OK gang, I am new here, so if I am repeating things I apologize in advance.
Not to beat a dead horse, I have experienced all the x.265 problems that everyone else has experienced, no need to repeat the problems here. I did not even know there were problems until I tried to run the player on my Plex Server PC in my RV.
I have two solutions to the issues, these work on my home hardware, they are not perfect but they work:
On a PC, I find that VLC (free) plays the HVEC files just fine, I use it in an emergency.
I have ROKU Ultra 4K compatible streaming units. I play x.265 files in the Plex app perfectly with these units. The playback works just fine on my 4k Sony and 1080p Samsung units.
Not the best or cheapest solutions, but they work. If I am repeating know information, I again apologize.
So I think you are referring to playback of HEVC content on Windows 10? This wonât work natively in Windows 10 because HEVC is a licenced codec, VLC created itâs own engine to decode this codec and legality of that is in a grey area at best. The Roku devices have legally acquired a licence to play HEVC content.
It is possible to play HEVC natively Windows 10 as Microsoft have provided a way for Windows 10 users to acquire a licence from the Microsoft Store, and thankfully that licence will work for that user on any install of Windows 10 (upto 10 simultaneous machines AFAIK and even then it can be rearmed when a device hasnât been used for a long time).
For Windows 10 users in the EU, the HEVC licence is totally free of charge thanks to consumer protection laws in Europe. Iâm an EU citizen (for now at least, thanks for nothing Brexit) so I have been able to compare the VLC and Windows 10 implementations of the decode engines⊠and the Windows 10 version annihilates the VLC version. It uses far less resources and the picture looks much better. Combine this with the how Plex Server and Plex Client work together then paying for the small fee for the HEVC licence for Windows 10 gives a much better end user experience.
The HEVC codec suggestion was great. I installed the codecs from the Microsoft store. I then rebooted both machines. Using Microsoftâs Movie and TV application I was able to to view the viedo files and experienced no problems.
However, when running the Plex Media Player on the server still get herky-jerky video playback that I did not experience with the Microsoft player or VLC. On the workstation, I still not able to load the transcoder.
Just to confirm, you are watching on the local machine? You also have HEVC extensions installed? And you arenât watching HDR content? And also, you are using Plex for Windows with hardware acceleration enabled? What GPU are you using?
My machine is an i7-6700 3.4mhz, 32mb ram, 5tb hdd. I am running Windows 10 Pro 64bit. The problem may be the Nvidia GTX 750Ti. I have loaded the HVEC drivers and I am running Plex Player, the server is on another machine.
I have discovered that my Microsoft Surface Pro 4 runs the HVEC files just fine on the Plex Player, it has the HVEC drivers installed.
The Plex player settings are the same on the i7 and the Surface.
The 750Ti definitely is the issue here. You can see the list of supported codecs here:
The 750Ti doesnât support HEVC decoding. However, the i7-6700 does support Intel Quick Sync which I believe should support HEVC decoding, though I am not sure how you would enable it for Plex.
You should check the server when you are attempting to play the video; is the HEVC video trying to transcode on the server, or attempting to direct play?
In addition, in the server settings, under âTranscoderâ, make sure you have âUse hardware acceleration when availableâ and âUse hardware-accelerated video encodingâ checked. Here is a screenshot I have taken, showing the settingsâ location:
Unfortunately, the 6700 (skylake) is one generation too old for good HEVC support. it supports 8 bit, but not 10 bit according to
That said, I would be shocked that a 6700 can not handle 10bit HEVC at 1080p or lower, a single simultaneous video, running both PMS and PFW all in main CPU via software. Even adding transcoding, which as always should be avoided whenever possible, I expect it should be fine. The 6700 CPU has a lot of horsepower.
I unfortunately canât help with those error messages, but if this was me, I would first confirm if you have a problem even without transcoding happening, and then if you have a problem when only software transcoding is enabled, and then try the various options with hardware transcoding to see if you can find what particular item causes the issue.
Then start with PFW, make sure that you are avoiding transcoding. if you see transcoding you should be able to point to a precise reason for it. (I like tautulli to help understand exactly what is being transcoded into what)
Once you confirm that transcoding must happen, and you determine you still have the problem then I would look at PMS
in PMS turn off all hardware transcoding
confirm if you still have the problem
then try the various hw enc and dec options to see if you can run any of them without the problem re-occuring. if you can tie it to encoding or decoding, that may allow you to partially use hw transcoding till the bug is fixed.
