Interesting. It’s no longer available of course, but I would have looked for something called “P2000”.
How do you know which are compatible or “the same”?
I had looked at getting a P2000 but then decided against it as it used the older Pascal Generation and the 1660 used the newer Turing platform. I can’t remember the main differences now in the newer generation as I researched this almost a year ago but I believe it’s a bit faster/more efficient and better video quality. Here’s a cheat sheet per-say -
https://www.elpamsoft.com/?p=Plex-Hardware-Transcoding
Only thing you need to do with the 1660 is unlock the artificial stream/transcode limitation.
they are fairly similar in term of performances, the 1660 should have a small lead, but not for power efficiency. the P2000 uses about half the energy needed for the gtx 1660
Seems that Xbox series x may have a Dolby vision 2 year exclusive, according to this…
I don’t have a dv tv, so can’t report how well or even if/when it may work in plex.
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Transcoder optimization should improve (reduce) video ram usage on nvidia gpu/linux.
check it out!
I just checked my NVIDIA tube and it seems like 4k is working fine. Has this fixed 4k for the tube for anyone else?
the above post about memory optimization was for PMS and transcoding, so it would not affect 4k playback on tube or any other clients.
if that isn’t what you were referring to, then I’m not sure.
I’m not aware of any tube specific fixes recently, but that doesn’t mean there haven’t been.
Ah, nevermind then. Must have just been a coincidence.
Speaking of 4K Transcoding specifically…
I know that there are so many variables when it comes to hardware specs for Plex (operating system, other programs/tasks running, number of users, hardware acceleration, how the source file is encoded, audio, subtitles, etc., etc., etc.)
But is there a thread that lists the Minimum CPU Core Count, Core Base Speed, and Core Turbo Speed required to Transcode 1 4K stream down to let’s say 1080P since most everyone has a 1080P TV now?
It would be interesting to see a list of CPU results using a set of “Baseline Requirements” (No other software running, 1 transcode only, transcode audio to a specific format, include subtitles, etc.) using no hardware acceleration (Kind of like a worst case scenario) and have users submit their results. I guess that’s the point behind Passmark Scores but I feel that having users physically upload “Plex Specific” results to some sort of database would definitely be better.
If plex had a dummy video file you could download, play via plex web based on set output specifications, and record cpu stats that would really help at putting all these CPU’s abilities on a level playing field.
At least that way if you add Hardware Acceleration you know your results will only get better!
not a thread, but there is the plex cpu support article.
There is also this 3rd party web that compares gpu transcoding performance.
Thanks TeknoJunky, you’ve definitely been a pioneer in Plex 4K Capabilities and thanks for documenting all your experiences.
The problem I have with the CPU suggestion in the Plex article is that it really doesn’t go into enough detail. So a Core i7 @ 3.2Ghz can transcode 1 4K stream. What that doesn’t tell me is how many cores is that i7. Is that a quad core or is it more? Is the 3.2Ghz Base clock speed or Turbo Boosted speed? Does that include HDR Tone Mapping on or not. Are Subtitles on or not? Does that include Audio Transcoding or not?
Variables…
What I’ve found with using Passmark Scores as your guideline is that you can meet or exceed the Plex recommended Passmark Score because of sheer volume of cores but you still run into issues due to your core speeds. So even using their Passmark suggestions needs to be taken with a grain of salt.
The GPU table is good but the reality is that most GPU’s made in the last 2 - 3 years can handle a minimum 1 4K Transcode.
Again the challenge is determining the CPU requirement to handle all the overhead that the GPU does not handle. I don’t even know all the different things the CPU still handles in Plex if you have Hardware Acceleration (GPU or QuickSync) but as far as I can tell Audio, Subtitles, and Tone Mapping are still CPU dependent for the Windows Platform at least. There may be more things too. Would love to find out about all the the major things the CPU Handles.
It seems that Audio Transcoding is not hugely taxing to a CPU, Subtitles can take a bit of CPU Power from what I understand, but HDR Tone Mapping is very CPU taxing though.
This is the challenge I’m having with selecting a new CPU…. Intel with QuickSync, Intel with GPU, AMD with GPU. How many cores and at what base speeds… Hmmm!!!
you are right and have brought up a similar point before, that an i7 can range from a 2000 gen, to an 11000 gen intel gpu. and there is humongous difference between them.
the 17k passmark is for all cores, so one 4k = ~17k passmark (obviously without gpu transcoding)
now, you are correct that there is other stuff going on that also requires cpu cycles.
many of those depend on single core passmarks.
I don’t know if there has been a better determined baseline, but I believe it takes a minimum of ~1200 for audio/subtitles single thread rating.
I’m guessing, since I don’t recall anyone putting a number out there, would be at least ~2000 passmarks for tone mapping.
