Server Version#: 1.15.2.793 (docker)
Player Version#: 3.90.2
Running into a variety of issues with different files, both 1080p and 4k. Endless buffering on some 4k files with bitrates ranging from 20-40 mbps. Video randomly skipping/dropping frames on some 1080p files ~10mbps, audio dropping for a few seconds and then coming back. SRT subtitles generally being buggy, i.e. if you fast forward or rewind they’ll break, and you’ll need to restart the video to fix it; or they’ll get frozen at a certain point and will eventually catch up after a minute or two of playback; things like that.
Samsung NU8000 65" on Wi-Fi, 10 feet from wireless router.
I tried the fix proposed elsewhere of forcing insecure connection in the Plex app, but did not help unfortunately.
Has anyone figured out other workarounds, or is this just a buggy release?
I did some more testing and it seems the problem - or part of the problem - is networking related. A 1080p file with 16mbps bitrate will drop frames, but forcing it to transcode at 8mbps fixes that.
I’m guessing these problematic files have bitrates that fluctuate a bit and could potentially be flooding the TV’s network adapter, which I’ve read is limited to 100mbps. I remember reading something about Plex working on a fix to stay within this constraint. Does anyone have more info on that?
I just recently started having similar issues. I run on a wired cat6 network with the same model. The freezing/buffering happens when direct playing 1080p HEVC content. When looking at the Dashboard, the streams spike at only 25-30 mbps. Bandwidth wouldn’t seem to be my issue. I also noticed that trying to skip forward causes it too freeze.
Livetv also has connection issues. When trying to start a show from the Main TV page, things usually play. But when I navigate down any of it’s menus, it won’t connect.
I’m having the same issue but it was not an issue on older versions of plex (before this new UI that we have now - that I hate)
I have a bunch of 4K movies that I have to xcode down to 1080p and absolutely no way to improve the network connection other than to go with a 10GE upgrade in everything (except the tv because you cant).
It’s been a year of 1 step forward, 2 steps back for plex. 12 months ago it was perfect, no changes needed and now it’s broken again and missing basic features.
It did it again on another video. So I went to the dashboard again and I noticed it was direct streaming. So I set the plex server transcode settings to increase the buffer to 1200 (yes probably over kill). I also set the app so it could not direct stream, and the problem seems fixed.
It does make since given that streaming is just “transcoding” the audio of the file, and there was a problem on the server end of putting the video and audio streams together.
I saw similar behavior in another test. One of my 4k files started endlessly buffering, and based on the logs, it looked like it was struggling to figure out how to transcode the audio stream. It was a direct stream, like yours. Disabling direct stream made it work, but then the server had to do “full” transcoding, giving the processor a beating, so that’s not an option.
Edit: Here’s the audio info for that particular file.
Audio #1
ID : 2
Format : DTS
Format/Info : Digital Theater Systems
Format profile : MA / Core
Codec ID : A_DTS
Duration : 1 h 46 min
Bit rate mode : Variable / Constant
Bit rate : Unknown / 1 509 kb/s
Channel(s) : 6 channels
Channel positions : Front: L C R, Side: L R, LFE
Sampling rate : 48.0 kHz
Frame rate : 93.750 FPS (512 SPF)
Bit depth : 24 bits
Compression mode : Lossless / Lossy
Title : DTS-HD MA 5.1
Language : English
Default : Yes
Forced : No
Statistics Tags Issue : no_variable_data 1970-01-01 00:00:00 / no_variable_data 2010-02-22 21:41:29
FromStats_BitRate : 4030543
FromStats_Duration : 01:46:53.579000000
FromStats_FrameCount : 601273
FromStats_StreamSize : 3231275952
Right. I think the issue may be that the Plex app for these TVs struggles to transcode it, resulting in these glitches. The actual load on the server is negligible when this is happening.
Having the frame dropping issues on Samsung un75nu800d, Wired using gigabit Ethernet. Audio does not drop, but I’m having similar 4k/1080p issues as described. Every version AFTER 3.3 and BEFORE 3.90.2 did not experience these issues. 4K & 1080p playback on my network was flawless. Video files added and playes from this time are experiencing these problems now as well (they were not previously).
4K Files have started doing what they were doing in my AUG 18 post (buffering, not recovering) again, except less consistently. Back then it could be times, just about to the second,now… not so much. Sometimes it will get through a full file, most times it will not. (My Previous Post) 1080P playback is relatively good, except for the frame dropping. The image will freeze for 2-5 seconds as the audio continues. Eventually it “catches up” and continues on the proper frame as if nothing ever went wrong. Tested these files on Plex for Visio 3.13.13, and Plex Media Player on PC, with no issues.
If you have a good WiFi signal, try WiFi as well. It should be faster than plugged in due to the network card the Samsung TVs use. I’d also try playing with the secure connections settings. If it worked before 3.90.2, then that might be affecting it.
I’ve not only tried WiFi since then, I have even upgraded to a mesh network, which has made my network more reliable (and MUCH faster) overall. The TV in question has updated PLEX to the newest version, 3.103.1, no resolution. I spent most of today watching content, adjusting settings, and repeating. I changed the “Allow insecure connections” settings to no avail.
Problem still persists, regardless of file type, audio type, or resolution.
