Issue with PGS Subtitles in Emby Web Version

[AngelSing 75]

Greetings, I currently have many movies with subtitles in PGS format. However, the Emby web version is unable to play them properly: when I activate the subtitles, the player freezes and the movie stops.

On the Windows application, PGS subtitles do work, but the app has gone almost a year without updates and has fallen behind compared to the new features available in the web version. For that reason, I hardly use it anymore.

Is there any solution for Windows PC users to play PGS subtitles without issues on the web version?

Thank you very much in advance.

[Lessaj 522]

Browsers do not support picture based subtitles so they have to be burned in via transcoding. I convert picture based subs to SRT for maximum client compatibility.

Not really sure what you're referring to regarding missing features compared to the web version.

[AngelSing 75]

1 hour ago, Lessaj said:

Browsers do not support picture based subtitles so they have to be burned in via transcoding. I convert picture based subs to SRT for maximum client compatibility.

Not really sure what you're referring to regarding missing features compared to the web version.

Hi, thank you for your reply.

Regarding PGS subtitles, I understand that browsers do not support image based subtitles natively, and that Emby Web needs to burn them into the video through transcoding.

However, in my case, normal transcoding does work. If the video bitrate exceeds the remote streaming limit, Emby transcodes the video correctly. Audio transcoding also works fine. For example, AC3 5.1 is transcoded without issues.

The problem happens only when I enable PGS subtitles in Emby Web. Without PGS subtitles, the movie plays normally. If I use SRT subtitles, it also plays normally. But when I enable PGS subtitles, the playback gets stuck loading, keeps spinning, and then returns to the movie detail screen without showing any error.

So it seems the issue is specifically related to PGS subtitle burn in transcoding, not general video or audio transcoding.

About the Windows app being behind compared to the web version, these are some examples of what I mean:

• In collections, the web version has more sorting options. For example, I can sort by date added, which helps when organizing collections in a custom order, such as watching Star Wars by story chronology instead of release year. In the Windows desktop app, that sorting option is not available.

• The web version has the newer beta home screen features, such as dynamic sections, spotlight style sections, recently released movies, recently released episodes, and different card or spotlight layouts. These customization options are not available in the Windows desktop app.

• Mixed libraries work better in the web version. In Emby Web, movies and shows can be displayed together more naturally. In the Windows desktop app, the only practical way to see everything together is through the folders view, but that adds extra navigation steps.

• In folders view on the Windows app, when I enter a movie, it often shows the movie poster again inside another level, so I have to click again to actually enter the movie page. In the web version, this behavior has already been improved, and it opens more directly.

• In Emby Web, I can choose the default landing section for a library, for example movies, shows, collections, folders, etc. This is especially useful for mixed libraries. In the Windows desktop app, this is more limited, and mixed libraries may open by default in a section I do not want.

These details may seem small, but they affect the user experience a lot. I have older users who access my server, and they can get confused very easily with extra clicks or different navigation behavior.

That is why I prefer using Emby Web, because it has the newer server features and better customization. But with PGS subtitles, playback fails in the web version, while the Windows app can play them. So I am stuck between better compatibility with PGS in the Windows app and better interface/features in the web version.

[Lessaj 522]

You'll have to provide logs.

[AngelSing 75]

3 minutes ago, Lessaj said:

You'll have to provide logs.

Sure. 

 

 

ffmpeg-transcode-de512432-2554-4cf4-aa1b-48e2010d8010_1.txt embyserver.txt

[Lessaj 522]

This should be moved to the Beta forum.

[Sidrasuleyman 0]

Das ist cool 

 

[AngelSing 75]

1 hour ago, Lessaj said:

This should be moved to the Beta forum.

It could be, but the problem also happens in the stable version. In fact, that is the reason why I switched to the beta version, because I thought this issue might already be fixed there. Unfortunately, the same problem still occurs in both versions.

[Luke 42681]

As a test, if you prioritize quicksync higher than vaapi in server transcoding settings, how does that compare?

[AngelSing 75]

12 hours ago, Luke said:

As a test, if you prioritize quicksync higher than vaapi in server transcoding settings, how does that compare?

Hi Luke,

Thank you. I tested your suggestion and it worked.

I changed the server transcoding settings and moved QuickSync above VAAPI as the preferred hardware option. After restarting Emby Server and testing the same movie again in Emby Web, PGS subtitles now work correctly.

This time Emby was able to transcode the video and burn the PGS subtitles directly into the video. The dashboard now shows video transcoding with subtitles being burned in, and playback no longer gets stuck or returns to the movie page.

So it seems the issue was related to VAAPI in my setup.

I have one question: what are the main differences between using QuickSync and VAAPI in Emby? Is there any advantage or disadvantage to leaving QuickSync above VAAPI permanently? Could this affect performance, quality, CPU usage, GPU usage, or overall NAS stability in any way?

Thanks again. This solved the PGS subtitle issue for me.

[Luke 42681]

Two different frameworks. If you set it to Yes (auto), Emby Server will generally prioritize quicksync higher.