So I have multiple file types on my Plex server which all play fine (MP4, AVI etc) and up until the most recent Xbox App update my MKV files also played completely fine.
However since the update the MKV files are the only file type which will not play, when trying to play one the screen blacks out with the controls at the bottom, sits there for around 2 minutes and then feeds back with the error:
“There was a problem playing this item. The video did not start playing in time.”
They do however start playing if i change the quality from original (2.5mbps/720p), to the next level down (2mbps/720p).
Does anyone know of any possible solutions to this issue? Seems odd all other file types are still fine and these files were fine until the newest update.
Yeah this new update sucks - everything now transcodes instead of direct play.
I had this installed side-by-side with the old app - but just yesterday was forced onto the new app. Ended up uninstalling and copying the file over to my PC plugged into HDMI to get the full uncompressed image and sound. This is a step backwards.
Hi there. Sorry you’re having issues with playback. Could you check something for me. If you go to the user menu and then Media Servers does you server show up as local or remote?
When I go on there it just says Nearby next to my server name, is there another way I can check this? I’ve not got myself set up for remote access in my settings, so I guess this would mean it is local?
Moussa, I am having what sounds like the same issue. I understand that it may be related to my having mkv files and they’re nearly unplayable as Plex is forcing transcoding of 1080p files on a slightly dated server.
To answer your question, my server shows up as remote.
Also, I tried manually adding my server’s private IP address in Settings->Manual Servers. Back in “Media Servers”, my server specified by local IP is listed as unavailable.
Theres an option to transcode “remote” Media Servers in there somewhere. Tell it to just direct play, and I bet its fine.
Your network might be a tad slow or unusual in some way, so its auto detecting it as remote, or maybe it is actually remote? Either way that option seems to be new, and should fix your problem.
FYI I used to have green screen issues with certain MKV files on the OLD XB1 plex app… Now its great!! Subtitles, more compatible formats, search, and after quitting and reopening the app the first time, all the menus etc everyone else seems to be whinging about came back.
If anyone has issues connecting to their local servers then please private message me with your Xbox Live account email so I can get you a test build that fixes the issue.
Edit: This issue should be resolved with version 2.0.4. If not, then try changing the Allow fallback to insecure connections app setting.
Not having an issue with unplayability but getting glitches with MKV files. Audio and video. Had to switch to transcoding which seems to have fixed the issue, but definitely a step backwards.
@prange said:
Not having an issue with unplayability but getting glitches with MKV files. Audio and video. Had to switch to transcoding which seems to have fixed the issue, but definitely a step backwards.
Unfortunately, if it is an issue with the MKV decoder it may have been something introduced in Microsoft’s fall update. If their is a specific combination that is causing playback to fail or a sample file that always fails we can forward it onto Microsoft to investigate where the media player framework is failing.
I’ve been playing around a bit watching some different content… Lower resolution MKV plays back fine. If I have a very high res 1080p MKV - it plays back ok, but pausing or skipping causes some issues. Also it was only 2 files I found it on so far - I usually dont use very high rez MKV - as I play everything back on a 1080p Plasma
I doubt it is the fall update. I have been in the Alpha ring of Xbox since it started and the old version of the Plex app worked fine with the Fall Update…
@kingshillbilly said:
I doubt it is the fall update. I have been in the Alpha ring of Xbox since it started and the old version of the Plex app worked fine with the Fall Update…
That’s because the old app used the older framework that is no longer updated, while the new app uses the UWP which received multiple recent changes.
Because of their framework differences things that affected one app often did not affect the other. Such as the memory leak that was fixed in the fall update, it caused the new app to completely crash on my system 1 minute into playback every time the console was woken from sleep. This was fixed in the fall update and one of the reason the app release was delayed.
I all,
I also have the same playing issue, with a file of 4.37GB size and 12713kbps bitrate, 1080p res. It previously played it to original, now it cannot start. I added my server’s ip address and Plex app founds it in the near available servers. Will it be released a new version that fixes this ENORMOUS bug? I’m now using a Chromecast over WIFI, which is times and times less powerful than an Xbox One connected via Ethernet, and works like a charm! :s
I’ve always had this issue, even in the old app. Although, I don’t remember the problem occurring on files with anything lower than a 20 Mb bitrate. Maybe MS pulled even more resources away from the media player to make their dashboard snappier.
