channel exists and will use your link if I buy there. Probably buy the 1522+ to compare to my QNAP TS-664. For my new NAS ended up going QNAP about three months ago because my first NAS, bought like 8 yrs ago, was QNAP also and in all that time the only problems I had was drives dying over years of use which I could not blame on QNAP. That QNAP was very reliable and I still have it but it only can only use three 12TB drives for a RAID 5 storage pool do to firmware limitations. The QNAP 664 is working great so far but wanted to try Synology to compare and build a larger storage pool using 16TB drives like I put in the TS-664. Hope I like the Synology.

[@tombouie]

Yeaps, yous absolutely right. The DS1523+ @$700 is the bestest home NAS bang-for-my-buck over the long-term. I'm stills going to wait a few months & see what else Synology does with its customer NAS line-up though.

[@tinamichele6992]

What about if on sale? 923+ selling for $480 (Black Friday) vs 1522+ for $700.

[@frogger2020]

I’m also contemplating this. At $100 difference it seems to be a no-brainer to go with the 1522, but at $200 not so much. Also, it doesn’t look like Amazon has the 1522 in stock.

[@Konuvis]

Edit: disregard, Amazon can't seem to do a proper product description. Seems like the DS923+ comes with 8GB RAM now so it becomes more compelling.

[@oldnotobsolete.2925]

Interesting! This may tip me in favour of the DS923+ but cannot find anywhere advertising 8GB pre-installed. Do you have a link?

[@Konuvis]

@@oldnotobsolete.2925 This was innacurate. Amazon shows the DS923+ has 8GB on the product comparison page for the DS1522 but shows 4GB on it's own page. It's frustrating.

[@oldnotobsolete.2925]

@@Konuvis Ah, thanks for letting me know. The DS1522+ is back in the shopping basket!!

[@Konuvis]

@@oldnotobsolete.2925 same lol

[@azwb]

Careful. I've seen 1522+ for 699$ with photos of the 10GBe card installed on the back. NO MENTION in description it comes with it. Trickery.

[@fo727]

Is there a max hard drive size in the 923+ per bay?

[@Jays1ndone]

Great reviews and with a side of seagulls every now and then, can’t go wrong!

[@dubsessed9790]

Synology product development team: what's transcoding? Sounds DUMB

[@tombouie]

Good-day & question; ??Is there a solar generator that provides the USB signal to turn-off a computer just like modern uninterruptible power supplies??

[@ApicalTrades]

Thank you soooo much for your amazing video... would you recommend this in 2024? I mean now, September 2024? Thank you. by the way I already have a DS920+ and I need to upgrade to something with a 10GB network capability, THANK YOU again.

[@Smrt-Squirrel]

I too have this question, would love to know where you landed @apicalTrades

[@aboutwhat1930]

Personally I still like my DS1522+, quite a lot actually. 10 GbE is like $110, which is not dissimilar to PCIe NIC's. The 8GB RAM can be doubled to 16GB thanks to eBay (you can find the exact RAM kit for

[@sheerluck7132]

Love your videos and information! It’s too bad Synology didn’t use the Ryzen R1606G processor with its embedded GPU. I purchased the DS1522+ because of the extra slot and installed memory.

[@MJDigitalAT]

Thank your for the Video! Which one should I get for Plex Streaming at home and on the go for my personal use and for saving images?

[@dubsessed9790]

The 918+ or the 920+, NOT the 923+ or 1522+. Plex needs a cpu with integrated graphics so it can "transcode" files on the fly that will not play directly on some devices (mobile/fireTV/smartTV/etc). These new releases are a step down in some regards

[@rperry4733]

Is there any way to make WD Red pro 18TB drives work with either of these models?

[@PinkMoonisGonnaGetYou]

Love your videos and information!

[@h_d_]

Noob question - WD PR4100 or Synology DS923+?

[@LucasFernandes-ce4fg]

Thanks for the excellent analysis, and just to confirm, I am intending to upgrade from DS213+ just wondering based on the video DS1522+ would be a better option. Does it make sense? Thanks again.

[@kardy12]

Hmm, food for thought. My DS1019+ media server failed just yesterday - I had thought the 1522+ was an obvious replacement, but the lack of hardware transcoding is a bit of a bummer. So the 923+ understandably piqued my interest. To learn they’ve done away with hardware transcoding on both is disappointing. Might have to check out the QNAP options since they at least have the option of installing a graphics card…

[@elmocito]

Out of curiosity, If you are doing just a bit of Photo storage, bit of plex and a massive amount of docker, would you go with 923 or 920? Only household, no business. I am so stressed to buy a three year old model, but on the other hand the energy consumption is massive in difference. WDYT?

[@Gustavo_St]

Can the Ryzen 1600 run low Cpu intensity virtual machines, considering it only has 2 cores? I understand a virtual machine completely monopolizes at least one core to run.

[@AlexandreRacine]

The audio is not in sync in this video. That's your next step to improove the quality of your videos.

[@tadpolegaming4510]

Thought it was my new headphones until I took them off

[@anasdabbar]

can I fill those with Samsung 870 EVO 4TB without worry?

[@fifirizal9853]

In my country DS1522+ cost 715 pounds and DS923+ cost 540 pounds. Is DS1522+ still worth it over DS923+?

