Sonic Analysis doesn’t trigger — logs show no errors, but no tracks analyzed either

Plex Media Server Desktops & Laptops
1

Server Version#: Version 1.41.7.9717
Player Version#: Version 4.145.1 + latest PlexAmp
<If providing server logs please do NOT turn on verbose logging, only debug logging should be enabled>
Hi all,

I’ve been trying to trigger Sonic Analysis manually on my Mac mini M2 (macOS 15.4.1) using this command:

/Applications/Plex\ Media\ Server.app/Contents/MacOS/Plex\ Media\ Scanner --analyze-deeply --section 20 --manual

I confirmed section ID 20 exists (Muziek), and Sonic is enabled (EnableSonicAnalysis="1" in Preferences.xml). However, when I run the command:

  • Plex Media Scanner starts
  • It confirms the section and opens the DB
  • Then it just… returns. No analysis is performed
  • Plexamp doesn’t show waveforms either

I don’t see any errors in the logs, but also no SonicAnalysis logs, no Analyzing media parts, and no Item ID logs — the command appears to be accepted and then silently drops.

Here’s a minimal log excerpt:

Apr 25, 2025 09:20:22.864 [0x16fbe7000] INFO - /Applications/Plex Media Server.app/Contents/MacOS/Plex Media Scanner --analyze-deeply --section 20 --manual
Apr 25, 2025 09:20:22.877 [0x2077d0c80] DEBUG - Opening 20 database sessions to library (com.plexapp.plugins.library), SQLite 3.39.4, threadsafe=1

…and then nothing happens. I’ve uploaded the full logs in this thread for context.

Let me know if I can provide a stripped-down test library or run a debug build — happy to help pinpoint this.

I also created a separate test library with just 2 clean MP3 files (ID3v2.3, no special characters, tagged with Yate), and ran the same analysis commands on that library — same result: no analysis is triggered, no waveforms in Plexamp, and the logs remain silent after initializing.

This rules out library size or tagging complexity as the issue.

2

I want to add that I added the same Music folder on my Ubuntu PMS to check if the NAS is not working correctly, MP3’s are okay etc. After scanning, the Ubuntu PMS is analyzing every song as we speak.
Also tried to analyze 1 song on my Mac PMS but still nothing.

And lastly I tried to switch to Rosetta and tried to analyze an MP3 and the whole library, but all the same.

I am connected using SMB to my NAS on 10Gbe.

Are the more options to test and make this work on Mac PMS?

3

I think you are over-complicating things - Macs don’t use a “preferences.xml” file. You should simply be enabling these preferences through the settings/library menus in Plex web

In each music libraries advanced settings - enable sonic analysis

In Plex settings - Library set sonic analysis to run when files are added and as a scheduled task

Also waveforms are not related to sonic analysis but rely on loudness analysis which can also be set to run as files are added and as a scheduled task

4

Zeker, hier is een voorstel voor een duidelijke, inhoudelijke reactie op het Plex-forum, gericht aan jimbob100101 en anderen die meelezen:

Thanks for the reply!

Just to follow up on what you mentioned — I actually went ahead and set up a dedicated test library with a clean mix of:

  • FLAC and MP3 files
  • Tagged with both ID3v2.3 and ID3v2.4
  • Some files with full metadata (album, artist, etc.), others minimal

Here’s what I’ve tested so far:

:white_check_mark: Plex Setup:

  • macOS 15.4.1 (Apple M2 Pro)
  • PMS 1.41.7, both stable and beta builds tested
  • “Enable Sonic Analysis for new music” is turned ON, both in the main settings and library settings

:test_tube: What I did:

  • Added new music → no Sonic triggered

  • Expanded the test library with more fresh files → no Sonic triggered

  • Rebooted the Mac and Plex multiple times

  • Tried manual analysis via CLI:

    /Applications/Plex\ Media\ Server.app/Contents/MacOS/Plex\ Media\ Scanner --analyze --section [id] --server-action sonic --log-file-suffix SonicTest

    → Command runs silently, no logs created, no output, no errors.

:magnifying_glass_tilted_left: What I found:

  • Analyzed several logs: Plex Media Server.log, Plex Media Scanner.log, and Plex Media Scanner Analysis.log
  • Sonic is never mentioned, and no fingerprinting happens
  • Also checked filesystem: the plugin SonicScrobbler.bundle is not present in the Plex install

:red_circle: Bottom line:

It seems that even though Sonic is “enabled” in settings, nothing can or will run without the SonicScrobbler.bundle, which is missing in my Mac install.
So any behavior depending on “has this already been analyzed” is likely irrelevant — Sonic simply cannot run.

I also verified this on my Ubuntu PMS server and saw the same issue.

Would love to know:

  • Is this bundle supposed to be included by default in macOS or Linux installs right now?
  • Has something changed in how Sonic is deployed in recent versions?

Happy to test again or provide more info if needed.

5

:thread: Reactie voor Plex-forum

Je kunt deze direct als reactie plaatsen op je eigen thread:

Quick follow-up:

I ran another full analyze (including Sonic) on a dedicated test music library (TESTTURK) on my Mac mini server.

