Best plex server on Reddit

213 reviews from r/PleX, r/sffpc, r/DataHoarder and 6 more subreddits

213 reviews from

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By Brand

By Product

Apple

4.6

(32)

"They work really well as a plex server and can definitely handle your transcode needs."

"It will handle whatever you toss at it with low power usage and zero noise pollution."

"Works beautifully."

"Mac Mini + NAS. You will have no issues."

"It works like a charm."

"I got a refurbished 2020 Mac Mini (M1 chip) with a 1-terabyte HD and it’s been working great for me."

"Everything works really well along with all the arr programs."

"The newer M-series processors run super fast, cool, and quiet."

"This arrangement works really well."

"Thing is a champ. 4k transcoding without the slightest bit of struggle."

Intel

4.4

(19)

"If you have plex pass an Intel based system is “best” because of the quick sync for hardware transcoding."

"Going to be building (primarily) Plex server with i5-12600k for the UHD 770 graphics processor."

"If you are paying $400+ for a Intel NUC then you need to be getting the latest 13th gen model."

"Just got one of these to setup as a Plex server."

"I used one of these as a plex server for more than a few years.. for just yourself, this will be fine."

"I would recommend you go for one of the Intel CPUs recommended in other comments."

"Your best bet is a modern Intel CPU with integrated graphics."

"Build an Intel NUC."

"I use an inexpensive Intel NUC that sips watts like a hummingbird."

"I have a relatively old i7 Intel NUC running Ubuntu in this role."

Raspberry Pi

4.0

(20)

"I've ran a Plex server off of a $40 raspberry pi 4."

"Raspberry PI 4 with a external USB SSD for storage."

"Raspberry pi."

"Definitely if going for low power and just for music Rpi is the way to go."

"The Pi makes for an excellent low-load Plex server."

"I use a RPi, a 12v boost/buck converter for power."

"A Raspberry Pi 4 will work great if you don't have to transcode."

"Maybe one of these?"

"Could be a RaspberryPi (or similar), a NAS, a small PC, or a Shield."

"I recently put together a raspberry pi 3b with RaspAp and jellyfin."

Beelink

4.4

(18)

"Also power use that beelink will do it all while sipping power what that i5 alone idles at 16w."

"Beelink s12"

"Go with the S12 Pro. You’re going to be getting more transcoding capabilities plus it should be more power efficient"

"My Beelink is great and fits that bill."

"QS as a video transcoder is amazing."

"I'm blown away by how well it handles Plex."

"Beelink Mini S12 Pro Mini PC, 12th Gen Intel-N100."

"It doesn't have to be complicated."

"Get a beelink n100 device, they work incredibly awesome."

"Something like a Beelink Mini PC with an Intel N100 would be ideal."

Intel NUC

4.5

(12)

"Intel NUC and a synology NAS."

"I switched everything over to an 8th gen intel CPU NUC and its flawless."

"I used the exact same NUC for a Plex server at my dad's house since his internet is not good enough to stream content from my server at home."

"I run my whole Plex server on a headless nuc and couldn’t be happier."

"Get a NUC with a recent (8 - 9 - 10 - 11th gen Intel CPU), it's small and it'll works amazingly well."

"I just got a NUC10i1FNB and so far all the transcoding it's done has been by GPU."

"A gen 8 or newer NUC or similar USFF / SFF PC will be fine and well within your budget."

"Depending on how many TB's you need, I don't see why you can't use an Intel NUC."

"I guess you could get a NUC."

"Intel NUC maybe? I know that you said no small form factor but its powerful enough to run a single plex server."

Dell

4.4

(8)

"Just putts away in my utility room 24/7."

"I use an old, refurbed Dell Optiplex I got off of eBay for about $70."

"I run mine on a used Dell Optiplex SFF server."

"Very cheap. The Intel processors (most of them) can transcode without issue."

"A used $200 8th Gen+ Intel-based reman Dell desktop will be sufficient for your needs."

"Buy a refurb dell sff. Can get for under 300."

"EBay is the way, you can find a lot of good stuff on there for less than $200."

"A 100 dollar optiplex with a cheap SSD and ram works great for a fraction of that price."

Synology

4.6

(7)

"This NAS has been amazing!"

