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This is my current build when running Plex to my Roku Premiere+ via ethernet while trying to watch 1080p mkv files. My internet speeds are 100/100.
Whenever I try streaming 1080p files from my PC, I have issues with stuttering and I’m not sure what is the cause of the issue. Some 1080p movies run fine, all other quality files run perfectly fine, but overall 1080p is the only quality that gives me trouble.
Does anyone know what the cause of this could be? If it’s my build, could you please recommend me a better alternative? Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.
More information: I’ve checked my transcoder speed, and it stays below 1 for the most part, although it seems my CPU should be able to handle the stream just fine. Not sure what’s going on.
Below 1 indicates sub-par performance, does it not?
Are those ‘troublesome’ files’ video streams VC-1 perhaps? VC-1 is a ‘single thread operation’ meaning if you have 80 cores VC-1 would only use one of them.
Are the troublesome files able to Direct Play - and are not for some reason? What is the reason? Is Local App Quality not on ‘Original’? or ‘Maximum’? Are ASS or Image based subs causing a full blown transcode? Would changing the sub format get the file back into Direct Play?
Things to investigate, but also be aware 7.7 Roku Firmware is all messed up. Are you on OS-8 Firmware yet?
My Plex server is pretty modest (Pentium G3220 with WD Reds/Greens). Most of my videos are 1080p. I’ve had stuttering on the LAN in two scenarios:
When copying files to/from the same disk I’m streaming from; and
When I forgot to restrict the file size on my downloader and accidentally ended up with a couple 24GB files (doh!).
If one of these is your problem, I recommend a couple things:
Check your downloader’s file size restrictions!
Don’t put your OS, apps, or app data on the same disk with your video libraries.
Do put your video downloads/not-yet-renamed videos folder on the same disk with your video libraries. (You can throttle your download speed during prime TV-watching time if you need to, but you can’t throttle that multiple-GB file copy your disk would get hit with whenever a file gets moved into a library if they were on separate disks).
@JuiceWSA said:
Below 1 indicates sub-par performance, does it not?
Are those ‘troublesome’ files’ video streams VC-1 perhaps? VC-1 is a ‘single thread operation’ meaning if you have 80 cores VC-1 would only use one of them.
Are the troublesome files able to Direct Play - and are not for some reason? What is the reason? Is Local App Quality not on ‘Original’? or ‘Maximum’? Are ASS or Image based subs causing a full blown transcode? Would changing the sub format get the file back into Direct Play?
Things to investigate, but also be aware 7.7 Roku Firmware is all messed up. Are you on OS-8 Firmware yet?
All of my files are mkv. I’ve never heard of VC-1 so I’m not sure, to be honest.
Direct Play still gives me issues as well. Either the file still stutters or I have absolutely no audio. All qualities, on both the web server and the roku app are at 20mbps.
My roku is indeed on 7.7.0 but when I check for an update it tells me that I’m already on the latest firmware.
Thank you for the idea of posting on the roku forum as well. I’ll be doing that right away.
@mesheree said:
My Plex server is pretty modest (Pentium G3220 with WD Reds/Greens). Most of my videos are 1080p. I’ve had stuttering on the LAN in two scenarios:
When copying files to/from the same disk I’m streaming from; and
When I forgot to restrict the file size on my downloader and accidentally ended up with a couple 24GB files (doh!).
If one of these is your problem, I recommend a couple things:
Check your downloader’s file size restrictions!
Don’t put your OS, apps, or app data on the same disk with your video libraries.
Do put your video downloads/not-yet-renamed videos folder on the same disk with your video libraries. (You can throttle your download speed during prime TV-watching time if you need to, but you can’t throttle that multiple-GB file copy your disk would get hit with whenever a file gets moved into a library if they were on separate disks).
What do you mean when you say copying files to/from the same disk? I don’t believe this is my issue but I’m not sure what you mean so I can’t say for sure.
None of my files are that big. The largest are probably between 10-12GB, but if I recall correctly, even small sizes give me stuttering issues.
My video files are not on the same HDD as my OS/apps/app data. All of that is on a SSD.
These stuttering isssues happen no matter what, even if nothing else is happening on my PC aside from streaming the file to Plex.
or something like this: download mediainfo here
(pay attention during installation, it comes with a ‘piggybacked’ installer which asks to install additional crapware. Make sure to set/clear the right checkboxes!)
How about posting the Plex XML info of a file that is working and
then from another one that ain’t, for comparison.
Sorry for doing it so weirdly, when trying to copy and paste the code it wasn’t showing in my post, so I took off the <> from the beginning and end of the code and broke them up. This is from a file that was giving me stuttering issues. Does it matter whether the XML from a good working file is a 720p or 1080p file?
I’ve attached a photo of what I believe is what you’re asking for. Hopefully this time it’s right. Let me know if otherwise. Thanks for your help, by the way. Much appreciated.
Highlight XML info
Copy XML info - all of it
Paste XML info to message
Highlight XML info in message
Select ‘Code’ from drop down menu under the ‘Backwards P’.
Here is one of mine, but instead of ‘Code’ I selected ‘Spoiler’ to cut back on the eye-bleeding:
Can you disable Direct Stream and Direct Play in the preferences of the Roku client app?
(Sorry, I don’t have a Roku, so cannot tell you where to find this preference.)
Roku App Settings:
Video/Arrow Right/Arrow down to Direct Play/Disable, Arrow Down to Direct Stream/Disable.
For what it’s worth:
The Current 7.7 FW has caused me to ‘Force’ Direct Play on my Roku.
Otherwise - transcoding happens at random for no apparent reason.
True - with caveats.
1080p is different than 720p and 480p - I have no idea what those Ref Frame limits are. @ljunkie has fiddled with those limitations.
Forcing Direct Play doesn’t mean it’s gonna Direct Play - it just means Plex is going to try really hard to Direct Play - if it can’t it’s gonna transcode. In the old days we used to call it ‘Direct Play with Fallback’.
@JuiceWSA said:
1080p is different than 720p and 480p - I have no idea what those Ref Frame limits are. @ljunkie has fiddled with those limitations.
Primarily, it is a memory constraint.
Forcing Direct Play doesn’t mean it’s gonna Direct Play - it just means Plex is going to try really hard to Direct Play - if it can’t it’s gonna transcode. In the old days we used to call it ‘Direct Play with Fallback’.
Ah, gotcha. That’s clever. Wish more clients had that.
Yea, it’s nice… right now it’s kinda required since Roku has borked their own firmware.
I know what a ref frame is - I just don’t know what @ljunkie has limited them to on the Roku Plex app. He changed them to be a bit higher than they were, then backed that down when Roku threw a live hand grenade into the mix.
@JuiceWSA said:
I know what a ref frame is - I just don’t know what @ljunkie has limited them to on the Roku Plex app. He changed them to be a bit higher than they were, then backed that down when Roku threw a live hand grenade into the mix.
As far as I know there was a hard limit of 4 on older Roku hardware.
Even though the H.264 would allow more, if the resolution of the video is lower than 1920x1080pixels.
That sounds about right. Might have been 5 for 1080, 8 for 720, but don’t quote me on that.
I never go over 4. That way I know it’s in the ‘envelope’ and more than that just takes so long it’s not worth it for the little bit of compression you gain when you yank those ref frames up. 16 ref frames is max compression, takes all day today and part of tomorrow and won’t Direct Play on anything. That doesn’t really work for me.
You can always tell when The Wombat Squad has been at the encoder - ref frames 16. They’re using VLC and it doesn’t matter I guess.
