Server Version#: 1.32.2.7100
Player Version#: 4.107.2
Hi all!
I have a strange issue where Plex Server does not stream HDR content correctly to my TV on a gigabit network - all devices connected with cable. I am running Plex Server on top of Raspberry Pi 3, so transcoding is out of the question. I have disabled transcoding in the settings to avoid rendering the RPI useless :). The movie starts streaming, but on many of the frames it shows big regions of colour across the whole screen of the TV. It switches back to normal picture and then after few seconds or possibly on a new scene in the movie goes back to big regions of colour. The TV is an LG OLED TV C7 55".
What I am after is just streaming the movie directly, potentially just overlaying some SRT subtitles if possible without transcoding, however seems Plex Server is trying to do something on top of that, which I do not understand…
If I do select SRT subtitles, the server directly reports that the CPU is not powerful enough and streaming does not even start. So I have given up on the subtitles for 4k content.
Interestingly if I stream the movie through DLNA it works without issues.
What may be the reason for this, as I prefer to use the Plex Server for streaming and sharing content with family?
Many thanks for your time!
Nick
The Ethernet port on the TV is 100 Mbps. The TV’s Wi-Fi can connect at faster than 100 Mbps if there is a strong 5 GHz signal (802.11ac / WiFi 5).
Some 4K HDR Blu-ray rips can burst above 100 Mbps. If the TV is connected via Ethernet when this happens, you may experience buffering. Connecting via Wi-Fi may help.
“CPU not powerful enough” is Plex’s cryptic way of saying “I need to transcode the video and you have disabled transcoding.”
With the Plex app on LG TVs, if the media is direct streaming, such as when audio is transcoding, enabling any subtitle results in a video transcode.
Avoid TrueHD or other situations where the audio transcodes. Movies / TV shows released on disc with TrueHD audio also have a Dolby Digital (AC3) version of the audio track. Use the AC3 version if it is available.
You can monitor playback via Plex Dashboard → Now Playing + Expanded View. It will show you if the video or audio is transcoding.
Monitor memory usage by Plex Media Server.
There is a long standing memory leak bug in Plex Media Server on Linux. If the DLNA server is enabled and there is an LG TV on the network, PMS will slowly consume available memory on the server. Restarting PMS releases the memory, but the process will start over again.
Hi @FordGuy61
thanks for taking the time and providing a detailed response. Thanks for the pointers on the audio and the explanation on the SRT, forcing the video transcode.
I don’t think the problem with the colour blocks was network related. I will check with another title with similar HDR encoding but will load the AC3 audio stream.
I have noticed that the server is starting to consume more memory overtime. Thanks for the heads up on the DLNA leak. I will only use it as a fallback when I can’t stream 4k directly via the server, which is my preference. Anyway most of my content is 1080p and is well within the capabilities of the current setup
thanks again!
Nick
