Priaptor

Agree. I couldn't listen to it much.

Micron 7450 Pro MTFDKCE7T6TFR-1BC15ABYY 7.68TB E1.S 15mm PCIe 4.0 (NVMe) SED SSD (serversupply.com) I got one of these and now have 4 more on order

Really a groundbreaking product. Tough at this point at least, to find them in stock, but an incredible product. I only ordered just one drive in order to test the unit for fan noise, ability, etc. but have now ordered another four 7.68 TB E1.S. With the 5 drives with a Raid 5, it will give me 25Tb of storage, with 3TB for overprovisioning and 8 for data protection. Also, with a 15mm E1.S drive, they have huge heat sinks already built into this industrial drive, which "should" provide much better heat dissipation.

A Star Is Born. TBS-h574TX | Make your creativity bloom with the lightning-fast Thunderbolt™ 4 All-Flash NASbook | QNAP (US) In my last step to finally finishing my new room and stereo, I just received my TBS-h574TX-i5-16G. This is an extremely powerful NAS with a very small footprint with a built in Intel Core computer fast enough to run ROON on the NAS, which QNAP supports very well. I ordered just one (at this time) Micron 7450 Pro Series 7.68 TB E1.S drive, a new “type” of SSD, with many advantages over M.2 NVMe. The drive bays can take either type of drive and with the removal of 2 screws easily takes the E1.S type drive removing the M.2 adapter. The benefits of the E1.S are they are better for hot swapping, better at heat dissipation, have longer time to failure and are faster. There are RJ45 network jacks for both 2.5 and 10GBs AS WELL as dual Thunderbolt inputs for very fast speeds. The built in computer is fast enough to run ROON, unlike my current go to NAS, the fanless TS-i410x. I don’t run HQP so can’t comment on that. While the TS-i410x is a great NAS, which I will use for redundancy of my NAS at my two homes, it is not as good as this new TBS-h574TX and has only 4 bays, compared to the TBS which has 5, and doesn’t use NVMe technology. While there are 2 fans for cooling, they are totally silent. The TBS allows one to use either QTS or QTS Hero. At $1,450 retail this is a “deal” compared to other all flash alternatives. Of course, IF you choose to buy either M.2 or E1.S at 7.68 TB capacity, it quickly adds up as these drives are NOT cheap; in either variety and why I am choosing the newer E1.S. I need the storage for other reasons, but these drives are expensive. Of course, the dual Thunderbolt ports, should one have a need for super-fast transfers, such as video editing is a huge plus. I am very impressed.

Agree. I was debating between Vicoustic and Artnovion, went with Artnovion because my friend/dealer was an Artnovion dealer but Chris is 100% spot on. They will provide you with a great pathway, possibly more than you care to spend or engage in but it is what it is. I just finished my room 3 weeks ago and couldn't be happier. Still have some stuff to do as but am very happy with their recommendations, their products and the result.

That is what I currently use. I love it.

In a similar vein I have my eye on TBS-h574TX-i5-16G https://www.qnap.com/en-us/product/tbs-h574tx Although it has fans I’m told remarkably quiet, tiny, E1S capable and fast enough to run Roon.

Agree.

Again, this is not a cut and dry topic with a sweeping statement like that. Again, I refer you to the actions of many Nordic countries and many other European countries that have literally closed their borders and have taken very strict limitations to those policies because their social services, particularly healthcare were being stretched to the limits, limiting access, to not only those they now decided to keep out but those paying the majority of the taxes. In fact, so many of those countries have been strained to their limits that "private alternatives" have been popping up everywhere, including the Nordic countries, EU and Canada; leading to a bigger disparity in access based on finances than ever here in America. There are many examples, including HIV drugs, HepC drugs, CAR-T, access to complex diagnostics, etc. that are readily accessible to all here. Now as Jud has illustrated, the access has become more complicated, ironically to those most insured, in the last 20 years BUT there is great data and studies to show this is more a function of our dysfunctional government.

