Is something wrong with my server hardware? - slowness

[Greg_R 0]

My Emby server is running on some older hardware:

Core 2 Quadcore (Kentsfield - no quicksync)

8 GB RAM

media spread across 4 HDDs

Win 7 Pro

Server and Theater applications set to auto-update to latest stable versions

 

My library has about 3500 CDs and movies.  Memory usage when idle is ~ 250MB.  I'm running hardwired 1Gig Ethernet to each device.

 

I've set the bitrate on each client to the maximum setting.  However, when I start any movie, ffmpeg starts up on the server (all CPU cores @ 100%).  I thought setting this on max would result in no transcoding?

 

When playing movies on a Roku, it takes 2-3 minutes to start the movie (progress bar).  When playing them on a Haswell i5 + Emby Theater client it's slightly faster but I get a lot of glitches and judder.  Playing the file across the network on VLC works flawlessly (outside the theater app).

 

Additionally, the server application through the web browser is slow (takes a minute to load up the images, etc.).  Before I batch ripped the majority of my collection, all the things mentioned above were significantly faster.

 

Is this likely a hardware problem or is something possibly still screwed up in my settings (either server or client side)?

[Happy2Play 8238]

Well the Roku is limited on what it will play natively so you would need to provide server and transcode log.  VLC has its own built in codecs so you can never compare it to anything else.

[mjktg99 34]

You have a lot of media so I think the image rendering (when using the web) is going to be slow.  Also, transcoding is also based on the file format and what device you are playing them from.  Although, I feel 2-3 minutes is excessive, if you server is transcoding and also underwpowered its probably going to take a while.  You should test with a movie that doesnt need to be transcoded.  Say an h264 MP4 with aac audio under 30fps.  Your roku should play that nativley with no transcoding needed.  If it loads much faster, then the power of your server is definitely something to look at.

 

In comparison, I too run a Core 2 Quad (Q9650) and I direct play most everything on my Roku and it starts playing within 3 seconds, 5 max (never an issue so never timed it).  But when I stream live tv, it will take a good 30 seconds or so for the server to get rolling with the transcode.

[Greg_R 0]

Thanks mjkth99, that's a good data point.  I think most of the movies I end up watching were originally BluRay sources (encoded w. minimal compression) so the native bit rate of the file is high.

[Happy2Play 8238]

I believe the Roku app tops out at 30MBs if you set it in preferences.  And the Theme: blue neon night has even more customized settings.

[JeremyFr79 228]

TBH that old Kentsfield is going to be a huge bottleneck for you.

[mjktg99 34]

TBH that old Kentsfield is going to be a huge bottleneck for you.

Agreed, your going to need a hardware upgrade.

[Koleckai Silvestri 1150]

Can I ask why you don't run the server on the Haswell machine? That will give you a big boost. Even if you use a core or two for other tasks during the day. My old server was a Sandy Bridge processor, i5 2500K. It was on my main machine as well. For the most part, it did well.