Transcoder Errors, logs included

Server Version#: 1.22.0.4163
Server OS: Ubuntu 20.04.2 LTS
Player Version#: Roku
Plex files are hosted on a dedicated Unraid NAS, using “sec=sys,rw,async,no_subtree_check,no_root_squash”
mounted via NFS using “nfs auto,defaults,nofail 0 0”

Hello!

I’ve been having server disconnects for over a week now. On my local network, I can play and transcode at reasonable quality, but with intermittent stuttering. My users have experiences ranging from negligible problems to completely unworkable, and I’ve been focusing my troubleshooting on a Roku user who seems to be experiencing the worst of it (i.e. when I’m stuttering, she’s freezing, when I’m freezing, she gets a Playback Error “Your connection to the server was not fast enough to stream this video. Check your network or try to lower quality.”).

Today I activated debug logging and had her play a file, which she said played for 6 minutes and then returned an error (she didn’t report the specific error message)… Judging from the log, something seems to be going wrong on my side, but I have no idea where to focus on my attention with this wall of error messages. FWIW, I am currently streaming the same file on my phone (disconnected from my local network), and it’s playing although seems to be experiencing intermittent stuttering.

Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks for your time.

XML:

<MediaContainer size="1" allowSync="1" identifier="com.plexapp.plugins.library" librarySectionID="39" librarySectionTitle="Nick Jr." librarySectionUUID="28a33a6a-ea6f-4d33-a6c3-bba2a4e0b8e3" mediaTagPrefix="/system/bundle/media/flags/" mediaTagVersion="1615295203">
<Video ratingKey="187763" key="/library/metadata/187763" parentRatingKey="187762" grandparentRatingKey="187761" guid="com.plexapp.agents.thetvdb://79896/1/1?lang=en" parentGuid="com.plexapp.agents.thetvdb://79896/1?lang=en" grandparentGuid="com.plexapp.agents.thetvdb://79896?lang=en" type="episode" title="Rescue the Red-Eyed Tree Frogs!" grandparentKey="/library/metadata/187761" parentKey="/library/metadata/187762" librarySectionTitle="Nick Jr." librarySectionID="39" librarySectionKey="/library/sections/39" grandparentTitle="Go, Diego, Go!" parentTitle="Season 1" contentRating="TV-Y" summary="Diego and Alicia find out about tree frogs once Diego learns that there are tree frogs in trouble. Alicia figures out that they are Red-Eyed Tree Frog's, and Diego figures out that the wind blew the tree frogs off of their tree and they are going down the river. Alicia tries to find the tree fogs a new home while Diego and Baby Jaguar try to save them. Along their way, they face several new challenges, such as finding a way to get across a muddy pit, jumping over rolling coconuts, finding their way into a pyramid that the tree frogs went into, and finding their way through the pyramid to get to the tree frogs. " index="1" parentIndex="1" rating="7.0" year="2005" thumb="/library/metadata/187763/thumb/1612586594" art="/library/metadata/187761/art/1612586594" parentThumb="/library/metadata/187762/thumb/1612586594" grandparentThumb="/library/metadata/187761/thumb/1612586594" grandparentArt="/library/metadata/187761/art/1612586594" duration="1421354" originallyAvailableAt="2005-09-06" addedAt="1407510142" updatedAt="1612586594">
<Media id="226708" duration="1421354" bitrate="3979" width="1280" height="720" aspectRatio="1.78" audioChannels="2" audioCodec="wmav2" videoCodec="wmv2" videoResolution="720" container="asf" videoFrameRate="NTSC">
<Part accessible="1" exists="1" id="273292" key="/library/parts/273292/1407510142/file.wmv" duration="1421354" file="/mnt/alexandria/nick jr/go, diego, go!/go, diego, go! - s01e01 - rescue the red-eyed tree frogs!.wmv" size="706974002" container="asf">
<Stream id="766125" streamType="1" codec="wmv2" index="1" bitrate="4000" language="English" languageCode="eng" bitDepth="8" chromaSubsampling="4:2:0" codedHeight="720" codedWidth="1280" frameRate="29.970" height="720" refFrames="1" streamIdentifier="2" width="1280" displayTitle="720p (WMV2)" extendedDisplayTitle="720p (WMV2)"> </Stream>
<Stream id="766124" streamType="2" selected="1" codec="wmav2" index="0" channels="2" bitrate="320" language="English" languageCode="eng" samplingRate="44100" streamIdentifier="1" displayTitle="English (WMAV2 Stereo)" extendedDisplayTitle="English (WMAV2 Stereo)"> </Stream>
</Part>
</Media>
<Extras size="0"> </Extras>
<Related> </Related>
</Video>
</MediaContainer>

