Most of the popular options don't make sense to me as a robust solution. miniboards(RPi, something-Pi) - underpowered for transcoding, no SATA/PCIe ports only

Most of the popular options don't make sense to me as a robust solution. miniboards(RPi, something-Pi) - underpowered for transcoding, no SATA/PCIe ports only USB, so little storage capacity via unreliable USB link. For playing it's OK, but if you're building something expandable, to last a long time , forget it. Synology/QNAP boxes - expensive, proprietary components, if some part (power brick, motherboard) fails after warranty ends, you're SOL. You can't swap parts, repairing anything is very hard. Rack mounted server in home - absurdly loud fans and impractical form factor So what is the golden option that is almost never mentioned? Build a quiet pc in tower box. You can choose the right components for your needs. You can repair/swap them for new ones when they fail. And it is cheaper.