Quick Sync vs Passmark

Hey there,

I’m currently planning on a set up for a media server. I mostly get 4k media and there will probably a few 4k transcodes (maybe 2-3 at a time).
I’m planning to learn Ubuntu and set it up there.
I read a lot about Quick Sync, NVDEC etc now but I’m still confused with the choice of my hardware.
I’ve read that Quick Sync helps a lot with transcoding, as is NVDEC. But both together seem a bad investment?

I checked the prices of CPUs and if I compare AMD with Intel. I can either choose a (much) higher passmark with AMD or lower passmark but with Quick Sync with Intel for the same money.

Is Quick Sync worth it or should I just go with a higher passmark?

Personal opinion is that home streaming 4K is not ready for the average Joe, but if you are willing to invest the time and money venture forth.

Quick Sync is the only officially supported Hardware Transcoding (Decode and Encode) method under Linux at this current time. With the proper Passmark score CPU’s are more than capable for H.264. H.265 (4K) uses exponentially more computational power and custom ASIC’s (GPU’s) are the way forward for this along with greater network and disk demands.

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Thanks for your reply!
The whole project has so much information for me to take in…
So you say I should maybe rather invest in a semi decent CPU that supports Quick Sync? The last bit with the GPU I didn’t get though… So I should save money on the GPU and get maybe an AMD because the hardware acceleration of a Nvidia wouldn’t bring too much of advantages?

To the rules:

  • The first rule of 4k is
    • Don’t bother transcoding 4k

Got it!

  • The second rule of 4k is
    • DON’T bother transcoding 4k

Got it!!

  • The third rule of 4k is
    • If you cannot direct play 4k, then perhaps you should not even be collecting 4k.

What is meant with directly? Streaming it via Plex doesn’t seem to be it. Right now I would get probably the Google Chrome Cast Ultra to stream the media via Plex on my TV. How could I do it more directly? VLC on the Server and directly mirroring on the TV?

  • The forth rule of 4k is
    • If you don’t have the storage space for a copy of both 4k and 1080/720, then perhaps you should not even be collecting 4k.

Since I’m just building the system this should be covered :slight_smile:

  • The fifth rule of 4k is
    • To direct play 4k, your entire playback chain must be compatible with both the VIDEO and AUDIO codecs of the content you are trying to play.

In that case it would be only the server and VLC? Am I missing something?

  • 4k bluray ripped content typically includes HD audio (ie lossless truehd/atmos), which must have a compatible audio player (ie a truehd/atmos compatible receiver)

I have a LG Soundbar (2.1). Is the sound still played? Or will it be like in bad streams where voices are so low that I have to turn the volume all the way up just to be deafened by explosions?

  • DTS-HD MA should always have a lossy core which should direct play, even if your system does not support the HD part. Some TV’s and/or soundbars do not support any DTS.

My soundbar has DTS

  • This may still depend on what the player reports as compatible back to the plex server, as the server will transcode or not, accordingly.

I’m lost here…

  • The sixth rule of 4k is
    • You cannot direct play HD audio via optical or ARC, instead you must use use a compatible lossy audio stream such as dolbydigital/dts 5.1 or stereo. You can either manually remove the HD audio streams (ie remux), or choose a non-hd audio stream from within plex pre-play screen or pause screen options.
    • The DTS core (as explained above), should be able to direct play over ARC and optical, assuming your device(s) support DTS (not all do).

Those two points don’t apply to me because I have DTS? (Do you have a source where I could read up on that?)

  • The seventh rule of 4k is
    • You must use cables that are compatible with hdmi 2.0 or higher. (Premium High Speed/Ultra High Speed) See @ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HDMI#Cables for details.
    • Your equipment may need to be manually configured for hdmi 2.0+ (some are set to hdmi 1.4 by default for compatibility).

I’m pretty sure I have this. I bought new HDMI cables not too long ago. My TV is a 2-3 year old LG 4k TV (with HDR) I think I’m covered here.

  • The eighth and non-final rule of 4k is
    • Generally you will need gbit ethernet because 4k bitrate bursts can exceed 100mbit. smart tv’s often have 100mbit which can cause buffering on otherwise direct playing content.
      • Wifi can work, but entirely depends on your network and how much other wifi interference in range. You should not expect consistent 4k playback over wireless even if it works most of the time.

With all the devices in the same network this shouldn’t be a problem right? If I want to stream outside of home I probably just stream 1080p anyway (my family doesnt have 4k)

* The simplest 4k direct play plex solution is nvidia shield + 4k/atmos receiver + 4k hdr tv.

I was toying with the thought of getting a nvidia shield. Didn’t know about the atmos receiver. The latter is only important if I have an atmos sound system?

* If you are direct playing 4k, then you do NOT need a hugely powerful server, you just need fast enough disk and network.