Beginning of error messages (rest in logs):

Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.724 [0x7ff6eca4f700] INFO - Plex Media Server v1.22.0.4163-d8c4875dd - Ubuntu PC x86_64 - build: linux-x86_64 debian - GMT -08:00
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.724 [0x7ff6eca4f700] INFO - Linux version: 20.04.2 LTS (Focal Fossa), language: en-US
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.724 [0x7ff6eca4f700] INFO - Processor Intel® Celeron® G4900 CPU @ 3.10GHz
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.724 [0x7ff6eca4f700] INFO - /usr/lib/plexmediaserver/Plex Media Server
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.723 [0x7ff6cffff700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:0: Invalid data found when processing input
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.723 [0x7ff694ff9700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0x1d39a00] Prediction is not allowed in AAC-LC.
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.723 [0x7ff6e0ce9700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:0: Invalid data found when processing input
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.724 [0x7ff6cffff700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0x1d39a00] Prediction is not allowed in AAC-LC.
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.724 [0x7ff694ff9700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:0: Invalid data found when processing input
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.724 [0x7ff6e0ce9700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0x1d39a00] Number of bands (48) exceeds limit (38).
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.724 [0x7ff6cffff700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:0: Invalid data found when processing input
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.724 [0x7ff694ff9700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0x1d39a00] invalid band type
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.725 [0x7ff6e0ce9700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:0: Invalid data found when processing input
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.725 [0x7ff6cffff700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0x1d39a00] Number of bands (49) exceeds limit (40).
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.725 [0x7ff694ff9700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:0: Invalid data found when processing input
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.725 [0x7ff6e0ce9700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0x1d39a00] Number of bands (56) exceeds limit (39).
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.725 [0x7ff6cffff700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:0: Invalid data found when processing input
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.726 [0x7ff694ff9700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0x1d39a00] Number of bands (49) exceeds limit (41).
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.726 [0x7ff6e0ce9700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:0: Invalid data found when processing input
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.726 [0x7ff6cffff700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0x1d39a00] Prediction is not allowed in AAC-LC.
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.726 [0x7ff694ff9700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:0: Invalid data found when processing input
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.726 [0x7ff6e0ce9700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0x1d39a00] Number of bands (56) exceeds limit (47).
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.726 [0x7ff6cffff700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:0: Invalid data found when processing input
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.726 [0x7ff694ff9700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0x1d39a00] Number of bands (15) exceeds limit (12).
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.726 [0x7ff6e0ce9700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:0: Invalid data found when processing input
Mar 11, 2021 03:35:27.726 [0x7ff6cffff700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0x1d39a00] Number of scalefactor bands in group (52) exceeds limit (49).

plex media server logs_2021-03-11_09-40-53.zip (2.0 MB)

What is your transcode throttle set to in settings> transcoder?

Others have solved similar issues from my searching by making sure this is set to the default “60”

Otherwise it may be the media itself.

Please turn DEBUG back on??

Can’t help with DEBUG off. (Keep VERBOSE OFF)

At first glance, that looks like bad media or damaged codec.

Oh my goodness, I’m a buffooon! I thought it was turned it on (I probably forgot to hit save). My apologies. I’ll repost the errors when I can get debug logs.

What is your transcode throttle set to in settings> transcoder?
Others have solved similar issues from my searching by making sure this is set to the default “60”
Otherwise it may be the media itself.

Transcode was set to “60”.
“Background transcoding x264 preset” is “Super Fast” (changed yesterday from “Very Fast”).

I’ve been experiencing stuttering on the local network with multiple files, and the user reports errors regardless of show.

EDIT: It’s likely that I’m conflating two different issues: her Roku’s transcoding issues and my network stuttering. I’m unfortunately unable to troubleshoot with her until next week, and in the meantime, I haven’t been able to recreate any of those errors with other users. Thank you for your suggestions, I think I’m in a holding pattern for troubleshooting until I can recreate an error message with Debug logs.

I see in your logs something about playback on a Roku. Do you know if this was the type of file being played?

sourceVideoCodec=“wmv2” sourceAudioCodec=“wmav2”

WMV is a horrible format to use. The format is actually fine but lots of encoders don’t produce these correctly and things can get screwy. I would recommend re-encode these to something else.

