New user of Plex, I am wondering a lot
Today I have installed plex on a dedicated web server @online.net and I use either the Samsung TV Plex app or PS4 Plex app to get access to my media.
I have heard a lot abot Raspberry/Rasplex and some are saying that it is a better option than the one I use, but I can’t understand why…
Could someone explain me if there are differences among those different way of accessing the media content?
Will Raspberry improve performances ?
I don’t use the samsung or ps4 apps, so my experience is limited. Rasplex is port of the PHT application so it may have some additional features. For instance I use them because I can use an OpenVPN connection to my server from the PI itself. Most other clients cannot do that without additional expense.
Are you having any specific problems with your current setup?
The samsung app is limited to 37mbps bitrate.
It cannot bitstream DTS audio over HDMI.
It can only handle external SRT subtitles without requiring transcoding on the server.
Rasplex can handle almost every subtitle (yes pixel-based too) without transcoding.
It can even decode most surround formats on board (with next release, that is) to multi-channel PCM.
It can transcode DTS to AC3 on board, if you have a decoder that only accepts AC3.
Rasplex can play many, many video and audio formats in many combinations, whereas the Samsung App is a bit more limited in this regard (although it is still better than most of the other Smart TVs).
Depending on your Samsung TV model, Rasplex might also be faster to browse.
Plus, it uses a 1080p user interface whereas the Samsung App is limited to 720p.
So instead of getting an evolution kit for an older Samsung, I’d definitely try a Raspberry Pi 2 first. It beats many smart TVs and even the XBOX 360 and PS3 Plex apps with ease.
The only thing a RasPi needs assistance with is
h.265 (HEVC) video
h.264 video with Level above 4.2 and /or Hi10 (10 bit color depth) - usually only seen with Anime releases
In fact I don’t have any issue right now, that is why I am wondering why so many people recommand this.
About transcoding it is not done by TV but by my dedicated server isn’t it? So no advantages for this part, am I right?
To be more clear, my config is:
dedicated online server with all media + plex installed
samsung tv (1/2y old) with Plex app, connected to the internet through Ethernet and so to the dedicated server
TV is linked to an AV amplifier through optical cable, able to read all audio format
