Server Version#: 1.18.4.2171
Player Version#: 7.26.0.14578
Why does audio not work on files with EAC3 Audio in Player 7.26.0.14578 on Android 6.0.1? Audio will work fine in the Player for the same file if it is then converted to AAC(LC).
At the same time the original files with EAC3 Audio does work in Player 3.104.2 on macOS 10.14.6.
Is the EAC3 Audio limitation related to the Player or OS?
How is your audio set up on your system?(what is connected to what and how) What Android device are you using? Android 6.01 is pretty old and I donât remember specifics about but the device it is on can affect things as well as the capabilities of the audio device connected to it. EAC3 cannot pass over optical for example. What are your audio settings in the app and the audio settings of the device?
It is a Beelink Mini MXIII TV Box operating with an app launcher on regular Android, not Android TV. Only HDMI connection to TV and wired Ethernet, no WiFi.
I donât recall making changes from defaults for audio in Plex or the TV box. Actually, I could not find pertinent settings for audio in the Plex Server Web Interface or Plex Player Client. However, I did change some transcoding settings like a temporary directory, direct play and direct stream.
If I use the VLC app on the TV Box to instead access the problematic files directly, then the EAC3 audio works. Same files in the same Plex library, on the same server, using the same TV Box, and over the same network.
Doesnât mean VLC is not converting it. In the Plex app disable passthrough if you do not have any settings to select formats on device or tv.
The only settings to select formats is for one of the video file versions, if any. Turning off direct play and direct stream (under Plex Web > Debug > Advanced) made no difference.
Attempts to play a file with EAC3 simply âhangâ with a spinning icon.
Understood that VLC may be converting it. Is that the case with Plex Player 3.104.2 on macOS 10.14.6 which does play these same EAC3 files from the same server without a problem? And, will not in Plex Player 7.26.0.14578 on Android?
Those are settings for the web player. They donât affect android.
If there are no options on the devices own settings to select which codecs your TV supports, in our android apps Settings>Advanced Row> can you try disabling Passthrough if it is enabled.
The android app with help of the android system tries to determine which codecs the device connected to reports as supporting via HDMI. Meaning your TV tells the device what it supports. If incorrect info is passed that is does support something it doesnât then it might try to send the stream as is without decoding.
A followup⊠I just noticed high server activity after trying to play a file with EAC3 and the direct play and stream turned off. A check under Ubuntu indicated high Plex Transducer activity (Linux top command). The Plex Server Dashboard Activity shows local activity with âblipsâ between 12 Kbps and 23 Kbps.
What is happening? Did the play attempts start some sort of transducer conversion?
If you turn off direct play/stream in web app and try to play something in the web app yes that will force all streams to go through the transcoder when played in the web app. Those settings have no bearing on the Android app however which I thought is where the issue was.
Iâm also a bit confused about which version of the app you are using on android. Would you mind taking a screen shot of the Android Plex apps settings
Thanks for sticking with this annoying problem @BigWheel
I could find no settings like that in your Android Plex Player. Only standard app ones.
(I do wish Plex would provide a gigantic single-source listing of settings in categories. The user hunting here and there in icons, various menu types, advanced categories, and whether server, web player, or client player, is frustrating.)
The Android system did have some advanced settings and I changed passthrough from ânoneâ to âHDMI.â No change playing a file with EAC3.
I mean just take a screen shot of any of the settings. Iâm confused about what you are seeing as hopefully will be able to better direct you when I see what you are seeing
The Player opens to a pretty bare screen showing the available media. No settings there:
This is the display of standard app settings:
My apologies for no regular screenshots. There is no easy provision for them on this TV Box, so these are from my phone.
ok. Click on your user name in the top image then choose settings. Scroll down to the Advanced row and change that Passthrough setting to Optical instead of HDMI and tell me what happens.
No change. Video file versions converted to AAC play, those with the original EAC3 simply âhangâ with a spinning icon. Same result as with that Passthrough setting at âdisabled.â
Are you implying that your Player 7.26.0.14578 somehow has the ability to convert EAC3? That seems to be the only logical answer left.
Why does a file with EAC3 Audio work in Player 3.104.2 on macOS 10.14.6? And does not work in Player 7.26.0.14578 on Android 6.0.1?
Differences in the Plex Players or is it the OS?
They are different players and devices have different capabilties. A web browser cannot play many types of files natively. Different devices have different capabilities in what they can passthrough or decode.
When none of the devices them selves can decode the Plex Media Server will transcode it to something the player can. A TV for example with only two speakers maybe canât decode 5.1 eac3 and downsample it self to stereo or the Android device will do that or If it canât then the server will convert the file for it.
If the device tells the app âI can play this or the thing i am connected to can play this so send the audio as it just pass it through to meâ However if it canât actually play the audio you will get silence (or static).
I donât know anything about the Android device you are using. On a Nvidia shield for example it has audio settings that you can tell it, of the codecs it supports which are the codecs that your audio receiver or tv support. that way it can know which things it can process itself or pass through to receiver or TV or if none can then the Plex Media Server will transcode.
If you view playback info during playback it will say why it decided to transcode if it is or it will say directplay or direct stream fo the audio if it it just sending the audio as is. You can also look at the Plex player logs should have info on whether it is being told the device or audio device can play the codec and what decision was made on how to playback.
should have just bought a ROKU.
Buying non-name brand android anything, is just asking for trouble.
Had a similar issue.
Plex Android App canât play MKV files with EAC3 encoded audio when on local LAN, but worked when remotely connected.
For me the fix was to fix a DNS Rebind Protection error on my router (router Discard upstream RFC1918 responses). The fix was to allow RFC1918 responses i.e. domain white-list âplex.directâ.
Once it was fixed the Plex Android App was able to transcode EAC3 to AAC as it was probably able to negotiate a secure connection to do this transcoding.
See here https://support.plex.tv/articles/206225077-how-to-use-secure-server-connections/
Hope it might be a solution for your problem.
Thanks for the insights @anonplexer. I never thought of checking a remote connection.
In the end after too much frustration I got a Nvidia Shield Pro which addressed the EAC3 problem.
Came here just to say thanks @anonplexer. This fixed my issue after trying many many solutions from other threads. Cheers !
Awesome thread!
Thatâs two independent issues Iâve had with EAC3 (running in a docker)
This is surely something PLEX can do, every other form of audio works without rebind issues, just EAC3!..
But thanks to this thread!
