I have 3 computers which could serve as my Plex server and I am curious to know which you’d choose, and why.
First up, an original 2015 Nvidia Shield which has been my Plex server all along. My Plex experience was pretty terrible in the beginning but eventually, updates from Plex or Google made the server stable and it works pretty OK now. The Shield is with a bedroom TV that gets a lot of use, so I use the Plex client there too.
Next is an Intel i7 10700k with GTX 1070 GPU. This is my gaming PC and it also serves as the HTPC with my projector. This is the place where more “critical viewing” happens. If there is any performance advantage to the Plex server and client being on the same machine, that might make a server switch worthwhile.
I also have an i7 6700k with built in Intel GPU. This is the living room TV PC. If I was switching PMS to a computer I can’t see why I’d use this box instead of the more powerful 10700k+1070, but it is an option.
Other usage info
I have Plex pass so hardware power is available.
I have no Plex metadata to preserve.
My media files are all on a Synology NAS which would be available to each Plex server via gigabit LAN.
I do not have any 4k displays though I want to rip 4k content and view it at 1080p. I’ll get a 4k display eventually.
99.99% of the time only one Plex user will be active at a time… I am not serving all my friends and family around the globe.
If it was not possible to use Plex if the gaming PC server was running a game, that would be OK.
The Shield server cannot transcode some 4k content to 1080p. For example a 60 Mbps 4k HDR file is unplayable unless playing it direct. A 20 Mbps 4k HDR file can be crunched down to 1080p.
If your media collection is growing, the Shield will be less and less suitable.
Not to mention that you won’t be able to use all Plex features with it, like the brand-new sonic analysis for music.
The i7 6700 is a Skylake CPU which has only support for decoding 8bit color HEVC. This is not what’s on 4K Blurays, so not a good choice.
The gaming rig has a Comet Lake CPU with decent codec support Intel Quick Sync Video - Wikipedia
– even if you remove the nVidia GPU card.
On the other hand, it will consume more electricity even in idle mode than the Shield.
Library size isn’t a concern at least for the Shield as I have already set up an external SSD for Plex storage and I have turned off all the space-hungry options. But Sonic Analysis is quite appealing…
However the real killer is that the Shield apparently cannot keep up with transcoding a high bitrate 4k file down to 1080p. I thought the Shield was supposed to be pretty fast … but it is the 2015 version. It absolutely dies trying to crunch 60 Mbps 4k HDR down to 1080p.
The gaming PC already doesn’t sleep so I am kind of used to wasting its idle power already. I guess I may as well try out the Plex server there and see what happens.
I bet it’s a disaster, but fortunately because of how the household works that’s an unlikely scenario.
I realized I have another option, I have a disused gaming laptop… It is also a Skylake CPU but it has a mobile GTX 1070. The transcoding cheat sheet does not list mobile GPUs but it suggests that it should be able to handle at least one transcode.
Laptops are problematic due to their often insufficiently dimensioned cooling system.
Even a “gaming” laptop might have the same problem past a certain age, because all those tiny fans and air ducts are collecting dust and fluff like crazy with so much airflow.
This is true, but the laptop may be headed to the closet (or recycling) so I could try it out. If it doesn’t work well, or if it melts down… it was hosed anyway. Its internal display died so it has transformed into a slow desktop system.
Anyway I will probably try out the 10700k and see what happens. Thanks again for the help!
I use an i7-6700 (non-K) running Ubuntu 2020.04 LTS for my Plex server and it works fine. I am using the built-in graphics for the rare occasion I actually use the PC itself rather than sshing into it.
Caveats:
I use it only for Plex, nothing else.
All of my media is H.264/FLAC16.
Transcoding does not seem to be an issue. Even on this old hardware, CPU usage stays low and it easily keeps up with at most two clients.
