Micro-stutters with 25 FPS content on Apple TV Emby app

[SultanOfTux 5]

Hi,

I am experiencing persistent micro-stutters when playing 25 FPS content in the native Emby app on Apple TV.

The same files play perfectly smoothly in Infuse on the same Apple TV, so the issue does not appear to be related to the files themselves, the server, or the network connection.

Interestingly, I do not experience this issue with 23.976 FPS content. Those files play smoothly in the native Emby app. The problem seems to occur specifically with 25 FPS content.

My setup:

• Device: Apple TV

• App: Native Emby app for Apple TV

• Apple TV settings:

  Match Content Frame Rate: enabled

  Match Dynamic Range: enabled

• Content affected: 25 FPS video files

• Content not affected: 23.976 FPS video files

• Result in Emby app with 25 FPS content: persistent micro-stutters during playback

• Result in Emby app with 23.976 FPS content: smooth playback

• Result in Infuse with the same 25 FPS files: perfectly smooth playback

I have already tested the common Apple TV video settings, including enabling frame-rate matching and dynamic-range matching. Unfortunately, the issue still occurs only in the Emby app and only with 25 FPS content.

Could you please investigate whether the Emby Apple TV app is correctly triggering the proper output refresh rate for 25 FPS content, or whether there may be an issue in the tvOS playback pipeline used by the Emby app?

Please let me know if you need any logs, playback stats, or sample file information. I would be happy to provide them.

Thanks.

[Luke 42624]

 

Hi there, let's look at an example. Please attach the information requested in how to report a media playback issue. Thanks!

 

[SultanOfTux 5]

Thanks.

I have attached the full Emby Server log from the time I reproduced the issue.

The affected file is:

The Rookie - S8, Ep12 - Spionagespiele

During the test, the native Emby Apple TV app was playing this file. The log shows:

• Client: Emby for Apple TV 2.0.3 (2)
• Emby Server version: 4.9.5.0
• Device: Apple TV
• Playback item: The Rookie - S8, Ep12 - Spionagespiele
• Playback method reported by Playback Reporting: DirectStream
• The app is requesting the file as original.mkv
• Subtitles were disabled: SubtitleStreamIndex=-1
• The request appears to use libmpv
• I do not see an ffmpeg transcoding log generated for this playback

For comparison, I also tested the exact same episode on the same Apple TV using Infuse, and it plays smoothly there. Infuse also accesses the file directly and does not have the micro-stutter issue.

So the current comparison is:

• Native Emby Apple TV app, 25 FPS content: micro-stutters
• Infuse on the same Apple TV, same file, same server: smooth
• Native Emby Apple TV app, 23.976 FPS content: smooth

This seems to point to an issue specific to 25 FPS playback in the native Emby Apple TV app, rather than a server, file, network, or transcoding issue.

Please let me know if you need anything else, such as a MediaInfo output for the affected file or a short sample clip.

embyserver.txt

Edited 20 hours ago by SultanOfTux

[AJV20 66]

4 hours ago, SultanOfTux said:

Thanks.

I have attached the full Emby Server log from the time I reproduced the issue.

The affected file is:

The Rookie - S8, Ep12 - Spionagespiele

During the test, the native Emby Apple TV app was playing this file. The log shows:

• Client: Emby for Apple TV 2.0.3 (2)
• Emby Server version: 4.9.5.0
• Device: Apple TV
• Playback item: The Rookie - S8, Ep12 - Spionagespiele
• Playback method reported by Playback Reporting: DirectStream
• The app is requesting the file as original.mkv
• Subtitles were disabled: SubtitleStreamIndex=-1
• The request appears to use libmpv
• I do not see an ffmpeg transcoding log generated for this playback

For comparison, I also tested the exact same episode on the same Apple TV using Infuse, and it plays smoothly there. Infuse also accesses the file directly and does not have the micro-stutter issue.

So the current comparison is:

• Native Emby Apple TV app, 25 FPS content: micro-stutters
• Infuse on the same Apple TV, same file, same server: smooth
• Native Emby Apple TV app, 23.976 FPS content: smooth

This seems to point to an issue specific to 25 FPS playback in the native Emby Apple TV app, rather than a server, file, network, or transcoding issue.

Please let me know if you need anything else, such as a MediaInfo output for the affected file or a short sample clip.

embyserver.txt 4.82 MB · 1 download

I would first try updating to the latest Apple TV app which is 2.0.6

[SultanOfTux 5]

Oh, I didn't even realize there was a new version.

@Luke, what exactly was fixed?

Unfortunately, I don't notice any difference—or only a minimal one. When I rewind 10 seconds, the playback sometimes becomes smoother again, and then starts stuttering again. So it's not consistent. Since other players don't have this problem, I'd rule out the TV itself.

Edited 11 hours ago by SultanOfTux

[Luke 42624]

Quote

Native Emby Apple TV app, 25 FPS content: micro-stutters

Hi, what time was this example?

[SultanOfTux 5]

Hi Luke,

the relevant Emby Apple TV playback example for “The Rookie - S8, Ep12 - Spionagespiele” should be around:

2026-06-25 20:49:45 UTC in the server log
which is 22:49:45 Switzerland local time / CEST.

That session ran until around 20:52:39 UTC. There were also shorter Emby Apple TV test starts around 20:37:12 UTC and 20:52:45 UTC for the same episode.

Thanks.