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I've been using a Ceton Infinitv tuner with WMC and ServerWMC for the last 5 years. I use Kodi as a PVR interface and my interface for TV shows/ Movies on my f

I've been using a Ceton Infinitv tuner with WMC and ServerWMC for the last 5 years. I use Kodi as a PVR interface and my interface for TV shows/ Movies on my file server. I don't see any advantage to Plex, you need to pay for the service and it's a PIA to setup and configure. Once configured, don't plan on using the computer you setup the Media server on as it is always busy/ bogged down scanning files and transcoding video.

jayrox 9y ago
> Once configured, don't plan on using the computer you setup the Media server on as it is always busy/ bogged down scanning files and transcoding video. This part is incorrect. Plex only needs to transcode at the time the media is being played and really only scans when changes to the media directory are detected and/or on a schedule you define.
hendersoon 9y ago
Windows Media Center is a discontinued product. Best case scenario, it'll be supported until 2023 when Windows 8.1 ends extended support. But I'd be pretty surprised if MS is still sending guide data that long. More likely, one day you'll turn it on and discover it doesn't work any more.
- drewmol 9y ago
  You can use a paid service like schedulesdirect to replace windows media center guide data, which they get from Rovi (Tivo parent) currently. It tends to be more detailed and accurate that way.
elbrian 9y ago
>Once configured, don't plan on using the computer you setup the Media server on as it is always busy/ bogged down scanning files and transcoding video. This is such a bogus statement. The impact that Plex has on your computer is directly tied to the processing power of said computer. I run Plex with a >10tb media collection on my >2 year old desktop, and I am able to play games such as PUBG, DayZ, Arma 3, Overwatch, etc with absolutely no hindrance. This is my build: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/QVKMrH https://pcpartpicker.com/list/QVKMrH edit: I'd also argue that Plex has a vastly superior interface, as well as metadata handling, compared to Kodi. Kodi is basically "the poor man's Plex."
mikewhy 9y ago
> you need to pay for the service No, you don't. Source: I've had an account for years and am not paying anything. > it's a PIA to setup and configure. You add folders to a TV and Movies collection once. With Kodi, you're doing it N times, where N is the number of Kodi installs in your house. > Once configured, don't plan on using the computer you setup the Media server on as it is always busy/ bogged down scanning files and transcoding video As others have stated, this is not the case. My Plex server is an old Core2Duo MacBook Pro that also runs virtual machines.
- bubbabojangles 9y ago
  >No, you don't. Source: I've had an account for years and am not paying anything. From https://www.plex.tv/blog/well-do-it-live/ https://www.plex.tv/blog/well-do-it-live/ Remember, Plex Live TV and DVR is a Plex Pass only feature, and is immediately available for Plex Pass users. You can find out more info about Plex Live TV and DVR here as well. >You add folders to a TV and Movies collection once. With Kodi, you're doing it N times, where N is the number of Kodi installs in your house. Never had any success in Plex detecting all my content properly. It's a luck of the draw if you want your content tagged appropriately. I use a MySQL database to store my media library, all I need to do is point Kodi in that direction and everything is synchronized. > As others have stated, this is not the case. My Plex server is an old Core2Duo MacBook Pro that also runs virtual machines. You all must have a small media library
  - mikewhy 9y ago
    > Remember, Plex Live TV and DVR is a Plex Pass only feature Apologies, but it didn't seem like you were talking about that single feature when you said "you need to pay for the service". > all I need to do is point Kodi in that direction Which is great, but again, with Plex you don't even need to point. It just finds the server on the network. > Never had any success in Plex detecting all my content properly That's definitely annoying. But I built a Plex Channel for my downloads, and it names files according to what Plex expects. > You all must have a small media library ~4TB of networked storage, but yeah, maybe that's small?
  - 9y ago
inesta 9y ago
i used to have this, but could not get my windows machine to sleep when i wasnt using kodi. i'm guessing the latest serverwmc must be taking care of this by now?

jayrox 9y ago

> Once configured, don't plan on using the computer you setup the Media server on as it is always busy/ bogged down scanning files and transcoding video. This part is incorrect. Plex only needs to transcode at the time the media is being played and really only scans when changes to the media directory are detected and/or on a schedule you define.

hendersoon 9y ago

Windows Media Center is a discontinued product. Best case scenario, it'll be supported until 2023 when Windows 8.1 ends extended support. But I'd be pretty surprised if MS is still sending guide data that long. More likely, one day you'll turn it on and discover it doesn't work any more.

drewmol 9y ago
You can use a paid service like schedulesdirect to replace windows media center guide data, which they get from Rovi (Tivo parent) currently. It tends to be more detailed and accurate that way.

elbrian 9y ago

>Once configured, don't plan on using the computer you setup the Media server on as it is always busy/ bogged down scanning files and transcoding video. This is such a bogus statement. The impact that Plex has on your computer is directly tied to the processing power of said computer. I run Plex with a >10tb media collection on my >2 year old desktop, and I am able to play games such as PUBG, DayZ, Arma 3, Overwatch, etc with absolutely no hindrance. This is my build: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/QVKMrH https://pcpartpicker.com/list/QVKMrH edit: I'd also argue that Plex has a vastly superior interface, as well as metadata handling, compared to Kodi. Kodi is basically "the poor man's Plex."

mikewhy 9y ago

> you need to pay for the service No, you don't. Source: I've had an account for years and am not paying anything. > it's a PIA to setup and configure. You add folders to a TV and Movies collection once. With Kodi, you're doing it N times, where N is the number of Kodi installs in your house. > Once configured, don't plan on using the computer you setup the Media server on as it is always busy/ bogged down scanning files and transcoding video As others have stated, this is not the case. My Plex server is an old Core2Duo MacBook Pro that also runs virtual machines.

bubbabojangles 9y ago
>No, you don't. Source: I've had an account for years and am not paying anything. From https://www.plex.tv/blog/well-do-it-live/ https://www.plex.tv/blog/well-do-it-live/ Remember, Plex Live TV and DVR is a Plex Pass only feature, and is immediately available for Plex Pass users. You can find out more info about Plex Live TV and DVR here as well. >You add folders to a TV and Movies collection once. With Kodi, you're doing it N times, where N is the number of Kodi installs in your house. Never had any success in Plex detecting all my content properly. It's a luck of the draw if you want your content tagged appropriately. I use a MySQL database to store my media library, all I need to do is point Kodi in that direction and everything is synchronized. > As others have stated, this is not the case. My Plex server is an old Core2Duo MacBook Pro that also runs virtual machines. You all must have a small media library
- mikewhy 9y ago
  > Remember, Plex Live TV and DVR is a Plex Pass only feature Apologies, but it didn't seem like you were talking about that single feature when you said "you need to pay for the service". > all I need to do is point Kodi in that direction Which is great, but again, with Plex you don't even need to point. It just finds the server on the network. > Never had any success in Plex detecting all my content properly That's definitely annoying. But I built a Plex Channel for my downloads, and it names files according to what Plex expects. > You all must have a small media library ~4TB of networked storage, but yeah, maybe that's small?
- 9y ago

inesta 9y ago

i used to have this, but could not get my windows machine to sleep when i wasnt using kodi. i'm guessing the latest serverwmc must be taking care of this by now?