Server Version#: 1.20.3.3437-f1f08d65b_amd64
I currently am running PMS on an old HTPC with a AMD A6-6400K APU and 4 GB of DDR3 1600 RAM. I was able to run 3 simultaneous users watching the same 720p video (me using direct play and the other 2 indirectly with transcoding), and the stream went pretty well. However I’d like to be able to support around 10 streams with transcoding for a 1080p source (might even have 4k sources in the future so if possible being able to prep for that would be great). I was thinking of getting an i5-9400 CPU and 16 GB of DDR4 3600 RAM as an upgrade, but after reading more about Plex is more RAM not really necessary (or is 16 good)? I was thinking of also getting an Nvidia GPU for hardware transcoding but I’m not sure which one would be good, could someone help point me in the right direction? I’m trying to spend under $750 in upgrades (or is that not realistic for 10 streams of 1080p+ transcoding?).
Also in terms of storage is the speed of an SSD worth it? I’m currently using a small SSD as the boot drive and an old 5400 RPM HDD as the library drive, which I was considering replacing with a large SSD. Does having faster load times make a noticeable improvement to Plex performance? (I might end up getting SSDs regardless as my case is mini-itx so the more storage I can cram in the better).