How to use Plex app on Sony TV

General Discussions
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The Plex app on my Sony 49 XBR 900E (version 7.25.3.14365) was working so well that I put my nVidia Shield back in its box. My movie library is located on a Synology NAS, and the TV is connected to the home network via Ethernet.

Yesterday, I experienced a lot of buffering when watching the extras files related to ”Scrooge (1951).” I didn’t notice a problem while playing the movie itself.

The movie’s video and audio files are VC1 and PCM, respectively. According to PMS’s activity function, PMS (version 1.18.2.2058) was trying to transcode both of these files, which apparently was too much for the TV to handle. After trying to play several other movies, I concluded that the TV can easily transcode a VC1 file if the audio file is already AC3 and can easily transcode a TRUEHD file if the video file is already H.264, but the TV cannot simultaneously transcode both types of files very well. After I reconnected the nVidia Shield to the TV via HDMI cable, Plex played all the files perfectly.

Is this simultaneous transcoding problem likely to end when I add an AVR to the system and connect that AVR to the TV via an HDMI cable? Or will I still need to connect a streamer to the AVR via HDMI cable if I want to play some types of content? Thank you.

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Transcoding occurs on the Plex Media Server, not on the TV. Synology NAS generally have lower power CPUs which struggle with transcoding video (You don’t mention your specific model).

Using a Shield with an appropriate AVR or soundbar works very well for Plex.

When using the Shield with an AVR, the preferred connection method is:
Shield <-- HDMI --> Receiver/Soundbar <-- HDMI-ARC --> TV.

The reason for connecting the Shield (or any streamer box) directly to the receiver is HDMI-ARC cannot pass lossless audio such as TrueHD or dts-HD. It is limited to AC3 5.1, EAC3 5.1, dts 5.1, and PCM 2.0. TOSLINK Optical/Coax has the same restrictions as HDMI-ARC.

Make sure the receiver/soundbar supports all desired audio formats and also passes 4K HDR video. The key audio formats to look for on a spec sheet are: dts-HD MA; dts:X, TrueHD 7.1, and TrueHD + Atmos. If the AVR supports those formats it will support the older ones as well - AAC, AC3, dts, PCM (but double check things anyway).

My setup:
Shield <-- HDMI --> Denon 4300 <-- HDMI-ARC --> LG B7 OLED
PMS runs on a Synology DS 918+

This setup works very well for me. Everything in my library direct plays. It is rare that I need to transcode any video or audio. I have an older Shield, so it supports only HDR10, not Dolby Vision (2019 models add DV support).

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LG Oled C8 Plex App - Audio Formats
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Thank you for the quick reply. I have saved your email so I will have that information when I purchase an AVR.

In my original post, I should have mentioned that PMS (Version 1.18.2.2058) is running on a Synology 1019+ NAS. Nothing was connected to the TV’s HDMI-ARC port when my recent transcoding issue arose, and I won’t be using that port until I buy an AVR.

Not being computer technical, I try to resolve a new problem by looking to see what might have changed in my system. Given that: (1) PMS and my library are located on the NAS, and (2) the transcoding problem did not occur when I reconnected the nVidia Shield to the TV, I thought it would be reasonable to look elsewhere for the cause.

Having read that some audio and video signals require an HDMI cable for anti-piracy reasons, I thought the transcoding problem might be caused by the fact that the streaming was being handled solely by an Ethernet cable (NAS to router to TV) rather than by both an Ethernet cable (NAS to router to streamer) and HDMI cable (streamer to TV).

Given this new information, do you think the transcoding problem is related to the Plex app on the Sony TV or to the fact that some combinations of video and audio files require transcoding unless an HDMI cable is used in the system? Would using an Ethernet-to-HDMI adapter (NAS to TV) solve the transcoding problem for someone who doesn’t want to use an AVR in the system? Thank you very much.

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Short Answer: The Plex app on the Sony TV has limited capabilities compared to Plex on the Nvidia Shield. That is why the movie transcoded when you played it using the TV app. It has nothing to do with HDMI or Ethernet cables.

When using the TV app, do not choose TrueHD audio. It is not supported by your TV and Plex will transcode it to a supported format. Choose the Dolby Digital, dts, or AAC audio track if available.

The TV and Plex app apparently do not support VC1 video, so Plex must transcode it to a supported format. The CPU in your NAS may struggle with this. The solution is: a) avoid VC1 video; b) use Hardware Transcoding, which requires a Plex Pass; c) use a client, such as the Shield, which supports VC1 video; or d) use Handbrake or similar tools to convert the media into supported formats before adding to the Plex library.

Note that if you enable subtitles while audio is transcoding, the video will also transcode. I do not know what happens when audio is direct playing. Enabling subtitles may not force a transcode in that case (I’ve an LG, so no way to verify how a Sony handles subtitles).

