# Big media library forcing me to start using PC to manage libraries for music, movies, and TV



## Da Wiz (May 8, 2019)

I've been using a simple and reliable system to access 12 TB of NAS storage for media. I installed Kodi on an Amazon FireTV 4K Max stick and was letting Kodi manage the library through the FireTV 4k Max stick.. but the stick's processing and memory are overwhelmed with the size of the library and I am just about to add another 8 TB with 2 more unused drive bays for future expansion. I realize the app on the computer used to send the video to the surround sound processor plays a big role in this... but I'm unclear as to WHICH PC app is likely to provide the kind of "do not changing anything" ("anything" includes frame rate, meta data, resolution, aspect ratio, audio quality or audio format) about the video file being played. I have a version of JRiver Media Center I was planning to use, but never having used it for its extensive library features, I'm completely unfamiliar with how easy or impossible it is to get JRiver Media Center to play content without changing anything. I'm open to using other solutions like Plex if that's more inline with what I'm trying to do. The home LAN is 2.5 Gbps Ethernet for all the home theater gear. Wi-Fi is only used for the Amazon FireTV Stick because that device has no Ethernet capability other than a 100 Mbps Ethernet adapter accessory that's not as fast as my Wi-Fi or as fast as the Wi-Fi in the FireTV 4K Max stick.

I am not using an HTPC... but it is a modest "gaming PC" (large floor-standing case), about $1000 a year before the pandemic. It has an nVidia 10xx board that only supports 4K/UHD at 30 Hz and I've never even looked to see if it supports HDR or not. I have a "current" model audio processor that can decode everything including Auro-3D and that feeds whatever video display I'm using at the time... a laser-phosphor native 4K projector, a quantum dot 85-inch LCD/LED TV with almost 3000 nits available for peak white in HDR content, and a 77-inch OLED. All of these support 4K at 60 Hz and one of them supports 4K at 120 Hz. I don't need the video board in the PC to decode of process any video, I just want it to send the audio and video over HDMI to the surround processor. The video is a combination of mkv, avi, and mp4 files. File sizes are 500 MB to close to 100 GB. I don't expect to be doing 8K video any time soon, so that's not a requirement. The computer isn't used for gaming. The computer has an 8-core AMD Ryzen processor with about the same processing power as a decently fast Intel i7 from circa 2019. It has been the most stable/reliable/unsurprising computer I've owned. It's running Windows 10 Home with current updates.

I don't want the video board or playback software to decode or transcode or alter frame rates or resolution. I do want to send the meta data, video, and audio to the surround processor and from there to the video display. The home theater system should decode and display everything. I don't want audio decoding of Atmos, DTS:X, or Auro-3D. It can send all that as bitstream audio to the surround processor. I don't want the PC board to alter color or improve motion quality or ANYTHING other than delivering the video and audio to the home theater system. If the original video is 1080p, I do not want the computer to not change that. If the original video is 2160p at 60 Hz, I don't want the computer to change that either... just send it to the surround sound processor that will separate the audio and video and send the video to the video display. I have no idea what sort of video board is needed to do this, but I am assuming because the current board won't do more than 2160p 30 Hz, I do need something newer.

The video board will need 2 HDMI outputs if possible... one for the computer monitor (a 32-inch 4K monitor) and the other to send unmolested HD and UHD/HDR video and audio to the surround processor. I currently use an HDMI splitter to get 2 HDMI outputs, but would like to eliminate that extra bit of peripheral stuff if it's not terribly expensive. Or should/could I use 2 video boards in the computer... one for the monitor and one for the home theater system?

I've been using computers most days of my life since 1970 and know a lot, but I've never delved into this specific corner of computers and video boards. I've been involved in home theater since 1975 when I started using a matrix signal for a single back channel with stereo front channels. I've been involved in home theater professionally since 1995 in evaluation, calibration, and education.


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## Da Wiz (May 8, 2019)

How do you delete an unintentional new message? No delete button anywhere?


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## RobKnapp (Nov 30, 2020)

Da Wiz said:


> How do you delete an unintentional new message? No delete button anywhere?


Use the 3 dot Icon upper Right of your post . Then select "Report" and ask a Mod to delete it for you !


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## RichardTS (May 15, 2014)

I would lean more toward serving the files themselves to whatever program or TV app you use to play music or video. I use minidlna on a networked single purpose Linux box. Minidlna shows up as another source on my Samsung TV. I know there are security concerns with minidlna but I have a) used it for years, b) have my network locked up pretty tightly and I have never opened a port to allow remote connections. Haven’t ever had a problem.


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## Da Wiz (May 8, 2019)

Yeah, I have my media library setup to not be accessible from "outside" my home network also. The security issue, I think, is pretty "tight" here also. I've had buggy results with several forms of DLNA though, and slow performance when the library gets large (dealing with about 4000 or more music albums with circa 50,000 tracks, and hundreds of movies and TV shows and 1000s of photos. I've had bug-free results using SMB though. I'm not familiar with miniDLNA, but I will investigate--seems like I always learn SOMETHING every time I look at a different app or protocol. 

I think I'm going to have to run a media player on the PC for this. I have JRiver Media Center software that I've never made full use of. It would be helpful/useful if the media player app would respond to a remote for play, stop, FFW, FRW, Skip functions so I'm not entering the playback app during viewing. My only concern is that there are SO MANY SETTINGS and Options withJRiver Media Center software, I'm not sure I know how to use it to playback mkv, avi, and mp4 files without changing things. What I don't want is for the PC app to decode Dolby Vision or HDR10 or HDR10+, etc. I want the video display being used to do that decoding since all 3 display types do VERY DIFFERENT THINGS to the incoming video to make it look its best when played-back on each display technology. I don't wan the PC app to queery the video display to find out that it's 2160p capable so the app upconverts 1080p files to 2160p before they get to the display. I want the display to receive the unaltered video and let the display do the upconversion to 2160p. I want to do this to avoid the computer end of this changing the video based on the detected type of video display. I also use closed captions a lot so whatever playback software I use has to have good support for closed captions.


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## RichardTS (May 15, 2014)

I’ve tried to post a response about 3 times now. I write the response and the forum tells me to log in. When I log in it tosses my response.

I am pretty sure that Minidlna is only available in Linux. If you have an old PC lying around Linux runs great on an older machine.

My library is only about 8k tracks with several 4K movies adding up to about 250 gb. Minidlna has no troubles with it but not sure about your library.


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## perceval (Oct 17, 2012)

JRiver should do fine. 
There are options to bypass everything and just send the stream as is.

It can connect to storage systems, and there is a remote function, but I have never used it.

It has options, but it is not a daunting task. Just fire it up and start using it. It's the only way you will know if it's for you.


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## avander (Dec 9, 2006)

I use a PC for storing my media and run the free PC version of Plex media server to serve an LG uhd 4K smart TV which also has the Plex app running as a client to access Plex on the PC. All done wirelessly on my Home network. I don't allow access outside my home. A Marantz 6010 HT setup provides the audio.
All easy to set up and use.


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## Infrasonic (Sep 28, 2010)

Plex is my recommendation, it's easy to use and compatible with all streaming devices. Their new HTPC software works great if you're driving your main display with a computer. I have it setup to stream my 25TB+ of content (1080p, 4K HDR etc.) both inside outside of my network and it works flawlessly.


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