That is something people LOVE to quote to show the ills of the American healthcare system. I really didn't want to get into such as political discussion BUT that data doesn't tell the story here in America. First, let me say, that IF America had policies at its borders, restricted access to the country by immigrants like Sweden, Denmark, etc. those being critical of America using those charts, would be the first to call us xenophobic and racist. We are a very heterogeneous population, with huge social issues that few in the world experience that are being measured in those charts and data that has virtually nothing to do with our healthcare system. I am sure I will be criticized for the stat, BUT here in America, the mortality rates for black males aged 15-40 is higher, as a result of homicides, than the most violent countries in the world. How do you think that effects "life expectancy" calculations. Same for other lower socioeconomic groups, that here in the USA, can't be compared to most other countries. The same arguments could be made for infant mortality, again, less of an argument about quality of our healthcare versus the socioeconomic issues it reflects in our ever-increasing diversity. Our obesity rates are now at 40%, obesity in children under 18 is now 21%, where in 1976-1980 it was just 4%, the second highest in the world (I think Samoa is the only worse) having little to do with our healthcare system and much more to do with our diversity, socioeconomic issues and American lifestyles than any access to the healthcare system. Lastly, as compared to many other countries where healthcare is rationed, we in America treat more than just longevity. In many countries "quality of life" is not addressed as it is here in America. Coronary stents, bypass, etc. may not improve longevity, which is the metric used in your post, BUT, those years being lived are at a higher quality. Same goes for joint replacements, etc. I hate anecdote BUT will use one. My wife's cousin, moved to Denmark in the 60s. She developed "ovarian tumor" around 13 years ago. She was actually seen pretty quickly, had a decent workup and was treated with "routine surgery". She had her follow-up PET/CT scan a year later, there was a "recurrence" was told there was "nothing left" to do. Well long story short, she came to Sloan in NYC, was treated successfully and is now alive 13 years later, having received a therapy not available anywhere in Denmark or other Nordic countries. I will be the first one to be critical of where we are compared to where we once were BUT access to the most advanced therapies and quality of life access therapies are like nowhere else int he world. Unfortunately, we have become a population of consumerism of healthcare DEMANDING rather than needing certain diagnostics and care. Try telling the patient in an American ER that they don't need a CT or MRI. Good luck

I don't want to get too much off topic, so I won't belabor this much more after this post. The US healthcare system once was a gem. While there may be some (or many) who disagree with me, there are few as in tune with its history. There once was a time, where access to the best in America, was open to all. Insurance was ubiquitous and covered all for not too much money. Primary care doctors directed care. Even chartable care was readily available in the form of teaching hospitals, religious hospitals and in fact, during my training many attendings when they needed care, chose the city hospital rather than the private teaching hospital. What happened? Well, it's a complex story BUT in an effort to control our healthcare system, both Dems and Repubs developed absurd schemes which over the years, took care out of the hands of doctors and empowered an ever-diminishing number of insurance companies forming ever powerful merged insurance oligarchs and for-profit hospitals while doctors became employees and powerless. In 1987, Medicare did began doing away with "reasonable and customary fees" and implemented RBRVS, something called RVU (relative value) reimbursement. They began bundling payments to hospitals. What they did was assign an RVU to each activity a doctor did and reimbursed based on this complex RVU schedule. Ignoring the law of unintended consequenc4es, this was implemented in total in 1989, with the reduced reimbursement led to massive overutilization. Now while ONLY 15% of the healthcare bill is attributable to the doctor, they drive the bus. So now, the government saw explosive increases in pay; also realize that insurance companies follow Medicare pretty closely so their reimbursement when the same way. In order to rein in costs, something called "SGR" sustainability growth rates was implemented to make increased utilization "budget neutral." which means that less was paid per RVU spawning even more utilization and schemes to counteract and that became the basis for the total destruction of our healthcare system, that led to doctors losing the ability to stay independent, insurance companies (with the help of the Gov't) to become oligarchs, for profit hospitals with the mergers and acquisitions to provide grocery store access, that as I said elsewhere turned healthcare into nothing but a commodity. There is much more to the story, but this is a short synopsis. The irony is that the government (both parties) which has literally destroyed the jewel of the world, namely the American Healthcare System, is now being looked to, by the majority of voters, to fix what they have broken. Can't make this up.

