I don’t know a lot about Plex as I use Kodi & SMB but my Dad is a vivid Plex Server lover. So please bear with me if some of the questions are somewhat very basic.
Currently, we are looking at upgrading his client and his server. The hope is that he can watch x265 videos, from my understanding HEVC files are very stressful for transcoding and unless you have a very good 7-8th GEN Intel processor then the server will be unlikely to handle it.
I’m a little confused if both the server and the client need to support X265, or it can be one or the other, the transcoding of x265 video files seems very expensive in hardware and wondering if its possible simply to send the HEVC file across to the client to a cheap player such as an Android device capable of 10bit HEVC decoding, in its native file format without transcoding.
Current Setup is an old HPE ProLiant MicroServer G7 N54L with Windows 10 with Plex server and a Roku Ultra 4K.
So my question(s) are:
Does Plex Transcoding support GPU x265 Hardware Encoding to offload from the CPU? if so, 1050 GTX? Does this mean I can have a cheap CPU that does not support X265 and then use the GPU to transcode?
Within Plex Server is there an option to disable transcoding for HEVC files and simply serve the file in its native format? assuming that the Plex Client supports x265? What I mean is a CPU that does not support x265 but sending the file to a device that does e.g Nvidia Shield & Roku 4.
Does plex server and client support encoding/decoding HEVC 10bit using Intel’s 4105 Hardware ? e.g https://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/J4105-ITX/ as I’m thinking of building both a server and client using that board. This seems a way of providing an inexpensive way of providing 10bit HEVC using Plex Server and Plex Client. Since it has Integrated Intel® UHD Graphics 600 which apparently supports: - HW Acceleration Decode: HEVC (H.265) 8 bit, HEVC (H.265)10 bit, H.264 @ Lvl5.2 (AVC), JPEG/MJPEG, VP8, VP9 8bit, VP9 10 bit and HW Acceleration Encode: HEVC (H.265) 8 bit, HEVC (H.265)10 bit, H.264 @ Lvl5.2 (AVC), JPEG/MJPEG, VP8, VP9 8bit.
I’ll let someone else answer the tech spec questions. But if the client can play video, audio, and subtitle formats then you don’t need to worry about the server. Transcoding is something I try to avoid because most clients have problems with the bandwidth of the stream. Where as direct playing is less demanding on the network.
And I try and have everything in HEVC and some is 10 bit. No issues.
Current state of Plex it would have to be a Windows Machine, and for the most part a single stream if 4K is involved. You would want the B version of that board to get a video PCIE slot in case you want upgrade video or not satisfied with the iGPU. Server wise it only has 2 sata ports but does have USB.
With a Plex Pass and a suitably capable GPU like the Intel UHD 600, 1050 GTX, P400. Yes
Within Plex Server is there an option to disable transcoding for HEVC files and simply serve the file in its native format? assuming that the Plex Client supports x265? What I mean is a CPU that does not support x265 but sending the file to a device that does e.g Nvidia Shield & Roku 4.
You can’t/shouldn’t disable the transcoder, Plex will serve the file as long as the Display Device, Audio Device and Player can support the stream. You can’t send a 4K HDR file to a 1080p stereo tv without transcoding.
Plex is written to make use of the what the OS and hardware support. In other words it won’t bring anything to the table that isn’t already there. I only know that the Intel Gemini NUC’s don’t fully support HDR. Feedback on the ASROCK board suggest it does.
Thanks for your input, as far as I know the Intel UHD 600 does support HDR 10bit but requires bios updates, particular drivers and Windows 10 with fall’s creators update, documented on Intel’s White Paper regarding Intels HDR support.
So one would assume that Plex does not work with UHD 600 and HDR?
Also, my Dad has a Plex Pass. Sounds good for 4K but would rather 4K HDR.
plex supports 265 DECODING.
plex does not currently support ANY 265 ENcoding.
265 is transcoded to x264.
There is no option to disable transcoding for plex.
the client determines what it is compatible with.
the server simply tries to provide a compatible stream.
so if the client can direct play the content you are attempting to watch, then minimal load will be used at the server and the client will simply play the file as is.
when the client is not compatible, either due to the limitations of the hardware or the software within it, then the server will attempt to convert the load will depend on what needs converted.
j4105 should support hardware transcoding, but as to many simultaneous streams is probably not many.
the cpu itself is very low powered, which means as a server is going to be easily overwhelmed when doing cpu centric work such as the audio transcoding and general plex server operations, along with any other OS and other background apps.
it might be suitable for a starter server, but if you expect multiple users and/or heavy transcoding loads, then you might want something more powerful.
Knowing what it takes to get the chip to display HDR is one part of it, if they would just confirm the HDMI port was 2.0b then there would be no doubt.
Let me see if I understood you correctly. What your saying is x265 will only be transcoded when the device playing the video does not support x265, in that case, it would be decoded using x265 HW and then transcoded to x264 (HW is supported on the server). Is that right?
