Server Version#: 1.18.0.1913
Player Version#: Nvidia Shield; Web Plex Version 4.42.1
Tuner Make/Model: HDHOMERUN Connect
Guide/Lineup name:
Using XMLTV?:
Channel number/Name:
When I tune into my over the air channels via the hdhomerun app, they all run great. In Plex, however, they are constantly buffering and the signal is interrupted. This has gotten worse over time. It happens whether I am on the Nvidia Shield app or the Plex web player. I uploaded my logs, any help would be greatly appreciated.
Would you please turn off verbose logging for your Plex server instance? Leave debug logging on. Verbose produces so much information it makes it hard to troubleshoot, and also significantly reduces the length of time the logs covers.
I suspect that you are running into CPU limitations due to transcoding. The one Live TV session I was able to pick up on from the logs is definitely transcoding. Also, I see you have hardware transcoding turned on but Plex isn’t finding a GPU:
Sep 13, 2020 09:19:59.854 [16094] DEBUG - TPU: hardware transcoding: enabled, but no hardware decode accelerator found
This means it is doing CPU intensive software transcoding. While one of your Live TV sessions is running (and buffering), if you look in Plex Web at the dashboard, in the “Now Playing” section you can see this if you make sure “Show Details” ( ) is clicked. Ideally you want to see that it is direct play or direct stream - either uses only negligible server system resource. Also on the Dashboard, you can scroll down and look at the CPU usage graph. Is the CPU showing high use? Just as an example, my CPU use graph shows virtually no CPU use while direct streaming both video and audio for a Live TV session to the Plex for Windows client.
I don’t use a Shield as a client, but in the Plex client video settings is there a check box for “Allow MPEG2” and also for “Allow Direct Stream”? You would want both of those checked to allow it to Direct Stream the MPEG2 stream that your Connect produces.
Generally speaking Plex Web is the worst client regarding ability to direct play/stream. You may want to try using on of the installed clients - Plex for Windows/Mac or Plex Media Player. Either is much better about not forcing transcoding.
Agree with everything @hokierulz said. Both of my Shields are able to Direct Play everything I try with them in Plex. Definitely check your settings in the Plex App on the Shield. More than likely a setting is forcing the Server to transcode. Also when you turn off verbose you will need to restart Plex Media Server on the computer.
First, thank you for taking the time to help me with this. I very much appreciate it.
I turned off verbose logging and restarted the plex server. My new log is attached.
I turned off “Use hardware acceleration when available” in the transcoder setting.
I turned off “convert video while recording.”
I checked the dash, and confirmed that I am direct playing when playing from the Nvidia device. Thanks for the recommendation to use the plex player, and not the web player. I confirmed direct streaming when playing on the plex player.
There isn’t much to change in the server settings on the Nvidia. I confirmed the MPEG stream was on the recommended setting. I didn’t see anything that looked relevant.
While playing live TV, my bandwidth goes up to as high as 38 mb. Not sure if that is high or not.
Looking at Plex Dash on Android, I don’t see any usage in the processor or memory graphs. Maybe that is a shield thing?
So after doing all the above, Live TV still has a very bad stutter and frequently has to pause/buffer. I downloaded the hdhomerun app on the shield, and it plays the same channels no problem. Any other thing I can try?
Thank you for the work, and the logs are much easier to read. I started working through your logs and didn’t immediately find any smoking guns, but then looked up the version of Plex Server that you are on. Plex Server v1.18.0.1913 was a bad release for Live TV. I was actually one of the people that originally reported problems with pixelation and stuttering in that version, and it was addressed (for me) in v1.18.0.1944. Version 1.18.9.2578 also introduced additional fixes for Live TV stuttering, and other versions have introduced improvements to the transcoder.
Not everyone experienced these issues with 1.18 for Live TV, but since your problems do sound like issues that have been addressed, I suggest updating your Plex Server. You are on a release that is almost a year old…
Great catch! I didn’t realize I needed to download the Plex Server App on the Shield to update the server, for some reason I thought it did it automatically. I downloaded the app and it updated to Version 1.19.5.3112. And so far so good, it is noticeably better! If something changes I will let you know, but I am good for now. Thank you so much!
) is clicked. Ideally you want to see that it is direct play or direct stream - either uses only negligible server system resource. Also on the Dashboard, you can scroll down and look at the CPU usage graph. Is the CPU showing high use? Just as an example, my CPU use graph shows virtually no CPU use while direct streaming both video and audio for a Live TV session to the Plex for Windows client.