Synology is known for their Desktop NAS solutions and the DS15xx 5-bay has evolved generations to the current DS1517+. I think to say they have most probably been the best 5-bay NAS in this category would not be too far off the mark. Solid, reliable and not bad on the performance scale either, the 5-bay from Synology has won many accolades and with higher disk capacities being announced every year, the DS15xx had extended its life cycle.
It appears Synology are having a shift in its desktop bay strategy, the solidification of the 4-bay with its delectable DS-918+, which has an excellent turn of performance and is fast becoming one of the best 4-bays on the market, to the DS1517+ – 5-bay, and now the new DS1618+ 6-bay with the current DS1817+ 8-bay and the 12-bay DS2415+ , these are all the models in the “plus” range designed for home and small businesses.
So, we decided to lift the hood of the DS1517+ and the new DS1618+ to take a look at exactly what these offer as 5 and 6-bay NAS servers.
Choosing the right DiskStation is an important aspect of setting up a networking system. If one chooses a DiskStation that has insufficient memory or performance, it may be plagued with sluggish computing and a lack of room for all the information that needs to be maintained. On the other hand, if a DiskStation with significantly more memory, performance, and scalability is purchased, it’s possible to overpay for a product that has more than what is needed. Here’s a look at these two high-quality DiskStations: the DS1517+ and the DS1618+.
The DS1517+
The Synology DiskStation DS1517+ is a NAS powered by a quad-core 2.4 GHz CPU. It contains 5 bays and comes with AES-NI hardware encryption. The 1GbE LAN ports allow the DS1517+ to be installed with multiple network interfaces which can increase speed and performance. In terms of memory, the 1517+ has 2GB/8GB DDR3 and up to 16GB of dual channel. The 1,165 MB/s sequential reading performance helps provide the speed and power many businesses need. As a company continues to grow, the DS1517+ can be scaled up with up to 15 drives using the DX517 expansion units.
- Older model means more affordability
- Great for smaller businesses or tech enthusiasts
- 2017 PCM Best Performance Winner
- Older model means it will be obsolete sooner
- Less storage capability
The DS1618+
The Synology DiskStation DS1618+ is a newer product that further expands on the capability of the DS1517+. The 1618 6-bay NAS comes with a 2.1 GHz quad-core CPU, and options to boost performance with a M.2 SSD cache or 10 GbE NIC. Hefty ram options include 4 GB DDR4 SO-DIMM with the option to expand up to 32GB.
If additional storage is needed to boost performance, the DS1618+ is equipped with a PCle expansion slot to allow card add-ins. Businesses thrive with the 1,151 MBps sequential reading performance. The 1618+ also includes flexible RAID configuration options.
- More storage
- Flexible RAID configuration
- Great for small to medium businesses
- Newer model means improvements and upgrades over the older model
- Smaller CPU than the DS1517+
- Newer model means higher upfront costs
Good write-up helped a lot
Thank you
Thank you! We are glad it helped clear the differences between the two. Let us know if you have any other questions. Would be happy to help!
The DS1517+ is now a little dated but seems to still be faster than the DS1618+ ?, is this true?