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Audio distorted when playing 1080p MKV's


Movies32

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Movies32

I've been using Emby for a while and have not really had any problems up until now.  A few weeks ago I noticed that the audio was distorted when playing back a 1080p MKV file and since then all of my files have an audio distortion.  Regardless of what file I play there is an audio distortion and no matter what I do I cannot get rid of this problem.  Video playback is superb for all files, but once again the audio is really lacking.  I've tried changing the video quality, but no matter which one I choose the audio remains the same.

 

What can I do to fix the audio distortion?  I'm not really sure what transcoding is so I have no idea if my files are transcoding or not.  And as far as logs go I really have no idea about those either.

 

Do I need to follow these directions from the following link and post some logs for one of my files?: http://emby.media/community/index.php?/topic/16251-how-to-obtain-a-log-from-the-emby-roku-client/

 

I'm currently running on Roku 3 with a Wi-Fi connection and I believe I have the beta version of Emby installed, but I'm not entirely certain.  I apologize if more information is needed or I have been unclear in my explanation, but I will gladly send any information necessary to resolve this issue.  Please let me know what I can do.  Thank you very much!

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Press OK on the roku remote, the OSD will show you the play method it is using. It is likely, the video being transcoded for some reason. When transcoding the roku uses transport streams (aka .ts). When .ts is used this will also transcode ac3 to aac. Keeping ac3 in .ts is unsupported officially, but does work (see emby blue neon night theme for example). Can you also show the media info for the file?

 

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Movies32

When pressing OK on the Roku remote it says that it is transcoded and shows AAC as the audio.  Below is the Media Info.  Please let me know if any more information is needed.  Thank you.

 

Here is the Media Info from the Emby server:

Media Info

Video
Codec  H264
Profile  High
Level  40
Resolution  1916x1076
Aspect ratio  16:9
Anamorphic  No
Interlaced  No
Framerate  23.97602
Bitrate  5405 kbps
Bit depth  8 bit
Pixel format  yuv420p
Ref frames  4
CABAC  Yes


Audio
Language  eng
Codec  AC3
Layout  5.1
Channels  6 ch
Bitrate  375 kbps
Sample rate  48000 khz
Default  Yes
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It confirms the suspicion. You can use ( http://emby.media/community/index.php?/topic/24151-theme-blue-neon-night/ ) this client in this thread. It is a modified version of the official client. In this version there is the "Force Surround" setting in preferences that can be set to yes. If you use livetv, also turn the "Unknown Audio" setting to use ac3 audio. This should then keep the ac3 audio in a .ts container.

 

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Movies32

I changed the "Force Surround" setting to yes, but the audio quality is still the same as before and when I press OK on the Roku remote it says "Transcoded AAC".  I also tried to change the "Unknown Audio" setting to "Use AC3", but if I do that I get no sound at all.

 

Is there anything else I can do to fix the problem?

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Your television/setup doesnt support surround sound audio. Unfortunately, this means 5.1 audio must be down mixed to 2.0 audio. This introduces audio artifacts in stereo, which arent present in surround, because the sound field is narrowed. That media file was meant to be heard in surround sound. The only real remedy is to provide surround sound support so audio can pass-through. Sorry.

 

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Movies32

The weird thing though is that I never heard problems with the sound before.  Would I have to download files that have stereo support instead of one's that only provide 5.1ch support?

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If you only have 2 channel stereo, you are better off with 2 channel AAC then 5.1 AC3. Are you sure the roku settings are correct?

 

Settings > Audio > HDMI - choose auto and let it auto detect

Settings > Audio > Audio Effect - choose auto

 

Are these showing stereo or dolby? If dolby is now shown problem solved it will pass-through AC3 audio now. If stereo shows this limits us to 2 channel stereo.

 

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I'm also getting distorted audio on the roku client. Not an issue through any other client (Web, Emby Theater). Transcoded video with AAC audio.

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Movies32

If you only have 2 channel stereo, you are better off with 2 channel AAC then 5.1 AC3. Are you sure the roku settings are correct?

 

Settings > Audio > HDMI - choose auto and let it auto detect

Settings > Audio > Audio Effect - choose auto

 

Are these showing stereo or dolby? If dolby is now shown problem solved it will pass-through AC3 audio now. If stereo shows this limits us to 2 channel stereo.

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

 

Settings are set to auto and it shows Stereo since my sound only comes from my TV.  I do not have a receiver for my home theater system so I guess I'm stuck with Stereo for now.

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Movies32

I'm also getting distorted audio on the roku client. Not an issue through any other client (Web, Emby Theater). Transcoded video with AAC audio.

 

At least I know I'm not the only one.  Are you having the same problems like me or do you have a different set up?

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I am also having issues with sound on downloaded TV shows I never had sound issues on before.  In my case, I am sure the problem showed up when I installed Windows 10 (which I hate BTW).  Tonight I'll check the things mentioned in this thread and see if it affects anything.  

In my case, the audio issues are often and minor but it drives me nuts.  Things like siblant S's and tiny bursts of distortion at the ends of words or sentences.

OH, also, mine is NOT limited to 1080p shows.

Edited by EricE
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TheRyePie

I am also having this issue and it's driving me insane! It does it on all videos, not just 1080p MKV's. I can also rule out Windows 10 having anything to do with it because my server is still emrunning Windows 7. Seems to have started in the past few weeks. Anyone have any other ideas??

