Hey guys,
I started recently trying to stream/cast 4k content on my PMS but it keeps stuttering. I was wondering if anyone can help me point out what I’m doing wrong?
My current setup is as follows:
Unraid server storing all my content - the 4k content in question is h265 10bit
PMS installed a on Windows VM - The VM has 8 cores of 3.7ghz with 8gb ram
Gigabit network
Is it the h265 that’s causing the issue? Do I have to re-encode it to h264? What do you guys use to re-encode?
Thanks!
Is PMS transcoding the content? If so, that is your problem. Logon to PMS via Plex Web and look at Status -> Now Playing.
And as chenks requested, provide detail about your client. Smart TV / Android TV / Roku / etc? How connected to TV, audio system, etc.?
@chenks said:
what are you playing the content on?
that might be part of the issue.
I’m playing it via my Vizio M series TV, it has plex built-in. Alternatively, I tried to cast it to the TV - same issue
@FordGuy61 said:
Is PMS transcoding the content? If so, that is your problem. Logon to PMS via Plex Web and look at Status → Now Playing.And as chenks requested, provide detail about your client. Smart TV / Android TV / Roku / etc? How connected to TV, audio system, etc.?
Yes it is transcoding, and the CPU instantly maxes out to 100%
Video - Transcoding HEVX to H264
Audio - Transcoding TRUEHD to EAC3
Now you know the problem. Either (a) the TV does not support HEVC video or (b) it does, but the video exceeds the capabilities of the TV. Also, the TV does not support TrueHD audio.
The fix is to avoid transcoding, at least for the video. Audio transcoding, while not desirable, has a relatively low CPU hit.
What exact model of the TV?
Do you have a link to tech specs showing supported video & audio codecs and other such info?
Also, send Plex’s XML info for one of the problematic videos. Using Plex web player, https://app.plex.tv/desktop, go to the detail view for the movie (where you see written by, directed by, the cast, etc). Click on the three dots in upper right corner, choose Get Info. This pops up the Media Info window. Select View XML, save as a file, attach to your reply.
An alternative to Plex XML is to analyze the video with Media Info, https://mediaarea.net/en/MediaInfo. Choose the text view, save as a text file, and attach to reply.
Note: The easy answer is “Download Handbrake, https://handbrake.fr/, pick the Roku preset that is closest to your tv (2160p30 or 1080p30), set the video codec to 10-bit, and transcode the video.” However, while that would probably work, it isn’t necessarily the best answer. It is better to know the details of your Plex clients so you can fine tune things and get a better result. It involves some up front work, but the payoff is worth it.
Hey there,
thank you so much for helping me out, much appreciated.
The exact model is Vizio M55-e0 - https://www.vizio.com/en-ca/m55e0.html
The codec information can be found here: https://www.displayspecifications.com/en/model/3f3fb8a
I attached the xml file you asked for.
I also downloaded handshake and I’m converting the file to h.264 see if that works, i’ll report my results once it’s done converting. Estimated time says about 2 hours
I was not able to dig up a specific problem with 4k and the plex player on the dedicated tv hardware plex forums, but it just seemed to be post after post of issues so there may be deficiencies in the vizio supported version.
Try asking your question in https://forums.plex.tv/categories/smart-tvs since this is an issue with your tv’s player and not the windows server.
I was able to get the show to Direct Play with my Nvidia Shield and with the Plex app on my LG TV. I could not Direct Play using LG app with subtitles selected, which forced a transcode for audio & video. Basically, the LG Plex app doesn’t like subtitles. YMMV w/ your Vizio.
The basic problem is (a) there’s a lot of metadata junk in the files; and (b) Folder structure and file naming do not follow Plex requirements.
This happens when you download stuff. You’ve no idea of the provenance of the media nor the skill of the uploader. You’re lucky that the video & audio are OK. Many times the video & audio is transcoded with horrible settings and is virtually unplayable by anything.
So you have to rip out the junk and obey Plex structure requirements.
First, some homework. 
Read: Media Preparation in Plex Docs. Especially the Naming ‘Series’ & ‘Season’ Based TV Shows section.
Next, some tools:
Install MKVToolNix: https://mkvtoolnix.download/
In MKVToolNix Preferences → Multiplexer → Default Values, check the box for “Disable additional lossless compression for all track types.”
Install MediaInfo
Now to fixing stuff
Step 1 - Move the files out of your Plex libraries & clean up Plex database
This is known as the “Plex Dance.” Perform the first four steps.
move all files for the media item out of the directory your Library is looking at so Plex does not “see” it anymore
update library ( scan for media items )
empty trash
clean bundles
Step 2 - Rename appropriately, based on Plex Docs (linked above).
Westworld - s01e01 - The Original.mkv
Westworld - s01e02 - Chestnut.mkv
etc.
Step 3 - Mux out the stuff you don’t need
You don’t necessarily have to do this, but it is a good idea to get rid of subtitles you don’t need. You can also set the default audio track and subtitle track if desired.
Launch MKVToolNix and select the Multiplexer section. Load one of the TV episodes. In the “Tracks, chapters and tags” section, uncheck any tracks you don’t want.
You can also change the default audio track. For example, if you want the dts-HD MA track to be the default, select/highlight it in the “Tracks, chapters…” section. Then in the “Properties” section on the right, change the “Default track” flag to “Yes.”
Once you have things set the way you want, click on “Start Multiplexing.” MKVToolNix will make a copy of the original with the desired tracks, settings, etc.
Note: The episodes I found had compressed subtitles, which can cause problems on some clients. Remuxing with MKVToolNix will also decompress the subtitles you leave in the container. You can see this with MediaInfo. Compressed PGS subtitles are listed with “Muxing mode = zlib.” Uncompressed do not mention zlib. There is minimal size difference between compressed & uncompressed.
Step 4 - Clean out the metadata crud
Go to the “Header Editor” section of MKVToolNix. Load one of the show episodes. Now, for everything listed (segment info, video, audio & subtitle tracks), delete the title / name / description field (exact verbiage varies by track type). For example, under Segment Information, select Title, then check the “Remove Element” box. Repeat for every track.
Now look under attachments. If any exist, delete them (right click, remove…).
Now save the changes (Header Editor menu → Save). You should see everything cleared out of the “Name/Description” column.
Note: Yeah, this is rather brute force. There’s probably a tool somewhere to do this much easier.
Step 5 - Move the files back to the Plex library
Copy the files back, respecting the folder & naming structure.
.../ShowName/Season XX/ShowName – sXXeYY – Episode Name.ext
Note: Episode Name is optional.
Tell Plex to scan the library.
Step 6 - Enjoy!
Hope this helps. As mentioned above, after cleaning out the crud & following Plex naming requirements, the files direct played using the Plex app in my LG TV (they transcoded when first played, before cleaning).
When I played one of the cleaned episodes, the HDR flag immediately pops up on the TV screen for a few seconds (how LG lets you know it is playing a HDR video). You’ll know it if things transcode. In addition to the buffering, the colors will be less vibrant due to the transcode.
2 posts were split to a new topic: 4K playback stuttering
do you have you player set as LAN in the network settings on plex under the network settings? that’s what i had to do.
