Anyone else done something similar?
Yes, my server is a Dell Optiplex 990 MT (i7 2600/16 GB RAM /Nvidia 950 GTX) that was built in 2011. I paid ~$90USD for ~7 years ago and have been using it ever since with no issues.
I run two multimedia server applications on it currently, and simultaneously, and the CPU utilization rarely exceeds 15%
1. Emby - primarily for movies, although I do access it remotely via Symfonium for music; more on that in a moment.
2. Logitech Media Server - which I use to drive six network players of various types of here at home.
The machine is running a mesh VPN for remote access (Tailscale, to be exact) and is very secure as a result.
Regarding Emby, Symfonium and remote access, as it stands currently, the combination is more economical on my mobile data plan since it streams native content. This then has device-side DSP applied to it for IEM Correction EQ. The tradeoff is a tiny bit of battery life.
I can remotely access LMS as well with Correction EQ. However, its current server-side DSP implementation requires it to use a 24/44.1 FLAC stream, and that uses up a mobile data allocation in short order.
By the way, I've put in a request with the LMS SqueezeDSP developer to implement server-side DSP for low bandwidth mode streaming. He's given it serious thought and has tentatively agreed to do it. When that happens, I'll be using LMS exclusively for music streaming both remote and local.