I have not asked him what version firestick (Im pretty sure its a fire stick it shows AXXXX something when i look at the dashboard when hes streaming) and it transcodes everything to SD
what settings to i need to tell him to look at to get it to not transcode (cause all my other users using a firestick stream at HD or 4k correctly).
I know its something on his end but i dont know what to tell him to look at or change.
Just some helpful hints would be nice to tell him to check cause transcoding from 1080p/4k to SD looks horrible and again i know its not my server, when i stream on my phone with the plex app at the gym i get direct play and so do the other 2 people i let use my server with a roku, and and android tv. Could it just be he has ■■■■■■ slow internet and it hits transcode? I want my buddy to get the best quality
It would be the remote quality settings in the Plex app.
i know right thats what i told him and he swears its on max but is cutting out at 2mbps transcoding
does he need a plex pass even though i have a lifetime one?
That is also the limit for Plex Relay, which is tunneled through servers at Plex.
When he is streaming, monitor the playback via Plex Dashboard.
If the connection is shown as Indirect, it is using Plex Relay.
If the connection is listed as Remote, then it is direct from his FireStick to your server.
If all your remote clients show up as Indirect, then it indicates a problem on your end.
If you have remote clients that show up as remote, then your remote access is most likely OK and the issue is on their end.
If he has not changed the device name, you can find the model via FireTV Device Specifications. For example, the new FireTV Stick 4K Max shows up as AFTKA in the Plex Dashboard and in the server log files.
its showing as direct, just transcoding to 2mb SD
I dont understand it, it’s only him
everyone else gets direct play
and no im not trying to be a dick, i just want to see if i can figure out why HE says all his stuff is set to what we told him but throttling at 2mb transcoding to SD.
I have a LT plex pass, i dunno about the other couple of users i let stream but he;s the only one that is ATFMM ANDROID throttled at 2mb SD
Pull the server logs, Settings → Troubleshooting & post to the thread.
The entries at beginning of his streaming session will have some info on why things are transcoding.
BTW, AFTMM = FireStick 4K. I have one and so do several friends. It is a good streaming stick.
got you guys, i’ll throw the logs up here tonight after he starts streaming, he does it late (hes california, im east coast).
and yeah, my amazon 4k stick works fine for me when im on vacation.
i think it’s either he didnt really fix the settings or he’s on like 1.5MB DSL
Sounds good.
Make sure your server is set for debug level logs.
Settings → Server_Name → General + Show Advanced.
That will provide the necessary detail.
got it set
i enabled verbose just in case
No No No
Logs are like porridge.
Info = Too cold.
Verbose = Too hot.
Debug = Just right.
Seriously, do not enable verbose logs. They add way, way too much info to the log files, making them 10x harder to read. Also, the logs are a fixed size, so when verbose is enabled, it is very easy for desired information to get rolled out into the bit bucket.
IMPORTANT: You now need to restart Plex Media Server.
It is not listed anywhere, but a restart is needed when lowering the log level. It was added as a security feature a few months back.
ok, just verbose, restarting server. got you my man
I think this log has what you are looking for in it, i know it has the server KILLING my local app during playback but look at the zip and tell me if theres anything messed up on my end.
I mean I’m irritated enough that ever 2 months it rescans and combines TV and CARTOON libraries into one even though things are set differently but thats not a big deal to manually fix or disable
but here’s a log
log.zip (5.0 MB)
To be clear, you need to provide the server logs after your buddy plays something. I don’t see any playback attempts in these logs or did I just miss it.
Never seen that happen. Check the paths you added for the library and make sure they are not overlapping.
I did some experimenting with my FireStick 4K, which is connected to a 1080p SDR TV.
I played a 4K HDR movie. It direct played. The FireStick downscaled and tonemapped it to 1080p SDR.
I configured the FireStick (not Plex app) for 720p video. 4K HDR still direct plays.
The only way I could force a video transcode is to change the quality (bandwidth) setting in the Plex app on the FireStick.
If the problem was a setting on your server, then it would affect your other remote streamers.
You looked at the Plex Dashboard when he was streaming and it did not say Indirect, so Plex Relay is out.
I don’t see any other explanation than the Remote Streaming Quality setting on his FireStick.
If you can convince him to run through the settings again…
FireStick Settings:
Display & Sounds
Display -> Video Resolution = Auto
Audio -> Surround Sound = Best Available
Plex App settings:
Video Quality
Adjust Automatically = Off <-- On results in transcoding
Remote Streaming Quality = Maximum
Video
Burn Subtitles = Automatic
Advanced
Passthrough = HDMI
Also check your server to see if you set an upload limit. That can force a transcode too.
Found one playback where a FireStick was transcoding.
It is the Remote Streaming Quality setting on the FireStick.
Calculated bandwidth of 10149kbps exceeds bandwidth limit. Changing decision parameters provided by client to fit bandwidth limit of 2000kbps
I see the same message in my server log files when I change the streaming quality setting on my FireStick.
From Plex Media Server.2.log:
Aug 27, 2022 01:37:32.917 [20416] DEBUG - [Req#1b13/Transcode] TranscodeUniversalRequest: using augmented profile Android
Aug 27, 2022 01:37:32.924 [20416] DEBUG - [Req#1b13/Transcode] MDE: analyzing media item 540648
Aug 27, 2022 01:37:32.924 [20416] DEBUG - [Req#1b13/Transcode] MDE: E1 - Echoes: Direct Play is disabled
Aug 27, 2022 01:37:32.924 [20416] DEBUG - [Req#1b13/Transcode] MDE: E1 - Echoes: media must be transcoded in order to use the hls protocol
Aug 27, 2022 01:37:32.924 [20416] DEBUG - [Req#1b13/Transcode] MDE: E1 - Echoes: no direct play video profile exists for http/mkv/h264
Aug 27, 2022 01:37:32.924 [20416] DEBUG - [Req#1b13/Transcode] MDE: E1 - Echoes: no direct play video profile exists for http/mkv/h264/eac3
Aug 27, 2022 01:37:32.924 [20416] DEBUG - [Req#1b13/Transcode] MDE: Outlander - S6 E1 - Echoes: selected media 0 / 540648
Aug 27, 2022 01:37:32.924 [20416] DEBUG - [Req#1b13/Transcode] Streaming Resource: Calculated bandwidth of 10149kbps exceeds bandwidth limit. Changing decision parameters provided by client to fit bandwidth limit of 2000kbps
Are you saying the fire stick is using the remote quality setting even locally?
Double check the IP for the server that the stick is using. See it is going out and back in to your network.
I should have written that better.
I’m changing the local quality setting on my FireStick.
The entry in my server logs is the same as the one in Commodore1581’s log files for the remote FireStick.
The calculated bandwidth number is different, but the rest of the text is exactly the same.
Edit: Just to make sure, I hotspotted the FireStick off my phone & set Remote Streaming Quality to 2 Mbps (should have done that in the first place).
Aug 31, 2022 02:46:24.583 [0x7f71da44db00] DEBUG - [Req#9ba7d/Transcode] Streaming Resource: Calculated bandwidth of 34432kbps exceeds bandwidth limit. Changing decision parameters provided by client to fit bandwidth limit of 2000kbps
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