This is a NAS you should consider if you need a capable storage device to store plenty of media with the capability of driving 4K transcoding. The former isn't too important unless you have multiple people accessing the same enclosure. This is designed and built specifically for creators with the most demanding computing needs, this motherboard also boasts quite a feature set. With it, you’re also getting AI overclocking, AI networking with Wi-Fi 6 support and Asus’ Aura Sync illumination. Share ... freenas may not be the right choice for you. Your motherboard is the most important part of your system, so you should pick up a good one. If you want to store 4K content, you'll want one with at least six bays. Shows and movies in Full HD can get away with being stored on a NAS with four or more bays. Add in an X-series processor and a good graphics card or 3, and this thing will absolutely tear apart anything you could possibly throw at it. The integrated graphics and four physical cores are more than a match for 4K transcoding, which is required if you want to stream a 4K movie to a TV or other receiving device that doesn't support the file format. You can easily pick a good NAS that will run Plex well from ASUSTOR, QNAP, among others. The hardware is all in my sig if you are curious. Best High-End Intel Micro ATX Motherboard. The CPU would be bottlenecked if QNAP didn't include enough RAM. If you’re thinking of upgrading to a 10th-generation Intel Core processor, invest in this motherboard as well. These are the best motherboards 2020 has to offer. And that's just for a single receiving device. Up until May 2019 I stored my photos, old documents and other things on a single 3TBWestern Digital Green drive in my Hackintosh. That's equally impressive for such an affordable NAS enclosure. The best Information Technology Extended (ITX) Network Attached Storage (NAS) case is one that is a combination of all the power of a mini ITX motherboard can provide with the convenience of having a NAS. 4.0 out of 5 stars 1. It's almost the best NAS for Plex. $330.66 $ 330. It's not all about the CPU, though. 66. But the highlight specifications don't end there. If you need the smallest possible motherboard available without compromising on key features of your CPU, you should look into the Asus ROG Strix Z390-I Gaming. If you’re unfamiliar with the best motherboards out there, use this list as a primer for your next build. With this motherboard, you’re getting excellent power delivery, a great feature set and an incredibly effective cooling solution, as well as a cool aesthetic to boot. The card supports JBOD, RAID 0, 1, and 10. and 8 different slots for memory modules. When you’ve got an AMD Threadripper under the hood of your PC, you absolutely need a beast of a motherboard like the MSI Creator TRX40. Its I/O ports are shielded, it comes with a PCIe 4.0 slot (and a second PCIe 3.0 one), and it has just about all the ports and port headers you could desire. Joining Mobile Nations in 2010, you can usually find him inside a PC case tinkering around when not at a screen fighting with Grammarly to use British words. The socket, for those not in the know, is the part on the motherboard that the CPU locks into. The Synology DiskStation DS220+ may be considerably more affordable than our top NAS picks for Plex, but don't let that fool you into assuming it won't be able to handle its own. When you enter the world of 4K content and incompatibilities between the server and receiving hardware (be it your smart TV, phone, etc. The OS is one of the best around from Synology, allowing you to get more done. Motherboards are available in a broad range of different form factors, the most common of which are ATX and Micro ATX. Here we another small form factor NAS ready case from SilverStone but this only supports Mini-ITX and Mini-DTX motherboards. It can handle up to 128GB of DDR4400 RAM, the latest 3rd gen AMD processors and multiple GPUs for anyone wanting to future proof their gaming needs. There are four 5Gb LAN ports, with each one potentially handling upwards of 500MB/s. This is where the processor matters most, and you need a really good one to keep up with 4K. Most enclosures that support Plex well are also upgradable, so they should be a single-time purchase that lasts many years to come. It's powerful enough for Plex with plenty of other features. Installing drives inside this enclosure is also a breeze, thanks to the hot-swappable tool-less design of the bays. Since we already know what the enclosure will be used for, we need to have the specifications tailored to that use. Then you have four USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports and a further single USB 3.2 Gen 1 port. Categories: Benchmarks, Reviews. CPU: Intel Core i5-8400T | Drive bays: 8 | RAM: 16GB DDR4 (max 32GB) | Features: 1x 10Gb LAN, 2x 1Gb LAN, 2x Thunderbolt 3, 4x USB 3.2 Gen 2, 2x M.2 slots. Intel