Where to get general/basic info

[RickB]

Today, I have a Plex server in my house, running on Linux.  Media stored and accessed from a NAS.  I don't currently have a Plex Pass, and I am seeing that the price for that is nearly tripling.  I just noticed that hardware transcoding is behind the paywall with plex (though it really hasn't impacted me).  I obtain and record OTA TV using a Tablo.

I was considering buying a Plex Pass now ($250) before the price hike, in the event of Tablo stopping working some day.

Overall Jellyfin question:  Is there a dummy's guide or a more detailed manual where I can look the following info up and not pester y'all?

I don't require much from Plex.  I host ripped DVDs, and, occasionally, vacation pictures.   That's about it.  I don't share content with friends.  I don't watch with friends.  Downloading a movie to watch on a flight is something I would do, but that its behind the plex paywall.

Failing that, some simple questions:

Does Jellyfin do OTA recording/live play?
Is there a 4 tuner receiver that works with jellyfin?  (Ideally that would be USB based, though I just learned that there are ethernet connected tuner devices as well.  My Plex server is a laptop).
Is there a channel guide?
While Plex took a bit of machinations to get to work, once it was working, I don't need to pay it any attention.  I don't have to keep futzing with it...it just works.  Will Jellyfin do the same?

[EliteAlien]

Does Jellyfin do OTA recording/live play?

Yes, but it's kind of basic in my opinion from what I've seen. I don't know how Plex does it either to really compare. It can work, but don't expect like massive customization as in frequencies and what not.

Is there a 4 tuner receiver that works with jellyfin?  (Ideally that would be USB based, though I just learned that there are ethernet connected tuner devices as well.  My Plex server is a laptop).

I am unsure if the TV stuff has been that upgraded. However, from my limited experience the best option if you are wanting that is to use something like the HDHomerRun or similar like devices.

Is there a channel guide?

You can pull in data with like XMLTV files. However, it uses Schedules Direct the best from what I've seen.

While Plex took a bit of machinations to get to work, once it was working, I don't need to pay it any attention.  I don't have to keep futzing with it...it just works.  Will Jellyfin do the same?

I mean, if you set it up, unless someone fiddles with it, then it shouldn't stop working.


I personally use NextPVR instead of any of the Media Servers for live TV. As it's a bit more robust and works well with my TV tuner cards better than Jellyfin did when I was setting it all up a long time ago. There is also TVHeadend as well, that a lot of people like as well. Both of these have plugins for Jellyfin. I've had a little rocky ups and downs with the NextPVR plugin with Jellyfin on some updates. It's mostly solid and with either of these programs you can access LiveTV with more than just Jellyfin or directly from these hosted services. It makes you less tied into a media server as it's portable between them all. As I believe both of these have plugins for Plex & Emby as well. Personally I find the Kodi tie in with NextPVR or TVHeadend to be the best situation. As you can link a media server to it and the Live TV server to it as well and Kodi lets you customize a little. So that's sort of the thing I would suggest to anyone wanting to start using Live TV right now, and never setup anything before.