Whats the cheapest way into a Plex server please?

[Cloudy147]

Hi all,

I've had Plex running on my local PC for a while, but its not very convenient. Looking at a standalone option, probably a NAS.

WD MyCloud is too limited so I'm thinking of Synology NAS as the next attempt, but want to do it as cheaply as possible as this is all it will be used for ( don't need a mega power NAS to do lots of other stuff). However, I don't want to go bargain-basement and find it stutters and struggles to play movies.

Thinking maybe a DS118 or DS120. Thoughts? Any alternatives you'd recommend?

Thanks,

[akirk]

Check capability - my synology nas isn’t powerful enough to stream video

[hutchst]

I suppose it depends how much storage you need. I used to run one on a raspberry pi with a 2tb usb drive plugged into it. I doubt you'll get much cheaper than that.

[tribalsurfer]

Cloudy147 said:

Hi all,

I've had Plex running on my local PC for a while, but its not very convenient. Looking at a standalone option, probably a NAS.

WD MyCloud is too limited so I'm thinking of Synology NAS as the next attempt, but want to do it as cheaply as possible as this is all it will be used for ( don't need a mega power NAS to do lots of other stuff). However, I don't want to go bargain-basement and find it stutters and struggles to play movies.

Thinking maybe a DS118 or DS120. Thoughts? Any alternatives you'd recommend?

Thanks,

I'm running a WD CLoud EX2 Ultra, comes with Twonky (DLNA Server) built in. My Cloud app allows remote access from pretty much any device.

[sooty61]

I set up a Plex server on my very old Synology NAS a couple of weeks ago. It worked initially but now it will not stream so I have bought a second hand QNAP NAS which has not arrived yet, but was £250 from eBay with 2TB storage and 8GB RAM. According to the compatibility list below it will stream up to 1080p which is good enough for me. It should arrive this week.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1MfYoJkiwSq...

[Cloudy147]

sooty61 said:

I set up a Plex server on my very old Synology NAS a couple of weeks ago. It worked initially but now it will not stream so I have bought a second hand QNAP NAS which has not arrived yet, but was £250 from eBay with 2TB storage and 8GB RAM. According to the compatibility list below it will stream up to 1080p which is good enough for me. It should arrive this week.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1MfYoJkiwSq...

Thanks everyone.

Sooty - can you report back if it's any good? I'll be using the LG TV app, so think it'll need to be powerful enough to transcode as well.

Thanks for all suggestions so far. I've looked at Raspberry Pi this morning, but don't think it's powerful enough to transcode sadly as this could have been ideal.

Seems the Synology 120 has same issues, but the 118 has favourable reviews?

[hutchst]

https://www.raspberrypi.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t...

[thebraketester]

hutchst said:

https://www.raspberrypi.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t...

Yep that should do it. Just add a HD of your choosing. I think that’s the cheapest way to get what your want.

[Cloudy147]

Thanks all. OK, you've convinced me, I'll give the Pi a try!

I've got a USB drive that I can use for media, would this be all I need to get going (new to Pi!)?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/254381760167

Cheers!

[thebraketester]

Yeah that will do it.

There is a bit of a learning curve to setting up and using a Rpi especially if you are doing so “headless” but once it’s up and running it should be hassle free

[hutchst]

Keep a usb keyboard and mouse handy. Just for the install and setup. You can take them away after it's running. Also a monitor or tv with HDMI connection. Again just for the setup. You won't need it after that.

[RizzoTheRat]

If you go the Pi route get yourself a PiDrive cable to make connecting everything up a bit simpler, it connected the pi to the drive and supplies power to both, from a single USB adaptor.
https://uk.pi-supply.com/products/wd-pidrive-cable

Not tried Plex on it though, I run OSMC (easily installed via NOOBS) and have Kore on my phone as a remote for it.