So, am I correct in assuming… the server really doesn’t matter assuming the ‘player’ your using supports everything you throw at it? meaning you won’t need to transcode?
So playing a HEVC x265 10 bit HDR from a j5005 Plex Server to an Nvidia Shield with Plex will not transcode the video? it’ll be a direct play? the bottleneck will be the network, server ram and the io of the disks?
Hey Tiebierius, Yep I’ve just been researching HDMI 2.0A and 2.0B. Since the cable remains the same would it not be true the port is identical too? the only difference will be the GPU chipset or GPU?
Within the white paper it does mention that HDR can be outputted using LSPCon Firmware you can output HDCP2.2 over HDMI2.0, from what I can tell, HDCP2.2 does support HDR, therefore, you wouldn’t need HDMI2.0b?
Also, what’s your take on my last post regarding using an Nvidia Shield and J5005.
the server still matters because that determines how quick or responsive the content is displayed on your screen while browsing the library and how quickly a video can start playing when you hit the play button.
Network and disk speeds are also important for the same reasons.
yes exactly.
keep in mind also, that your entire playback chain must be compatible with both the video and audio.
this means for hd audio you need a receiver that does atmos/truehd/dtshd etc.
nvidia shield > atmos/4k receiver > 4k tv
that should direct play just about anything without transcoding.
but if you hook a shield directly up to a tv that can’t support HD audio, then the audio will be transcoded, which is done by the cpu.
the shield can also direct play many subtitles, however subtitles can also complicate things and cause transcoding for other devices.
B adds HDR10 and HLG specification/certification, what happens when you go to play a HDR10 file and the HDMI port reports back it can’t do it.
The Shield is a known and verified player, but what will you use for the Audio?
The only thing that has stopped me from moving to the J5005 as a low power server is the lack of a PCIE X16 slot for a fallback position and the J4005 is just a little too underpowered.
Hey, TeknoJunky, the audio won’t be playing through the TV, it’ll be using the optical link from the shield to a 7.2 ch Denon Receiver/Amp, doesn’t that just use ‘passthrough’? so the audio doesn’t need transcoding no?
and no, the optical does not do HD audio, so you will still have problems transcoding audio, or have to remove the HD audio and/or choose a DD/DTS audio stream.
unfortunately then you should not even bother with 4k or x265 right now.
you will only cause your own pain.
you are best off by using content that will direct play both audio and video.
if this means you stay with 1080/720 until you can afford all of the 4k components, then that is what you should do.
please understand, that to direct play 4k content, all components must be compatible with the content.
that means the AUDIO too. Optical out is not compatible with HD audio from 4k content.
nvidia shield + atmos/4k receiver + 4k tv = the simplest best 4k/hdr/atmos direct play solution you will get.
You do not need a powerful server to direct play content. But if you do not direct play, you will pay the same or more for a more powerful server.
Okay, that’s fine since ATMOS is pretty common but x265, as you know, is becoming more popular, so if I can support some video files while not all, that would be acceptable, I was thinking with ATMOS and x265 in mind wouldn’t something like this work:
atmos, truehd, dts-ma are all HD audio and if your using optical or a receiver that isn’t compatible, then your server either going to be transcoding the audio or you are going to have use a dd/dts audio stream.
and even if you are thinking to use x265 for non-4k content, unless all your clients are compatible with x265 then at some point it will need transcoded, and 265 transcoding requires a powerful server and/or compatible gpu.
again, you really need to take a step back and reconsider.
you gain absolutely nothing by using 4k or 265 content, and then turn around to transcode it down to lesser quality.
save the time, the headache, the money, and the storage space by using content that matches your playback chain.
Thanks for your input, lastly, Am I right in saying, if the audio is not compatible but the video is, only the audio will be transcoded? or does one fail = complete transcode?
In regards of the clients, the only chain is Server > Nvidia Shield > LG HDR 4K TV
yes, this takes less processing than the video, but is still a lot of work, not just cpu but IO from the disk/network.
also, if subtitles are enabled it can cause the video to be transcoded.
not sure if this is a question or a statement, but if that is your setup, then you will have to make sure to try not to use HD audio (if you want to avoid transcoding). You can typically choose the alternate audio stream from the prep-play screen or the pause screen.
@simonhayter Also be aware that currently Plex does not support HDR Tone mapping, so there will be some visual implications if you are wanting to use Plex with 4k HDR content.
The NVShield HW does support it and it does with apps such as Netflix/Movies Anywhere/etc.
I was considering the Odroid H2 since it has the optical out and has the intel UHD 600 but after investigating this has the same issue HDMI 2.0a, it does have a DisplayPort 1.2 but far as I can tell you need DP 1.4 to convert to HDMI 2.0b
This seems to be an intel problem across the board with the UHD 600 series.
