Plex has completely blown me away!

[BMXTRIX]

Lots of devices support 4k HDR video and HD Audio and the Shield is one of them that works very well with Plex. Could be due to their partnership with Plex, but whatever the case mine plays back everything perfectly. Atmos, DTS:X, and everything below play without being messed with. PCM is the only one that gets re-sampled apparently, but I'm not too worried about that. The only exception is HDR videos playing back on a non-HDR display. Those are washed out. If you won't run into that issue, then don't worry about it.

You can also use a PC as a client and it will also be able to pass through every type of audio/video with the exception of Dolby VIsion. Nothing at this point supports files with Dolby Vision outside of built in players in TVs (maybe something else, but Plex can't).

So if you're wondering if a Shield will support everything, the answer is yes. PCs work too, but are a bit more complicated due to what video cards support what codecs. HDR on a PC can be a huge pain as well, but that's another topic.

Shield is really the way to go for me it sounds like. I'm not using a PC for any playback as I demand the ease of use that a built in dedicated player offers, so hopefully the Shield with Plex will work well for this. I need to know a bit more about how the remote works with the Shield to ensure that I can integrate it with the rest of my home system. We have standardized remotes throughout our home. But, that's more of a Shield discussion than a Plex discussion, and I have looked a bit into it and think I can get it all to work just fine.

Good to know about the support for 4K and HD audio. I do have my new JVC 590 hooked up, but no 4K capable receiver, so I will probably do a receiver upgrade at some point. I did pick up a Sony UHD BD player to do some testing of things with the projector... which looks awesome. But, for Plex, I'm still using my Roku Ultra which is tied into my system at 1080p. I have a few 4K 10Gb/s HD cards which could give me 4K/30 to my projector and my Samsung TV, but nothing else in my home supports that level of resolution, and I'm not sure if my scalers will take things down to 1080p. Guess I can find out, or perhaps push EDID on the fly to change the resolution of my Roku.

 

[Bryce_H]

Not going to lie, the shield with a harmony is a bit of an art and learning process. I got Flicr receivers and it made the process much easier.

 

[panteragstk]

Not going to lie, the shield with a harmony is a bit of an art and learning process. I got Flicr receivers and it made the process much easier.

Really? It takes almost no effort to configure Harmony with shield (using the hub based remotes connected via Bluetooth). If you an IR harmony I can see you'd have a heck of a time.

I've got three shields and three Harmony remotes controlling them (and everything else) and setup is a breeze. If anyone needs help I'm here.

 

[panteragstk]

Shield is really the way to go for me it sounds like. I'm not using a PC for any playback as I demand the ease of use that a built in dedicated player offers, so hopefully the Shield with Plex will work well for this. I need to know a bit more about how the remote works with the Shield to ensure that I can integrate it with the rest of my home system. We have standardized remotes throughout our home. But, that's more of a Shield discussion than a Plex discussion, and I have looked a bit into it and think I can get it all to work just fine.

Good to know about the support for 4K and HD audio. I do have my new JVC 590 hooked up, but no 4K capable receiver, so I will probably do a receiver upgrade at some point. I did pick up a Sony UHD BD player to do some testing of things with the projector... which looks awesome. But, for Plex, I'm still using my Roku Ultra which is tied into my system at 1080p. I have a few 4K 10Gb/s HD cards which could give me 4K/30 to my projector and my Samsung TV, but nothing else in my home supports that level of resolution, and I'm not sure if my scalers will take things down to 1080p. Guess I can find out, or perhaps push EDID on the fly to change the resolution of my Roku.

It really depends on what you're using for control. I use the hub based harmony remotes and connect to the shield via Bluetooth. Works great without lag.

I've heard of people having good luck with flirc USB ir adapters (@Bryce_H mentioned them above), but I didn't need one for my shield. I did need one for my s905x box and it works great.

 

[Bryce_H]

It really depends on what you're using for control. I use the hub based harmony remotes and connect to the shield via Bluetooth. Works great without lag.

I've heard of people having good luck with flirc USB ir adapters (@Bryce_H mentioned them above), but I didn't need one for my shield. I did need one for my s905x box and it works great.

I'm still rocking IR

 

[panteragstk]

I'm still rocking IR

I figured. Amazon has excellent deals on the hub remotes. I got one for $60. They're pretty fantastic.

This is one that I have, but it has smart home control as well. The cheaper one doesn't.

 

[BMXTRIX]

Bluetooth control isn't an option for me, but IR, RS-232, and IP control are all possibilities. I think I still need the FLIRC adapter to do IP control because, for some reason, the Shield doesn't have built in IP control protocols available. I will never understand why manufacturers get into a 'our remote is all you need' mentality. So, that'll just be a pain for me to deal with at some point.

 

[panteragstk]

Bluetooth control isn't an option for me, but IR, RS-232, and IP control are all possibilities. I think I still need the FLIRC adapter to do IP control because, for some reason, the Shield doesn't have built in IP control protocols available. I will never understand why manufacturers get into a 'our remote is all you need' mentality. So, that'll just be a pain for me to deal with at some point.

