Recommendations to connect a NAS to Samsung Series 6

[yankeeDDL]

Hi there,

I have a ... significant amount of external drives where I store movies and TV series.
I normally plug in the disk directly into the TV's USB port (I have an UE40C6530, which is a series 6 LED TV).
The TV is also connected to my network.
This works (most of the times), but it is getting out of hand as I am losing track of which drive has what, where's the drive ...

I thought about purchasing a NAS and put some order in the files.
I can play videos using Samsung Smart TV app on a PC connected to the same network, but the interface is insanely uncomfortable (talk about re-inventing the wheel).

So my question to you is: how would you recommend I'd stream files from a NAS to the TV?
I see few options, but I am no expert:
- Via the network, using Samsung app, via a PC
- Connect a HTPC to the HDMI port and access the NAS via the PC (the Compute stick that AnandTech just reviewed, for example)
- With a Chromecast
- Plugging the NAS directly in the TV's USB port

Thoughts?

 

[abekl]

I have a straightforward nas streaming setup that works well for me.

The nas contains all the media files, and is running Plex as the DLNA media Server software. My Panasonic smart TV can recognize Plex and display Plex's library on the screen. Plex's library is just a fancy listing of the physical media files on the nas. So all I have to do is select the title in the DLNA app on the TV, and Viola. The nice thing is that you can run multiple media servers from different companies simultaneously and enjoy the benefits/features of each.

Now, this is all done wirelessly. The TV and NAS both support AC wi-fi speed, so bandwidth isn't an issue, and 1080p movies with DTS soundtracks play just fine.

 

[yankeeDDL]

I have a straightforward nas streaming setup that works well for me.

The nas contains all the media files, and is running Plex as the DLNA media Server software. My Panasonic smart TV can recognize Plex and display Plex's library on the screen. Plex's library is just a fancy listing of the physical media files on the nas. So all I have to do is select the title in the DLNA app on the TV, and Viola. The nice thing is that you can run multiple media servers from different companies simultaneously and enjoy the benefits/features of each.

Now, this is all done wirelessly. The TV and NAS both support AC wi-fi speed, so bandwidth isn't an issue, and 1080p movies with DTS soundtracks play just fine.

Sounds very good: thank you very much for taking the time to answer me.
I installed Plex App on my TV as well, but haven't tried it yet.
I will install it also on one of the laptops and see how it goes.
If it all goes well, as it should, I will replicate your setup.

A couple more questions, if I may:
1) Do you run Plex on the NAS itself? Or do you need a PC connected when using it?
2) Do you have suggestions on the NAS? I am considering the QNAP TS 451 (https://www.qnap.com/i/en/product/model.php?II=143). I would like (at least) 4 bays and this seems to have a good price/performance ratio. Price-wise, the sky is the limit really.

 

[abekl]

1) Do you run Plex on the NAS itself? Or do you need a PC connected when using it?
I run Plex on the NAS, and connect to Plex through its Web interface. So any PC will do. You can also access the nas from an Android device using an app called BubbleUp.

2) Do you have suggestions on the NAS? I am considering the QNAP TS 451 (https://www.qnap.com/i/en/product/model.php?II=143). I would like (at least) 4 bays and this seems to have a good price/performance ratio. Price-wise, the sky is the limit really.

I would strongly recommend the Asustor AS6024T.
https://www.asustor.com/product?p_id=41&lan=en
It's got an impressive set of features and apps and runs around five hundred dollars. It runs using a fast celeron CPU instead of the under-powered Atom CPU so many units use. Even the Qnap you were looking at uses an older dual core Celeron CPU that is underpowered. The Asustor also uses dual channel RAM, a feature new to NAS's.

 

[yankeeDDL]

1)
I would strongly recommend the Asustor AS6024T.
https://www.asustor.com/product?p_id=41&lan=en
It's got an impressive set of features and apps and runs around five hundred dollars. It runs using a fast celeron CPU instead of the under-powered Atom CPU so many units use. Even the Qnap you were looking at uses an older dual core Celeron CPU that is underpowered. The Asustor also uses dual channel RAM, a feature new to NAS's.

Wow, it's an expensive NAS (over 510eur in Europe)! Uff, not sure if it is worth it, to be honest: the QNAP is around 400eur.
I checked and QNAP too supports Plex, and while it does not have a Braswell chip, the celeron does have QuickSync, which seems to allow it to stream "anything" with ease, even at 1080p.

 

[abekl]

100 euro difference is not that much in the long run. I hear your concern, but if it were me, I'd get the Asustor or find another unit that has a quad core celeron.

 

[yankeeDDL]

100 euro difference is not that much in the long run. I hear your concern, but if it were me, I'd get the Asustor or find another unit that has a quad core celeron.

It is a good point ...
One more question: Plex ... do you use the free version, or do you pay? If you pay, do you see a difference in performance?

 

[JeffMD]

https://support.plex.tv/hc/en-us/articles/202526943-Plex-Free-vs-Paid

 

[Bardock]

Serviio > Plex all day

 

[JeffMD]

aaahhh..yea...the library interface for plex stomps the serviio. ^^ And you don't have to worry about installing your own codecs and such. Plex is awesome to look at but has issues with transcoding low bitrate videos (1-2Mbit) that drops quality to much for me.

 

[guachi]

Hi there,

I have a ... significant amount of external drives where I store movies and TV series.
I normally plug in the disk directly into the TV's USB port (I have an UE40C6530, which is a series 6 LED TV).
The TV is also connected to my network.
This works (most of the times), but it is getting out of hand as I am losing track of which drive has what, where's the drive ...


Thoughts?

Sticky not taped to the top of the external drive. It's what I do. That and drives of different color and/or manufacturer.

That way I can tell at a glance what drive has movies, what drive has old TV shows, what drive has new TV shows, what drive has sort-of-new-but-cancelled TV shows, what drive has sci-fi shows, what drive has British shows, and what drive has Law & Order/CSI (my wife likes them and we've recorded every episode from every different show off of cable with commercials mercifully removed)