Best way to watch 4K HDR content via Plex

Redgie · 24 Jan 2018 at 17:12

UPDATE: Bought an Nvidia Shield! See this post.

I currently have an ageing setup involving a Sony AV Receiver, custom HTPC and MediaPortal, all of which max out at 1080p. I've recently upgraded to a 10 bit, HDR ready 4K TV, and so want to start getting the best out of it. The way I see it, I first need to upgrade my AV Receiver to something 4K, HDR and HDCP2.2 compatible, but then it's a question of what else I need to start watching my digital 4K content.

1. I could shell out a decent chunk of money to upgrade the PC's CPU (my understanding is that I'd need Kabylake due to the licensing agreements Microsoft / Intel have managed to sign), board and GPU for £3-400, which I will probably only then use for Plex.
2. I could look at a standalone solution such as Rasplex or a Fire Stick
3. I could use the TV's built in Plex app (would prefer not to as will need to run the sound back down through the wall and the TV (Hisense) doesn't have the fastest interface anyway
4. Probably 20 other options I've missed?

Thanks in advance

oHUTCHYo · 24 Jan 2018 at 18:01

I've just gone down the same route, sort of. I've owned a 65" Samsung K8000 for a year now and its never been put through its paces (only 1080p). So:

Before:
Raspberry Pi3
Kodi
Yamaha YSP2500
Western Digital Mybook Live 2x3TB NAS

Now
Shield TV
Kodi running PlexKodiConnect
Yamaha YSP2700
Synology 218+ with 2x4TB running Plex server

4K HDR is an expensive investment!

oHUTCHYo · 24 Jan 2018 at 18:37

...sorry I meant to add, be very careful basing a setup arund the Plex app on your TV. You may find it doesnt passtnrough certain audio types or not do other tasks you would expect it to. Im new to Plex but have already found it sometimes differs a lot on each platform and is rarely updated/improved.

My advice would be to invest in a media box which has good support from both community and developers.

My Shield runs the media perfect - however see my thread in this forum re: an annoyance not working how I expected.

nicknack35 · 27 Jan 2018 at 14:49

oHUTCHYo said:
I've just gone down the same route, sort of. I've owned a 65" Samsung K8000 for a year now and its never been put through its paces (only 1080p). So:

Before:
Raspberry Pi3
Kodi
Yamaha YSP2500
Western Digital Mybook Live 2x3TB NAS

Now
Shield TV
Kodi running PlexKodiConnect
Yamaha YSP2700
Synology 218+ with 2x4TB running Plex server

4K HDR is an expensive investment!

How do you find Plex via Kodi i do have the pi3 but find it laggy with a biggish library. How do you install PlexKodiConnect. I do have the plex addon via kodi

oHUTCHYo · 28 Jan 2018 at 12:13

nicknack35 said:
How do you find Plex via Kodi i do have the pi3 but find it laggy with a biggish library. How do you install PlexKodiConnect. I do have the plex addon via kodi

Mine was flawless mate, about 300 movies and 30 TV shows. I was surprised how well it integrated and its an absolute dream being able to control a central librrary from Plex rather than have separate libraries in Kodi also. PKC is available from a repo. Here: https://github.com/croneter/PlexKodiConnect/wiki/Installation

I've now ditched the Shield. Played 4K HDR flawless, but I didnt like how it didnt autoboot/wake from sleep in to Kodi. Ive ordered a Minix U9 which is just as powerful but allows you to boot Libreelec.

jpaul · 28 Jan 2018 at 14:42

oHUTCHYo said:
Played 4K HDR flawless,

from netflix/amazon ?
the main free hdr source is utube which is VP9 level 2 codec, not on Shield(or apple 4k) but maybe shield can s/w decode fast enough ?

nicknack35 · 28 Jan 2018 at 18:00

Ive a Minix Neo u1 great machines

Redgie · 31 Jan 2018 at 12:04

nicknack35 said:
Ive a Minix Neo u1 great machines

This is a really interesting option... £99 for a standalone Android box that can (presumably) run Plex, and it seems to support 10 bit 4K@60fps... almost seems too good to be true...

