Working on a NAS/Plex server build on unraid. I only need the ability to transcode one 4k stream to 1080p.
Fractal Design Case
AMD RYZEN 5 3600
ASUS ROG STRIX B450-F GAMING AM4 AMD B450 SATA 6Gb/s ATX AMD Motherboard
CORSAIR Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3200 (PC4 25600) Desktop Memory Model CMK16GX4M2B3200C16
Still not sure about the video card, if i get a decent GPU i could go lower on the CPU?
opinions please?
That will be alright. I use a Dell PowerEdge R710 with dual six core processors from a while back. It does just fine. What will you be streaming TO?
With hardware accelerated streaming/transcoding still being a Plex Pass feature… it’ll come down to your CPU. For a 4K HEVC transcode to 1080p, your CPU needs a PassMark of approx. 17000… According to its specs, your Ryzen should give you almost a 20000 PassMark – so you should be good to go for 1 transcode – however it’ll probably make your fans go a little crazy 
I will be getting a plex pass so i can use the hardware accelerated. Question is how small of a video card can i use? As i do need one.
Will plex use the CPU and GPU simultaneously to do the transcode?
Since you’re contemplating a Plex Pass, consider using a 8th Gen+ i7/i9 Intel CPU and no graphics card. 8th Gen+ CPUs have UHD Graphics 630, the most recent version of Intel’s Quick Sync graphics. Avoid the CPUs ending in “F,” as they have no onboard graphics (ex: i7-9700KF).
Spend the extra money on the CPU instead of a graphics card.
If you do go with a graphics card, note that AMD graphics cards not supported for hardware acceleration in Linux.
Here’s some good info on Nvidia transcoding capability: https://www.elpamsoft.com/?p=Plex-Hardware-Transcoding
This (long) thread has good info as well.
Nvidia GTX graphics cards are limited, by Nvidia, to two simultaneous encodes. Hacked drivers are available to remove this limit. No idea how well they work or if they work for Linux.
Nvidia Quadro cards have no pre-set limit on encodes. Performance is limited by available memory.
So…
If you go with Intel on-board graphics, avoid the “F” CPUs and go with UHD 630 graphics.
If you go with a GTX card, you’ll want one that decodes H.265. This means a 1050 or better. From what I’ve read, Nvidia improved the encoder quality with the 16xx cards, so you may want to go with a 1650 or better.
For a Quadro card, you’ll want a P2000 or better. P1000 & lower are limited like the GTX cards.
The Nvidia support matrix has additional details:
I only need 1 stream code. I used to always buy Intel but AMD has much more CPU power for less money and there MB cost less.
Does Nvdia limit the stream to get you to buy the P2000 series?
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