# Hardware Transcoding fine tuning
**URL:** https://forums.plex.tv/t/hardware-transcoding-fine-tuning/904411
**Category:** Plex Media Server
**Tags:** server-unraid
**Created:** [February 2, 2025, 3:33pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/hardware-transcoding-fine-tuning/904411 "2025-02-02T15:33:01Z")
**Posts on this page:** 5
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@lawbabie](https://forums.plex.tv/u/lawbabie)
#### Post date: [February 2, 2025, 3:33pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/hardware-transcoding-fine-tuning/904411/1 "2025-02-02T15:33:01Z")
Server Version#:1.41.3
Player Version#: not applicable
I have been running Plex (with a Plex Pass) for years with no major problems. The XML file got corrupted once, but that was an easy fix (restored XML file from backup). Moving from one hardware platform to another also wasn’t a problem. The new hardware platform has a GPU in it. I correctly configured it on the UNRAID side to the Plex container, and Plex in the UI sees it and uses it. Again, no problem.
I do notice that when hardware acceleration (HWA) is employed for movies that are 720 or lower, the stream is a bit blocky & blurry. When HWA is employed for raw blu-ray files, the stream looks better (I spent a few hours yesterday experimenting with it). Plex does a good job of [talking about HWA limitations](https://support.plex.tv/articles/115002178853-using-hardware-accelerated-streaming/), so I have disabled HWA for now because of the visible degradation of the stream, as most of the videos in my library are 720 or 480.
Is there a way to have Plex only employ HWA for high-quality videos (greater than 720, like 1080 or 4k) and leave HWA only for videos that need it? I would imagine a check box under the “Transcoder” section of the Plex Media Server saying “only use HWA for 1080 streams or higher”, or something like that. To be honest, my server is a former gaming desktop, so processor use isn’t a concern at the moment, but I am looking to tune the system to use all available hardware.
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### Author:  [@lawbabie](https://forums.plex.tv/u/lawbabie)
#### Post date: [February 11, 2025, 5:30pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/hardware-transcoding-fine-tuning/904411/2 "2025-02-11T17:30:16Z")
I haven’t seen any response just yet - poking this question to see if I can get some renewed attention and to reframe my question:
Is there way I can use the current settings (under Settings-\>Transcoder) to have it only use hardware transcoding when it’s required, like if the CPU is running hot or if I am streaming a 1080/4k movie?
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### Author:  [@wafflelicious420\_gmail.com](https://forums.plex.tv/u/wafflelicious420_gmail.com)
#### Post date: [February 12, 2025, 5:08pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/hardware-transcoding-fine-tuning/904411/3 "2025-02-12T17:08:19Z")
I think your best option right now is to use a kill script with [Tautulli](https://github.com/blacktwin/JBOPS/tree/master/killstream). The GitHub shows they’re options to kill transcodes by original resolution, by bitrate, by library, etc.
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### Author:  [@lawbabie](https://forums.plex.tv/u/lawbabie)
#### Post date: [February 13, 2025, 4:28pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/hardware-transcoding-fine-tuning/904411/4 "2025-02-13T16:28:36Z")
Ah, thanks for that! I will look into this!
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### Author:  [@system](https://forums.plex.tv/u/system)
#### Post date: [May 14, 2025, 4:28pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/hardware-transcoding-fine-tuning/904411/5 "2025-05-14T16:28:53Z")
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