[@bcnewsvideo]

Great channel. I’m new to all this. I have 30 years of video footage, I am now recording in 8K and want to back up and access to edit periodically. I heard you mention DAS before in one of your other videos. I’m looking for a back up system just for storing my videos and pictures, but don’t need to access it through the Internet. I will be using four Western Digital gold 22TB hard drives. any suggestions would be appreciated.

[@joelnrs]

Great video on comparing

[@CamsCampbell]

Brilliant. Thank you.

[@jimlarson4899]

I have the 923+ with 4, 8TB drives. It is currently set up with SHR and I am contemplating moving to SHR2, as I can live with 16TB of space for quite a while. Will I lose much performance going from SHR to SHR2 on a 4 drive NAS.

[@azwb]

These are all great questions. I wish we would revisit the comment section.

[@MartySteinberg]

In the DS1522+, is 8GB sufficient or would bumping it to 16GB be very noticeable? I'm using it primarily for time machine plus extended storage.

[@yoshy2628]

If you don't use virtual machines then you are good with 8 Gb. No idea if single / dual channel use will impact the performances to invest another 190€ in it. Maybe you should search for it, at the moment your NAS got a single memory dimm, if you add another same one then you will get dual channel.

[@US_Joe]

I'm better off with my older 1522+ with celeron graphics. My only gripe is the 8G ram limit. Newer is not always better. Good one Robbie - Thanx

[@dandelionestudios]

You can upgrade up to 32g ram in 1522+

[@yoshy2628]

@@dandelionestudios he got 1520, not 1522+ 1522+ is with AMD, 1520 is with Intel Celeron.

[@mikescott4008]

The nvme issue puts me off buying anything from synology atm. So still on truenas atm. QNAP you have their security history..

[@DangerRanger89]

They can be used for the data pool on the 923+

[@mikescott4008]

Which is limiting when the 923+ isn’t of interest.

[@abitofaviation]

Actually I think they will add NVME Pool support on 1522 with DSM 7.2. Machine just came out in June and it is basically same HW as 923.

[@nascompares]

I genuinely hope that is the case, but I have my doubts

[@deyeaus]

@@nascompares I think my last reply was removed due to a link. The Synology knowledge center and the comparison pages now say that the 1522+ can create storage pools on NVMe

[@unsichtbar08]

DS923+ currently on sale in Germany for 578€

[@markoliuli7609]

Mer too. 😂

[@WELDE83]

Hab ich geschossen und heute geliefert worden 😅👍🏿

[@deuxvega]

I love these reviews, but NAScompares always seems to have an habit to answer different questions than I have :-) Also I disagree with the reasoning for these products in he conclusion, as If 923+ is the worse product, that all depends on use-case and budget. 25% lower price Isn't such a bad deal If you don't need It. It just saved you 150 + probably some power consumption over the next years. I would have liked a real-world power consumption comparison. I'm actually thinking of downgrading to a smaller device (currently have a 1821+) to this 4 or 5 bay because with the 20TB enterprise discs I don't need such a big NAS anymore. Also because of space and potentially (one of my questions) to see If It saves power. Now, my question is: the lower wattage in the product specs, is that just based on the potential of # of discs? So would my 1821+ with 3 drives use the same power as the 923+? It has 2 cores more, but at lower speeds. I'm just curious what those wattage specs from Synology are based on. I find 52W vs 32W quite a big difference between the 5 and 4 bay DS with so much being the same. It's exactly these real-world things I find valuable in a review like this.

[@NASSER-ALRAJEH]

I think you furgot the cam licenses.

[@grigorischaralampopoulos4999]

Great video again!! But I think it depends of the use of the nas for a small company with big files the ds923+ is definitely better because of the nvme storage pool!! You can get 1000mb/sec speed with the 10gb Ethernet port instead of a 250mb/sec!!! So it is obvious faster and better!! But you will also need to buy a 10g switch and a 10G Ethernet lan port for your pcs!! A lot of cost but 400% faster speeds!! :)

[@chrishalle1982]

DS1522 762€, DS923 618€ so no question what to buy.

[@charlese.malone2594]

Well, I have it on good word from Santa, I will be getting a DS1522+ for Christmas... Its currently $699.99 on Amazon US... I wanted a RS but could not find one I liked for the cost, almost had one but due to shipping issues with B&H. This is what... cough... Santa is getting me for Christmas... :)

[@greenspeed666]

🔥🔥

[@leexgx]

Probably Raid6 (or SHR2) with 5 Bay still have same space vs a 4 bay in SHR1 (dual redundancy vs single redundancy) Shouldn't use dx expanders to expand your pool over to the expanders (unless you have another local backup) Quad core should be minimal this religates this to smb server only 2x2.5gbe is faster then 2 or 4x1gbe ports (2.5gbe should be standard) Old currant method of setting up the pool manually works fine on dual Raid1 nvme setup (even shows up correctly in storage manager)

[@yoshy2628]

I have returned my 1522+ because I don't like the propietary way. Not compatible with HDD, ram and m.2 drives... No storage pool for those M.2 drives.

[@lonelarsen6175]

Audio and video still out of sync, makes it unwatchable.

[@bcarroll03]

If that makes it unwatchable, you are probably neuro-divergent.

[@lonelarsen6175]

@@bcarroll03 No, but i can't understand that a pro youtuber can't edit a video, so that the audio and video are in sync. And when you make a comment like that, you are probably a moron ;-)

[@bcarroll03]

@@lonelarsen6175 or I'm neurodivergent too.