In any case, the absolute minimum I think anyone with any experience around here will tell you, is a 7th gen intel cpu + uhd600 series igpu.
the 7th gen can fairly handle the non-gpu loads, while the igpu quicksync handles the video transcoding.
Its not going to handle much 4k without using quicksync though.
according to @ PassMark - Intel Core i7-7700 @ 3.60GHz - Price performance comparison its passmark is 8624, single process 2475
and finally, even worrying about CPU only 4k transcoding is not really worth the effort.
the thread ripper pro 3995wx has 86249 passmark, but still only single core peformance of 2645, barely better than the 7700.
86000/17000 = ~5 4k transcodes on cpu only (probably less, with the other single threaded processes needing cpu too.
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Thanks TeknoJunky…
That’s where I’m at…. It makes no sense to look at 4K Transcoding without Hardware Acceleration of some sort.
And you also helped narrow down some core performance needed for the remaining transcoding required outside of Video Transcoding.
It also very interesting to know that a lot of the remaining CPU processes are Single Core processes too. That explains why I’m having issues with a bunch of cores but at slower speeds.
Thanks!
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I am grateful for all the work OP did and does here, but I must report I seem to have broken the first 7 rules, at least. I sought build help for my new media server in the buildapc discord, and mentioned I’d like to transcode 4K via plex server, as though it were a pipe dream, and I was recommended this processsor https://pcpartpicker.com/product/FsXJ7P/intel-core-i5-11500-27-ghz-6-core-processor-bx8070811500
And since it was sold out, I got the next model up, and built this https://pcpartpicker.com/user/DaddyVR/saved/FjJQP6
And now my friends and family can stream my 4K movies, where they couldn’t before.
Perhaps the latest generation of Intels has changed the paradigm a little bit?
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When this faq was created, there was less gpu support, no tone mapping, and a very large established base of servers using ancient hardware.
Over time, installed hardware has improved, plex transcoder improvements, tone mapping support have all made it much easier and simpler for just about anyone with a 7th gen intel or newer, or 10 series nvidia gpu to transcode easily.
So a lot has changed, the “rules” may not be as needed, but still provide a bit of background and info for new folks coming in to learn and understand.
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This thread has been such a great help in my Plex 4K journey, and just wanted to take a moment after another “win” yesterday. A friend who recently upgraded his projector to a 4K one and ended up with a Google Chromecast (the new one with Google TV) was curious about streaming 4K movies from my server. I had recommended a Shield Pro so was skeptical. Both of us have symmetrical gigabit internet so I figured it was possible, though I had some doubts since the Chromecast has a power brick with an Ethernet jack that is, yet again, 10/100. I have no idea why this is so prevalent among media devices and TVs (well, I do, since the manufacturers know the vast majority of folks will not hardwire, but anyway). Despite that potential limitation, everything was direct play and apparently looked fantastic. He only tried one movie so we’ll see if a different one spikes above the limit of his wired connection. One thing I was curious about, I changed my outgoing quality settings to “original” and left my upload speed setting blank after reading on a forum that it could be an issue. Is that recommended practice? I did not see any issues on my home internet while he was streaming (and someone else was streaming a 720p show at the same time). Thanks again to TeknoJunky and all the contributors here.
generally you should just set it correctly for your actual upload bandwidth.
when you leave it blank, plex does not know when it is reaching the limit and if the total streams start exceeding your available upload, then your users will start buffering.
when the upload limit is set, plex can start reducing new streams bw (ie transcoding to lower quality) as it approaches the cap (existing active streams are left alone).
the upload cap should not affect any streams that are well under.
you can also set the cap lower than your actual upload, so that streams do not saturate your connection and block other internet apps.
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Are you transcoding with HDR tone mapping enabled on that 11600k?
If so, what is your current software setup?
I am using unraid 6.9.2 and tried several plex docker options with a 11600k but get visual corruption with tone mapping enabled.
Hi there. Sorry to hear of your struggles. I am happy to share everything I’ve done. I think my advantage might be in the hardware or at least that’s what the people in r/buildapc discord thought.
https://pcpartpicker.com/user/DaddyVR/saved/#view=FjJQP6
I should mention that the recommended processor was 11500. I got the 11600 because it was out of stock everywhere. Also the motherboard could be purchased without the “AC“ addon if you don’t care about Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. And a quieter fan and case might be preferred although I have it running silently.
And then beyond that, I’m just running windows 10 pro on an ssd. And the videos are on internal hard drives. And I have xfinity gigabit speed Internet with a surfboard sb33 modem and an eero pro 6 connected via Ethernet.
As far as I can recall I’ve done nothing else. I hope this helps. I’m happy to answer any other questions but that’s pretty much my entire setup.
Thanks for keeping the opening post so updated and relevant @TeknoJunky
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