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Forum Discussion
Fan Control for ReadyNAS NV+ v2 (Make it more quiet please)
I have been trying to get my nv+ v2 a little bit quiter for a while now and haven't really succeeded. I changed the fan, and it helped, but I can't get the fan to work as slow as I'd like. The disks ...
Thank you for the long reply. I appreciate the help.
The fan I'm currently using is the Noctua A9x14: http://noctua.at/en/products/fan/nf-a9x14-pwm with the low speed transformer which supposedly lowers the noise value to around 13 db. The fan is good, and I'm not really complaining about that, what I don't understand is why the fan is running at a constant speed and throttle at all times.
Most of the time the NAS is idle, if I'm using it then it's most likely because I'm working or watching a movie. The problem I'm having is the idle noise when no one is using it; it seems strange to me that the fan isn't controlling its speed based on the temperature or usage. Even after installing the low throttle adapter from noctua its still too loud for when its not actually doing anything.
Unfortunately I've tried to relocate the NAS and currently that's not an option due to network access and apartment layout. And any closet I could put it in would be small and cramped and restrict air flow much worse than simply turning down the fan during idle time.
Doesn't the NV+ V2 have fan control settings based on temperature or usage? And if it does, is there an easy way to test this?
I don't think the NV+ V2 had a fan speed control. It's a older NAS running a older OS. I don't think there was a fan option. I sold mine a while ago and so I can't look. I don't really find anything on Google about it. Does the fan slow down and go into low power, sleep mode? On mine,OS6 I have a Disc Spindown setting, I have set for 5 minutes of inactivity. So it takes a few extra seconds to wait for it to start back up when I go to access it. I also have a Power Timer setting where I have it power down late night until morning when no one is going to be using it at all. Once it shuts down, I can't access it at all. I have to physically hit the power button to power it back up. These are things you can do to save some energy. Still powering down the HDD doesn't happen for to long at times because I have a number of programs on it that are busy at times searching and downloading on it's own.
It is a low end NAS, with not a lot of features. It did it's job. I just don't remember mine having a loud fan and I never touched it. On mine, it shows a picture of a fan. You can see the picture on mine. This is OS6.1.1 You can't tell by this picture, but you can see a picture of the fan spining behind that grill picture. So you have you're 3 settings of Cool, Balance (Which I'm using) and Quite. So Quite will run the Slowest while Cool will run the fastest. The RPM speed is always changing on it's own to the needs of the NAS. You can also see my CPU and System temp. I modified my NAS with a faster cpu and went from 4 to 16 gig's of ram. I think OS4 and OS5 just had a FAN Icon with a Green Dot to show that it was working OK. You could always just power it down when your not using it.
You can also buy a newer ReadyNAS that is running OS6 and newer. I just remember that NAS being really pretty poky slow. I can Max out my Gigabit Network moving files to and frm my current NAS. Back when I had the NV+ V2, I only got about 1/5 the transfer speeds I have now. You may want to look at a new one. A ReadyNAS 214 for example. $394.99 currently on Amazon. It's a 4 Bay unit. Also listed as Amazon's Choice. (RN21400-100NES). It's a much better NAS. Faster, has 2 ethernet ports thatyou can link togeather if you have a Managed switch. Runs OS6+. Uisng the better, modern BTRFS file system. You might get $100 for your current NAS making the new cost cost you a $100 less.
There is a fan_setting_min file that you can find with SSH/shell access - you can try setting the value in there to a smaller value.
I don't think there is a max counterpart though, or any other way to modify the built-in OS 5 fan management.
Is it practical to add a noise baffle in the equipment closet? Perhaps a panel behind the NAS at the point of first reflection of the fan noise?
There is a tip on that embedded in this old whitepaper:
http://www.readynas.com/?p=301 wrote:
... a modest but effective noise baffle can be put between the Duo and the work position. See materials from RealTraps or Auralex (maxwall). Using a 61x61x3 cm RealTraps PVB baffle between the Duo and myself at 1 meter, I nearly eliminate my perception of noise from the unit ...
Although it's a study of the readynas duo, the baffle idea should work with any ReadyNAS.
RealTraps and Auralex are pricey, but you might get acceptable results with other acoustic treatment products. For instance http://www.acoustimac.com
Well he was saying that he couldn't really put it in his closet. It sounds like it's sitting right next to him. If you just placed it under the desk and off to the side a bit, that alone would cut down on noise. If it's still a issue, someting is wrong with that single fan. In a dead quite room you may hear some noise, but watching TV or something would easily mask it. So I just don't get it. It's not very large, you can almost put the thing anywhere. Being it doesn't really have the fastest Network speed, you could even use a powerline adapter if you can't run ethernet. To place it someplace else near a power supply. where the fan noise won't bother you.
Thanks so much for all the help guys.
I haven't been able to noticeably change my fan speed via the setting file, even though I found the file called fan_setting_min, as well as others; but I was able to throttle it down with an extra cable extension to reduce the voltage on the fan so it is also a lot better now.
I've also been able to put the NAS in the drawer of my tv-bench. It's a bit small and cramped and I was afraid of airflow issues, but by paying attention to the thermometer and status of the NAS I'v concluded that it will be allright. This has helped with the noise as well. In general the problem was not that it was very loud, but that when everything else is turned off and the room is quiet it's quite annoying to hear that buzzing sound. Its not perfect yet, but its better.
I do agree that the NAS is a bit slow actually, so I might want to look into upgrading to a better one in a while, I just don't want to get one that gets even louder.
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