TerraMaster Forum

Which style do you prefer, the classic silver aluminum casing that TerraMaster NAS used for many years, or the black plastic casing adopted for the newer models?

Dark metal, especially for higher power units to aid passive cooling. Nothing to do with aesthetics I just don't feel that plastics offer the best cooling (particularly at low fan speeds) and (in the current guise) all the structural finning on plastic cases probably hinders air flow and restricts ability to add reasonable heat sinks to nvme (for example).

Gremlin wrote: ↑10 Jan 2025, 02:12

I totally agree. I'm a bit disappointed with the plastic case (I have an F4-424) and more so seeing that there are older models that have aluminium cases. Aluminium would be better for cooling and durability. Aesthetically, the dark colour, in my opinion, would be very suitable.

And I also totally agree with what Gremlin says about NVME cooling.

neoz wrote: ↑10 Jan 2025, 14:07

I got some slim-line heatsinks with pads for my NMVEs in my F4-424 Pro. Fans not going into "turbo" mode at all now, it's definately made a difference.

Ranjbali wrote: ↑16 Jan 2025, 19:26

I also fitted low profile heat sinks (not that they were really needed in my situation) but I think the main issues of space arise if someone wants to utilise nvme with pre-fitted heat sinks (and, of course, if the chosen nvme runs hot and more cooling is needed).

dark aluminum casing - with some design feature such as red (parallel) lines (3x lines as adidas i.e.)

Dark plastic - its cheaper to make, it does not scratch, does not have sharp edges, easy to modify if needed, tools to make them and mold them are cheaper, and the final product is more budget friendly for the consumer.

Its a NAS, it sleeps somewhere on a shelf, far away from my eyes and ears. I dont care how it looks, i just want it to work, and to be silent.
And if possible, move the BOOT USB port from inside to the outside, i would LOVE that!

I think a dark aluminum casing is the best choice. It looks sleek and professional, plus it helps with cooling, which is important for durability and performance. Plastic may be cheaper, but aluminum gives a premium feel and better heat dissipation.

Aluminium does not help with cooling, if it is not connected to any heat-sink with thermal compound.
Yes, its cold to the touch, nothing more than that.

It has an use in rack-mount hardware, but on consumer grade i dont think it matters.

I rather have a good cooling design, with well made heat-sink, and quite and efficient fan, than a beautiful design that does not make anything good for my hardware.

I would rather have heat-pipes on the heat-sink for the CPU, and metal mounting hardware for the hard drives, because they will absorb some heat from them, but not all of them.

The internal frame should be, as it is now, from metal, well designed, so it does not block airflow, and guides air over the heat-sink and drives.

And yes, i have reversed the fan orientation on my F4-424-Pro unit, so it is an intake, and i have better results then before.

Let the engineers figure it out, they know what they do the best. Im always for function over design.

My 2 cents go to:
1. Heat-sink with heat-pipes (direct contact or polished)
2. Good and silent fan, take one from Noctua, BeQuite! or other good fan
3. Good thermal compound - Honeywell Ptm7950 is the best at this moment, i can only recommend it
4. Please, put the boot usb-port on the back side, with the USB dongle, or make it easy accessible from the inside, where the RAM and M.2 slots are, so the NAS does not have to be full dissembled to swap it.
5. A front small 8-segment display with the internal temperature, or a small LCD/E-Ink display with some basic information, like the IP Address, Temperature, Hostname etc

Valnjes wrote: ↑23 Jan 2025, 00:42 Aluminium does not help with cooling, if it is not connected to any heat-sink with thermal compound.
Yes, its cold to the touch, nothing more than that.

Errrrrrrrr, the internal heat will be "absorbed" by the aluminium casing, that will then dissipate externally, subject to the external temperature being lower.
It way not be as efficient than a dedicated heat sink, but it will help dissipate heat.

Great answer, though went a bit beyond topic