Plex setup help - NAS

[smithg97]

I'm currently using a raspberry pi3+ as a plex server and the WebOS plex client on the LG CX to direct play backups of my dvds but considering improving the setup so can i backup my 4K UHD blu ray discs then direct play the full fat files (atmos TrueHD and all) but understand that the pi wouldn't be capable plus the LG CX is a bit slow with Plex client.

 

What I'm thinking to do is to get the Nvidia Shield Pro to use as the client (connected to 1Gb router via ethernet) then hook it up to my AVR via HDMI and to also buy a NAS (Synology DS920+ most likely and also connect to router with ethernet) and setup the NAS as the Plex server using my 2 existing WD Black 4TB HDD's but there would be no wired connection between the NAS and Shield.

 

My questions are;

• Would this setup be capable of direct play 4K Dolby Vision + Dolby Atmos TrueHD/DTS:X as well as transoding 1080p?
• Would there be any discernable difference in playback quality vs just using my 4K blu ray player (Panasonic UB450)?
• What file format would i need to have the video files in to achieve this?
• How is power consumption, cooling and noise from the NAS?
• Would i need to upgrade NAS SSD for cache or fine as is?
• Is the Shield noticeably faster than the LG CX?

[LIGISTX]

4 hours ago, smithg97 said:

I'm currently using a raspberry pi3+ as a plex server and the WebOS plex client on the LG CX to direct play backups of my dvds but considering improving the setup so can i backup my 4K UHD blu ray discs then direct play the full fat files (atmos TrueHD and all) but understand that the pi wouldn't be capable plus the LG CX is a bit slow with Plex client.

 

What I'm thinking to do is to get the Nvidia Shield Pro to use as the client (connected to 1Gb router via ethernet) then hook it up to my AVR via HDMI and to also buy a NAS (Synology DS920+ most likely and also connect to router with ethernet) and setup the NAS as the Plex server using my 2 existing WD Black 4TB HDD's but there would be no wired connection between the NAS and Shield.

 

My questions are;

• Would this setup be capable of direct play 4K Dolby Vision + Dolby Atmos TrueHD/DTS:X as well as transoding 1080p?
• Would there be any discernable difference in playback quality vs just using my 4K blu ray player (Panasonic UB450)?
• What file format would i need to have the video files in to achieve this?
• How is power consumption, cooling and noise from the NAS?
• Would i need to upgrade NAS SSD for cache or fine as is?
• Is the Shield noticeably faster than the LG CX?

There is a lot to this…

 

The pi would be fine for direct play of any file. It takes effectively no power to direct play. 
 

Nvidia shield pro is the best option, hands down. Get this, and never look back. 
 

Nothing will look as good as directly playing from bluray. Will it be “noticeable”? Maybe? But no codec will preserve the same detail and data as the original bluray. I am not smart enough of how ripping and codecs work to explain why, but I know there is loss. 
 

You would want to likely use mp4, but again, need to do your homework on what file type is best for DV/Atmos. It’s sort of not super well defined right now, it’s all a cluster. 
 

You don’t need caching. Remember, all your doing is reading a file and playing it. If a Blu-ray Disc can do it, a harddrive can do it……….

[smithg97]

5 hours ago, LIGISTX said:

There is a lot to this…

 

The pi would be fine for direct play of any file. It takes effectively no power to direct play. 
 

Nvidia shield pro is the best option, hands down. Get this, and never look back. 
 

Nothing will look as good as directly playing from bluray. Will it be “noticeable”? Maybe? But no codec will preserve the same detail and data as the original bluray. I am not smart enough of how ripping and codecs work to explain why, but I know there is loss. 
 

You would want to likely use mp4, but again, need to do your homework on what file type is best for DV/Atmos. It’s sort of not super well defined right now, it’s all a cluster. 
 

You don’t need caching. Remember, all your doing is reading a file and playing it. If a Blu-ray Disc can do it, a harddrive can do it……….

Thanks for feedback! I thought that the Pi3+ had a limitation with Dolby Atmos TrueHD! So following your feedback would this solution be a better value and still achieve unadulterated 4K Dolby Vision + Dolby Atmos TrueHD using directplay;

* Plex server software running on Pi3+

* Storage device connected via USB to Pi3+ (something like this; Sabrent USB 3.2 4-Bay 3.5" SATA Hard Drive Tray-less Docking Station (DS-SC4B) : Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories)

* Pi3+ streams over network to Nvidia Shield Pro Plex client

* Shield pro connected to AVR via HDMI

* AVR connected to LG CX via HDMI

 

?

[smithg97]

One other question is whether I'd also be able to use the Shield pro for a retropie setup similar to what i have already on the Pi3?

[LIGISTX]

3 hours ago, smithg97 said:

One other question is whether I'd also be able to use the Shield pro for a retropie setup similar to what i have already on the Pi3?

I don’t know what limitation the pi would have for 4k DV/atmos playback. I guess if google tells you there are issues with that, there might be. Typically the server end doesn’t have to have any sort of requirements for direct play, as far as I know. 
 

But yes, I believe that setup would work fine, assuming there isn’t some underlying issue I had never heard of with the Pi 3B.

 

No, an nvidia shield can’t be a retropi…. It’s not a pi……..