No budget for now, and I own the SSDs already I just want to know what’s out there and what other people like.
My current setup is cobbled together from random parts and the HDDs are loud in my bedroom. I want all SSD storage (at least 4x) but with enough CPU/Ram to handle a lot of apps/VMs and some above-average demanding tasks (jellyfin, syncthing) than just being a NAS.
The only other criteria is that I would prefer it to be as small as possible (not rack mount).
You’re requirements are too vague as “lots of apps/VMs” doesn’t describe the expected load. Overall though if you want small just build a mini-ITX system. Then you can put in any x86 chip that fits your needs.