Celeron processors are great, so too is an Intel Core i3, but how does an Intel Core i5 CPU sound? The price remains an important factor here, but you will have to part with some considerable cash to truly enjoy streaming media, particularly 4K movies. For the best motherboard for the latest Intel chips, you need one that brings plenty of power to the table, as well as intelligent cooling and support for faster memory. It's movies and shows where transcoding may be required, especially for 4K content, where you'll need additional firepower. So that leaves 16TB of capacity, which could be increased using an external storage unit. But, other than that, it’s hard to find fault in this board. It's possible to get similarly powered enclosures from different vendors too. TerraMaster F2-221: Best Affordable NAS for Plex. The Intel Core CPU is joined by 4GB of DDR4 RAM, which can be upgraded to 32GB, further cementing this NAS as a substantial investment for the future. It is also capable of being the centerpiece of a very powerful computer. Simply extract, install the drive, and re-insert, and you're good to go. Here are our best motherboards for 2020. This is where the Intel Core i5-7500 comes into play. It can be found on Ebay, but it's really headache because one time I purchased a bad non-working mainboard that was advertised like "95% new". Check. This is one of the best NAS enclosures around for Plex, thanks to the capable Intel Core i5 and Core i7 processors, up to 64GB of RAM, and eight drive bays. And, in many ways, they’re the most important PC component out there. Tweak Town reviews and benchmarks a Mini-ITX, passively cooled, 18 drive, 4 NIC, IPMI NAS motherboard by ASUS. First, as expected, is the processor. We've highlighted the model with an Intel Core i5-8400T processor. This also offers low running cost with power saving features. You will receive a verification email shortly. Oh, and two drive bays. That's where this collection of enclosures comes into play, allowing you to take your media to the big screen without any buffering. Time for more discounts! The X-series processors are here, and they are spectacular. | Terms of Use Notice | Privacy Policy It's possible, just not recommended. XPS 8920, mainboard Hi, I'm looking for good working mainboard for my Dell XPS 8920. The GIGABYTE Z490 Gaming X may not have any flashy new features to bring to the table, but if you’re an Intel fan who needs a new motherboard in the budget sphere, it’s certainly a great choice. If you’re seeking one of the best motherboards money can buy, this is it. Michelle Rae Uy The TerraMaster F2-22* is an impressive NAS. It all comes down to what you plan on using Plex Media Server for. The motherboard size is 147×140 mm, which is between Intel's NUC (next unit of computing) motherboards and Mini-ITX boards that are popular in … The choice available is immense, but not so much for Plex. 2GB is considered the baseline, while 4GB is usually enough for a busy home, but having upgradable RAM puts you in an excellent position to expand it later. © If you have a busy home that loves to consume media, this is a great enclosure to consider. FREE Shipping . Best single-board computers for building a NAS system Price CPU RAM; 92. For Ethernet, 1Gb ports are okay, so long as you can link them up and increase bandwidth, though ideally, you'll want to have 2.5Gb or 10Gb ports. This will give you a much greater storage capacity than if you’re using a simple router and external drive. The DiskStation DS220+ is a well-positioned NAS with an attractive price and plenty of performance. It's not the best CPU you can find in a NAS, but if you plan on going for an Intel Core i5 or Core i7, you'll be expected to pay for the luxury. Then there's the fact this thing comes with two Gigabit ports and one 10Gb port so you can link them up for increased bandwidth for all the streaming. Amazon.com: nas motherboard. A good NAS enclosure for Plex needs a couple of things. Four 5Gb LAN ports, a capable Intel Core i3 processor, and eight bays. There are NAS enclosures, and then there are NAS enclosures. Asus is out to prove that big things can and do come in small packages with the ROG Strix X470-I. The ASUSTOR AS5304T is an excellent NAS. TechRadar is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Eight HDD bays with a further four for SSDs, two M.2 slots, upgradable RAM to 64GB, a powerful Intel Core i5-7500 CPU. It's better to pay more now than paying even more down the line for an earlier upgrade. Best AMD Motherboards: December 2020. Moreover, in our rundown of the best motherboards, we detailed the socket type that each mobo adheres to. So long as everything is in line, you can watch 4K movies on this small enclosure. Check. That's why I'd like to get rid of that trouble. It's also got one impressive CPU, making it easily the best NAS for Plex if you need power. Among those features are the latest