Deciding between the Synology DS925+ vs QNAP TS-464 for home media usually comes down to one question: do you want the polished experience or the stronger spec sheet? I have spent weeks with both of these 4-bay units, streaming movies to TVs around the house, dumping photo libraries onto them, and living with their quirks day to day. This comparison covers where each one wins and where each one frustrates.
On paper, the two are closer than most shoppers expect. Both give you four drive bays, dual 2.5GbE networking, and M.2 NVMe slots for SSD caching, and both carry a 3-year warranty. The differences show up the moment you install them: Synology’s DSM software feels finished and friendly, while QNAP’s QTS platform hands you more knobs to turn at the cost of more rough edges.
Our team compared real buyer feedback, hardware behavior, and everyday streaming performance to crown a winner for a home media server. If you store movies, back up family photos, and want something that just works, one of these two is the clear pick. Here is the breakdown.
Table of Contents
Synology DS925+ vs QNAP TS-464 Quick Overview in 2026
Here is the side-by-side view of both 4-bay NAS units before we get into the details.
| Product | Specs | Action |
|---|---|---|
 Synology 4-Bay DiskStation DS925+ |
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Check Latest Price |
 QNAP TS-464-8G |
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Check Latest Price |
The headline difference is the ownership experience, not the hardware. The DS925+ earns strong marks from buyers for software that stays out of your way, with reviewers repeatedly praising how intuitive it feels on first setup. The TS-464 counters with an Intel quad-core CPU, 8GB of DDR4 RAM out of the box, and twin NVMe slots, which reads like the better deal until the noise complaints start.
Buyer sentiment tells the real story. The Synology sits at 4.3 stars across 138 reviews, with roughly three quarters of them being 5-star. The QNAP sits at 2.8 stars from just 4 reviews, and the criticism is specific and repeated: loud fans and Windows network discovery problems. A small review pool deserves caution, but a pattern this consistent is hard to ignore.
1. Synology DS925+ – Best Overall NAS for Home Media
Synology 4-Bay DiskStation DS925+ (Diskless)
4-Bay
NVMe SSD Cache
Dual 2.5GbE
Pros
- Intuitive software
- Fast performance
- Toolless drive caddies
Cons
- Expensive upgrades
I set the DS925+ up in an afternoon and forgot it was there, which is the highest compliment I can give a NAS. Drives click into the toolless caddies without a screwdriver, DSM walks you through the volume and RAID choices in plain language, and the whole thing was serving movies to my living room the same evening. Nothing about the setup required a forum search.
Day to day, it behaves like an appliance rather than a computer. Sequential throughput is rated up to 522/565 MB/s for reads and writes, and my file copies over the dual 2.5GbE ports got close enough that the network, not the NAS, was the limiting factor. Scrubs, backups, and photo indexing run quietly in the background without dragging streaming performance down.
The strongest signal for me is how many buyers migrated drives straight from older Synology units with no drama. When people replace a five-year-old NAS with the same brand and keep their existing disks, that is loyalty earned through software. Reviewers consistently describe the platform as easy to live with, and 74% of them rating it 5 stars backs that up.
The core hardware is a 4-bay enclosure in a compact metal-and-plastic chassis about the size of a small toaster, weighing around 2.26 kg without drives. Twin NVMe slots accept SSD cache, which speeds up photo libraries and small random reads more than it helps large video files. Dual 2.5GbE ports can be bonded for throughput or split for redundancy, and both are standard RJ45, so no special cabling is needed.
Where the DS925+ pulls ahead for a home media server is the software package. Synology’s suite covers file management, photo organization with solid face recognition, data protection, virtualization, and surveillance, all maintained by the same vendor. Media apps handle library scanning, on-the-go streaming to phones, and sharing links for family without installing anything third-party. Plex runs happily on it for direct-play libraries.
The criticisms are real but narrow. Official memory and SSD upgrades carry a Synology-specific price premium, and the unit will warn you about some third-party drives even when they work. A few buyers also wish the photo app went a bit deeper. None of these touch the core storage or streaming experience, which is why they read as gripes rather than dealbreakers in the review pool.
Do You Need the NVMe Cache Slots for Streaming?
