Hey guys, I am thinking of setting up my first NAS server for Plex. I will mostly be using this for a media server. I am thinking of getting the 918+. Would this be good enough for my needs?
Currently I do not have any 4k media, but will be hopefully during 2018. So would like the option for 1 4k stream and another 1080p steam at a time or more. I would be streaming to a 4k smart TV, PC & Mac book. The PC/Macbook won’t be used at the same time.
Where would the best how to set up Plex and my Synology 918+. I want to have it set up so I can expand with new drives once I get more money and more 4k media.
Currently I have just ripped DVDs with Make MKV, should I run these through handbreak to decrease the size, or leave them in MKV? Would anything help with trans coding once i get it set up?
As well are there any apps etc I should add to enhance my experience with Plex and usability?
Thanks for the info. How would i know what my DVD file formats are aside from container? And what should they be. Then the same for Bluerays.
Want to get them converted properly before trying to load and having a bad experience.
Will probably set up a que in handbrake once i figure it out.
Guess it would be best to keep or convert everything 4k to H.264. doesn’t appear some tvs have the H265 yet.
4.7 GB DVDs were made in the era of MPEG2. IIRC, it was the only viable codec at the time.
BluRays can be VC-1, H.264, or the newer HEVC. You may find some early ones still in MPEG2 but I don’t remember hearing of any.
4K is almost guaranteed to be HEVC because of HDR (high dynamic range) color and the amount of data involved. The CPU power required to convert it in software to H.264 is not worth the time. This is why the newer CPUs (Intel -7xxx class) rely on the GPU to decode it and then encode to H.264. When using the GPU to convert, it really makes best sense to a) Keep the original b) let the hardware convert to what’s needed as it’s needed c) stream that output to the player in whatever form is required. You keep your pristine original pristine. If/when you get a newer TV, you still have that pristine copy to play on it directly without transcoding.
Ah ok. Yes I think they are MPEG2. Mostly have old DVDs I ripped.
This would work fine with transcoding on the Synonlogy 918+? You mention the 7XXX class but the nas chip isn’t as good as a 7 series. It has a Intel Celeron J3455.
Some downloaded media is X264 or X265 or at least it says it is, just MKV. Where could i see the internal formats?
Currently don’t have the 4k screen, but will be getting one shortly I hope. So would be awesome if it could direct play the X265.
If it makes sense I can convert now if the NAS can’t. Prefer not to but if that makes it so the NAS works I would be good. I don’t want to really have to buy a second expensive PC and set up NAS. Would prefer the all in one, I could look for cheap build and do. But not sure what I would need. Prefer to upgrade my current PC (3570K, 8G ram). Don’t want to upgrade video card as its a 980 (can’t afford one).
The tool mediainfo will show a lot but we use ffmpeg -i filename.ext to tell us every detail.
Without giving any ‘roadmap’ stuff (i’m not allowed) the DS918+ (J3455) will serve you very well even with MPEG2. (breathe here)
The best advise which I can give for a J3455 system is to push it up to the 8GB ram max (two matched-pair memory sticks, Kingston and Corsair are what I use in my machines. My Syno has Kingston for the Atom C2538. My desktop has Corsair Vengeance. Both are matched sets for that added little bit of perf.
The -7xxx class (KabyLake) is similar to the ApolloLake with regard to HEVC. I see it as somewhere between SkyLake (-6xxx) and KabyLake (-7xxx). That said, it’s hit or miss if you can get away with HEVC HDR. HEVC SDR (standard def 8-bit) is a no-brainer to transcode down to 1080p
I will look at getting more memory in it. If I run into any issues ie with 4K or multi streaming.
Below is a selection of the media types i currently have. Based on my research all should be fine without any issues for most items.
So HEVC should be fine with AAC.
AVC with AAC
AVC with AC-3
MPEG-4 (XviD) AC-3
DVDs Generally
MPEG with AC-3 (English & French)
Really appreciate the help. I mainly don’t want to dump 1k into a NAS and drives then find out it doesn’t work. Or spend 1k and find out I could have it the same for 500 dollars. Then figure out the media formats that work well and get them going straight from the start. But based on your details it should handle the raw files fine, especially with newer tv etc.
Episodes (Series) and Movies must be split (obviously) so the scanner can proper distinguish them.
Because there is no reasonable limit on the number of shares you can make (255 ?) , make what makes sense to you.
There is a tendency to use the Synology predefined video. There’s no need. Create what makes sense to you.
As for memory, should you find the desktop manager showing you utilization is getting high, many have bumped it up to its 8GB maximum (two identical - matched - 4 GB sticks). Installation is very straight forward. Open, unclip, clip in the new ones, power it back up. (just like any PC)
Those are my two cents. I’m sure others will have more >:)
right that is fairly straight forward for separation. Easy to categorize for naming etc and organization when accessing the meida.
What do you mean when you refer to number of shares?
I will see how it performs with the base RAM. Then might upgrade if I find it having performance issues. Currently don’t think we will stress it, but want to future proof it without breaking the bank.
Tomorrow I am going to try to review my media library and update naming conventions for the movies/TV.
I, as the developer and supporter of the Plex installer for Synology have but ONE request. >:)
Please don’t put anything in the Plex share. That share is where I store all the metadata (Library). It was previously hidden to avoid being used but getting log files in those cases where PMS fails to start was extremely difficult. I exposed it so we can use File Station instead. It also makes installing Plug-ins a LOT easier.
Yes, technically it is a ‘shared folder’. In FileStation (the file browser), every top-level ‘shared folder’ is shown. On every NAS, each top level folder such as this is known as a share because it can be shared across your network. Using Windows: it’s \\host\sharename. In Linux: it’s host:/sharename.
I create this data area on your main storage volume as a ‘share’ for a few reasons:
The normal storage area is normally only a few gigabytes. Large libraries can grow to be 10-20-30 GB
It’s protected from any update to or reinstallation of Synology DSM doesn’t impact your Library / metadata and
It persists if you remove the software (to change version) without losing your Library / metadata
@ChuckPA said:
Episodes (Series) and Movies must be split (obviously) so the scanner can proper distinguish them.
Because there is no reasonable limit on the number of shares you can make (255 ?) , make what makes sense to you.
There is a tendency to use the Synology predefined video. There’s no need. Create what makes sense to you.
As for memory, should you find the desktop manager showing you utilization is getting high, many have bumped it up to its 8GB maximum (two identical - matched - 4 GB sticks). Installation is very straight forward. Open, unclip, clip in the new ones, power it back up. (just like any PC)
Those are my two cents. I’m sure others will have more >:)
