I am having an issue that one in ten files are stuttering on my Nvidia Shield Pro. It is wired to a Synology and I don’t see any glaring differences when I compare these files with other files. In fact, they are quite ordinary (no 4K, Dolby Vision, Atmos, strange audio formats or other more challenging scenarios).
I also found that all files work just fine using a different playback software (e.g. MX Player, but other players work fine as well).
SAs far as I can tell, there is no transcoding, subtitles or codec issues going on that could potentially slow down playback.
@kaelaria Thank you for your response. I will take a look at that tonight.
Meanwhile, I have taken a closer look at two files.
File that doesn’t work:
File that works:
I am using a gigabit ethernet connection to connect to the Synology and it plays 4K MP4 /MKV files just fine over it.
If it helps, I can try to find some working and a non-working MP4 files tonight. I am suspicious that it is doing some transcoding because that is usually my issue for stuttering video. I wish we would just have a switch to completely disable transcoding and give an error message when a file cannot be played instead.
Just to clarify. I can play all files on a Windows Plex player on the same network just fine!
The issue isn’t the bitrate, it’s probably the high framerate AV1. If you want flawless support, only use HEVC or h264. Use handbrake to redo the files.
OK… I have converted the example file, but the result looked less than stellar with having blocky artefacts. It also took 2+ hours to generate.
Nevertheless, a big thank you to @kaelaria for this potential solution.
That said, I have to ask, if video conversion is the only option, doesn’t that indicate a problem with the player software? Especially considering that pretty much any other player can play the file just fine? Can this be fixed? Is it a known issue?
The real solution is to make sure you are souring correct files. If your handbrake results were bad, it’s just the settings you chose, it’s not a 1 option thing. What you got, is not the popular standard for files.
Nevertheless, I am wondering why I need a conversion software to solve this. Since the problematic files started surfacing recently (less than 6 months ago), I am also not sure if your assessment with regards to format popularity is correct. In my observation, file formats (and codecs) are actually shifting over time, In the past, h264 was king, but now h265 seems to become more and more popular.
Of course it is, that’s hevc which I already suggested. Just so you’re clear, mp4 and mkv are just containers. It means almost nothing. It’s the encoding used that’s critical. Av1 and vp9 are designed for streaming, used on YouTube files for example. Not local play. Plex and the shield can not handle av1 at 50/60fps. Maybe it will in the future, but as that’s not what movies and tv shows use, it’s not the primary intent.
I understand that this is complex, but nevertheless it remains a fact that other video player applications on the shield can play it just fine and so I am wondering why Plex just can’t replicate that behavior to make using it easier.
Not true at all, stop exaggerating. The only issue is with a dual layer profile 7 file. Which again, is not the popular standard. Almost inconsequential. MP4 containers files are just limited to a single audio track. And none of that has anything to do with this thread.
It’s not a movie or tv show, so it’s not what plex is all about.
If you used a YouTube downloader, see if it has encoding options. If not, try another one that can do 264 or 265 if you need to watch these things in plex.
A search for plex shows:
“Plex is a free app that lets you watch, organize, and share your personal media from various streaming services.”
It clearly says “various streaming services”. Last time I checked, YouTube is a streaming service. I will try a downloader, but I don’t see this as a solution to my problem.
LOL Link please to “Plex is a free app that lets you watch, organize, and share your personal media from various streaming services.”?
Either you misread, paraphrased, or that’s not an actual quote from plex. You can put your head in the sand all you like, it doesn’t change anything. Good luck with your downloaded YouTube files
