Plex Transcoding Question (Direct Stream)

General Discussions
1

Hello, I was wondering which encoding method is the best?
We try to encode everything we use on Plex but for some reason some files still won’t Transcode as “Direct Streams”.
Direct Streams I am assuming is the best alternative since it won’t stress the CPU? RIGHT? (I don’t know ■■■■ about transcoding)

Which format and how do I use Handbrake to get all my files to Direct Stream and also keep file size low/ good video quality?

2

Are you using subtitles ? If yes it’s very difficult to get rid of transcoding. Every player that you use needs to support subtitles natively, otherwise PMS will transcode.

Do you need remote access ? Again, it will be very difficult to get rid of transcoding. You should try several bitrates until you are satisfied with the result, you may start with 3MBps. The higher the bitrate the higher the quality, but this will also require a faster internet connection, so there is a tradeoff. Too high bitrate may imply stuttering, too low means unacceptable quality.

Do you use wi-fi ? What speed ? Are you in a zone free of interferences ? 3MBps is a good value to start testing.

Screen size is another important factor to consider. Most modern TV’s support 1080p, but some only support 720p. Transcoding may be triggered to upscale / downscale image.

Encoding in 1080p, H264 (up to 20Mbps) and AAC is broadly accepted by modern devices. If you need to test several bitrates you may use samples from http://jell.yfish.us/

4

@trumpy81 said:

@mrraiz0r said:
Hello, I was wondering which encoding method is the best?
We try to encode everything we use on Plex but for some reason some files still won’t Transcode as “Direct Streams”.
Direct Streams I am assuming is the best alternative since it won’t stress the CPU? RIGHT? (I don’t know **** about transcoding)

Which format and how do I use Handbrake to get all my files to Direct Stream and also keep file size low/ good video quality?

Whether or not a file is transcoded, Direct Played or Direct Streamed is determined by your file and the capability of your Plex client to play that file.

If your client can play the video, but not the audio for example, then Plex will transcode the audio but not the video and that will then be Direct Streamed to your client.

If your client is unable to play the video AND the audio, then the file will be transcoded.

If your client is able to play both video and audio, the file will be Direct Played.

Direct Play is by far the best way to play your files and to do that you need to make sure your file is compatible with your client device. Direct Streamed is the second best choice. :wink:

For example, if you have an Apple TV 4, the supported file formats and codecs are listed here: Apple TV HD - Technical Specifications

Your file must comply with the listed formats for whatever client device you are using.

For HandBrake, select MP4 as the format, use the Fast 1080p 30 preset (on the RH side of screen) and enable Web Optimise. Then on the Video tab, enable ‘Fast Decode’. You should not need to set any other settings for video. You may adjust the audio, subtitle and chapter settings as needed, but generally speaking, no other changes should be necessary.

To see what codecs and other parameters a file is using, use ‘Get Info’ in Plex to display that information. Or, you may use MediaInfo (free for PC/Mac) to display a full list of codecs and parameters used by a typical video file.

Okey so if I understand correctly, what I should do is choose .MP4 as the format (ALWAYS) and the transcoding has more to do with the client streaming the content, if it can’t stream a MP4 format file it will then start streaming with a format that fits the client.

Is there another option in Plex advanced option I should use for encoding?
I have it set to Very Fast encoding should it be Fast encoding?