PCIe gen4 slots and M.2 connectors, USB3.2 Gen2x2, Wi-Fi 6 and 10G LAN, as well as MSI’s Frozr Heatsink design and Mystic Light RGB lighting. Consider your home where there could be multiple users on different hardware wanting to access content stored on Plex. 5 Best Budget Motherboards – 2020. MSI ProSeries AMD Ryzen 2ND and 3rd Gen AM4 M.2 USB 3 DDR4 D-Sub DVI HDMI Crossfire ATX Motherboard (B450-A Pro Max) (B450APROMAX) This motherboard comes prepped with 1st, 2nd and 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen™ / Ryzen™ with Radeon™ Vega Graphics and 2nd Gen AMD Ryzen™ with Radeon™ Graphics / Athlon™ with Radeon™ Vega Graphics … Skip to main content.us. Choosing the best NAS for home is one thing, but choosing the best NAS for Plex media consumption is a whole different game. Included with the motherboard package - IO shield, dual E5506 processors (you will need them to update the BIOS to support 5600 series processors) More Info on the S5500BC . Intel NUC. Rocking dual-2.5Gb LAN almost eliminates any network bottlenecks, so long as your LAN infrastructure can keep up. High-end motherboards may cost a fortune, but if you’ve got something like the MSI MEG Z490 Godlike under the hood, you’re pretty much guaranteed top-notch performance, especially if you’ve got Intel components. These can be linked together to create a connection with your router or switch to offer impressive bandwidth. And now’s the perfect time to invest, considering both Asus and MSI recently unveiled their new Intel Z490 motherboards for the newly-released Intel Comet Lake-S. It's no surprise to see AMD doing very well at present, and the new Ryzen 5000 series of processors have been a big hit. Motherboard size is kind of a self-explanatory thing. It isn't easy to find speedy LAN ports without going far beyond your budget, even though vendors are working to bring faster ports to more affordable NAS models. Bottom line: My pick for the best affordable NAS for Plex simply has to be the Synology DiskStation DS220+. The X570 Master is also very astutely designed, with shielding on its I/O ports, WiFi 6 and a number of other placement choices that make this a quality board. If you move around your PC a lot, or are simply in a place where you cannot run an ethernet cable, this is a desirable feature to have. 07 December 2020, The best motherboards to house your precious components. Alternate motherboard recommendation if/when the S5500BC(R) goes out of stock Supermicro X8DTL-i (dual socket LGA1366) I like this board more, but it’s nearly double the price. The eight drive bays allow you to store up to 128TB of data, not taking into account RAID configurations for data redundancy. The most relevant motherboards for a new CPU buyer today are those equipped with the following chipsets: X570, B550, X470, and B450. It’s certainly a favorite among overclockers out there, and with Wi-Fi 6 support to boot. This is an excellent Mini-ITX board with ample room for … We could have gone with a 12-bay NAS with a mediocre processor, but if you plan to store more than 100TB worth of content, chances are some of it will be in 4K. The layout includes a single PCI Express x16, and two PCI slots. But if you want to take advantage of all they have to offer, you need an X-series motherboard. ‎06-13-2020 11:22 AM. It houses an Intel Core i3-8100T processor, which is ideal for the transcoding of 4K movies, and there are eight drive bays for storing all your favorite shows, music, movies, and photos. This is the best motherboard for AMD fans right now, with a top-notch feature set, great design and a highly-effective cooling solution. If you configure the drives to be in a RAID configuration (and we recommend you do), you'll be left with up to 16TB of storage space. Cooler Master HAF XB EVO - High Air Flow Test Bench and Lan Box Desktop Computer … The card uses PCIe 2.0 x2 interface, meaning it can be installed in an x4, x8, or x16 PCIe slot, depending on your motherboard and which PCIe slots it has. If you don't like the look of our top pick, there are plenty of other shortlisted enclosures worth considering for installing and running a Plex Media Server. Bottom line: The QNAP TVS-672N-i3 is the best NAS for Plex in our collection. Stream to multiple devices? This is aided by the fact TerraMaster lets you upgrade the 2GB RAM to 6GB. The only drawback is 2 drive bays, which does restrict just how much you can store on the NAS. Inside, the TVS-882BRT3 comes with 16GB of DDR4 RAM installed, but you can easily upgrade it to a whopping 64GB if needed. To help you find the perfect board for your next PC, we’ve rounded up the best motherboards on the market. You can use it for home file storage, game streaming, and even Plex. 10 AMD Precision Boost Overdrive 2 tunes up your single thread perf AGESA 1.1.8.0 will deliver this update in … Let's get one thing out of the way. To be safe, I'd recommend an Intel Core i3 