Thecus M3800 Stream Box

[corndog]

Whoa! Tim!

So glad you got this baby in and put it on the chart! Remember way back when we had this thread:

http://forums.smallnetbuilder.com/showthread.php?t=404

The expectation was that this NAS would perform unremarkably, similar to the N3200. You can imagine it's quite a major surprise to see it way up there at the top of the charts challenging even the QNAP 509!

Really looking forward to the full review of this one - especially with that built-in video capability.

It really makes one thing clear though - we all need to ask you politely to please do a re-test of the TS-509Pro with your new testing setup. It would really help the charts, as the 509 is something of a milestone and standard against which others are tested.

Great Job!

[thiggins]

Well, what happened is that they built the M3800 on the same chassis as the N3200 Pro, not the N3200. The Geode makes some of the difference.

But don't forget that I have changed the benchmark machine. This also raises performance, especially since it boosts cached throughput, which still is in effect at the lower "large" filesizes.

You really need to look at the throughput vs. filesize charts, not the average charts to get a better comparison between products.

I have asked QNAP to resubmit the TS 509 Pro, which they will, after they run their own tests with a similar benchmark setup. They don't want surprises!

Very much looking forward to a review of the M3800. I find it surprising, actually, that I'm so interested in this model, but I am.

Love the site.

THanks.

[corndog]

I just got my hands on one. So far all I've done is ftp a terabyte or so of movies to it, from my ReadyNAS Pro. The FTP pegged at about 300megabit during the whole transfer. Not bad.

I'm very very disappointed at the lack of rsync or any other proper backup method for that matter on the M3800. Fortunately the ReadyNAS is capable of talking to other systems in so many ways, I was able to push from the ReadyNAS.

I've posted this in other threads - especially in the QNAP section of the forum - that I think Netgear doesn't get enough props for their many varied NAS-2-NAS backup methods. The Thecus basically does nothing. QNAP does only rsync. But the ReadyNAS does rsync, ftp, http, smb (based on archive bit or timestamp), and nfs. And it does these in both push or pull. So I am able to use my ReadyNAS to do the following:

• backup my QNAP using rsync (push or pull because the QNAP can also push via rsync)
  backup my Thecus using FTP pull or smb pull or nfs pull
  backup my son's HP MediaSmart WHS using smb pull
  backup my Droboshare using smb pull

Go Netgear! (uh... this is a Thecus thread. I'm off topic now. Sorry.)

[corndog]

I've gotta say - that paltry 256MB RAM in the M3800 is a bit surprising. I wonder how much better it would run with 1G of RAM?

Especially when they suggest turning off the OSD for improved performance. I wonder if you could leave the OSD on with more RAM and still have the performance?

Tim, would you be willing to include this investigation in your test?

How much does the OSD impact performance when active? Does this change with more RAM?

(not sure how involved you like to get with your tests - tearing into the device to add RAM, etc)

[thiggins]

Sorry, corndog, but the review is done, just waiting for editing.

We don't change RAM size or otherwise modify the product for reviews.

[corndog]

Fair enough.

The fact that we're actually almost ready to read this report is good news enough - maybe I'll do the RAM test myself and post my results on the forum.

Can this device play DVDs or blu-ray DVDs ripped as ISO files?

Can it handle multiple subtitles or multiple languages?

Thanks,

Harry.

Does the N3200 Pro support a samba recycle bin?

[mygiantcircle]

Hi Tim:

I hope you or someone can help answer this question: can I buy the M3800/N3200PRO and start using with just one HD? Would Thecus allow me to add the other drives down the road to expand capacity without reformatting the first drive?