Server Version#:1.17.0.1841
Player Version#:1.3.1.916
The new Plex for Windows player consumes an unreasonably high amount of GPU power when rendering playback controls. When the Plex app is visible on the screen and playing music, it will increase the GPU load on my desktop’s GTX 1080 Ti to around 17%. If I minimize the app, GPU usage goes down to 0, and the same occurs if I pause or close playback.
My desktop has enough graphical power to ignore this cost, but the high GPU usage is a problem on my Surface Pro 4. On that machine, playback uses 50% of the GPU, and causes the progress bar to become laggy, and the entire UI to become sluggish. Scrolling through playlists and album lists becomes slow and jerky if music is playing at the same time. There is a noticeable delay whenever I press a button that doesn’t occur when I’m not playing music. It also increases power usage and thus shortens the battery life of the Surface.
Please take a look at how and when the GPU is being used when rendering playback controls. Since the GPU usage disappears when I pause a track, it points to the rendering of the progress bar as the root cause of this issue. A simple progress bar should not be taking this much GPU power to render and update. I’m convinced that there is some misuse of hardware acceleration in the rendering of the playback controls.
I’m experiencing this as well. Although it appears it’s related to playing back anything, not just music. I hadn’t considered that it could be the rendering of controls, but that explains why it doesn’t just affect video playback.
Similar to your Surface, I don’t have the horsepower to spare. With an Intel UHD 630 iGPU, it’s pushing my GPU usage to 100% (Plex using ~25% with Desktop Window Manager using the rest) resulting in laggy playback of video and poor system responsiveness.
And before anyone suggests that it’s a system problem (since DWM is using 75% of the GPU) it’s entirely related to Plex. It only occurs when Plex is open and actively playing. Playing the same video files directly from the server, via Window’s video playing app, the GPU usage is about 10%.
This didn’t occur when version 1.0 was installed. One of the updates (between 1.1 and 1.3) is when the issue began, although I couldn’t identify which one specifically caused the problem.
I’m now using the Plex for Windows 1.4 Preview build. The high GPU usage issue is still here, but only when the Plex app is in focus, or was the last window to have focus before focus goes back to the desktop.
To test, open the Plex preview app, then start playing content. GPU usage will be high. Now click on the desktop or taskbar so that the Plex window no longer has focus. GPU usage will still be high. Now open another application and make it the foreground window. GPU usage from Plex should drop to a much lower level. If you click the Plex app to bring it to the foreground again, GPU usage will spike once more.
GPU usage will also spike at seemingly arbitrary times during playback even when it is not in focus. Controlling playback by using system media controls (back, pause/play, forward) will cause GPU usage to be high.
So the GPU usage situation has improved, but it’s not there yet. A simple playback bar still consumes way too many GPU resources to render.
One month later and this issue is still a problem. Currently running the release version of 1.4 and GPU usage is 100%. The file is Direct Playing from my server. Playing that file through any other app does not result in high GPU usage.
I am also seeing high GPU usage when playing music in the Windows Desktop App. I have a NVIDIA 2080 GPU and Plex is using 23% GPU when playing music. No GPU used when no music is playing (and I’m not scrolling around; naturally that will use the GPU.)
Like others, I am seeing the GPU load drop to 0% when the application is minimized and still playing.
I just started using the Plex for Windows app and with the latest version this problem still occurs. The music is playing right now and the window is not in focus, nor is it the last to have focus, I have it as 3rd or 4th in the most recent focus order at the moment.
This is a problem for low powered computers, laptops, convertibles and any user that wants to play music while also running games. I have a GTX 2080 and using almost 20% of my GPU resources is out of line.
Can an employee or dev take a look at this? I really want to use Plex for music to consolidate all my media and Plexamp while good looking is not what I want: I want a music player / library manager in one application.
My setup (Windows 10, Dell XPS15 with NVidia 4GB grpahic card) is just like this. Fans kick in loudly after a couple of minutes due to the GPU being used exessively. Emby Theatre has no such issue, so I’m sticking with that until Plex fix this as it makes the desktop app unusable…
Just got myself a Surface Pro 7 (Intel Iris Plus integrated GPU) and it’s at 50% usage on utilisation on the GPU. Specifically on the 3D engine which is incredibly odd.
Same issue on MacOs and Linux. Every time I’m playing music with Plex, the GPU load is high. As example my AMD Graphic Card running at 1,7GHz when playin music!!.
When I’m using Emby the Card runs at 300MHz. The difference is more than 50 Watt (30 against 82).
COME ON PLEX, you can do this better.
We want a fix. So pls investigate the behavior and bring us good news.
THX
M
Same here, glad i found this topic, had no idea that it’s related to playing music on my plex server in the background.
But as soon as i start playing with latest version of server and plex client on my convertible gpu goes over 60 % Even when the gui is not visible.
As soon a i stop the player it goes down to normal again (3 %)
What really solved it for me so far is to use the web player instead of the app. No problem with gpu usage anymore on my pc as far as i can see. Even when i have two tabs open and play from 2 different plex servers at same time music for testing purpose the gpu is for all system just around 4 - 6 %.
Sadly web player doesn’t have synced content nor does it support ASS subtitles without burning them in…
Obviously, it’s the same for the gpu usage part, the battery is taking a serious hit when I’m trying to watch from Plex.
I’m seeing 70-80% GPU whilst just playing music in the background, clearly something majorly wrong with this app on Windows but I’m not seeing any response from the PLEX team, do they even look here?
Same issue here on my 1030gt. It becomes more problematic when playing 4k hevc content. Playback is not smooth due to high 3D gpu usage. The decode usage is around 20% on the gpu as it should be. Can someone from plex please respond?
PS: i’m using the windows 7 (old) player now it doens’t have this issue. still 20% decode usage but not the added 70% 3D usage.
Even when the gui is not visible.