EDIT: Looks like I may need the slightly more expensive Minix U9-H for HDR support (£139)

pepp77 · 31 Jan 2018 at 12:10

I too recently moved to a 4K HDR TV and tried a couple of test files. Within Plex it caused complete transcoding which maxed out my server - I could resolve this because it was only the Audio (DTS-HD or DD-EX - cant remember which) that wasnt supported by my TV, so changing to AC3 stopped the transcoding. But the fact that the black bars were grey when in HDR was off putting, so I tried something else and found that the built in Video app (Sony Android TV) would play the H265 file and DD-EX (definitely this time) without skipping a beat. For Netflix and Amazon Prime I again just use the apps built into the TV.

ultrakipper · 31 Jan 2018 at 18:07

I just got a OLED55B7V , It has a optical out which i connect to my AV system. Then i put 4k MKV files on an external hard drive which the TV can read with its USB slot. Also you have the bonus of having sound from Netflix etc. going through your amp. So no need to upgrade the amp.

jpaul · 31 Jan 2018 at 19:27

pepp77 said:
I too recently moved to a 4K HDR TV and tried a couple of test files. Within Plex it caused complete transcoding which maxed out my server

this is down to the android plex client available on the tv though isn't it ? ie. Sony.
Did either DTS-HDorDD-EX fail in all containers mkv/mp4/avi ....

If plex direct play is not working, then may need a new xml file on the plex server to say what containers tv supports so thar direct stream might work

seanyc5 · 31 Jan 2018 at 20:30

I too am struggling, currently just using the PC in my sig with MPC-BE and MadVr. I have to manually flick the HDR switch in windows then launch the file! If I do not flick the switch first its will automatically switch to HDR but the colors are all washed out. USB Hdd direct to TV works flawless but is annoying having to transfer too.

How does that minix box play? Is it using kodi? Is it just a case of pressing play? Plex via the TV app works but my KS8000 only has 100mbit port and it stutters! So I tried plex on the Xbox one. That plays without stutters as it has gigabit port, however HDR is not supported on the plex xbone app even though I have the S.

Its not like its that new tech anymore, it should be easy by now haha.

Sean

nicknack35 · 31 Jan 2018 at 21:10

Use the Plex for Kodi App or Minix version of XBMC that should direct play almost everything you throw at it

Minix NEO U9-H accomplishes new heights of picture performance with full HDR10 support. HDR (High Dynamic Range) technology widens the colour spectrum, displaying brighter whites and deeper blacks, accentuating the contrast to create a more natural, vibrant viewing experience.

With more and more HDR10 content being served, this truly is the future of TV.

http://minix.com.hk/en/products/neo-u9-h

nicknack35 · 31 Jan 2018 at 21:18

Ive had the Minix neo u1 for nearly a year now and wont part with it with full online support and out the box updates its easily one of the best android boxes on the market maybe pricey but it beats these cheap chinese ebay boxes. And if you game it will play a lot of high demanding games to me it beats the Shield due to having playstore and search the net

hyperseven · 31 Jan 2018 at 21:42

H96, £50, does HDR, nincknack you on some sort of Minix referral program

Have you tried PowerDVD 17?

pepp77 · 31 Jan 2018 at 21:53

jpaul said:
this is down to the android plex client available on the tv though isn't it ? ie. Sony.
Did either DTS-HDorDD-EX fail in all containers mkv/mp4/avi ....

If plex direct play is not working, then may need a new xml file on the plex server to say what containers tv supports so thar direct stream might work

Yeah, it's definitely the plex app not supporting DTS-HD or DD+ - its fine with normal DD and I believe DTS. To be fair though even if direct stream would work until they sort out the black bars being grey when in HDR mode I wouldn't use Plex for it anyway.

jpaul · 31 Jan 2018 at 21:58

nicknack35 said:
With more and more HDR10 content being served, this truly is the future of TV.

lol minx blatant - so what they mean is with the increasing list of leaked uhd disk volume keys there are many uhd disks that have been ripped

Redgie · 1 Feb 2018 at 11:58

seanyc5 said:
Its not like its that new tech anymore, it should be easy by now haha.

Sean

I know, I'm amazed this is still so complicated... Has anybody used Plex on one of these Android boxes? I'm concerned that the bootup process might be to wait for the Android box, then have to manually pick an app, where currently I just wake my HTPC from sleep and it launches MediaPortal all in 2-3 seconds...

MG42Maniac · 2 Feb 2018 at 16:57

Plex Server (dual Xeon 2680 V2, 64GB, 40TB), connected with Cat 6 to a AC87U which is connected to my LG B6 OLED via wireless .ac. The TV runs XPlay which plays 4K HDR content flawlessly.

oHUTCHYo · 3 Feb 2018 at 09:38

I have a Minix U9 on the way from China. I plan to run LibreElec on it as a sole Kodi/PlexKodiConnect setup.