Hardware recommendations

While many people use Nvidia’s NVENC for hardware transcoding with Plex, I think QuickSync deserves a closer look. The hardware recommendations, recommended builds, and software installation found in the rest of the guide are all Intel QuickSync oriented.

The darling of the GPU transcoding fanboys, the Nvidia P2000, is still sitting at around $350 - $400 on ebay, maybe less if you find a deal on Reddit or another forum somewhere. It’s a lot of money to spend on a GPU that doesn’t really enhance your NAS or server in any way besides adding hardware transcoding. It still takes up some CPU resources, it takes up a PCI-E slot, it has some software limitations… but you know all that already. You read the NVENC outline above.

Adding a dedicated QuickSync transcoding server to your existing rack/stack completely offloads Plex’s processing from your NAS. Your NAS will simply serve up data over ethernet (or 10Gb direct if you so choose) directly to the Plex server. Most of the prebuilt recommendations below actually take less power at peak than the Quadro P2000 as well.

By far the easiest and cheapest way to add a modern QuickSync server to your setup is by purchasing a used or refurbished prebuilt system. Most of the time, assembling a system yourself will cost around 2-3 times the price of buying a prebuilt with the same processor! For example, you can either buy a i7-3770 for $90, or buy a prebuilt Dell 7010 with a i7-3770 for $120.

Since we’ll be using this computer as a dedicated server, and we already have a NAS with all of the media on it, it doesn’t need any media storage of its own. It just needs a medium-large sized SSD for the OS, Plex Media Server, and Plex’s metadata. You can also optionally direct connect your transcoding server to your NAS via 10Gb networking for a little extra speed.

Your typical dedicated hardware transcoding server in this guide will consist of:

Prebuilt system with CPU and 4GB - 16GB of RAM

Single SSD between 256GB and 1TB NVMe optional, but preferred. Make sure your system can boot from NVMe drives, as this guide uses the SSD for boot and Plex.

Gigabit networking onboard 10Gb networking optional



12/18/19 update: ebay searches for 7th-9th generation Intel QuickSync

I’ve created some all-encompassing searches for 7th-9th generation quicksync processors, desktops, and laptops. These searches include every major CPU model from the particular generation and family.

Searches are: buy it now, sorted by price (low to high)

CPUs (Avoid “F” series processors, they do not have QuickSync)

Desktops (Avoid “F” series processors, they do not have QuickSync)

Laptops

SSD Recommendations

Check to see if your transcoding box supports NVMe booting (typically Intel 6th generation and newer). Otherwise, you’ll be using a regular SATA SSD - which is fine, especially if you’re on a budget. NVMe drives are much faster at handling small files (Plex Metadata), but are typically more expensive. Below are recommendations for both, as well as a heatsink for NVMe drives to keep them cool and prevent thermal throttling.

Brand Model (link) Condition Capacaity Form Factor Interface Price/TB Expected Price Pioneer APS-SL3 New 256GB 2.5" SATA $109/TB $28.00 Pioneer APS-SL3 New 512GB 2.5" SATA $86/TB $44.00 Pioneer APS-SL3 New 1024GB 2.5" SATA $78/TB $80.00 ADATA SU635 New 480GB 2.5" SATA $96/TB $46.00 ADATA SU635 New 960GB 2.5" SATA $89/TB $85.00 ADATA SU800 New 512GB 2.5" SATA $107/TB $55.00 ADATA SU800 New 2048GB 2.5" SATA $92/TB $188.00 SanDisk SSD Plus New 480GB 2.5" SATA $125/TB $60.00 SanDisk SSD Plus New 960GB 2.5" SATA $102/TB $98.00 Sabrent Rocket New 256GB M.2 2280 M-Key NVMe $117/TB $30.00 Sabrent Rocket New 512GB M.2 2280 M-Key NVMe $97/TB $50.00 Sabrent Rocket New 1024GB M.2 2280 M-Key NVMe $107/TB $110.00 Sabrent Rocket New 2048GB M.2 2280 M-Key NVMe $107/TB $220.00 Intel 660p New 512GB M.2 2280 M-Key NVMe $117/TB $60.00 Intel 660p New 1024GB M.2 2280 M-Key NVMe $93/TB $95.00 Intel 660p New 2048GB M.2 2280 M-Key NVMe $88/TB $180.00 ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- Eluteng NVMe heatink New $10.00

Sample builds

1. 8th-Gen… Laptops???

