Transcoding problems

[davz289 1]

Hello,

 

I am new to Media Browser 3 and the server setup so there may be something simple I am missing here, but I haven't come across an answer browsing through forums.  

 

I am trying to figure out why my *.mp4 and *.m4v files are being transcoded by the server when I play them on my iPhone, iPad, or using the web interface with Chrome.  I can play the files natively on the apple devices when I sync them through iTunes, so i don't see why the server would need to transcode them for playback through the mobile apps.  I've tried increasing the bit rate for the streaming quality on the device, but that doesn't seem to make any difference as the files are still always transcoded by the server.

 

The server version is 3.0.5464.40000, and the apps are the latest versions I downloaded yesterday (the iPad specific app and the general iOs app for the iPhone).

 

The server will "direct stream" the same files to my Roku3 and the server will also "direct play" those files and my *.mkv files to my HTPC, but I've had no luck with the mobile devices.

 

I have attached a screenshot of the video details from the web interface and the transcode logs for the two files I have been testing (one *.mp4 and one *.m4v).

 

A couple of details on the transcode logs:

**The server produces a transcode log for the s07e24 episode on the iPad, but the playback never starts.

**The server does not produce a transcode log for the s01e01 episode on the iPad, but in the server window it reads "Transcoding" for that device, but no additional audio or video details are listed.  I included screenshots of the server window for this episode for the iPhone and iPad to show what I mean.

 

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

 

Big_Bang_s01e01_transcode_log_chrome_browser.txt

Big_Bang_s01e01_transcode_log_iPhone.txt

Big_Bang_s07e24_transcode_log_chrome_browser.txt

Big_Bang_s07e24_transcode_log_iPad.txt

Big_Bang_s07e24_transcode_log_iPhone.txt

[Luke 37148]

I am only going to comment about chrome right now because we have iOS updates coming with some dramatic changes, i'm sure it will be resolved.

 

In both cases you should check the video player bitrate setting, which defaults somewhere around 1.5mbps

 

For the m4v file we have a check for Cabac=no and are not allowing direct stream because of that. For me to consider changing that you'll need to produce a sample file that you think should direct play so i can do my own testing.

 

In the second one, that looks like a good candidate for direct stream. my guess would be the bitrate. so check that and if it doesn't pan out we'll have to dig deeper

[davz289 1]

Thanks for the response Luke.  I will put off investigating the iOS streaming until the updates come out.

 

For the web browser, I find two places that I can potentially change the bitrate / streaming settings - the user preferences on the server page and the drop-down menu during live playback.  I have included screenshots of those two locations as well.  I have them set to "20mbps" and "4mbps," respectively, but the video still shows as transcoding.  Is there another location I am missing?

 

For the *.m4v file, it wouldn't be my expertise to know why you implemented the Cabac=no check.  What I can say is that the *.m4v files I have are just older encodes as compared to the *.mp4 files, but they play natively just fine on the iPhone or iPad.  I would be happy to upload a sample file if you want to conduct some testing.  Where would I upload the video file?

 

Thanks.

[Luke 37148]

dropbox or anything similar would work