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My 32 TB Plex server running on a ministack. It ain't fancy but it gets the job done.
(lemmy.blahaj.zone)
I've been running a full tower Windows server with a dozen drives for a decade and decided to downsize. This ministack does everything I need at a fraction of the power, noise, and heat.
I use it primarily for Plex but also host a few games servers for buddies. It fits perfectly in my entertainment center.
Spent around $200 on the Mac Mini plus $600 on the drives and enclosures. I'm using SoftRAID for RAID1.
How bad is your upload speed? Most of my x264 and x265 encodes have a total bitrate of around 1.5-2 Mbps. You can't stream that without transcoding?
Also, have you LOOKED at transcode quality from the other side? It looks TERRIBLE, and it doesn't significantly reduce your bitrate. I'm telling you, whatever math Plex does to decide whether or not to transcode is USELESS. I've seen it transcode x264 videos (that definitely didn't need to be transcoded) and send them to friends at a HIGHER bitrate, it's legit insane.
Do what works for you, but Plex transcoding is a bad "feature" that should be avoided at all costs.
EDIT: I'm far from the only one noticing this, the common wisdom is that Plex clients are telling your server to transcode, even when it's not necessary, and there's not much you can do about it other than fully turning transcoding off.
https://www.reddit.com/r/PleX/comments/ojsspo/help_finding_out_why_plex_is_choosing_to/
https://www.reddit.com/r/PleX/comments/ugu0rg/how_to_avoid_transcoding_as_much_as_possible/
https://www.reddit.com/r/PleX/comments/13qrknp/plex_transcoding_when_it_shouldnt_advice_please/
https://www.reddit.com/r/PleX/comments/uxu4v6/transcoding_when_it_shouldnt_be/
https://www.reddit.com/r/PleX/comments/crhw8r/why_is_plex_transcoding_when_it_doesnt_need_to/
https://www.reddit.com/r/PleX/comments/9qade9/how_do_i_avoid_transcoding_as_much_as_possible/