The two laptops below both feature 8th-Gen Intel mobile processors. For the most part, they support similar feature sets compared to their desktop counter parts but have more of a focus on power efficiency. So while they are a bit slower, you get a nice all-in-one unit that has a screen, mouse, keyboard, and uninterruptible power supply attached! I would expect that you could handle up to 20 transcodes on the i3, and more than 20 on the i5.

Here’s a screenshot of 17 1080p transcodes runnong on an i3-8130u laptop.

Type Brand (specs) Item (link) Details Expected Price Chassis / Motherboard Lenovo IdeaPad 330-15IKBR Laptop, includes CPU, RAM, PSU, free battery backup! $200.00 OBO CPU Intel 8th-Gen i3-8130U (5027 passmark) Non-upgradable, UHD 520 graphics INCLUDED RAM Various 8GB DDR4 SODIMM Upgradable to 16GB INCLUDED SSD ADATA SU635 $48.00 Total $248.00 OBO

The second laptop option below is quite a bit faster and has a Samsung PM961 256GB NVMe SSD. It’s not that much more expensive, either! Also, you can fold it backwards so you can see the screen while it’s laying flat, which would be cool if you were to hang it on the side of your server rack or something. The only other difference is that you’ll have to pick up a Type-C to Ethernet adapter, which isn’t a huge deal.

Type Brand (specs) Item (link) Details Expected Price Chassis / Motherboard Lenovo Flex 6 14" 2-in-1 Laptop, includes CPU, RAM, SSD PSU, free battery backup! $329.00 OBO CPU Intel 8th-Gen i5-8250U (7675 passmark) Non-upgradable, UHD 520 graphics INCLUDED RAM Various 8GB DDR4 SODIMM Non-upgradable INCLUDED SSD Lenovo 256GB PCI-E SSD Upgradable up to 2TB INCLUDED Ethernet adapter Cable Creation USB 3.0 Type-C to Gigabit Ethernet $14.00 Total $343.00 OBO

2. 6th-Gen Micro Desktop

These HP boxes are TINY. Like, Intel NUC tiny. The difference is that the Prodesk mini uses a full desktop CPU and socket, meaning that you get full desktop CPU power and upgradability. Due to the 65W power adapter and motherboard restrictions, you’re limited to Intel’s T series processors. If you want the full range of desktop CPUs, look at the EliteDesk minis that have 130-150W PSUs.

These systems have just enough internal space to fit a M.2 NVMe SSD and a 2.5" SSD/HDD. If you use a NVMe SSD with an additional heatsink, it will likely block the 2.5" drive caddy. You can install a 2.5" drive without the caddy, just make sure the bottom of the drive is non-conductive before you place it inside so it doesn’t short anything out.

The ProDesk minis are very, very quiet. If you’re going to use it in a server rack, there’s an option to set a minimum fan speed. I set mine to 100%, and it’s keeping my 8th-Gen i5 at a cool 29C at idle, 47C under load. It’s still quieter than the rest of my rack, even at 100%.

Typical power usage for a system like this will be around 25-45 watts at the wall, depending on load.

3. 7th-Gen Mini Desktop

Your typical professional mini desktop. Not a whole lot to say, just a bigger version of the ProDesk mini!

Type Brand (specs) Item (link) Details Expected Price Chassis / Motherboard HP ProDesk 600 G3 MT Includes CPU, 4GB RAM $229.00 CPU Intel i3-7100 (5782 passmark) Upgradable to i5/i7 6th/7th-Gen INCLUDED RAM Various 4GB DDR4-2133 Add 4GB for a total of 8GB $17.00 SSD Sabrent Rocket 512GB Up to 3450 MB/s reads $60.00 Total $306.00

4. 8th-Gen Desktop

This system is the cheapest way to dip your toes into 8th-Gen Intel CPUs. Don’t let the i3-8100 fool you, it’s not a 2C/4T like it’s precdecessors. Instead, it has 4 actual CPU cores, with no Hyper-Threading. This results in a huge performance gain compared to the last generation. (i3-8100 = 8031 passmark, i3-7100 = 5782 passmark)

Type Brand (specs) Item (link) Details Expected Price Chassis / Motherboard HP Pavillion 590-p003w Includes CPU, 4GB RAM, 16GB Optane $238.00 OBO CPU Intel i3-8100 (8031 passmark) Upgradable to i5/i7 8th-Gen CPU INCLUDED RAM Various 4GB DDR4-2133 Add 4GB for a total of 8GB $17.00 SSD Sabrent Rocket 512GB Up to 3450 MB/s reads $60.00 Total $315.00 OBO

5. 8th-Gen Micro Desktop

Another ProDesk mini, just updated to support 8th-Gen Intel processors. For more information, please reference the ProDesk 600 G2 above.