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See post #4. You can work around it. This is most likely artifacts from transcoding. Maybe ffmpeg has developed an issue in latest builds used with emby?

 

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@@Luke sure

 

80cac8b890d7f80be24e1e4ed9ef052b.jpg

 

ab1784ee44559a688a3c76cdeb62703f.jpg

 

The default audio option selects the default starting codec. This will allow stereo users to choose AAC or MP3 and surround users to choose AC3. The unknown audio option also allows the same codec choices. If a surround sound codec is transcoded using MP3 rather than default AAC for stereo users this may eliminate the artifacting quite possibly.

 

The convert AAC to MP3 will force the AAC codec to always transcode to MP3. Again, this might help some users. It may not, either way its an experiment.

 

https://my.roku.com/account/add?channel=EmbyBlueNeon

 

Those having issues please try the advanced options in preferences. If you need any of these explained just ask.

 

@@Luke is this what you had in mind? Hopefully so.. Now we wait, and let users experiment and give us their results. :)

Edited by speechles
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whitman27

It confirms the suspicion. You can use ( http://emby.media/community/index.php?/topic/24151-theme-blue-neon-night/ ) this client in this thread. It is a modified version of the official client. In this version there is the "Force Surround" setting in preferences that can be set to yes. If you use livetv, also turn the "Unknown Audio" setting to use ac3 audio. This should then keep the ac3 audio in a .ts container.

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

Installing Blue and using these settings didn't change anything for me.

 

57ed31aadd2d175a1f196120eabd3bc6.jpg

 

 

 

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whitman27

Changing the default audio to MP3

And

Converting AAC to MP3 to Yes

 

Seems to have worked for the Voice episode I was having issues with.

 

4a3216130bd93dc3cb2d16df74340052.jpg

 

What's odd prior to this week I never had this issue and was using just the standard emby app for roku.

 

 

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Edited by whitman27
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We are dependent on the roku firmware, and ffmpeg when it comes to transcoding. These are two things not controlled by the emby team. The roku firmware update causing havoc with hls issue. I am suspect that ffmpeg and its aac encoder recently had some work done. Since emby constantly updates dependencies we risk inheriting issues as these clash. The best we can do is work around these problems and keep people blaming the right people. This isnt embys fault. None of this was. These issues should eventually work themselves out and these work arounds can be undone. In the meantime this is all there is to say. :)

 

Have a very merry christmas.

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

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whitman27

We are dependent on the roku firmware, and ffmpeg when it comes to transcoding. These are two things not controlled by the emby team. The roku firmware update causing havoc with hls issue. I am suspect that ffmpeg and its aac encoder recently had some work done. Since emby constantly updates dependencies we risk inheriting issues as these clash. The best we can do is work around these problems and keep people blaming the right people. This isnt embys fault. None of this was. These issues should eventually work themselves out and these work arounds can be undone. In the meantime this is all there is to say. :)

 

Have a very merry christmas.

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

I appreciate all the help and glad it's fixed through these steps.

 

What is the purposes of Emby Blue? Why wouldn't this be the normal version so we can make changes on the fly?

 

 

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The purpose is fun. Just to allow more features, without forcing everyone to learn how to use the features. This is more like an rarflix is for plex. This evolved to include features I have found lacking. So most things were designed in a way most useful for my style. There are others who share this style so it appeals to them. The abundance of options would overwhelm the normal user. So I left it as only a link in a few forum posts. This makes it easier to find the right audience for it. Advanced users who want a full featured app with more options. This isnt to compete with the standard client. This is why the standard theme is included. This is an extension of the standard app. If it will benefit the standard app then those changes are pushed to github for inclusion. Some things are, some things arent. Think of the blue neon app as able to have everything, we can go nuts with features. The standard app should keep things simple to avoid alienating new users. To keep from confusing users, the blue neon app only has a private link. Hopefully this over-explains it. Id rather over, than under.

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TheRyePie

Similar to Whitman, if I change "Default Audio" to MP3 and "Convert AAC to MP3" to Yes, the distortions disappear. Only problem is the audio is now very quiet. I have to crank it all the way up to listen to it at my usual volume.

 

If I hook my raspberry pi up to the same stereo tv and use the Emby kodi plugin there is no distortions and the volume is normal.

 

If I use my chromecast on the same stereo tv and there is no distortions and the volume is normal.

 

The problem seems to be limited to the Roku app which unfortunately the one I use the most :-( I completely understand that this isn't your fault and I appreciate the assistance with this temporary fix.

 

Please let me know if you would like me to check/test anything else. I love Emby and I'll do anything I can to help you guys out!

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@@TheRyePie if you have to change _both_ then this points to the roku as the culprit. The "default audio" set to mp3 alone should fix an ac3 to aac issue. This only chooses mp3 if no other codec can be directly copied. The "convert aac to mp3" will always convert the aac audio track to mp3, even if it can be directly copied. Together this might be a problem with roku and its handling of the aac codec on stereo systems.. Possibly. I personally dont experience the issue. My Vizio natively supports 5.1 dolby digital and auto detection by the roku settings which detected it. Not sure where to point the finger at, ffmpeg or roku on this. You can increase the audio-boost in the transcoding section of the emby server. This should help the quiet problem when transcoding. The raspberry pi can direct play most things. Codec support isnt as lacking as it is on the roku. So the issue is harder to replicate in that ecosystem. This is just the cost of doing business with roku. The relationship has its up's and down's. :)

 

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