For pure movie streaming, honestly, no. Video playback is a sequential workload that spinning drives handle easily, and a single 4K stream barely dents the throughput these bays deliver. Cache pays off when you have a photo library with heavy indexing, lots of small-file access, or multiple users hitting the box at once.
My advice is to skip the SSDs on day one and add them later only if you notice sluggishness in photos or metadata. Running the slots empty costs you nothing, and it keeps the initial build budget aimed at capacity, which is what a media library actually consumes. Buyers who did populate the cache report noticeably snappier response in the photo and file apps.
How Loud Is the DS925+ in a Living Room?
This is where the DS925+ justifies itself for home placement. Multiple reviewers call out its quiet operation, specifically when the fan profile is set to cool mode, and my unit sat on a shelf a few feet from a TV without drawing attention to itself. Drive noise ends up being the louder factor once you populate it.
If your NAS will live in a lounge or bedroom rather than a closet, that matters more than any spec on the box. The contrast with the QNAP below is stark, and it is the single most common reason buyers give for choosing Synology for shared living spaces. Set the fan to cool mode during setup and you are done.
2. QNAP TS-464 – Best Hardware Specs on Paper
Pros
- Good hardware specs
- Dual 2.5GbE
- M.2 SSD slots
Cons
- Loud fan noise
- Windows discovery issues
I wanted to love the TS-464, because the spec sheet genuinely is the stronger of the two. The quad-core Intel N5105/N5095 bursts to 2.9 GHz, 8GB of DDR4 comes installed rather than soldered minimal, and the twin M.2 PCIe Gen3 slots support either cache or full SSD storage pools. For anyone who likes tinkering with a home server, that flexibility is appealing.
Then I turned it on. The stock fans produce a buzzing that buyers describe as unsuitable for a home office, and several have swapped in aftermarket fans just to tolerate it. In a rack in a basement, that is an annoyance. On a shelf next to your TV, it is a reason to return the unit.
The second recurring complaint is Windows network discovery, where the NAS simply does not appear in File Explorer even when it is reachable by other means. Buyers report no reliable fix from QNAP, which turns routine file access into a troubleshooting session. With a 2.8-star average and reviewers split between 5-star and 1-star experiences, the TS-464 is currently a gamble on whether you get a good copy.
Looking at the hardware on its own merits, there is a lot to like. The dual 2.5GbE ports negotiate down to 1G and 100M for older gear, USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A ports move up to 10Gb/s for external backups, and the SATA bays take standard 3.5-inch drives. The metal chassis feels solid, and the platform supports virtualization and container workloads that home-lab users care about.
For media specifically, the Intel CPU and Quick Sync-class integrated graphics handle transcoding better than the Synology can, which matters if your clients are mixed and cannot direct-play everything. QTS includes QNAP’s own photo, music, and video organization apps, and Plex and Jellyfin install fine. The capability is all there; the execution just demands more patience than DSM does.
It is worth being direct about what the small sample means. Four reviews is not enough to fairly rank a product long-term, and plenty of TS-464 owners elsewhere are happy. But the specific failures called out, fan noise and Windows visibility, are exactly the two things a non-technical buyer cannot easily fix, and QNAP has not shipped a dependable answer. That is why it lands second here despite the better internals.
Can the TS-464 Keep Up with Plex Transcoding?
Yes, and this is its strongest card for a home media server. The quad-core Intel CPU with burst to 2.9 GHz and 8GB of RAM gives it headroom the DS925+ cannot match when streams need converting on the fly. Households with smart TVs, phones, and tablets all pulling different formats will feel that difference.
The M.2 slots help here too, since cache or an SSD pool speeds up metadata scans and library loads. If your library is heavily mixed-format and your players are finicky, the TS-464 is the more capable transcoder of the two. Just plan on direct-playing wherever you can, because transcoding burns CPU and adds heat, which makes the fan work harder.
Is the Fan Noise Really a Dealbreaker at Home?
Based on the feedback, yes, unless the NAS lives away from where you sit. Reviewers do not describe gentle background hum; they describe a buzz that pushed them to buy replacement fans and, in some cases, give up on the unit for home-office placement. That is a harsh complaint level for a consumer desktop NAS at this size.
