Simplest Plex NAS in 2023

Plex Media Server is a media platform that enables one to retailer, catalog, and circulate track, movies, reveals, photos, and more the usage of their very cling purchased/owned recordsdata. Own of it as combining Spotify, Google Photography, Netflix, and OneDrive all into one carrier. It’s free, with an not mandatory toughen to release extra advantages, including hardware transcoding. We have compiled a listing of the finest NAS for Plex that can happily transcode and circulate 4K movies after which some.

Our truly helpful Plex NAS in 2023

The QNAP TS-464 will get most of what one would require with a NAS for Plex handsome. It has an Intel Celeron processor with integrated graphics. It will take care of 4K transcoding to client hardware that requires it, and there may perhaps be an growth slot and some M.2 slots thrown in for factual measure. It’s miles a limited costly, especially if this happens to be the first NAS contain you intend on making, nonetheless it be well worth it need to also restful you may perhaps well even absorb a desirable catalog of media to retailer and circulate.

The 4GB of DDR4 RAM integrated as usual can also be expanded up to a whopping 16GB, which is considerably greater than what many desktop pc programs absorb. The one PCIe 3.0 slots may perhaps well well presumably be old-current to install growth playing cards for sooner networking (10GbE) or extra M.2 storage. There are two 2.5GbE connections natively chanced on on the rear of the NAS, alongside an HDMI port that negates the need to transcode to a linked TV.

The Intel Core i3-12100 is a quad-core desktop-class processor you’d in most cases gain in a PC, however here it is in the QNAP TVS-h674 NAS. This makes it an extremely potent machine in a position to supplying all of your stored media without breaking a sweat and all the pieces else you’d desire to kind on a NAS. I’m talking virtualization, mountainous recordsdata processing, creator collaboration, and more. 16GB of RAM from the manufacturing facility makes this imaginable, and you may perhaps well push the skill of machine memory up to a whopping 64GB. To boot, six force bays may perhaps well well presumably be populated with the largest drives on the marketplace for a skill of greater than 120TB. Two M.2 slots are moreover integrated for SSD caching or expanding the storage pool with snappily drives.

And inch, the TVS-h674 supports the addition of growth objects for noteworthy more force bays. On the rear, you can gain two 2.5GbE ports, one USB-C 3.2 Gen 2, two USB-A 3.2 Gen 2s, and an HDMI 1.4b port. In case you require them, two PCI slots come in right thru the NAS that can presumably be old-current for upgrading the network connectivity to 10GbE. This is about as factual as you may perhaps well secure for a Plex NAS. Additionally, an Intel Core i5 model is available in the market for noteworthy more performance.

The Synology DiskStation DS224+ replaced the extremely current DS220+, which we beforehand truly helpful as the finest value Plex NAS. This successor is correct as factual, if not greater. The finest real trade here is the upgraded processor, consisting of the Intel Celeron J4125. It’s miles a extremely capable NAS and is the identical chip old-current right thru the DS920+, which used to be moreover one of many finest NAS for running Plex Media Server. The 2GB of DDR4 RAM may perhaps well well presumably be upgraded to 6GB although we feel you couldn’t require greater than the default skill.

The 2 force bays may perhaps well well presumably be a limiting component for lengthy-timeframe Plex exercise, especially if your library of negate grows at a grand dawdle. There’s no toughen for growth thru the exercise of external objects, meaning you may perhaps well need to purchase a brand fresh NAS if you too can absorb utterly exhausted the put in drives. Placing in two 20TB drives would provide 20TB of home with RAID in exercise, so there may perhaps be restful a grand quantity of storage accessible. The place this NAS shines is with the working machine. DiskStation Manager (DSM) is extensively belief of as one of many finest OS for NAS.

The ASUSTOR Lockerstor Gen2 (AS6704) has all of it. ASUSTOR determined to grab its four-bay NAS and switch all the pieces up to 11. Let’s launch up with the CPU — the true Intel Celeron N5105. It’s miles a quad-core processor in a position to bursting up to 2.9GHz and supports hardware transcoding with an integrated GPU. 4GB of DDR4 RAM is pre-put in and can also restful be expanded up to 16GB, although the unsuitable skill is greater than ample for most customers, including running Plex Media Server. Four force bays are integrated, storing up to 80TB the usage of the finest NAS exhausting drives. This is in a position to well well presumably be expanded the usage of ASUSTOR’s growth objects, allowing the NAS and ASUSTOR ADM working machine to take care of up to 12 bays.

Sparkling that it may perhaps perhaps well presumably be expanded in the occasion you inevitably bustle out of home with the default force bays makes the ASUSTOR Lockerstor Gen2 (AS6704) glorious for starting your first Plex NAS. Four M.2 SSD slots may perhaps well well presumably be old-current for SSD caching or storage, searching out for to your desires. Come what may perhaps, there may perhaps be a solid option of ports, including HDMI out, which may perhaps well well presumably be old-current to join the server to the mountainous show at once. Overall, here is an immensely capable NAS enclosure and one of many finest ASUSTOR NAS round.

TerraMaster is a special NAS brand as its catalog of merchandise in most cases undercuts the competition with correct about a lower facets. The TerraMaster F2-221 is a major instance of this, being a recount competitor to the Synology DiskStation DS220+. It has an Intel Celeron processor, supports up to 6GB of DDR4 RAM (2GB preinstalled), and even has an HDMI port on the rear (although you couldn’t be ready to enjoy media thru it).

