Hi Plex forum team member,
I would like to build Plex server from my media (movie/tv series) consumption.
In the beginning i would like to build just simple server from my old PC
CPU: AMD FX4350
GPU: Radeon R9 380
RAM : 12GB
HDD: 3 TB
I would like to save cost as much as I can.
How ever after do some research lot of people keep mention about transcode the media
And I found that CPU need to have minimum 12000 passmark for 4K media streaming
And with my FX4350 I can only got 3,259 passmark.
My question is,
Does it really requite that high CPU requirement? can I just play my 4k media without transcode?
And let say if I want to try it first can I just use free Plex server for time being? *i believe to have hw transcode it require me to buy subscription.
My Plan is to install TrueNAS on my server (for my normal NAS server- documentation, etc) and on top of it I will install Plex plugin. Kindly advice if have better option.
My main goal is to have 24/7 server running - if possible because same server will be my Google Drive alternative and Netflix/disney plus alternative.
So if have lower capital and operation expenditure it would be great.
You help will much appreciated, since this is my first post, apologies if it sitting in wrong forum tread.
As long as the client can play the file directly then you you don’t need to transcode, and you can make do with a slower CPU. You don’t need to pay for Plex Pass and unlock hardware transcoding in that case.
If you build a slow system with no transcoding ability, it means you are really limited in the future. Are you sure you’ll never want to watch a file on a phone, old tablet, some old TV? Or stream to a remote location, transcoding to fit the stream into your upload limit?
But since you already have this hardware, just build the server and try it out.
You’re good to go as-is. as Banzai says, as long as you have a client that is capable of playing your files without change, then it shouldn’t trigger a transcode. From what I recall only the desktop Windows/Linux clients, the Nvidia Shield Pro, or the AppleTV app are good enough to play some/most 4K video content natively. But it doesn’t mean that all combos of size and audio tracks will work. Some research may be necessary for you to make sure you get a setup and client device that will work with your media.
The Plex pass is the only charge for this service, and it is not necessary to get most the benefit out of Plex. Being able to use HW transcoding (using a graphics card to transcode) is one good benefit the Pass is required for. Doing HW transcoding uses almost zero CPU at all, so even lower end CPUs could in theory transcode 4K despite the passmark score, simply because the CPU is not the one doing the work.
Give Plex a go. You won’t really be bugged to “BUY THE PASS!” like you would other free software. Critical performance bits were not taken out of the system and locked behind the pass, you can try out Plex guilt and mostly-restriction free for a long time. In fact, the only reason I got the pass was to use a DVR to record my Over-the-air TV. Without that, I might still be (heavily) using Plex without a pass.
after back and forth testing, it seems that i cant use TrueNAS-Plex on my old PC
i am unable to install plex plugin. After check in forum it seems FreeBSD always had isssue with my Realteck ethernet port
