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tdvguy

Newbie
I recently purchased a seedbox that I'll be using as my own personal Plex server so I'm in full control of the quality of content. My PS4 that's connected to the router via ethernet keeps struggling to play content, whereas the Minix box I've been using for IPTV was much better off. With that being said, I need another box that's dedicated for Plex in my bedroom so my family can stick to IPTV on Minix.

I know the nvidia shield is by far the best box, but I don't have that kind of budget. Can you guys recommend any alternative boxes, preferably that will have supported updates for a while? Fyi, my movies can range from 10-30gb in size.

I'm on 76Mbps fibre broadband and I get speeds of around 60Mbps on average.

Thanks.
 
Your PS4 shouldn't be struggling to play anything. When it is struggling is it Direct Play, Direct Stream, or Transcode?

As for a second box:

Nvidia Shield is the best, as you say, but it's overkill for just Plex.

Mi Box - about £50 - supports official Android TV (same as the Shield). I use one and have no complaints.

Raspberry Pi - about £30. Takes slightly more setup but works really well. I used to use one with Rasplex installed - never had an issue.

Amazon Firestick - £30-£40 - cheap and easy

Android TV Box - £30ish - something like s905x. Doesn't run official Android TV. Make sure you get 2gb RAM or more. I use one in the bedroom and it works well.
 
I've looked up how to check online, but I can't seem to find the information. In the video settings, allow direct stream and play are ticked.
 
You need to make 'remote streaming' or 'remote quality' is set to Maximum. Not sure how the settings look on a PS4.

To check, I use Tautulli, but if you don't want to install it the new Dashboard on the web app will show you. (Log into your server account at Plex.tv - launch the app - look for 'dashboard' on the left. Here it will give details of what is being streamed)
 
All settings are on max. As for the dashboard, the biggest movie I have shows

1080p (H.264)
1080P (H264)—Transcode
 
Do you mean it is transcoding when you play it?

Your server could be struggling to transcode. So you know what passmark it has?
If it's a seedbox it should be able to handle one transcode though. Most other things you would run on a seedbox are not particularly CPU intensive.
 
Yeah, it shows as transcode when playing. How can I check the passmark?
Btw, I purchased an ABox A4 Android TV box. Seemed to be the best one for my budget. Couldn't find the mi box.
 
If you're on a seedbox the easiest way to check your passmark will be Google the name of your provider and the package you are on and the word 'passmark' someone will have probably posted it online.
A rough guide is that a passmark of 2000 will transcode a 1080p stream.

I got my mi box from gearbest on a deal.

An Abox should be perfect for you. I like installing TVLauncher as I think it's easier to use than the stock launcher but that's just personal preference.
 
micah1880 said:
You need to make 'remote streaming' or 'remote quality' is set to Maximum. Not sure how the settings look on a PS4.

To check, I use Tautulli, but if you don't want to install it the new Dashboard on the web app will show you. (Log into your server account at Plex.tv - launch the app - look for 'dashboard' on the left. Here it will give details of what is being streamed)
Click to expand...
I have local quality set to max on my PMS and remote quality set to the lowest 720 setting ? I thought ( maybe wrongly , please advise ) , that seeing as other members of my family are accessing my server "remotely" from outside of my own network All using firesticks, I surmised that the lower setting would run smoother on their sticks ? or have I got that wrong ?
 
I got the abox today, it played my 30gb remux file without a problem and I'm not even connected via ethernet. Hopefully my previous issues were client side. I will report any problems if I have them later.
 
Ontap said:
I have local quality set to max on my PMS and remote quality set to the lowest 720 setting ? I thought ( maybe wrongly , please advise ) , that seeing as other members of my family are accessing my server "remotely" from outside of my own network All using firesticks, I surmised that the lower setting would run smoother on their sticks ? or have I got that wrong ?
Click to expand...

If your PMS is on a home network it's all going to come down to internet speeds.

Lok in your Plex library at a film that you know is a large file size. Click 'show info' and it will tell you the Mbps for the file. For direct play you want to double this number (due to peaks in the bitrate). That should give you a rough idea of the upload speed you require and the download speed they require (obviously the higher quality the file on your server the more bandwidth required).

Aside from bandwidth a firestick shouldn't have trouble playing anything - assuming it's not 4k or some weird file type.

If you're network can handle the upload speeds you could set their clients to maximum and also adjust quality automatically to see how that goes.

If they are able to be set to maximum it means they will be watching in better quality and it will drastically reduce the resource on your server.
 
tdvguy said:
I got the abox today, it played my 30gb remux file without a problem and I'm not even connected via ethernet. Hopefully my previous issues were client side. I will report any problems if I have them later.
Click to expand...

That's really good. Impressive that it's playing that without ethernet. :(y):
 
micah1880 said:
If your PMS is on a home network it's all going to come down to internet speeds.

Lok in your Plex library at a film that you know is a large file size. Click 'show info' and it will tell you the Mbps for the file. For direct play you want to double this number (due to peaks in the bitrate). That should give you a rough idea of the upload speed you require and the download speed they require (obviously the higher quality the file on your server the more bandwidth required).

Aside from bandwidth a firestick shouldn't have trouble playing anything - assuming it's not 4k or some weird file type.

If you're network can handle the upload speeds you could set their clients to maximum and also adjust quality automatically to see how that goes.

If they are able to be set to maximum it means they will be watching in better quality and it will drastically reduce the resource on your server.
Click to expand...
Am specifically asking in regard to family accessing my server from their houses ( not from within my network ) , some of them have pretty moderated BB speeds , so I set "remote playback " on my server to try and help ? , I find this confusing ,
So for users outside of my network, ie, accessing my server , port forwarded through the router ?
A. Should I set "remote playback" to max on my server?
B. Should they set playback on their devices to max ?
 
On your server set everything to max.

For all of the clients on your network (in your house). Set all playback options to max.

If you're upload speeds can handle stream to your family it makes things easier.

Then it would be relient on their download speeds. If you think they should cope set everything to max on their devices.
You can also set 'adjust quality automatically' to 'yes' which will start transcoding if the bandwidth isn't enough.

I stream from a hosted server so don't worry about upload speeds. You might have to do a bit of trial and error to get to the best settings.
 
micah1880 said:
On your server set everything to max.

For all of the clients on your network (in your house). Set all playback options to max.

If you're upload speeds can handle stream to your family it makes things easier.

Then it would be relient on their download speeds. If you think they should cope set everything to max on their devices.
You can also set 'adjust quality automatically' to 'yes' which will start transcoding if the bandwidth isn't enough.

I stream from a hosted server so don't worry about upload speeds. You might have to do a bit of trial and error to get to the best settings.
Click to expand...

OK tx for that, I did actually looked into hosting my content , I had all my kodi stuff ( wizard builds etc on go daddy) but obviously storing videos wasn't a goer with them and although not huge ( 12TB and growing ), I figured cost would be an issue.
 
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