FireTV app: Can't play VA-API hardware transcoded videos

[asnguy01 0]

I have Emby Server running on Ubuntu 16.04 and got VA-API hardware transcoding working (see my post here). I got it to play with transcoding on Chrome browser via the web app by setting max birate to 5Mbps. However, the same file doesn't play with the FireTV after setting to the same 5Mbps. Looking at the log, looks like ffmpeg is transcoding the file fine, but the FireTV (2nd gen, version 1.2.66a) doesn't want to play the file. Please see the attached logs.

server-log.txt

ffmpeg-transcode-chrome.txt

ffmpeg-transcode-firetv.txt

[Luke 38823]

Well there is an error in the fire TV transcode log as well as slower transcoding speed. Unfortunately since this is an expiremental feature we are not always going to have the answers at this point. I wonder though if the fire TV transcode was affected by something else occurring on the system at the time, or some other system condition we have yet to discover. I'm only speculating that based on how similar the two transcoding commands are, but with different results.

[asnguy01 0]

I'm guessing it might be the FireTV app. The app seems to be very flaky. Is there anyway to post the app's log?

 

Anyone with an Nvidia Shield or Samsung TV wants to test this out? Send me your Emby Connect username and I'll share my server with you. Play some video and post your results.

Edited October 23, 2016 by asnguy01

[Luke 38823]

Vaapi has only been recently added to ffmpeg and it's labeled as an experimental feature in Emby. I am sorry that gives you a perception of the Fire TV app being flaky. Truthfully, considering the amount of effort that has been put into the app, that type of comment makes me question if we should offer vaapi at all.

[asnguy01 0]

Sorry, I really do appreciate yours and developers efforts in developing Emby and being open to community suggestion about adding vaapi. I think with hardware encoding, Emby will really be superior to Plex.

 

Only reason I said that is the FireTV app has a noticeable annoying bugs (should start a separate thread). Some I get a gray screen when I open up the app. Have to force stop the app and reopen for it to work again.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Luke 38823]

yes, please do create a topic about those issues. thanks !

[asnguy01 0]

I can confirm that VA-API transcoded videos plays fine on the iPhone 7 and iPad mini 3 both running iOS 10 and latest Emby app. If someone with the Android TV app or other devices can confirm it works for them. I do believe it's the FireTV app that's the problem. Would love to help troubleshoot the FireTV app, not sure how to access (if any) the app's logs. If someone can show me how.

 

Edit: Actually figured out how to send the log to developer. Hope you can get some info out of it!

Edited October 23, 2016 by asnguy01

[asnguy01 0]

Sorry for the duplicate post but I think this is a better location for it. Please merge the posts if needed. Please see my other post in the Linux server forum: https://emby.media/community/index.php?/topic/40603-vaapi-transcoded-video-plays-on-chrome-but-not-firetv/

 

I got VA-API hardware transcoded videos work. Plays well on the iPhone/iPad/Chrome/Firefox. But can't play on the FireTV app. It says "error..will retry" 3 times before it quits. I sent a log from FireTV app at ~11:35pm CST 10/25/16.

[ebr 15433]

Something about the video stream is incompatible with the Google player.  Unfortunately, I cannot tell what.  It is possible that a future update to the Google player or to ffmpeg will solve this.  Until that time, it is simply incompatible.

[asnguy01 0]

So Emby uses Google's built in media player on Android TV and FireTV? I'll see if changing the default settings for VAAPI decoding will improve playback compatibility. If I have time I'll try to transcode and post some sample videos.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[ebr 15433]

Actually, there are multiple playback possibilities depending on several factors but, in this particular situation on the Google boxes we use ExoPlayer (an extended player built by Google) and on the Fire a port of ExoPlayer created by Amazon.

 

Nothing is ever simple .