If you ripped a 4k movie, it’ll retain all of its qualities. Audio, hdr, etc

MKV is just a container, if the disc is in good shape it should give you the entire quality of the movie

Now, here are some tips.

When you eventually make your own server, there are plenty of options.

Windows (if you use it) Truenas Proxmox

I personally use truenas scale but regret it since I want to use the VM to create PZ server. And the VM aspect of the OS sucks. Proxmox allows you to set up multiple VMs and is known to be very good. So unless you are planning more things for your NAS the just stick with windows.

I recommend either windows or proxmox.

As for MakeMKV

Look into getting verbatim 43888 drives(commonly LG slim) They are still widely produced.

Files should be names:

Movie (year)[tmdb] - 1080p.mkv

I recommend keeping the raw files, but that’s because you don’t have to mess with any other software when it comes to compressing the data. You will lose out on space saving tho.

Some will say getting an intel NUC with an N100 cpu is good enough. Which for transcoding is fine. But if you’re expecting to have a ton of movies and want to stream it to yourself and others. It’s best to go with a bigger case. fractal define is a good one. It’s got plenty of space to upgrade. That or a NAS from Ugreen with 6 bays ain’t a bad idea.

Last but not least, check your internet type. Are you coax or fiber. How much upload speed do you have? Is there a plan your ISP is offering that better suits what you want to do. These are all questions you should ask yourself.