Server Version#: 4.133.0
Player Version#: 5.64.1 (2024/1/20)
<If providing server logs please do NOT turn on verbose logging, only debug logging should be enabled>
Hello,
I am currently experiencing stuttering playback issues with two Samsung devices—a Smart TV and a Smart Monitor, both operating Plex Player version 5.64.1 (Models: S43CG700, LS32CM502EKXKR). During playback, the video often stutters as if buffering, with the frequency and duration of these stutters varying significantly. Sometimes, videos play smoothly for an extended period, while at other times, the problem reappears shortly after starting.
The issue does not affect all videos, but some consistently exhibit this problem, especially those with attached subtitle files, which seem to make the occurrence of stutters more likely.
It appears that this is not an issue with the Plex Media Server, as playback on Plex Web Player, Android App, macOS App, and Windows App does not show these issues. This leads me to suspect that the problem may lie with the Plex Player app available in the Samsung Smart Hub Store.
The screenshot below shows the bandwidth from the Plex Dashboard at the time the issues occur. There is a significant drop in transfer rate beginning at the point of disruption, with the affected video’s transfer rate being 8.5 Mbps at 1080p.
I welcome any further information or suggestions you might have. It’s quite disappointing as these issues have only started occurring recently, and I am eager to enjoy my media without interruptions again.
The Plex App version I’m using is the version released in Jul 2023 (5.64.1), but according to the notice in the link above, the current last version is 5.87.1 (no more Plex updates available for Samsung Tizen)
I think some Samsung Smart TV/monitor models are missing the Plex App update. It’s worth checking.
I have done several tests to resolve this issue and I will share the solution that worked for users who may encounter the same issue later.
As a result, I found out that the above issue started after I started my Plex Pass subscription and enabled the “Use hardware acceleration when available” option.
My server specs are AMD Radeon CPU (AMD Ryzen 5 8500G w/ Radeon 740M Graphics) and I do not use a separate external graphics card. I know that if I enable the hardware acceleration option, it uses the CPU’s built-in graphics. (I am not sure if the same issue occurs with Intel or Nvidia products.)
Anyway, after doing some tests, I found that the above issue disappeared when I enabled the “Use hardware acceleration when available” option and disabled the “Use hardware-accelerated video encoding” option.
I have been using it for a few days now with the “Use hardware-accelerated video encoding” option disabled, but the same issue has not occurred.
I’m not sure if this is related to the AMD graphics chipset, but if Plex officials have confirmed this, I think it would be good to consider filing an issue.