That makes this NAS a tall value option for running Plex Media Server. TerraMaster’s TOS working machine just just isn’t the least bit times truly as refined as Synology DSM, nonetheless it be greater than in a position to managing all the pieces on the enclosure after which some. A form of apps come in for download in the respective retailer too. These enclosures moreover rock a make unlike the relaxation in the marketplace, which may perhaps well work greater to your ambiance and make this one of many finest TerraMaster NAS you may perhaps well aquire.

The Synology DiskStation D223j is the most cheap NAS in our series. It has the identical two force bays as the Synology DiskStation DS224+, so what’s the adaptation between the two enclosures? This NAS has a quad-core Realtek ARM processor, which is considerably less great than the Intel chip and it would not toughen hardware transcoding so streaming 4K media will be out of the query if the client machine is unable to take care of it.

There’s moreover handiest 1GB of DDR4 RAM and it need to not expanded. The 2 force bays can toughen up to 20TB each and when RAID is factored in that’ll be a maximum skill of 20TB. Ports-practical, you too can absorb bought a single 1GbE port and about a USB connections for factual measure. The correct section about this NAS, fancy the opposite Synology enclosure, is the DSM OS. It’s glorious as your first NAS for running Plex on the aspect.

How to resolve the finest NAS for Plex

Selecting the finest NAS for Plex will rely on what you intend to exercise the server for, so we have compiled a listing of causes you too can restful aquire a NAS plus a info to the finest NAS or the finest worth range NAS. Plex may perhaps well well presumably be a anxious path of to bustle on a NAS, largely due to transcoding which can truly tax the processor. Our prime recommendation is the QNAP TS-464. It has an out of the ordinary Intel processor with integrated graphics, four force bays, and M.2 slots for one great limited server.

Some things to undergo in thoughts when browsing for a Plex NAS:

• Imprint: The brand just just isn’t the least bit times truly terribly important in phrases of deciding on a NAS; all manufacturers truly helpful listed below are among the many finest in the industry. There are variations in toughen, OS, and first-occasion app toughen, however your NAS journey will be identical for the most section.
• CPU: An Intel Celeron or greater CPU will be ready to transcode up to a 4K file. Trip alongside with an ARM processor whenever you happen to couldn’t be transcoding noteworthy and desire to circulate track and photos greater than the relaxation. An Intel Core processor will seemingly be overkill unless you transcode incessantly or absorb other heavy apps running on the NAS.
• RAM: 1GB or greater is truly helpful for most NAS servers with greater than one individual getting access to recordsdata or companies and products at any given time. Earlier than shopping for, make obvious that the NAS is ready to expanding accessible RAM whenever you happen to intend to develop usage down the twin carriageway. Some NAS will dash past officially supported capacities.
• Force bays: These are old-current so as to add storage skill to the NAS. Every bay in most cases supports either a 2.5-depart or 3.5-depart force — the more bays, the greater the maximum storage skill. To release extra bays, some NAS will allow adding growth objects that can presumably be linked by technique of USB.
• Ports: USB just just isn’t the least bit times truly too important regarding NAS, either. Your LAN will largely resolve Ethernet speeds, and you can gain 1GbE or 2.5GbE ports unless you’ll seemingly be ready to employ the mountainous bucks. HDMI ports are tall for negating the necessity for the processor to transcode the relaxation since you may perhaps well join the NAS at once to the mountainous show.

What is Plex?

Plex is an on-line media streaming carrier, noteworthy fancy Netflix and Spotify. It specializes in offering TV reveals, podcasts, DVR, track, and flicks, however is ready to so noteworthy more. The Plex Media Server is a server bundle that can presumably be bustle on a PC or NAS and is in actuality a DIY media streaming carrier. So whenever you happen to can also absorb purchased movies, reveals, or track in the past and wish someplace to catalog, retailer, and circulate all of it, Plex Media Server can kind precisely that.

It’s in a position to pulling artwork for albums, reveals, and flicks, to boot to needed metadata, descriptions, and genres. There’s an not mandatory tale toughen that unlocks hardware transcoding, which is vastly more efficient and strong than instrument transcoding. The toughen moreover has the capability to skip show credits and intros and so noteworthy more. While you’ll seemingly be smitten by rising your cling media library, you may perhaps well desire to construct in thoughts the usage of this carrier.

What is transcoding?

Transcoding is the path of of taking a media file and converting it to a structure that can presumably be old-current on the receiving machine. As an instance, you may perhaps well even absorb a 4K movie with the total HD bells and whistles, but your TV would not toughen the structure. Plex will then transcode the file whereas streaming it to the machine. This takes an even part of computing energy, which may perhaps well well presumably be alleviated thru hardware transcoding.

Most Intel (and AMD, corresponding to the one right thru the Synology DiskStation DS1522+) processors in NAS enclosures can exercise hardware transcoding with accelerators. In distinction, more cheap servers with ARM CPUs will wrestle to enact identical results, especially with FHD (1080p) or UHD (2160p) recordsdata. Some NAS can also absorb an HDMI port, which can join the server to the recipient machine and direct the need to transcode the relaxation.