You can monitor what is transcoding during playback in the Plex Dashboard. Plex Web → Activity → Dashboard. If needed, click on the gold, rectangular-ish icon on the right to expand the information (to see detail for audio & video).

Long Answer:
It depends on what audio, video, and subtitle formats are supported by the Plex client.

Not all Plex clients support the same formats, even if they run on the same OS (android, etc). If a movie direct plays on the Shield, it may or may not direct play using the Plex TV app, even though both the TV and the Shield run the Android OS.

For example, if the Plex app on your TV does not support VC1 video, then your Plex Server will transcode the video. The Plex app on the Shield supports VC1 video, so if you watch a VC1 movie via the Shield, the video will direct play.

The same applies to audio formats. Supported formats direct play. Unsupported formats transcode.

Subtitles are a separate can of worms. If the audio stream is transcoding and you enable subtitles, expect that the video will also transcode. If the audio stream is direct playing or direct streaming, enabling subtitles may or may not force a video transcode. It depends on the capabilities of the client.

I know this all sounds like you’re just tossing darts at a moving board hoping to hit the direct play bullseye. It really isn’t that bad. You just have to know what audio & video formats are supported by your devices.

I rarely use the Plex app on my LG TV due to its limitations - no TrueHD audio support and very limited subtitle support. That makes it hard to direct play Blu-ray rips, especially if I want to enable subtitles.

The Shield + Denon solves those problems. The Shield supports the video formats on DVD & Blu-ray discs (MPEG2, VC-1, H.264, H.265). The Denon handles the audio formats found on DVD & Blu-ray discs (PCM, (E)AC-3, dts, dts-HD MA, TrueHD, TrueHD + Atmos).

Hope this helps and doesn’t confuse things. Tried to provide detail w/o overloading. :slight_smile:

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I appreciate both the short answer and the long answer. Thanks again.

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i need help. Please.
My setup is a sony bravia x900f with klipsch R-20-B soundbar connected directly to my tv using optical cable and nvidia shield 2017, connected with hdmi and ethernet cable, running as client. Plex server is running on a windows 10 laptop.

I’m trying ti play direct stream from iptv services, but some of the channels don’t have audio and the picture skips. The sorce audio is AAC and it plays fine if i use kodi iptv simple client. If i transcode the live stream to 720p the the sound works but it looks very choppy, I have played with all of settings i can think of. I trying google it but either the post were too old or the solution didn’t work or apply for me.

I thought it was the the nvidia shield or the sound bar, so I installed the plex app on the tv and used the tv speakers. I bypass the sound bar and the shield to see if that was the problem and still no sound for the live streams that has AAC.

So far I haven’t had any problems with movies.
Also it is worth mentioning that i have an apple tv 4 in another room running plex app. Also using the same server an those channels play fine. No skipping or audio issues.

Is there a way to fix this? I need help. Thanks in advance.

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Movies play OK.
IPTV has no audio with either the Shield or the TV app, unless you force a transcode.

Seems like the IPTV audio is incompatible with Plex so you need to force an audio transcode to make it work.

The AppleTV is probably forcing an audio transcode or decoding the audio itself to another format.

In the Plex app on the Shield, try setting HDMI Passthrough to Off/Disabled. That should force the Shield to pass all audio as PCM.

That’s the best I can come up with. No idea if it will work or if it will interfere with playing other media.

Good luck with it.

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Thanks for your reply;

I tried to disable the passthrough and didn’t work. I also notice that AAC stereo doesn’t work. But the AAC 5.1 works fine.

Is there a way to force the transcode just for the audio and leave video direct play?

And while playing. It says the on top reason for transcoding: resolution or bitrate exceeds maximum allowed.

I don’t know if any of this rings any bells or makes sense for somebody.

Any help will be greatly appreciated!

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What are your settings in the Plex app for the Video Quality section?

Try these settings:

Video Quality
  Adjust Automatically = Off
  Home Streaming = Maximum
  Remote Streaming = Maximum
  Play Smaller Videos = On
Audio Quality
  Remote Streaming = Original

Set Passthrough = HDMI.

Does the video still transcode?

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I used those settings and it doesn’t transcode, but I still get no sound on direct play. If I force it to transcode to 720p then i get that message.

I quit trying to configure the nvidia shield. I’m playing with the plex app directly with the android tv built in sony tv. I figures that if i fix it here where there are less variants my chances are higher.

So I decided to use the tv speakers instead of the sound bar. Now i get a glitch noice as soon as i tune the channel. I also recorded a portion of that channel as dvr and it does the same.

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I’m out of ideas. I do not use IPTV via Plex. Hopefully somebody else can help you.

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