Server Version#:1.43.4.10903
Player Version#: 2026.19.1
Android TV#: 14
Android TV OS Build#: UTTC.250917.004.14193937
Google TV streamer device updated to Plex 2026.19.1. Now some videos buffer every few seconds. All videos recorded with PlayOn software. Videos have the same Video codec (H264), Audio codec (AAC), and resolution (720p). Other devices (not Android TV) running same version do not have this problem (high bandwidth usage). Even factory reset of the Google TV device may no difference. Problem appears to be with using Direct Play.
Direct Stream (Allow Direct Stream On, Allow Direct Play Off, Local Quality Maximum)
The abnormally high bitrate is the calling card of a poorly muxed file. The video, audio, and subtitle tracks are poorly aligned. The client has to request multiple segments to obtain the necessary information.
Direct streaming forces Plex to remux the file. Remuxing correctly aligns the tracks, and the corresponding bandwidth graph is normal.
Thanks for the suggestion. I remuxed a file using ffmpeg, and direct play is working now. It is odd that only my Android TV device was affected after the update to 2026.19.1. Android phones using the same Plex client 2026.19.1 were not affected. Will likely use direct stream method on Android TV for now. It is going to take a bit of work to find the problem files and remux them all. Also, I will need to followup with PlayOn to find out why some files are poorly muxed and others are not.
