Another new hardware thread (high performance)

  • Hi there,


    I have been using Kodi/libreelec/openelec since the early days. It is the center of my households media experience.
    I do believe it is in need of a decent upgrade. I have looked at the hardware / choosing kodi box threads but to me it still isn't insightfull. I think I would prefer X86 to amlogic boxes, just because I am used to it.

    Right now I have the following specs:
    Asrock A75M-ITX
    AMD A4-3400
    120GB SSD
    MS-Tech CI-70 (60W)
    Corsair XMS3 4GB DDR3

    Although I can do pretty much anything without problems, I do notice it is starting to fall behind a little. Right now I am running the millhouse builds of Kodi 18 and I am especially pleased with the Netflix addon. I have a TvHeadend server in my attic with an HDHomerun 4 tuner tv card.
    I notice lag when decoding the netflix streams and when watching TV using software decoding (I use the high end scalers). Also I have a 318LED Hyperion setup (turned off right now so i can decode 1080p netflix).
    also it cannot do X265/hevc, 3D HSBS and Full SBS work on X264

    so, bottomline:
    I want to upgrade to a more powerfull setup that can handle 4K HDR content to make it future proof.


    Right now I have in mind:
    Asus B150I PRO GAMING/AURA
    Intel Core i5-7400
    G.Skill Aegis F4-2400C17S-8GIS 8GB

    rest stays the same.

    so, my question:
    In terms of power I would prefer to spend the extra money on the i57400T (35W TDP) But I am not sure it can handle 4K HDR using software decoding.
    does anyone have experience with this? Intel processors are expensive when compared to amd and I am not about to replace the processor within a few years.

    and what is all the fuss about kaby lake not performing well? I just don't get it when reading the forums.

  • I've been having the same conundrum, from research I'm looking at either Intel NUC7i5BNK (7260U) or Intel NUC7i3BNK (7100U). They seem to be able to handle all of your requirements - 4K, HEVC etc. However, they are soldered on boards, so a cpu upgrade is not possible. But any upgrade needed would not be due to the cpu but hardware decoding or any new peripherals.

    I think the i3 will handle anything at the moment but for and extra £40+ for the i5 (In the UK, if you buy wisely) is probably a better solution. I would also look at a Sandisk Evo 960 M2 instead of a SSD , as it is a lot faster, and use the SATA for movies etc (If needed)

    My only concern is fan noise, and I don't fancy spending £150+ on a fanless case. There are plenty of NUC users on the forum, so they might offer more advise if this is the best option.

  • Intel NUC Kit NUC6CAYH can handle everything (not sure about the 3D stuff) - everything "bigger" then this is just faster at the Kodi menu - the basic video playback support is the same.

    Generally speaking buy cheap and replace often instead of buy expensive and carry it forever.