Apple TV and Plex Connect

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Hi, I have a media server set up with plex, it is working quite well with a Roku2 that I own. I just bought another tv and am looking into buying another Roku or AppleTV. I would like to try an appleTV but it is important that I have access to my media server via plex.

 

After reading mutiple threads, tips and tricks; can some one please answer these 2 questions:

  1. Can AppleTV be used to view my media content off my media server via plex?
  2. How? Step by step tutorials?

I like how this thread says yes to both answers but it is outdated. Has anything changed? if not can someone, provide a little detail to the steps it provided?

 

Thanks!!!

 

2

-> WIKI

not 100% accurate, but pretty close.

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PlexConnect with Apple TV works fabulously to access your Plex server!  

After trying it out, you will want to replace your Roku2 on your other TV with another Apple TV box and wonder why you didn't switch months ago.

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PlexConnect works great with my ATV3, but you have to consider that:

  1. You need a Plex Server with decent power to be able to transcode. Roku accepts more media formats than the ATV, so in theory the ATV will cause higher load on the PMS machine
  2. PlexConnect explores an "open door" in the ATV that Apple may (or may not) close in the future. Apple has already tried that last August/September, Baa and others were quick to develop a solution, but there is always the danger to have Apple closing the doors again
  3. ATV3 has almost 2 years in the market, and rumours suggest that something will be announced next March
5

You can always buy an ATV from a retailer with a no questions asked returns policy such as Apple/Amazon :slight_smile:

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is it possible to play mkv movies?or must i use only mp4 format?

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is it possible to play mkv movies?or must i use only mp4 format?

It is possible to play mkv movies in the ATV3 through PlexConnect if, and only if, the machine where PMS (Plex Media Server) is installed is powerfull enough to transcode (see the PMS documentation). Otherwise you need to use Handbrake, iFlicks or similar to convert to MP4 format.

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okay i got a synology nas 211 and no transcode i think....which nas can do this?

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okay i got a synology nas 211 and no transcode i think....which nas can do this?

If you already have a DS211 you have two options:

  1. Install PlexConnect in the DS211, but use another (more powerfull) machine to install PMS. That 2nd machine can read the media from the NAS, transcode it, and send it to the ATV. Wake-on-LAN is a possibility to reduce the noise and power comsuption of the 2nd machine. Performance is OK for 720p and ethernet 10/100 cabling. For 1080p probably giga-ethernet is advisable. Wireless LAN can suffer from external "noise" so I do not recommend it at all
  2. Convert your media to MP4 for long term storage. For short/quick views you can use AirPlay from another machine (tablet, phone, PC), not necessarily with a Plex client. This is what I am doing

The DS Video application can't transcode in the DS211, so I do not see it as a viable option. Besides, it always requires a tablet (or phone) to launch the video, while with PlexConnect you just need the ATV remote.

Many MKV films are encoded with video and audio tracks compatible with the ATV. In such cases it's possible to remux the MKV's into MP4's in one minute. Regarding subtitles, the PlexConnect team is developing the capability to have external SRT's so that PMS transcoding is not necessary. I've not yet tested this but I'm very enthusiasmed with this possibility. I have a DS411slim and CPU power is very limited, let's see...

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You can remux your media. Files using iFlicks - takes about 4-5 mins a movie and you can batch job them.

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i use iflicks2 and it works very good....the only problem is the subtitel.

i click the subtitle on but it is not comming.

i play the file with vlc and there is a subtitle.

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