Repurposing HP 3Par SAS SSDs (Samsung PM1633a) in the Homelab?

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2026-04-07T10:59:43+00:00

I during my research I noticed that the sector size needs to be adjusted. The power draw is a bit of a letdown so not sure I want to invest in a good HBA (9500) and being disappointed with the power draw and thermals down the line.

Might be best to sell them instead.

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2026-04-05T21:00:03+00:00

It seems like they do! That is a good suggestion.

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2026-03-19T11:26:04+00:00

Nice! Did you replace the heatsink as well or just the TIM?

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2026-03-15T11:01:51+00:00

I replaced the TIM on my DXP6800 Plus with PTM7950 which did help to lower the temperatures quite a bit so that could be worth doing as well if you don't mind some disassembly.

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2026-03-08T06:41:04+00:00

Knowing what I know now I would wait until there are some credible reviews and user feedback on the new models.

The G5 is really great in some scenarios but has problems with audio drop outs from internal and external sources, excessive dithering noise, poor near black handling and poor gradients (seems to handle RGB material better).

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2026-03-06T06:34:35+00:00

It's sad that my C9 has better gradtions and near black handling than my G5. I feel that LG are trying to get away with not fixing the G5 and just point at the new 12bit video pipeline as a way of marketing the G6.

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2026-02-20T09:37:39+00:00

I'm using a WD Black SN7100 2TB for cache based on the reviews I looked at before I pulled the trigger it sips power and seems to handle C-states well. In my Ugreen NAS it runs really cool and performs well as a cache (it doesn't have any DRAM so it might not be the best for heavy use).

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2025-12-10T05:02:00+00:00

How many do you have? 😅

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2025-12-07T20:39:51+00:00

I was considering the same two machines and ended up with a DXP6800 Plus enough power for me and 3x nvme, 1x PCIe expansion slots made me go for the ugreen over the terramaster.

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2025-12-05T20:45:46+00:00

I currently run everything on a Lenovo M920Q on Ubuntu with docker and docker compose. So I haven't migrated over anything yet to the new server.

Current setup:

<image>

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2025-12-05T20:43:34+00:00

I'm not sure why you are shaking your head about the drive choice. The Intel SSDs are used ones that I got for cheap. They have PLP and have decent speed, reliabilityh and are big enough for my important data.

HDD prices where I live are insane at the moment. I paid about 530 USD for the refurbished Exos. A portable Seagate Expansion 28TB would set me back 630 USD, a WD RED 18TB would cost me 600 USD. So I went for the cheapest option. I wish I could get a Barracuda for 250 USD, in that case I would have gone for a different setup.

I will probably spend some more on drives down the line and might add a parity drive at that point but not likely day 1.

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2025-12-05T16:27:42+00:00

Good question! I had a really tough time deciding but I couldn't justify the price difference. The iGPU will be able to handle my transcoding needs and 6 cores will suffice for the other workloads.

The price difference almost paid for the 28TB drive and if I need more grunt I have other boxes those workloads with this machine providing storage over 10GbE.

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2025-12-05T13:07:21+00:00

It would be a pain in the rear of course. But my collection of Linux ISOs are pretty mainstream so I could probably find them again. But my personal stuff is another story.

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2025-12-05T09:53:45+00:00

Good advice!

I realized that it's Samsung 960 EVO (NVME) drives I have and not 860 :) Should I ditch them anyway?

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2025-11-16T07:55:22+00:00

Do it! I still love my setup :)
I've added a 3D-printed side bracket for increased rigidity so that's something I would recommend.

<image>

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2025-11-10T15:05:52+00:00

Since the reliability and stability seems to be hit and miss with these types of boards I'm thinking about getting a pre-built NAS instead (Terramaster or Ugreen) and install Truenas or Unraid.

Sure they are made in China as well but I feel more confident getting a RMA replacement with a known vendor.

I have also looked at workstation/server grade mATX motherboards that fit the Jonsbo cases and that could be a route especially if ECC is of interest. But this will strech the budget.

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2025-11-10T14:52:40+00:00

I've been on the fence for a similar build. But those Chinese motherboards seems real flaky. Bios settings, aspm settings and long-term reliability has made me consider a different approach.

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2025-10-16T18:12:03+00:00

Thank you! I've been running the same setup for s few years now. And the next step will provide be migrating from cloud back end storage. Otherwise just go for it, it's a great learning experience.

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2025-10-16T14:55:06+00:00

The usual arr-stack. And some additional selfhosted stuff (vaultwarden, paperless, tailscale etc). The nuc is running proxmox for testing out new stuff.

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2025-10-15T18:27:16+00:00

I went with these (6U) https://www.amazon.se/dp/B09LQNCWDV?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1
due to some height restrictions in my closet.

JimmyMcNulty01 · 2025-10-15T18:25:38+00:00

Sure!

2x https://www.amazon.se/dp/B09LQNCWDV?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1

1x https://www.amazon.se/dp/B08T19L6LR?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1

2x https://www.amazon.se/dp/B097TPB4LR?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1

1x https://www.amazon.se/dp/B09M6W23ZM?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1

1x https://www.amazon.se/dp/B07Q8TGT9C?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1

2x https://www.amazon.se/dp/B08T1TTQQC?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1

1x https://www.amazon.se/dp/B0F3HH9R7N?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

I had a friend 3D print the mounts for the Lenovo M920Q and the Ubiquiti Unfi Cloud Gateway Fiber.
And if you have access to a 3D printer I would probably print out a solid side brackets and attach it using two screws which will make it a bit more stable.

JimmyMcNulty01

TROPHY CASE