I finally got error logs with debugs! Today I ran the repair steps for a corrupt plex database (just in case), scanned all libraries, optimized and cleared trash, then had her Reset Home Customization.

She reported playback errors on multiple files, can confirm that the logs were recording for this file (1080p mkv, transcoding down to 720p for Roku):

<MediaContainer size="1" allowSync="1" identifier="com.plexapp.plugins.library" librarySectionID="39" librarySectionTitle="Nick Jr." librarySectionUUID="28a33a6a-ea6f-4d33-a6c3-bba2a4e0b8e3" mediaTagPrefix="/system/bundle/media/flags/" mediaTagVersion="1615295203">
<Video ratingKey="188758" key="/library/metadata/188758" parentRatingKey="188757" grandparentRatingKey="187884" guid="com.plexapp.agents.thetvdb://272472/3/1?lang=en" parentGuid="com.plexapp.agents.thetvdb://272472/3?lang=en" grandparentGuid="com.plexapp.agents.thetvdb://272472?lang=en" type="episode" title="Pups Find a Genie" grandparentKey="/library/metadata/187884" parentKey="/library/metadata/188757" librarySectionTitle="Nick Jr." librarySectionID="39" librarySectionKey="/library/sections/39" grandparentTitle="Paw Patrol" parentTitle="Season 3" contentRating="TV-Y" summary="In the third-season opener, Rubble finds a genie and is granted three wishes, but the genie's magic isn't perfected yet." index="1" parentIndex="3" rating="5.0" year="2015" thumb="/library/metadata/188758/thumb/1613541576" art="/library/metadata/187884/art/1613724142" parentThumb="/library/metadata/188757/thumb/1613295017" grandparentThumb="/library/metadata/187884/thumb/1613724142" grandparentArt="/library/metadata/187884/art/1613724142" grandparentTheme="/library/metadata/187884/theme/1613724142" duration="1402368" originallyAvailableAt="2015-11-20" addedAt="1613294702" updatedAt="1613541576">
<Media id="227938" duration="1402368" bitrate="5409" width="1916" height="1076" aspectRatio="1.78" audioChannels="2" audioCodec="aac" videoCodec="h264" videoResolution="1080" container="mkv" videoFrameRate="24p" audioProfile="lc" videoProfile="high">
<Part accessible="1" exists="1" id="275225" key="/library/parts/275225/1612557983/file.mkv" duration="1402368" file="/mnt/alexandria/nick jr/paw patrol/s03/paw patrol - s03e01 - s03e02 - s03e03 - s03e04 - pups find a genie + pups save a tightrope walker + pups save the soccer game + pups save a lucky collar.mkv" size="948189928" audioProfile="lc" container="mkv" videoProfile="high">
<Stream id="806306" streamType="1" default="1" codec="h264" index="1" bitrate="5409" language="English" languageCode="eng" bitDepth="8" chromaLocation="topleft" chromaSubsampling="4:2:0" codedHeight="1088" codedWidth="1920" colorPrimaries="bt709" colorRange="tv" colorSpace="bt709" colorTrc="bt709" frameRate="23.976" hasScalingMatrix="0" height="1076" level="40" profile="high" refFrames="4" scanType="progressive" width="1916" displayTitle="1080p (H.264)" extendedDisplayTitle="1080p (H.264)"> </Stream>
<Stream id="806305" streamType="2" selected="1" default="1" codec="aac" index="0" channels="2" bitrate="157" language="English" languageCode="eng" audioChannelLayout="stereo" profile="lc" samplingRate="48000" displayTitle="English (AAC Stereo)" extendedDisplayTitle="English (AAC Stereo)"> </Stream>
<Stream id="806307" streamType="3" selected="1" default="1" codec="srt" index="2" bitrate="0" language="English" languageCode="eng" displayTitle="English (SRT)" extendedDisplayTitle="English (SRT)"> </Stream>
</Part>
</Media>
<Writer id="69723" filter="writer=69723" tag="Kim Duran"/>
<Extras size="0"> </Extras>
<Related> </Related>
</Video>
</MediaContainer>

plex media server logs_2021-03-15_17-27-27.zip (4.2 MB)

One of the seasons she was having trouble with was wmv, and those were particularly troublesome, but that show was also a strong outlier for files (a personal encode off of youtube to get something quick by request). We just confirmed with debug logs on an mkv file, she says it happens across the board (playback begins, eventually intermittently stuttering and then dying with a playback error on her side).

Also: I fixed my local stuttering problems (my sabnzbd was having it’s own issues, it is currently uninstalled and my local problems are gone but hers continue).

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