processor or higher. It has a powerful Intel Core i5 processor, 16GB of DDR4 RAM preinstalled, two 10Gb ports, and even three HDMI outlets. With this motherboard, you are getting excellent latency and consistency, and more importantly, one of the best power deliveries among the mid-range mini ITX motherboards. The QNAP TVS-1282T3 is much like our top performance pick from QNAP but comes with more drive bays so you can cram as much content onto it as possible. No problem. This gave me the small size that I wanted with the ability to upicycle parts later. © 2020 ASRock Inc. All rights reserved. Visit our corporate site. That's precisely what this enclosure can be configured with. However, there are plenty of less common form factors including mini ITX and E-ATX. So, make sure to budget properly for a quality board, unless you want to rebuild your entire PC from scratch because the motherboard you choose simply couldn’t keep up. The addition of two M.2 slots allows you to install two SSDs to act as caching and improve performance further. This is why the latest Intel Celeron processors are recommended as the bare minimum to get by for 4K. The MSI B450M PRO-M2 motherboard is a basic motherboard with some give and take on the features. If you want to stream music and photos, even the lesser Intel CPUs will be more than enough in affordable enclosures. There is a downside to this enclosure, and that's the price, which puts it above other four-bay enclosures, but you get so much more for your money here. $120 + Intel Celeron, Pentium, Core: SO-DIMM: 85. Bottom line: The QNAP TVS-1282T3 is an excellent NAS. ASRock Rack C3558D4I-4L Atom C3558 Mini ITX Motherboard w/Quad GbE LAN, IPMI, 13 x SATA Connectors. If you're the sort who would always build your own NAS, go ahead. Thanks to Asus’ double capacity memory compatibility – you can have up to 64GB of memory in the most miniscule motherboard you’ve ever seen. Updated December 31, 2019 3 Comments. $111.00: Intel Quad-core … Otherwise, you'll find yourself running out of space quickly. CPU: Intel Celeron J4025 | Drive bays: 2 | RAM: 2 GB DDR4 (max 6 GB) | Features: 2x 1Gb LAN, 2x USB 3.0, upgradable RAM. Picking the Best Video Editing Software for Windows (UPDATED 2020) The 5 Best Tablets for Video Editing in 2020; Projectors. It’s picking the best one for you and your build that’s tricky, however. ASUS WS C621E SAGE LGA 3647 EEB Motherboard - C621 Chipset - Dual Socket P LGA-3647 for Intel Xeon Scalable CPU(205W) - 12x DIMM Max. Max speed is 5gbps per lane. This isn't the best NAS out there for Plex, but it'll not cause a hole in your wallet. For networking, QNAP decided to go with four 1Gb ports and two 10Gb ports, so there's plenty to play with here, even if you've yet to upgrade your home network to 10Gb/s. This was great because it allowedme to use unlimited backup data for a fixed price. The unique feature of this platform is low power use or green design, which allows it to be run with a passive cooling system. The best graphics cards or processors might be sexier than motherboards, but your PC simply won’t reach the heights of the best PCs without the best motherboards. When shopping around for the best NAS for home, if you have Plex in mind as what you'll be using your NAS for, there are a few additional factors to consider. As long as you’re willing to pay the price. The only drawback to this NAS is the price, which can put some people off. Posted by 3dcandy - Wed 02 Dec 2020 11:32 In related news my old B450 has got beta 5000 series support (over 2 weeks actually) Asus have done well MY HEXUS It's a fantastic NAS enclosure for the price and can even handle some 4K transcoding, should you require it. ESPRESSObin. That extends down to the BIOS where you can find a stress test for overclocks before you even boot into Windows. Then you have the drive bays. Hit him up on Twitter: @RichEdmonds. These sub 100 dollar motherboards are quite powerful and offer almost all the necessary features that you need for gaming or for day to day work. Add in the two 1Gb ports and two USB 3.0 ports, and you've got an excellent starter enclosure for anyone who has yet to own a NAS or set up and enjoy Plex Media Server. If it's merely music and photo streaming, you can get away with vastly less powerful and more affordable NAS enclosures. Hello Select your address All Hello, Sign in. This beefy CPU is joined by 8GB of expandable RAM and 12 drive bays in total—eight for HDDs and a further four for SSDs. This processor is a dream for those wanting to set up and run a Plex Media Server. Best Motherboards under 100 dollars for Gaming for Intel and AMD CPUs. Bill Thomas, Sign up to get breaking news, reviews, opinion, analysis and more, plus the hottest tech deals! This capable enclosure comes rocking an Intel Celeron J4025 processor, which is more than enough to handle 4K transcoding of movies, so long as you only have one stream running.