Ah okay… so I guess the “direct play” is meant my setup that is in the same network as my server?

* To avoid transcoding for remote and non-4k clients, keep your 4k content in separate plex libraries.

That was the plan! Except maybe for people of who I know that have 4k devices

* This may of course mean that you keep a 4k copy and a 1080/720 copy, but if you are collecting 4k content then you should not be worried about storage space, should you?

Also planned on doing that already :slight_smile:

Thanks again for your reply :slight_smile:

I wish Plex had a certified build just so that people would have an idea of the cost to do what you are embarking on.

Best advice I can give you is start with the client, from most to least capable:
1st ) Windows 10 with Plex Media Player, AMD or NVidia GPU with HDMI 2.0b. (No current motherboard supports HDMI 2.0b so the Intel GPU is wasted.)
Aside from PMP, you can use MPV or VLC
2nd ) Nvidia Shield
3rd ) Apple 4K TV

Server:
Kinda in a void right now. The new i7/9- 8xxx and 9xxx need newer drivers/kernels under linux and Plex can’t use them at the moment. You could find a i7-7700K and use Ubuntu 18.02 or Debian 9.

I will state a significantly different, nearly opposite, example, for me, which I use

Server

  1. i7-7700 CPU - works. This is certified. (TVS-1282-i7-32GB)

Clients:

  1. AppleTV - Good player and extremely capable.
  2. Other iOS devices
  3. Smart TV app
  4. Web browsers - Chrome & FF

In the scope of “Home Builts” - Info

  1. i9-7900x - 10-core CPU, 7xxx family ASIC - should also work due to existing -7xxx family
  2. i7-8xxx - these are known to work
  3. i9-9xxx - Is where Intel migrated to the new iHD driver family. The transcoder update is expected to have this support.

While it might be nice for Plex to have a ‘standard build’, there is no one build which works for everyone. There are too many variables involved. The moment an example is asserted, 100 “What about xxxxxxxx?” is asked. Such questions are all over the forum.

a new(ish) cpu with the intel 600 series iGPU is the general starting point for (newly built) home brew servers.

the problem is many people don’t want to buy a new cpu (which often needs a new motherboard and ram) because they have an existing system that mostly works.

that is where nvidia gpu’s come in to play.

you can use a nvidia gpu to upgrade an existing computer/server to support transcoding.

rule 3 = ‘direct play’ is a plex term, which means that the client understands the native file/content without the server having to modify it (ie transcode or remux the container). even a low powered plex server can serve 4k content if the client can directly play it (no transcoding).

also, VLC is completely different than plex. They both play media, but they are designed completely different. VLC is a ‘thick’ stand alone app that has it’s own codecs and programming to support various content types. The load is on the VLC program (and device that it is running on).

plex is a client/server architecture, where the client is ‘thin’ and limited to whatever the device/hardware can directly support. If the client cannot handle a certain file type or codec, then the server will convert it (transcode) to a compatible format.

The load is on the SERVER.

5th rule = 4k content usually includes DTS or atmos/truehd. so your soundbar supports dts, that really doesn’t mean much, lossless truehd/atmos is the main problem, which means transcoding for systems which don’t support it.

6th rule = most smart tvs do not support the HD audio, which is why people always freak out when their new 4k tv plex app starts transcoding and buffering and bogging down their server.

if your tv/soundbar doesn’t support that truehd/atmos audio stream, then the SERVER will try to transcode it to a compatible ac3/dolbydigital audio stream.

in most cases, plex can transcode only the AUDIO (which is less load than transcoding both video and audio). However if subtitles are enabled, this can cause the video to be transcoded too, which obviously makes you to lose the 4k/hdr effects.

rule 7 = sure sounds like your covered, but the point is that hdmi cables DO matter, and if your cable is not new enough, then that will cause problems.

rule 8 = many smart tv only support 100mbit ethernet (or wifi), instead of 1gbit ethernet. some 4k content can exceed the 100mbit network speed, so this can cause buffering or audio/video drop outs. So even with a direct same network connection, it can still be too slow (limited by the client connection). Wifi is highly variable, it might work for some people and other people might have too much interference for good throughput.


the main point to understand, is transcoding 4k is extremely difficult computationally. You can throw powerful hardware at it in order to do, but you are better off avoiding when you can.

for remote users or non-4k local users, keeping a 1080/720 copy is the easiest solution.

the atmos receiver is what lets you direct play HD audio, like the lossless truehd/atmos, and the dts-hd ma 7.1 audio streams. Otherwise the audio will likely need to be converted by the server, or manually switched to a different audio stream (ie 5.1 DD/DTS or stereo) to avoid transcoding.

direct play is explained above, direct play means the server doesn’t need to convert anything.

unless you have like 200+ meg upload, you probably do not want to let any remote users try to direct play 4k.

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