- PMS version: 1.41.7
- OS: macOS 15.4.1
- Sonic Analysis shows up in the logs with 100% completion
- Loudness data is calculated (ramp, dynamics, etc.)
- No error messages in Plex logs
- But: **no waveform, no transitions, no fingerprint data in Plexamp**

I double-checked the plugin:
```bash
find "/Applications/Plex Media Server.app" -iname "*SonicScrobbler*"


I have uploaded a portion of the log files (complete set was 9.1mb)
[Plex Media Server Logs_2025-05-06_08-21-37.zip|attachment](upload://3CSruHGrHlgmAii9dHkUxaAYYu2.zip) (4.7 MB)
6

I installed Plex Media Server on my MacBook M4 Pro to just make sure I tested everything correctly. But also on this (clean) machine I having the same problems.

7

@elan do you have any tips how I can make this work?

8

Apologies—please post PMS Logs so we can have a look.

9

Plex Media Server Logs_2025-05-07_07-41-55.zip (7.8 MB)
Here are the logfiles. Hopefully you can find something there?

10

Hi, I see in the logs:

/Users/elan/Downloads/Plex Media Server Logs_2025-05-07_07-41-55/Plex Media Server.log:May 07, 2025 07:39:43.177 [0x171223000] DEBUG - [MusicAnalysis] Building album index with 105 albums.

It’s managed to at least analyze 105 albums.

It is getting errors from a couple of albums, but it doesn’t seem to be causing issues beyond that:

May 07, 2025 04:02:54.107 [0x16fe73000] DEBUG - [Butler] MusicAnalysis: Analyzing album 114478 (Aston Martinez - Hands Up).
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.111 [0x16fe73000] DEBUG - [Butler/MusicAnalysis] Decoding 1 files for input to the analyzer.
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.111 [0x16fde7000] DEBUG - [Butler/MusicAnalysis/JobRunner] Job running: FFMPEG_EXTERNAL_LIBS='/Users/stefansegers/Library/Application\ Support/Plex\ Media\ Server/Codecs/1c96867-c7c51eae1050ee8a09ae8dc1-darwin-aarch64/' "/Applications/Plex Media Server.app/Contents/MacOS/Plex Transcoder" -i "/Volumes/music/dj stef segers music/dj tools/Aston Martinez - Hands Up - Beat Tool.mp3" -ac 1 -ar 16000 -acodec pcm_s16le track-0000.wav
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.111 [0x16fde7000] DEBUG - [Butler/MusicAnalysis/JobRunner] In directory: "/var/folders/n5/xjc46k3s3nn6pzcxpxxxsxvm0000gn/T/music-analysis-input-fe7596c7-3fa5-4823-843a-8d5323bd107c"
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.116 [0x16fde7000] DEBUG - [Butler/MusicAnalysis/JobRunner] Jobs: Starting child process with pid 63240
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.271 [0x170247000] VERBOSE - JobManager: child process with handle 63240 exited
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.271 [0x170247000] DEBUG - Jobs: '/Applications/Plex Media Server.app/Contents/MacOS/Plex Transcoder' exit code for process 63240 is 69 (failure)
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.271 [0x16fe73000] ERROR - [Butler/MusicAnalysis] Error decoding analysis input files (exit code: 69)
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.276 [0x16fe73000] DEBUG - [Butler] MusicAnalysis: Analyzing album 138525 (Various Artists - Classic Country: Stars).
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.279 [0x16fe73000] DEBUG - [Butler/MusicAnalysis] Decoding 1 files for input to the analyzer.
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.279 [0x16fde7000] DEBUG - [Butler/MusicAnalysis/JobRunner] Job running: FFMPEG_EXTERNAL_LIBS='/Users/stefansegers/Library/Application\ Support/Plex\ Media\ Server/Codecs/1c96867-c7c51eae1050ee8a09ae8dc1-darwin-aarch64/' "/Applications/Plex Media Server.app/Contents/MacOS/Plex Transcoder" -i "/Volumes/music/jaren/1990s/Hank Locklin - Please Help Me I'm Falling_PN.mp3" -ac 1 -ar 16000 -acodec pcm_s16le track-0000.wav
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.279 [0x16fde7000] DEBUG - [Butler/MusicAnalysis/JobRunner] In directory: "/var/folders/n5/xjc46k3s3nn6pzcxpxxxsxvm0000gn/T/music-analysis-input-5d6fffce-aa46-4988-a3af-046cdc2c4ad4"
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.280 [0x16fde7000] DEBUG - [Butler/MusicAnalysis/JobRunner] Jobs: Starting child process with pid 63241
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.399 [0x170247000] VERBOSE - JobManager: child process with handle 63241 exited
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.399 [0x170247000] DEBUG - Jobs: '/Applications/Plex Media Server.app/Contents/MacOS/Plex Transcoder' exit code for process 63241 is 69 (failure)
May 07, 2025 04:02:54.399 [0x16fe73000] ERROR - [Butler/MusicAnalysis] Error decoding analysis input files (exit code: 69)
11

Hi Elan,

Thanks for checking out my log files. I did also see it does find out the tracks, searches for info and this seems to work. But after that the Sonic Analyze/Volume Waveform analyze does nothing. Doing the same on my Ubuntu PMS it does work.. Go Figure :man_shrugging:t4:

12

What do you mean by this?

13

Sorry for the short answer. I mean that after this analyze and testing with PlexAmp, I still no see any waveforms on the tracks, and the tracks finish till the end and switch then instead of sonic transfers which do work with the same tracks on PMS Ubuntu.

14

OK, so loudness analysis is responsible for waveforms, not sonic analysis. Sonic powers things like “similar tracks”, track radio, and sonically similar groups on the artist and album pages.

Loudness analysis is also responsible for enabling Sweet Fades.

15

Thanks for explaining! So Sonic is working I think? I read you can check this by checking the info from songs and see if the mood is enabled? From what I see no moods are used.

How can I make the Loudness analysis working correctly?

16

So you won’t believe what just happened… I did a Clean Bundle (for 3rd time) and my music has Loudness Waveforms!!!
It looks like everything is working now for some reason… Really have no idea how this is possible. but I am happy!

1 Like
17

glad to hear!

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