The box + the drives
A four-bay NAS build for a Plex library
This capacity-focused example pairs a four-bay F4-425 with four 8TB WD Red Plus drives. RAID 5 leaves about 24TB before formatting and filesystem overhead. The enclosure and each drive are bought separately.
| Component | Quantity | Amazon US offer |
|---|---|---|
Diskless enclosureTerraMaster F4-4251 × 2.5GbE | 1 |
Verified productCheck availability ↗Check seller, condition and current price on Amazon.Checked Sep 13, 2026 20:53 UTC
|
Western Digital WD Red PlusWD80EFPX8TB each · CMR · SATA 6 Gb/s | 4 drives | New · per driveView drive on Amazon US ↗ |
The total assumes the same per-unit price for each drive. Confirm quantity available and final cart pricing on Amazon; these are separate offers, not a packaged kit. Excludes tax, shipping, network upgrades, subscriptions and independent backup storage.
Manufacturer compatibility checked: WD80EFPX is listed as recommended for F4-425 · reviewed September 13, 2026. Check the latest list and exact hardware revision before ordering.
Choose playback requirements first
Serving a file that your player can handle directly is a different workload from converting it during playback. Check codecs, subtitles, remote playback and your actual client devices before choosing a NAS processor. Do not assume a “4K” label promises a particular number of simultaneous transcodes.
Why this array
The F4-425 has four SATA bays and a 2.5GbE port. WD80EFPX is an exact 8TB Red Plus CMR SATA model listed as recommended for this NAS in TerraMaster’s compatibility table, checked September 13, 2026. Four equal drives keep the RAID 5 capacity calculation simple. No NVMe cache is required for this example.
What RAID 5 changes
One drive’s equivalent capacity stores parity, so four 8TB drives yield a nominal 24TB pool. One drive failure can be tolerated; another failure during recovery can destroy the array. Rebuild time depends on drive size, load and software. Keep a separate copy of irreplaceable media and your server configuration.
Plex and network checks
Verify the current Plex package or supported installation method for TOS and the exact NAS CPU before purchase. Check Plex’s current feature and subscription requirements for your playback plan. A separate mini PC can run Plex while the NAS stores the files. This is useful when you need a different processor or want to keep storage and playback upgrades independent.
Spend on capacity you will use
Estimate your existing library, expected growth and backup space. Four drives increase cost, power and noise; a smaller array can be sensible for a modest library. The component total below excludes a network upgrade, Plex subscriptions, backup storage and an uninterruptible power supply.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. These are diskless enclosures; drives are sold separately. Amazon US only. Prices and availability can change; the price displayed on Amazon at purchase applies. Check the selected seller, condition and exact configuration.