Jud, Not sure how old you are, but I am approaching 71. I was unfortunately tuned into healthcare at a very early age, when my mother (who had a host of maladies) suffered a stroke at the age of 47 when I was 15 and my dad, who didn't have much money basically told me "Son you are on your own". While bad for my mother, I was able to become self-sufficient, paid my way as well as used my BBall ability to pay my way through college with work and athletic scholarship. However, the lesson I learned, was back in the late 60s and early 70s there were a ton of insurance companies, my dad, even though he had very little money, always made sure to have "major medical" coverage. Back then you had primary care doctors (not insurance companies) directing the care of patients. Insurance companies, paid without a hassle as the competition was huge. My mother had access to the NYU for 3 months as well as their Rusk institute rehab center for another 6 months. The point being, we have "progressed" in our healthcare system to the exact opposite of where it began and as you state is very difficult for the average person to access what my mother, back then (or you now) were able to access. One last point. Despite all the ills of our healthcare system, there is no other place on the planet you would want to be WHEN you get (real) sick than the US.

I share much of your frustration in today's current medical climate. However, you did the right thing and went to MD Anderson. Very happy to hear you are doing well. Without all the detail, my good friend's wife had a recurrent non-Hodgkins B cell lymphoma. They were going to Yale, which they thought was "the place". I literally had to drag them to Sloan, which at the time was one of just a few places knowledgeable in CAR-T. They chose as a first line, to do a bone marrow, in order to use CAR-T should she need it in the future. She is actually cancer free 4 years later. Thankfully they had a friend knowledgeable in where the best treatment options were as well as who was most experienced for what they needed and with some connections as that is where I trained years ago. You did the right thing doing your due diligence and choosing the place you did. Here is the real unfortunate truth in healthcare today. For a variety of reasons, the government and their enabled insurance (now oligarchs) companies have cleverly been able to persuade younger generations that healthcare is just a commodity, all the same no matter where it is purchased and who administers it, and when they successfully do that, then all that matters is price because then it doesn't matter where you buy it. Not sure how old you are, but in today's world, we now have over 50% choosing Medicare Advantage as a result of what I just indicated. I'm glad you did your due diligence, picked the right location and had the outcome you did.

We may have had that discussion as well don’t remember. I remember something about COVID but not the details. My point wasn’t to criticize you but to make a point; you unlike most are very intelligent and not all opinions outside of one’s expertise should be frowned upon. apropos to this discussion, I have moved from one coast of FL to the other and in so doing traded some of my older equipment for some new stuff (not sure why, lol) which my friend delivered to the new house last year. Not surprisingly despite the added expense, it sounded like sh-t, which I had a sneaking suspicion it would based on the untreated room acoustics. I could name drop but don’t need to. Despite all the accolades this stuff has garnered for all the usual magazine reviews etc without the appropriate setup it was virtually useless and to be honest unlistenable. I almost preferred my EarPods Finally after returning from my home in MT this summer, got some money together to treat the room, which I carefully did, using the expertise of others and some of my own and literally just two weeks ago finished and I now can sit and enjoy. A remarkable difference. Too many believe the equipment is the answer and too many of us follow the reviews, measurements, etc and like in my case even some of the “best” equipment is useless without the right environment and setup.

Jud, In fairness, on these very threads, you and I have had disagreements about certain medical “facts”, and I have been an MD since 1981? I agree totally with your premise, however, many are guilty of what you claim largely because social media, short cut Google searches and bias validation of the “facts” they want to believe are so easily found on the Net. We can all look in the mirror at this one. Reality is, as I get older and as my friends and family get older, I have become in many ways, the most important person in their lives as they seek real advice for their ever more serious health issues that come with aging, rather than believe the nonsense they may have accessed on the NET for a less serious issue earlier in life. I have been following this thread with some amazement, with some laughter and most of all with some reflection. I think, in this “hobby” of ours, as one ages and becomes “wiser”, these debates become sillier. Personally, I just want to listen to music now. Many of us have become so entrenched with our views and want some sources to codify our choices in what we bought that we lose the ability to “objectively” assess our choices. There are some here who have a bone up their rear ends for those of us who have made $ and choose to spend it on stereo equipment, etc., which to me is as an absurd an opinion as those that have a binary choice for any other reason or motivation for what they buy and/or believe. On a personal level, in this “hobby”, this industry at all price levels produces such excellence that most who have this incredibly strong bias of one product or another, are just wasting their time, unless they enjoy the debate. I have no issue walking away from any product, have no issue with being self-critical or even self-deprecating if the situation calls for it BUT before I do I make sure I, or my setup isn't at fault.