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Roku app- should it be doing auto audio track selection?


cybergrimes

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cybergrimes

short version: Roku app seems to be picking TrueHD track before standard DD track on basic 2.0 TV speaker setup. It direct plays if I manually change it-- should it be auto selecting it on play?

 

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Hey, replaced my aging Yamaha soundbase (5.1 optical) with a Vizio Atmos bar that can decode TrueHD & DTS-HD. Previously all of my rips were basic DD or DTS for straight forward compatibility with the Yamaha which worked fine for my Shield/Yamaha and also with a secondary TV that's a Roku on basic TV speakers. Also my remote users are all Roku's a couple with basic 2.0 TV speaker setups.

 

I decided to start re-rip my discs to include the TrueHD and DTS-HD tracks but also with secondary DD or DTS core tracks if available to avoid remux on these other clients. Before I blow out all my rips I decided to check that things were working on my secondary TV. I've got a rip of Brave with the TrueHD track and also a 640Kbps DD track-- it started with the TrueHD track instead of the DD track. If I change it to the DD track using the OSD then it goes to direct play instead of remuxing. Also for both it seems if I stop/resume it goes out of sync. If I stop/resume again it's back in sync again, this is even with direct play track.

 

I can get logs but wanted to start with the basic question, should it auto select the most compatible track? iirc it should query the Roku for compatibility, this Roku is set for just DD audio (also it's a Streaming Stick+)

 

ps. please don't bust me for not posting logs, I'll get them in a bit I promise ;)

 

thanks

Edited by cybergrimes
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Is the TrueHD track marked as default or forced?

 

Can you show the media info/ffmpeg log from the web client for that item (you knew this was coming :P)?

 

Which Roku model/firmware?

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cybergrimes

Neither track is marked default or forced

 

5c5cdd4dc5734_OperaSnapshot_20190207_193

5c5cdd579dd20_mediainfobrave.png

 

Attached logs where it played TrueHD and another log where I changed it to the Dolby track, these are from earlier when I posted so not 100% on order of things. I can get fresh logs tomorrow, teenage daughter is stuck at home because of snow storm and isn't taking kindly to me fiddling with the TV in the basement anymore  -_-

 

It's a Streaming Stick+ model 3810RW, looks like firmware 9.0.0:4114

Emby app is reported as version 3.0.134

 

thanks for the reply!

truehd.txt

dolby.txt

Edited by cybergrimes
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cybergrimes

Pushed the beta to the stick and had my daughter play the file, just for a fresh install-- it defaulted to the TrueHD again.

Remuxed fine, stop the playback then resumed and the remux is out of sync like I mentioned earlier.

 

The remux of TrueHD vs picking the DD would be totally fine since most of my remote users all have to be transcoded anyway except it's going out of sync on the resume ;/

 

Logs attached

beta app truehd remux sync OK.txt

beta app truehd remux sync BAD.txt

systemlog.txt

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cybergrimes

Have you explored your emby user audio preferences?

 

There are zero audio preferences on the Roku and the ones in the web for playback are about foreign language selection and default track regardless of language. Unless you mean selecting the track from the OSD which I mentioned doing in my post. There's no user setting that accounts for the audio going out of sync on a stop & resume. Asking it to do a playback correction/transcode didn't fix it. I found today that if I fast forward or rewind the audio goes back into sync.

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Log into the web app. Click your user icon (next to the gear icon at the top right). Once clicked into the user icon choose Playback. Now once in playback at the very top are audio options. These will/do affect the Emby apps.

 

Also, if you choose an audio track to play this is remembered for each app. So if you chose track B last time you played it will be track B the next time you play. The only reason it would continuously switch back to track A is if you left the option "Play default audio track regardless of language" option checked. Uncheck that option. Tell the drop down box your actual spoken language you prefer. Save these. Now the Roku should obey you.

 

The audio goes out of sync because of Roku having major issues with Dolby Digital pass-through (which is what AC3 is). To put these options on each app would mean users would need to set them in each app and it gets messy. To ease this they are found on the server using the web app. Apologies if this wasn't clear to begin with.

 

Please post back if you continue to have an issue. Thanks. :)

 

On Roku forums about the sync issue:

https://forums.roku.com/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=142389

https://forums.roku.com/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=138026

Edited by speechles
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cybergrimes

Also, if you choose an audio track to play this is remembered. So if you chose track B last time you played it will be track B the next time you play. The only reason it would continuously switch back to track A is if you left the option "Play default audio track regardless of language" option checked. Uncheck that option. Tell the drop down box your actual spoken language you prefer. Save these. Now the Roku should obey you.

 

That's confusing, I read "Play default audio track regardless of language" as "Play the spanish track when marked as default even though in the box above I have selected english"

Nothing about it says to me "Go back to track 1 instead of track 2 when both are english" and in this case neither are marked default. So does it in effect just make track 1 the default here?

I guess for my use case where I'm the outlier with TrueHD decoding I could move it to track 2 so all other users get the DD track as a default

 

I haven't seen an answer to my original question unless I missed it-- is there no logic to pick the regular DD track over the TrueHD track? In this case I get direct play with the DD track, no remux required

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That's confusing, I read "Play default audio track regardless of language" as "Play the spanish track when marked as default even though in the box above I have selected english"

Nothing about it says to me "Go back to track 1 instead of track 2 when both are english" and in this case neither are marked default. So does it in effect just make track 1 the default here?

I guess for my use case where I'm the outlier with TrueHD decoding I could move it to track 2 so all other users get the DD track as a default

 

I haven't seen an answer to my original question unless I missed it-- is there no logic to pick the regular DD track over the TrueHD track? In this case I get direct play with the DD track, no remux required

 

TrueHD is not supported on Roku. There are no capabilities sent that show support for this. Why the server chose to send it is beyond me.

 

On the other hand, Dolby Digital aka AC3 is sent in the capabilities. If the app detects support for this on your Roku it will allow the server to know the app support Dolby Digital.

 

Now your question is why is it choosing one track over the other. This I cannot answer. We tell the server we do not support TrueHD and want Dolby Digital if your equipment supports it. Why it chooses to transcode the TrueHD rather than just send you the file directly I cannot say since I did not write that logic. Someone other than me will have to chime in here. @@Luke @@softworkz

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cybergrimes

Thanks for sharing the links.

All of my old rips were DD/AC3 but down mixed to 2 channel stereo, skimming the links it sound like it applies to surround encodes. Probably why I hadn't heard anything about this from my Roku users.

Edited by cybergrimes
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No problem at all sir.

 

We are here to get these issues ironed out but sometimes as humans we react out of anger. This is normal. It pisses me off when Roku changes things that cause us to have to work-around them. But you can't stay angry you can just deal with it and move on. They are human too you gotta cut them a little slack too. But Roku itself is damaging the Emby brand by breaking things on Roku. Users see Emby as the issue why things work right. When it isn't entirely in our control when the manufacturer of the device makes changes to their firmware that break core functionality. We take the heat for those issues and that is okay. I just wanted to point some of that heat back in Rokus direction too.

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One additional wrinkle here - once you have played an item once, the audio and subtitle selections are remembered for that user the next time it is played.  This is the case regardless of the device.

 

So, a possible scenario is that this item was played somewhere previously that maybe supported TrueHD so that selection was remembered on subsequent playback.

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