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Hi. I currently have AssetUPnP installed on my Mac along with dbPoweramp Music converter. I'm currently ripping my CDs to an external hard drive connected to my computer. My Naim streamer 'finds' my Asset UPnP server via wireless connection and everything works fine. Someone has suggested that a NAS system would be better in that I wouldn't have to have my computer switched on the whole time which is currently the case. So my question is, would I be able to install Asset onto this NAS easily? Would I also be able to rip any further CDs direct to the NAS using dbPoweramp Music Converter? I'm not quite sure how it all works with a NAS? Does my computer become redundant in the whole process? Would you recommend I switch to NAS and if so, what brands should I be looking at and what sort of cost are we talking about?
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Depends on your usage, NAS are great for homes with multiple players, sometimes they are used also as a local backup for images, etc.
QNAP and synology are the main contenders, Asset can be installed on those easily. You would create a network share (on the NAS sharing to the mac) and ripped files can be copied on to this share to save files on the NAS so that Asset on the NAS will have access to files local to it. -
Thank you so much. So the NAS will connect to the Mac so I can still rip CDs in the same way i do now and then manually copy and paste the music files onto the NAS? I can't directly rip to the NAS?
And Asset will be set up on the NAS? Once I've ripped all my CDs, I guess there's no need for the NAS to connect to the Mac? Correct?Comment
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Yes you can rip straight to the NAS, but with your Naim streamer, NAS and Mac on your router/hub via ethernet or wifi, you will find it easier to rip to your local network share as described by Spoon.
I normally rip to my Windows PC first and check/change the metadata and art before sending over wifi to the NAS share.Comment
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Many thanks. Forgive my ignorance, but when you say 'before sending over wifi to the NAS share', does this mean I don't have to physically copy and paste any CDs I rip using my Mac?
Apologies for appearing such a luddite when it comes to this sort of thing but i find the whole NAS thing quite confusing. My Mac is coming to the end of its life (14 years old) and i want something set up so i don't have to rely on my Mac once I've ripped all my CDs. Am I right in thinking that once they are all ripped, my NAS can be used without a computer or have I got that wrong?Comment
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No you don’t need to copy/paste the rip, assuming that is if you rip to your Mac and want to check or edit it prior to sending it to the NAS. Or you can rip straight to the NAS.
Once the rips are on the NAS you do not need a computer.
You will need a s.phone or tablet as a control point, this will be loaded with the Naim App.
The Naim App sees and communicates with Asset on the NAS and the Naim streamer and directs Asset to stream your selected album/tracks to the Naim streamer.Comment
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That's fantastic. Thank you so much. Finally.....could I actually have dbPoweramp Music Converter installed on the NAS and plug my stand alone CD Drive directly into the NAS and do literally everything through the NAS including editing the metadata or does my Mac have to play a role in the process?Comment
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No thats not possible, the NAS CPU (OS) does not have that abiity .... The dBp Music Converter has to be on the Mac (or Windows)Comment
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I use a Synology NAS and I love it ... The software on the NAS includes Synology Drive that will automatically copy files from a Mac (or phone or tablet) to a folder (or folders) on the NAS. Everytime a new file is created in a Mac folder ... the file is automatically copied to the Synology NAS.Comment
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Brilliant! Is the whole thing easy to set up? This is what has been suggested to me.
and
https://www.ebuyer.com/1425705-seaga...ve-st4000vn006 X 2
Any thoughts?Comment
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Hardware looks okay to me ... The Synology website does a good job of explaining their software.
The NAS can store photos and videos and all sorts in addition to music files. You might want to do some arithmetic before deciding on the size of disk that you buy.
Plus, do you want a backup of the NAS content in case the NAS itself breaks down?Comment
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Hi Shpongle,
As you can already see there are lots of replies supporting the convenience of a NAS.
To add my tuppence worth of input :
I too have a Synology NAS (DS718+) with some increased RAM.
I have everything from the NAS through to my audio streamer connected by Ethernet (it really makes a huge difference with speed/efficiency) and buffering especially with High Res audio files.
I keep the NAS in a different area from my listening room as the fans and drive access noise (if using spinning platter HDDs) can be a little intrusive..
I then have BUBBLE UPNP as a control point installed on the NAS and on my android phone, so file access and selection is again super fast and convenient as well as supporting multi-room/multi-device options.
I rip using DB power amp also, but what I do is rip using my laptop ( I had a large collection), then once done, upload to the NAS. I have the music/media drives mapped to my computer so again, it is really convenient.
I found ripping directly to the NAS could be timely and it was much more efficient to rip to my computer first, then I could also check the file tags and artwork using Mp3 Tag (free and I love it).
Once done, upload to the NAS, it takes seconds for me, then in ASSET, choose "scan for new folders and files", then BINGO! you're ready to go.
As many have said, with the NAS ,you can use it for all sorts. I also use it as photo, movies and even file and computer backups. You can set up whatever RAID configuration you like, I just use a basic mirroring so if one drive fails, I can hot swap the faulty one.
I would say that if you can possibly avoid using WiFi for connection to your NAS and Audio system, the whole experience will be so much better. You can use control points via WiFi without performance related issues, but for actual streaming, you can''t beat a hard wired connection..
On top of all this the NAS is connected directly to the router as this makes accessing it from any device really easy too.
If you decide to go down the NAS route, a little tip : give it a fixed IP. If you don't a whole host of problems can arrise, to the point you'll be wondering why everyone is saying "yeah go for it, it is a great step to make".
When you look at NAS pricing, the initial outlay can seem a bit daunting, but it really is a worthwhile investment. It has so many uses. If you get really technical, you can even start running VMs (virtual machines) and even hosting websites on it too!.
I hope this helps your decision making a little more easier.Last edited by producer_ben; June 08, 2025, 02:07 PM.Comment
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I finally took the plunge and bought a Synology. But I simply couldn't get my Mac to 'find' it. I plugged my Synology into my BT router using the supplied ethernet cable, made sure my Mac was using the same WiFi and typed in find.synology.com as instructed. It couldn't find it at all. There was a link for a Synology Assistant which I clicked and downloaded a program When I tried to open the program a message came up saying there was nothing on my Mac that could open the program. I'm probably doing something fundamentally wrong here but I'm conscious of the fact that my Mac is 13 years old. Could that be a factor? Tried switching everything off and on again. Rebooted my router.
For the time being, I've returned everything and I'll maybe revisit this another time. I've got a very new iPad so I tried searching for the Synology using that but i got the same results so maybe the age of my Mac is irrelevant?Comment
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