Hi everyone I'm new to all this so bear with me if I make mistakes. I'm currently running an Unraid server primarily running radarrr/sonarr/Plex etc usually the most it ever has to handle is 4 Plex streams and maybe some 'downloads' at the same time. Also will occasionally be used for transcoding using handbrake.
Currently I'm running an Intel i3-6100 which is a 2 core 4 thread cpu with a TDP of 51W. I live in the UK where electricity is exorbitant so I'm looking to upgrade to something more powerful while ideally not breaking the bank on electricity. Above I've listed the 4 main CPUs I've been considering and some of the relevant stats. Any advice/resources you can point me to are really needed. Thanks
Go 7th gen for the better quicksync. I would say something like an i5-7500, they're cheap and should be about 40% faster.
TDP really doesn't mean much for power usage, both the i3-6100 and i5-7500 should idle at about the same power.
The i5-7500 is only £30 so almost 1/3 of the price of the 7700 which is great. Would 4 threads be enough for my application? Also what stat/website do you use to look at idle power?
With QSV enabled in Plex and Handbrake, it should handle like 15-20 1080p transcodes with minimal CPU usage. Otherwise it's probably overkill in CPU power for what you're doing.
There isn't really a website for it, just from testing my own stuff, and idle power doesn't really change much between generations or CPU model.
Where are you finding an i5-7500 for £30? Last I checked they were more like £80.
I'm using eBay and honestly can see quite a few listings at that price (2nd hand ofc)
Prices must have gone down since I last checked then, might consider an I5-7500 myself now, thanks!