Yeah, IP control is always what I prefer, but IR will work just fine with the FLIRC, but I'm not aware of a way to control the shield via IP unless you use ADB. I do that with Home Assistant, but I doubt there are many (if any) other HA platforms that have that functionality.

 

[BMXTRIX]

Yeah, IP control is always what I prefer, but IR will work just fine with the FLIRC, but I'm not aware of a way to control the shield via IP unless you use ADB. I do that with Home Assistant, but I doubt there are many (if any) other HA platforms that have that functionality.

My whole home is controlled via Crestron, so I already have a module to control the Shield via IP and I've looked at the FLIRC protocols which are published (thankfully) and it seems to make sense.

Of course, I'm still 6+ months away from giving this a try unless I find some crazy deal on a Shield between now and then. Which I will be looking for.

 

[panteragstk]

My whole home is controlled via Crestron, so I already have a module to control the Shield via IP and I've looked at the FLIRC protocols which are published (thankfully) and it seems to make sense.

Of course, I'm still 6+ months away from giving this a try unless I find some crazy deal on a Shield between now and then. Which I will be looking for.

Ah. Makes sense.

 

[thrillcat]

Hi!

I’ve been using PLEX since this summer as well. I have a separate PC setup in a closet that acts as a server, and I’m using a Shield for playback. Everything is working great.

What do I get by bringing Kodi into the mix?




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[panteragstk]

Hi!

I’ve been using PLEX since this summer as well. I have a separate PC setup in a closet that acts as a server, and I’m using a Shield for playback. Everything is working great.

What do I get by bringing Kodi into the mix?




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Customizable skins, add-ons.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I'm still using KODI. Still works great for all 7 PCs in my house.

Plays 4K SDR, Dolby Atmos, DTSX great.

Still no HDR-pass-through yet on KODI, but to me 4K SDR and plain 2K (1080p) already looks so freaking awesome on my JVC NX5.

So happy.

 

[thrillcat]

Customizable skins, add-ons.

Add-ons... like what? What can Kodi do that PLEX cannot?


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[thrillcat]

I'm still using KODI. Still works great for all 7 PCs in my house.

Plays 4K SDR, Dolby Atmos, DTSX great.

Still no HDR-pass-through yet on KODI, but to me 4K SDR and plain 2K (1080p) already looks so freaking awesome on my JVC NX5.

So happy.

My server is organized by PLEX. I’ve been happy with it in general. Plays back all my full quality mkvs with lossless audio, hdr, etc. the only thing it won’t do is Dolby vision which is a non-issue with my projector.

But as I’m looking to move and will embark on a new theater room build, im wondering what options running my PLEX server into Kodi might add. Perhaps automating screen masking systems, lighting, etc.

If it’s just custom skins it’s probably not worth it. If it can read a film’s aspect ratio metadata and automatically trigger screen masking, and sync lighting control with the play/pause button, maybe it’s worth looking at.


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[panteragstk]

Add-ons... like what? What can Kodi do that PLEX cannot?


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Well, there's an add on that lets Kodi talk directly to Plex and use Kodi as a Plex front end. I use that in my theater and it's awesome.

They have add-ons for hulu, netflix, if you're into that. They have some for game console emulation. They really try to make it a one stop shop.

Just checked and it will do aspect ratio detection. I have mine dim the lights when I press play and raise them slightly when I pause. Then when I stop the movie they go back to full.

Kodi and Plex together are pretty fantastic.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

My server is organized by PLEX. I’ve been happy with it in general. Plays back all my full quality mkvs with lossless audio, hdr, etc. the only thing it won’t do is Dolby vision which is a non-issue with my projector.

Are you saying that Plex does HDR Pass-Through?

Or Plex does HDR-to-SDR Conversion/Tone-Maping?

 

[thrillcat]

PLEX does hdr passthrough.

Using the Shield, PLEX sends HDR, lossless audio, immersive audio, etc. everything but Dolby Vision.

Using the AppleTV, PLEX sends HDR, but has to transcode to DD+ audio.

Using the AppleTV and the Infuse app, you can pull lossless audio as LPCM, and HDR, but any immersive audio metadata for Atmos or DTSX is lost.




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[AcuDefTechGuy]

I think I’m in love with Plex.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

PLEX does hdr passthrough.

Using the Shield, PLEX sends HDR, lossless audio, immersive audio, etc. everything but Dolby Vision.

Using the AppleTV, PLEX sends HDR, but has to transcode to DD+ audio.

Using the AppleTV and the Infuse app, you can pull lossless audio as LPCM, and HDR, but any immersive audio metadata for Atmos or DTSX is lost.




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What are you using as a Remote Control for the PLEX Desktop?

Last night I installed PLEX on my HTPC and compared a few 4K HEVC HDR movies with Kodi.

The PLEX video quality (4K HDR Tone-mapping) looks so much better than the Kodi 4K HDR Tone-mapping. It was day-and-night in favor of PLEX!

Of course, for SDR and 2K, the video quality is the same with Kodi vs PLEX.

But for 4K HDR Tone-mapping, PLEX is very impressive to me.

The only minor issues I have with PLEX is the lack of a Remote Control App and the Interface/Skin/aesthetics.

But I would take the awesome HDR Tone-Mapping of PLEX over the other minor issues any day.