Upgrade help.... GPU, CPU or both

Plex Media Server
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Server Version#: 1.20.1.3252

Looking for a bit of advice on a hardware upgrade, have a custom built server with following specs :

File/Plex Server :

  • Plex Account: Lifetime Pass
  • OS: Windows Server 2019 DC
  • CPU: Intel Core i3-8100 @ 3.6 GHz
  • CPU cooler: Stock Intel
  • RAM: 16GB G.Skill Aegis DDR4-2666
  • Mobo: ASUS PRIME H370M-PLUS
  • OS drive: Samsung SSD 970 EVO 250GB SSD
  • Data drives: 8x Seagate IronWolf 8TB 3.5" drives (RAID5)
  • Network: Intel I219-LM 1Gbps NIC
  • GPU: Intel UHD 630 On-Board
  • Case: Fractal Design Define Mini
  • PSU: CORSAIR RM650x, 650 Watt, Fully Modular

I built the above originally just for personal consumption i.e. local network file/media server for Kodi clients (Shield TV, Sony TV, Pixel phones, Android Tablets etc…) so spec was more than enough. However it’s use has gradually morphed into a Plex server for friends and family to consume by way of a broadband upgrade not to long ago.

Because of this the server struggles with even a single 1080p transcode I presume mostly due to the i3-8100 having a relatively low CPU PassMark (6,161) so have to drop it back to 720p for faster load times and no buffering.

Media is all x264/H.264 at 1080p (high bitrate/HD audio) with transcode limit set at 8Mpbs, I’ve got some spare budget to upgrade the transcode ability of the box whether that be CPU, GPU or both. Was considering an i7-9xxx or even an i9-9xxx but have also read that GPU can be used for transcoding (Nvidia) as well, a GTX 1660 or 1660 Super seems to be the sweet spot vs. $$$ (5 4K to 1080p Transcode streams : https://www.elpamsoft.com/?p=Plex-Hardware-Transcoding) but unsure if to upgrade both or just one or the other any suggestions would be appreciated?? GPU is overall cheaper ATM but don’t particularly want to piss around with driver hacks to unlock the 2 stream limit on consumer cards but will if it’s the best option, Quadro cards are just not cost effective…

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I could see if you had more than 6 concurrent streams going you might see buffering but to have trouble with one, I would be looking at the dashboard to verify that HW transcoding is working.

Anything else on this box that may be zapping performance?
How do you start your server up? ie Service or RDP?

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Yeah agreed it’s odd HW decoding is definatley running in the dashboard with (hw) written after Transcode. But for example today had a friend playing a movie transcoded from 1080p down to SD at 2Mbps and then I tried to play a 1080p file transcoded to 1080p 8Mbps and it took almost a minute to start and then buffered every 10-20secs for 3-5secs each. I have 40Mbps upload on my line so is not even close to that (Max 20Mbps for above 2 streams) … Performance tab in Task Manager also not showing crazy numbers either CPU & GPU below 50% for 2 streams.

Start up is standard Plex auto start up after windows login on the local console, any ideas as the box literally does nothing else except file serving media to local network devices there is no performance hit elsewhere… only thing I can think of is running Server based OS on desktop hardware and Plex isn’t a fan!!

Is any hardware upgrade as above likely to help? if so better of going for CPU, GPU or both?

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If the CPU & GPU were near 100% I could see the case for upgrading. The symptoms seem more network related, when streaming locally are there any issues?

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No issues with local streaming (direct play) at maximum quality… it’s all very odd!

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