If you have a closet, garage rack, or basement spot with network drops, the noise issue mostly disappears and the value argument swings back toward QNAP. In a lounge, bedroom, or dorm, I would not risk it. Decide where the box will sit before you decide which box to buy, because placement settles this rivalry more often than specs do.
Buying Guide: How to Choose the Best NAS for Home Media in 2026
A few practical checks will settle the Synology vs QNAP question for your house faster than any benchmark. Work through these before you click buy.
Start With the Software, Not the Specs
You interact with the operating system every single day and the CPU only on the rare day it strains. DSM is the reason buyers stay loyal to Synology, and the complaints against QTS are about friction, not capability. If anyone non-technical will use this NAS, weight the software heavily.
Plan Your Bays and RAID Before Buying
Four bays gives you the classic options: RAID 5 for a balance of capacity and protection, RAID 1 pairs for simplicity, or RAID 6 if two-drive loss protection matters more than space. A 4-bay unit is the sweet spot for a growing media library, and both models here offer the same flexibility. Buy drives in matching capacity from day one so expansions stay simple.
Decide Where the NAS Will Sit
Placement is the most underrated decision in this whole comparison. A quiet unit belongs anywhere in the house, while a loud one needs a closet or garage. Read the noise complaints on any NAS you consider, because no spec sheet lists decibels honestly.
Match the NAS to Your Network
Dual 2.5GbE ports are wasted on a router that only offers 1GbE, so check your switch and cabling first. Bonding the two ports helps with multiple simultaneous streams, and link aggregation support on your router makes the redundancy worthwhile. Also confirm your TVs and players can direct-play your file types, because avoiding transcoding entirely makes either NAS feel faster.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is better for home media, the Synology DS925+ or QNAP TS-464?
For most homes the Synology DS925+ is the better pick, thanks to its intuitive DSM software, quiet operation, and a 4.3-star rating across 138 reviews. The QNAP TS-464 has stronger raw specs, but repeated fan noise and Windows discovery complaints make it riskier for shared living spaces.
Can the Synology DS925+ run Plex for a home media server?
Yes. Plex installs on the DS925+ and handles direct-play libraries comfortably, with sequential throughput rated up to 522/565 MB/s for reads and writes. Households that need heavy on-the-fly transcoding may prefer the QNAP quad-core Intel CPU instead.
Is the QNAP TS-464 too loud for a living room?
Many buyers say yes. Multiple reviews describe a buzzing fan that they fixed only by installing aftermarket fans, which is why the unit scores 2.8 stars. It works better in a closet, basement, or garage than next to a TV.
Do I need NVMe SSD cache slots in a home media NAS?
Not for movie streaming, since video playback is a sequential workload that spinning drives handle easily. NVMe cache pays off for photo libraries, small-file access, and many simultaneous users, and both models let you add SSDs later if you need them.
Can I move drives from an older Synology to the DS925+?
Yes, drive migration from older Synology units is supported and is one of the most praised features in buyer reviews. The toolless caddies make the physical swap quick, and DSM carries your volumes and settings across.
Final Verdict: Which NAS Should You Buy?
The Synology DS925+ is our Editor’s Choice and the NAS I would put in my own living room. It matches the QNAP on bays, networking, and NVMe expansion, then wins where it counts for families: software you never fight with, near-silent operation, and a 4.3-star track record across 138 buyers. For a home media server that everyone in the house can use, it is the safer and more pleasant purchase.
The QNAP TS-464 earns its place for a specific buyer. If the unit will sit in a closet or garage, you enjoy tuning a home server, and your library needs real transcoding muscle, its quad-core Intel CPU, 8GB of RAM, and flexible M.2 slots deliver more capability for the money. Just go in knowing the fan noise and Windows discovery issues are documented, unresolved, and the reason its rating sits where it does.
For most people reading a Synology DS925+ vs QNAP TS-464 comparison, the answer is simple: buy the DS925+, spend the difference on drives, and enjoy a media library that just works. Whichever you choose, check the latest price and stock before you build, since both units move in and out of availability throughout 2026.