"Maybe look into Synology. Great options there."

"I just use a synology. Plug and play."

"I want to say that DSM (Synologys Linux based OS) works freaking flawlessly with plex."

"Buy a 423+ and sell the 923 would also have been an option. Most likely cheaper. Synology holds its value well."

"I've had at least three 4K streams, with two transcoding simultaneously."

"Why not use the DS918+ (it’s paid for after all) and see how that handles your needs before you spend any $? "

Nvidia Shield

4.7

(6)

"Nvidia Shield is the best overall."

"I’d go for the Shield Pro and the Portable External Hard drive."

"Nvidia shield."

"I'd just grab an NVidia shield (It can act as both a plex client and a plex server)."

"I normally don't really like the nvidia shield as a server, but I think it makes by far the most sense."

"The shield will probably be a lot more power (read: cost) efficient in the long run."

Nvidia

5.0

(5)

"It has an excellent low-power profile."

"Why not use the Shield as your Plex server, and attach the external HDD to the Shield?"

"Honestly the shield will be best....so long as any encodes are below 20mbps 1080p even 4k will be fine."

"Honestly the shield will be best....so long as any encodes are below 20mbps 1080p even 4k will be fine"

"Plex server on your nas, kodi with plexkodiconnect plugin on your shield."

#10

Unraid

4.8

(5)

"Unraid certainly checks this box for me."

"I recommend researching unRaid."

"I run plex on unraid with a 14th gen intel as cpu."

"I built an UNRAID box primarily for Plex and the \*arr apps. I can transcode at least five 4K HDR videos simultaneously."

"Building my own server and using unraid has been pretty reliable for me."

#11

Synology NAS

4.0

(5)

"I run a synology nas in my RV. Has been working great for the last 3 years."

"Did you consider a Synology NAS? They can run Plex and even transcode."

"Synology NAS. Lots of options well below $1k even after adding storage."

"I would say a low power NAS from someone like synology."

"Just make sure your NAS has got the power to run Plex."

#12

Plex

4.5

(4)

"I have Plex, ErsatzTV and JDownloader running on a very tiny low spec PC and it all works beautifully."

"I stream 4K HDR or DoVi content without any issues (with file sizes of 80-100GB) (with or without transcoding)."

"Yea Plex will run on just about anything even a potato."

"My primary is still Plex."

#13

Jellyfin

4.0

(4)

"I have this exact model in 8G/256 and while I don't use plex it works really well with Jellyfin on a Debian install over Proxmox, no buffering at all."

"Seems like JellyFin might be the better solution for this application."

"Jellyfin and fire stick might be a good alternative."

"If Plex doesn't work (which I doubt), then your best bet is Jellyfin."

#14

Western Digital

4.0

(4)

"I use one of these: https://support.plex.tv/articles/221104248-western-digital-my-passport-wireless-pro/"

"I have one of these for such trips: https://support.plex.tv/articles/221104248-western-digital-my-passport-wireless-pro/"

"I've had the WD Passport Wireless PRO for about 4 years and have been pleased with the results."

"I have a western digital I use for offline use. It worked out well I would get the SSD version if it's affordable."

#15

HP

4.0

(4)

"Something like an HP Zbook G5 or newer would be good."

"My old hp server has been working great for years."

"You can get a enterprise refurb like hp mini g5 with 10500t for like £200 or less."

"For ~140$, you can get an hp g4 600or similar dell, with an 8th gen Intel CPU."

#16

NVIDIA

5.0

(3)

"The Nvidia Shield Pro works well for me for his purpose."

"Nvidia shield pro comes with a plex server."

"Nvidia shield Pro tv 4k. We can rip 3 or movies to it at once while also streaming to 5+ devices and have zero issues."

#17

NUC

4.3

(3)

"Works like a charm, been serving our media for 2 weeks now and transcoding is amazing."

"Buy a NUC."

"A cheap used nuc."

#18

Lenovo

4.0

4.0

(1)

"I moved from running my plex server from my shield pro 2017 last summer to a Synology DS920+."

#60

Celeron J 4000 Series

4.0

(1)

"I'd suggest buying a mini system with a recent quad-core Celeron J 4000 series processor."

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