Melco Audio N1ZH/2
Hi-Res Digital Music Library

Upgrading the Melco Storage

Melco Audio  N1ZH/2

My Melco came with 2 x 3Tb hard discs, the largest version available from Melco. You would expect that this is more than enough but quickly enough I ran into the issue of running out of space. To solve it, I moved the classical music to the normal NAS and only kept pop, rock, jazz, etc on the Melco. But even with this strategy the Melco was at 95% capacity after a couple of years.

I had already once reached out to Melco to ask if they were considering making bigger discs available, but didn't get an answer that gave me the impression they were seriously considering this. Then in the Melco User group on Facebook I saw a post from a guy who had replaced his discs with SSD discs of the same size. Which is obviously interesting, especially since the SSD model from Melco is very expensive (around 11000 euro for 2Tb storage). But this also made me think, would it be possible to replace the discs in my Melco with larger SSDs and thereby making the move to SSD and more capacity? Asking around a bit, the general response was: It should just work.

Then the only option is: just try it!. I ordered two WD Red 4Tb SSD drives and got started.

The first step was easy, just backup the existing data.

As it turned out, this was less easy than expected. The backup procedure of the Melco is not completely rock solid making it simply stop at 75% or so with no obvious reason. So the rest was then done with manual copying and lots of checks between the backup and the Melco I was sure that I had a solid backup. Another thing to think off is, if you are using MinimServer, that you should first remove the license from the Melco. After the upgrade all those settings are gone, so then you would be missing a license. Now the actual work could start.

When opening the Melco you can see the discs located at the front in their own section of the case on a copper base. The first thing I did was simply number the existing discs. That way whenever the Melco wouldn't want to work with the SSD, I would be sure to put them back again in the right order (and hopefully not have to restore the full backup).

Next it was disconnecting the power cables to make it easier to get access to the disc bay. Unscrew the copper base and remove the base including the hard discs.

With the base and hard discs removed it is easy to remove the hard discs from the base. Between the hard discs and the base are spacers that make sure that the discs don't touch the copper base. You'll need this again with the SSD discs, although the discs themselves you could also place directly onto the copper base that would mean there isn't enough space for the connectors anymore. So the SSD discs are installed in the exact same way as the original discs were.

After this it is simply a matter or placing the copper base with the SSDs back into the Melco case and connecting everything again.

Reconnect all the wires again which I had disconnected to make working space. And then everything should be complete again and you've got a Melco with 2 x 4Tb SSD. Then the only nagging question remains: "Will it work?"

Connecting the Melco again and switching it on for the first time, the first thing you notice is no discs spinning up anymore! With the new discs the Melco behaves as after a factory reset, so be prepared to setup all your settings again. It first comes up with the language selection, after making the language selection it will reboot to switch to the right language. Then it starts up again in the right language and will give an error saying the internal storage is not ready. This is a good thing, because it are new discs! It will present you with the options for how to setup the storage (Spanned, Raid 0, Raid 1). I choose Spanned and off it goes.

And then it simply finishes and you've got a Melco with 2 x 4Tb SSD storage! After that it is simply a case of making all your settings again, install MinimServer again and add the full license to MinimServer. And then the only thing left to do is put all your music back on the Melco and enjoy it!

After restore of the backup we now still have room to spare for many albums!