I have been searching, googling for some kind of fix to this problem. I have encoded every movie to .mp4 720p before putting in server which is a Synology 216play with a ( STM STiH412 Dual-Core 1.5 GHz ) cpu. Almost all movies are 2gb and under and have added a .srt UTF-8 external sub for each movie. In the Ps4 plex app you have to start the movie first then move to settings and choose the subtitle. It will then stop and give a message " there was a problem playing this item - the server is not powerful enough convert video" . Then there is no way to remove subtitle from the movie and its stuck that way till either I log into server and set subs to none or remove from server, clean etc. Now I can play movie and sub fine from PC and android tablet / phone and from Samsung tv app.
Is there a special way to get subs to work on PS3/4 , I have even tried embedding them, wondering if I have to burn-in? As said my phone and all other platforms seems fine playing movies with external subs. Why would it require a transcode just for subs on PS4 ? And is my NAS no good for 1 transcode on the fly? Should media and subtitles be in different formats (mkv, avi, ssa, etc) for easier playback on PS plex app? suggestions, workaround, url to already resolved conversation welcomed. Thanks
Checked this link for supported formats on PS4. Burn in transcode only for PS3/PS4.
https://support.plex.tv/articles/204377253-what-media-formats-are-supported/?_ga=2.94162015.35284567.1532830637-1010748506.1527875007
You will need more processor to transcode. You may be able to do one 480p transcode.
Latest updates on PS3/PS4 plex apps.
Players for Windows and Mac play everything no transcode including subtitles. RasberryPi 3 with Rasplex is a almost play everything for cheap. Limited on HEVC.
To reiterate what @duendeazul is saying. Playstation platforms are very limiting with their support for media types. If you use a lot of subtitles tv shows and cpu time is at a premium you might want to reconsider your main playback platform
Ok so after few hrs reading, testing etc i have found a few things out
- Plex app for PS3/4 requires videos to be in .mp4 / aac format for direct play (plays without transcoding).
- If you require any subtitles for video the app will transcode the video and will burn-in subtitles.
- Plex app for android phones / tablet seems to read video chapters as subtitles but will still direct play .mp4/aac videos with subtitles and so will Samsung tv app and web browser app.
- Synology transcoding ability is used only with its own media software. Plex server app on Synology NAS does not use these abilities. If the NAS offers the ability to transcode 1 or 2 they mean with own software not Plex. It may be different with newer Synology NAS, but with Synology D216play it does not.
I put those videos on my PC plex server I am migrating to and they transcode and play fine on PS4 plex client with subs. Conclusion Synology D216play can’t transcode videos with Plex arm7 software and the cpu is not good enough, and the PS4 Plex player needs to be fixed to play mp4/acc videos with external or embedded subtitles without requiring movie to be transcoded and subs burnt-in. All other platforms I use ( phone, tablet-Android and Apple, TV, web ) can direct play video with subs. Plus the option of choosing or removing the subs before playing the movie should be added to the PS plex app. The way it sits now is you have to start the movie and then choose subs, if like me your server can not transcode the movie, the video playback stops and you can’t move the subs option back to none. You have to log into plex server via web and switch the subs to none just to be able to watch without subs on the PS plex app. Just seems other platform players/clients are more polished and PS plex app is beta. Sure would help out those with NAS servers with weaker cpu’s. I am currently moving server to old pc with I7 - 5870k which will fix prob just have to figure out what OS to use, win10 build 1803 has made communication between pc’s on home network a pain.
If you are having issues on Windows 10 1803 i would read this thread…there is a bad windows update causing issues
Personally if you know windows i would always recommend windows 10 with setup being by far the easiest and the best feature support
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