I also have issues with TS files from the Plex DVR. Trying to skip in a TS file is impossible. It takes 10 seconds just to do a 30 second skip. Turn off direct play though and it works fine. The issue with TS files also occurred in the old app, but it wasn’t as bad as it is now.
@ivanlouis87 said:
Will it be released a new version that fixes this ENORMOUS bug?
If it’s caused by the server being treated as remote over local and is the issue Moussa is talking about above, then yes it will.
If it’s something caused by some other factor then the answer is hopefully. We cannot reproduce the issue ourselves and keep requesting the log entries so Moussa can try and traceback to where the issue is. I have reported the issue with MKV’s to moussa and he has seen it in the forums as well, but until we can get it either showing the problem on our devices we don’t have anything to try and locate the problem (either server, client, or other)
@ivanlouis87 said:
Will it be released a new version that fixes this ENORMOUS bug?
If it’s caused by the server being treated as remote over local and is the issue Moussa is talking about above, then yes it will.
If it’s something caused by some other factor then the answer is hopefully. We cannot reproduce the issue ourselves and keep requesting the log entries so Moussa can try and traceback to where the issue is. I have reported the issue with MKV’s to moussa and he has seen it in the forums as well, but until we can get it either showing the problem on our devices we don’t have anything to try and locate the problem (either server, client, or other)
You really can’t reproduce issues with playback of high bitrate mkv’s or TS files? Neither? I’ve always had this problem so really don’t understand how it can’t be reproduced. So if you pick the highest bitrate mkv in your library…something over 30 Mb, you don’t get any stuttering? Try a few because some work some don’t. Off the top of my head, one I know that doesn’t work is San Andreas.
@mbarylski said:
You really can’t reproduce issues with playback of high bitrate mkv’s or TS files? Neither? I’ve always had this problem so really don’t understand how it can’t be reproduced. So if you pick the highest bitrate mkv in your library…something over 30 Mb, you don’t get any stuttering? Try a few because some work some don’t. Off the top of my head, one I know that doesn’t work is San Andreas.
I don’t have San Andreas myself, but I have tried a number of Disney movies with bit rates in the 30Mbs+ range multiple times (sometimes too many times). The only time I have noticed unpredicatable stuttering was when trying to Playback 4K material. The even bigger problem with this issue is like you have stated high bit rate movies sometimes work and sometimes don’t. Because of that we can’t narrow down what it is in the high bitrate 1:1 rips that is causing the issue. I have noticed cases with Blurays authored specifically with Sony, where I would get green artifact strips, but there just isn’t a way to check ‘who was the original disc made by’ especially since simply running it through a conversion program at the same exact bitrates/resolution/everything fixes that issue. That issue was reported to Microsoft because it appears to be an issue with the H264 decoder, same with H264 and 4K material (I think it was specifically 8 or 10-bit material, but I am not 100% sure on that now). At one point I even ran a bit rate tool on the playing file to try and find if it was a bit rate spike causing the stuttering, but couldn’t locate anything concrete from that either.
The problem we are having reproducing this current issues is that it is affecting users playing non 1:1 rips. Which without logs, sample file, or information about the video we literally only have the option to keep testing random videos we have an hope we can reproduce it. That is that part that is making it tricky. Then there is the issue that most people who are reporting this problem also report that if they disable direct play that the problem goes away. Just disabling direct play, the server attempts to keep the parameters to the original file the same. That again leaves us with what in the file is causing the issue if simply running another transcode on the file fixes it.
TL:DR
We can reproduce some instances (such as extremely high bit rate), but can’t narrow down what in the file is causing the problem because other files with the same or higher bit rates work with no issues (The only difference I have found that does cause issues wasn’t causing a stuttering issue). And with the current reports the issue going around doesn’t appear to be limited to previous high bit rate cases. That is the part we can’t reproduce.
