Media server and home network

[black2002ls]

We are finally living in our home and I want to start setting up a media server and home network. There are no tech wires run so I want to do as much wireless as possible.

I currently have an amazon fire tv, what is the best solution to stream from the server to the TV? Will I be better off to run data to each location and hardwire, or will wireless work?

I don't remember the exact specs on my PC, it was built 6-8 years ago with ok components.

[Ratt]

Is it a one or two story house? If one story, I would run ethernet (cat 6), but it's really up to you. My one regret with my house is that it's a two-story, so running cable would be a shit ton of trouble.

[mstng86]

I would go with cable too. Wireless is easy to deal with but after running the lines in the walls, wired would be a non-issue going forward.

[black2002ls]

It is a one story. I am going to pull new RG-6 to my hobby/computer room so I guess pulling some cat6 with it should be a non issue. I will probably set it up with wi-fi for now and move to wired later. I just signed up for plex on a monthly plan to see how I like it. Going to install it tonight and mess around with it a little.

One big question is going to be whether to re-build my PC or update the RAM/HDD's and move on.

Any recommendations on network gear? It has been a long time since I have been submerged in the tech arena!

[black2002ls]

I set up a plex server tonight. I got on the monthly plan to test it out. I think short term I need a RAM upgrade for my old PC. Hopefully in the near future I can build a new one to run this all with.

[Tx Redneck]

Plex is more CPU dependant than ram.

https://support.plex.tv/hc/en-us/articles/200375666-Stand-Alone-Server

Stand-Alone Server
You might like to dedicate a single computer to the Server. The hardware requirements for this device will depend on the number and type of devices you're planning to connect to the Server. If all the connected devices are full-blown PC/Mac/Linux type, the Server requirements are less than devices that need media transcoding.

Transcoding is the process where media is converted from one resolution or format to another (e.g. playing Full HD media on some smartphones requires transcoding). The process is CPU-intensive, so an older/slower PC might not be up to the task. If you are purchasing hardware specifically to house the Server, you should research the hardware in some detail before spending your hard-earned cash. The Forums are quite helpful if you need help here.

Related Page: Plex Forums

Windows, Macintosh, or Linux computer
Minimum Requirements — no transcoding
Intel Core 2 Duo processor 1.6 GHz or better
At least 1GB RAM for Windows/Mac OS X
At least 512MB RAM for Linux
Windows XP with SP3, Windows Vista SP2, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8
Mac OS X Snow Leopard 10.6.3 or later (64-bit)
Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, CentOS or SuSE Linux
Recommended Configuration — transcoding HD Content:
Intel Core 2 Duo processor 2.4 GHz or better
If transcoding for multiple devices, a faster CPU may be required
At least 2GB RAM
Windows XP with SP3, Windows Vista SP2, Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8
Mac OS X Snow Leopard 10.6.3 or later (64-bit)
Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, CentOS or SuSE Linux

CPU and Memory Requirements
Generally, any modern PC or Macintosh computer will be able to transcode media for several Apps. Here are some points to consider if you're planning to build a computer to handle transcoding well:

The Server doesn't need tons of RAM to work. This includes Direct Play or Direct Streaming media
Transcoding media is a highly CPU-intensive process
Generally, it's better to opt for a faster CPU than more RAM. It's easier to add more RAM to empty slots than change the CPU. If the CPU is not powerful enough to keep up with transcoding the media, you will notice the player App pauses every now and again as it waits for the Server to catch up. This pausing is often a sign that the CPU is not powerful enough. If the OS becomes low on RAM, you may also see some pausing.

The best way to find out if you're low on CPU speed or RAM is to:

Play some media that causes the player App to pause
Open the OS Performance or Activity Monitor
Check the Memory usage
Check the CPU usage
If you see that the system is very low on available memory, and the CPU is not at 100%, it may benefit from some additional RAM. If the CPU running at maximum, and there is RAM available, a faster CPU should help.

[mstng86]

Honestly, a cheaper new PC is probably going to be better than your old PC. Of course, that's not knowing the specs on that old PC.Bryan might disagree though.

[black2002ls]

I can't remember what processor I am running. It is an older AM2 socket dual core on an asus m2n-e board and 2 gigs of RAM. IIRC. I know we talked about upgrading it in the past. I didn't notice any buffering issues while streaming, it is mostly lag while loading the server on the PC and making changes. It could also be an effect of years of occasional run time and not properly monitoring all of the crap that it has acquired through aimless web surfing.

[LS1Goat]

You will get poor results streaming from a media pc over wifi. It couldn't even to attempt to stream a 1:1 make .mkv Bluray rip. That's what forced me to move to wires, so I recently wired the house for a gigabit network. I dropped Cat6 where I could. And in one room where it was going to too much of a hassle, I cheated and just plugged in a Actiontec coax to ethernet adapter. That is a quick and easy plug in play solution for Vz customers with MoCA enabled routers. A device with a gigabit port will still yield speeds faster than 100BaseT running over house RG6 coax. Everything is butter smooth with no buffering during playback. As for pc, I have amd quad core media pc that I put together and my WDMyCloud is actually a better streamer. No periodic reboots to deal with, like with the media pc. Go figure.
.
Speed over gigabit and on coax.

http://www.dfwmustangs.net/forums/showthread.php?t=55394

Sent from my BNTV400 using Tapatalk

[black2002ls]

So, I started looking at components today. Looks like I can put together a decent quad core AMD for a fair price. I will probably set it up with a SSD for OS and proggy's and use my current HDD's for storage. What kind of benefit, if any, would I gain from setting them up in a RAID configuration?

[Tx Redneck]

The AMD 7850K is a heck of a cpu/gpu for the money. I've built half a dozen boxes for ppl based on it as a hms. Is it the fastest or most powerful, no, is it the best bang for the buck, IMHO, yes.

[kpc01]

Bryan helped me with mine and I love the 7850. only problem is all my other laptops and pcs are crap now!

[black2002ls]

I was looking at the athlon x4 750k. Am I setting myself up for disappointment?

[Tx Redneck]

The advantage of the 7850k is it has a fairly powerful gpu on die and 4 Steamroller cores. It's perfect for HT/HMS duties and is a great value.

Just look at the combo prices for yourself. http://www.microcenter.com/site/prod...d_bundles.aspx

[black2002ls]

Will a mATX form limit me in any way?