Following up on my less-than-stellar experience using the Plex app on my PS4, I decided to see how my XBox 360 fared. It sits right next to the PS4 and both are connected to the same Wifi router via ethernet cables. In full disclosure, the Plex server is on a computer that is connected to the network via Wifi.
So get this, I get full quality with no playback freezing what-so-ever on the XBox 360 using its System Video Player that automatically recognized my Plex server. Those exact same files, played through the Plex app on the PS4 freeze after a second or two and I them have to reduce quality from full, which also often changes the video image from its proper aspect ratio.
So, an older, lower-tech, non-Plex player is achieving markedly better playback performance in both bandwidth and image accuracy than the Plex player can on a newer generation gaming platform. In fairness, the non-Plex player doesn’t have the cool UI that the Plex player does, but ultimately the player should excel in video playback quality before it tries to excel in the browsing experience outside of watching video.
Any insights on the reasons for that? Is it a Microsoft versus Sony thing?
- Dan
(following is my original post)
@mail@ahlberg.us said:
I am new to Plex and am in the process of evaluating it before I make a full commitment to deploying the apps on all my families televisions, mobile devices and sign-up for a subscription.So far I have a big frustration that I would like some insight on.
It occurs when I have to reduce the bandwidth from the MPEG-4’s original bandwidth needs on the latest Plex app on my PS4. When I do that, the aspect ratio changes from what it show be (and was until I experienced a bandwidth problem).
In the case where the video’s content aspect ratio is 16:9 and filled the screen on my HDTV, anything lower than original bandwidth causes the image to narrow to something a narrower than 16:9, but not quite 4:3 (adding 'pillar boxes" to each side)
In the case where the video content’s aspect ratio is wider than fills the 16:9 display, and therefore is letter-boxed at the top and bottom, any bandwidth setting lower than the original causes the video image to be vertically stretched to fill the entire 16:9 display (losing the letter-boxing at the top and bottom).
I am willing to sacrifice image quality when bandwidth is constrained, but I am not willing to have the image also squeezed or stretched to an aspect ratio other than the original video.
Is this fixable or going to be fixed? If not, I am going to look for a media server solution elsewhere.
- Dan
