NAS / Plex / Transcoding

podgeandrodge

NAS / Plex / Transcoding :eek:

I am looking at getting a basic NAS - primarily for local file transfer speed purposes over the network (as a hard drive attached to my WD TV live is not gigabit), and would like the opportunity to browse to my NAS while away on holidays (via tv/phone etc).

If I understand it correctly, Plex is not absolutely necessary, but provides a nice interface. The question of transcoding is what is confusing me - I get that if the remote client can't play an MKV or some 4K file, that transcoding is necessary to get it into a format that the remote client can play. But if the remote client is, say, an android phone with VLC, I'm not getting why I need transcoding.

(Looking at the DS218J, and the TS-215A). And I saw somewhere that the 218J, while it can handle Plex, can't handle transcoding - hence my questions at the outset.

Any advice necessary to this Noob when it comes to NASs etc.

Johnboy1951

I have never used transcoding as none of my client devices are limited in what they can play.

I expect if I wanted to stream over internet I would transcode the media to reduce its size.

eeepaulo

You need transcoding if either the client can not play the file or the connection is not quick enough, you are correct, you dont necessarily need it.

I find plex transcoding useful when my internet on phone isnt fast enough, it lets me select the speed.

Johnboy1951

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

I have never used transcoding as none of my client devices are limited in what they can play.

I expect if I wanted to stream over internet I would transcode the media to reduce its size.

Thinking about it, because I use Tvheadend as the backend to my media set up, I could and probably would use tvheadend to do the transcoding.

ED E

720p native to your hotel wifi in Spain? Maybe. 18mbps 1080? Very unlikely.

Id much rather have it and use it rarely than have my experience ruined when the connection drops down a few megabit.

Johnboy1951

ED E wrote: »

720p native to your hotel wifi in Spain? Maybe. 18mbps 1080? Very unlikely.

Id much rather have it and use it rarely than have my experience ruined when the connection drops down a few megabit.

Watching UTV HD (1920 x 1080 ) here over LAN presently and traffic monitor is showing up to 1.3MiB/s.

Maybe that is due to using HTSP profile from Tvheadend?

ED E

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

Watching UTV HD (1920 x 1080 ) here over LAN presently and traffic monitor is showing up to 1.3MiB/s.

Maybe that is due to using HTSP profile from Tvheadend?

10 odd Mbps, normal enough for lower bitrate stuff. Old fashioned broadcasters really starve their content to cheap out, Amazon tried it recently and then went back as detail went to sh1t.

Johnboy1951

ED E wrote: »

10 odd Mbps, normal enough for lower bitrate stuff. Old fashioned broadcasters really starve their content to cheap out, Amazon tried it recently and then went back as detail went to sh1t.

That is the first time I have seen anyone make that statement regarding BBC/UTV/Ch. 4/5 broadcasts.

I have not noticed any problem with the broadcast quality.

Blazer

very few NAS unless home built can transcode due to the poor cpu in most of them. Transcoding take huge cpu power to do and most NAS's are incapable of it unless you really shell out out the cash for one. But a basic one? not a chance.
Plex is extremely nice and well worthy shelling out for.