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+--- Thread: Hardware selection for newbie (/t-hardware-selection-for-newbie)
Hardware selection for newbie - Tommaso Ansaloni - 2025-05-08
Hello to everyone , i am new to this forum and to home media server too.
Now i am hosting Jellyfin in my PC but i want to build a new setup on which i will mainly run Jellyfin (and use it for some basic stuff).
I want to stay cheap so i considered 2 configuration: use a old pc buying a new video card or buying a mini pc (i found a new one with N95 for 100 euro) and a NAS for storage.
It is enough a N95 for max 2 streams at a time 1080p? And also can handle a 4k stream?
Which of the 2 option is better and you suggest : old pc with new video card or n95 mini pc?
RE: Hardware selection for newbie - bitmap - 2025-05-08
An N95 is sufficient. If you're not transcoding anything (i.e., your client is fully compatible with the media being transmitted), the overhead is minimal. Transcoding is where you run into issues of scale. You're likely fine with 1080p and might be able to transcode a single 4K stream, though I'm not sure where to find benchmarks of that type. See the HWA guide as well as hardware selection guide.
https://jellyfin.org/docs/general/post-install/transcoding/hardware-acceleration/intel#speed-and-quality
https://jellyfin.org/docs/general/administration/hardware-selection
If you can find an old PC and pop in an A310 or any Intel Arc card that fits in your budget, you'll be golden for pretty much whatever you want to throw at it -- as long as the CPU is decent and power draw isn't a concern.