SOLVED: Playback problem on media player

[Six66Mike]

I have Jellyfin running the SynoCommunity build on my NAS and playing content with a Zidoo Z9X.  From day 1 I've had a problem where the first few seasons of The Simpsons won't play via the Jellyfin app on Zidoo for some reason.

When i go to File Explorer on Zidoo they playback fine, so the media player seems OK.  In my browser on the PC I can play an episode fine.  But not when running Zidoo on the player.  I select an episode, nothing happens, error log shows the following.  Any ideas?

Code:

[2022-12-26 09:54:18.937 +10:00] [INF] [61] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: User policy for "sc-jellyfin". EnablePlaybackRemuxing: True EnableVideoPlaybackTranscoding: True EnableAudioPlaybackTranscoding: True
[2022-12-26 09:54:18.944 +10:00] [INF] [61] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: StreamBuilder.BuildVideoItem( Profile="AndroidTV-Zidoo-External", Path="/volume1/Media/TV/The Simpsons/Season 1 (DVD)/S01E01 - Simpsons Roasting On An Open Fire.mkv", AudioStreamIndex=1, SubtitleStreamIndex=null ) => ( PlayMethod=DirectPlay, TranscodeReason=0 ) "media:/videos/67af1629-79b4-032b-001f-3992e205f0be/stream.mkv?MediaSourceId=67af162979b4032b001f3992e205f0be&Static=true&VideoCodec=h264&AudioCodec=mp3&AudioStreamIndex=1&api_key=<token>&Tag=256f95e94f831f5fe9a4a259981d0409"
[2022-12-26 09:54:23.104 +10:00] [INF] [88] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: User policy for "sc-jellyfin". EnablePlaybackRemuxing: True EnableVideoPlaybackTranscoding: True EnableAudioPlaybackTranscoding: True
[2022-12-26 09:54:23.104 +10:00] [INF] [88] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: StreamBuilder.BuildVideoItem( Profile="AndroidTV-Zidoo-External", Path="/volume1/Media/TV/The Simpsons/Season 1 (DVD)/S01E01 - Simpsons Roasting On An Open Fire.mkv", AudioStreamIndex=1, SubtitleStreamIndex=null ) => ( PlayMethod=DirectPlay, TranscodeReason=0 ) "media:/videos/67af1629-79b4-032b-001f-3992e205f0be/stream.mkv?MediaSourceId=67af162979b4032b001f3992e205f0be&Static=true&VideoCodec=h264&AudioCodec=mp3&AudioStreamIndex=1&api_key=<token>&Tag=256f95e94f831f5fe9a4a259981d0409"
[2022-12-26 09:54:25.410 +10:00] [INF] [92] Emby.Server.Implementations.Session.SessionManager: Playback stopped reported by app "Android TV" "0.14.9-zidoo_edition.beta11" playing "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire". Stopped at "0" ms
[2022-12-26 09:54:26.038 +10:00] [INF] [96] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: Playback stop did not have a tracker : "0e95a18cc32dde38a4e5e51335c07a17e703ef60-a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847-67af162979b4032b001f3992e205f0be"
[2022-12-26 09:54:27.018 +10:00] [INF] [33] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: User policy for "sc-jellyfin". EnablePlaybackRemuxing: True EnableVideoPlaybackTranscoding: True EnableAudioPlaybackTranscoding: True
[2022-12-26 09:54:27.018 +10:00] [INF] [33] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: StreamBuilder.BuildVideoItem( Profile="AndroidTV-Zidoo-External", Path="/volume1/Media/TV/The Simpsons/Season 1 (DVD)/S01E01 - Simpsons Roasting On An Open Fire.mkv", AudioStreamIndex=1, SubtitleStreamIndex=null ) => ( PlayMethod=DirectPlay, TranscodeReason=0 ) "media:/videos/67af1629-79b4-032b-001f-3992e205f0be/stream.mkv?MediaSourceId=67af162979b4032b001f3992e205f0be&Static=true&VideoCodec=h264&AudioCodec=mp3&AudioStreamIndex=1&api_key=<token>&Tag=256f95e94f831f5fe9a4a259981d0409"
[2022-12-26 09:54:28.952 +10:00] [INF] [88] Emby.Server.Implementations.Session.SessionManager: Playback stopped reported by app "Android TV" "0.14.9-zidoo_edition.beta11" playing "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire". Stopped at "0" ms
[2022-12-26 09:54:29.537 +10:00] [INF] [98] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: Playback stop did not have a tracker : "0e95a18cc32dde38a4e5e51335c07a17e703ef60-a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847-67af162979b4032b001f3992e205f0be"

I updated the server to 10.8.10-10 and tried again but same issue.

Code:

[color=#000000][2023-06-19 14:04:20.420 +10:00] [INF] [18] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: User policy for "sc-jellyfin". EnablePlaybackRemuxing: True EnableVideoPlaybackTranscoding: True EnableAudioPlaybackTranscoding: True
[2023-06-19 14:04:20.571 +10:00] [INF] [18] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: StreamBuilder.BuildVideoItem( Profile="AndroidTV-Zidoo-External", Path="/volume1/Media/TV/The Simpsons/Season 1 (DVD)/S01E01 - Simpsons Roasting On An Open Fire.mkv", AudioStreamIndex=1, SubtitleStreamIndex=null ) => ( PlayMethod=DirectPlay, TranscodeReason=0 ) "media:/videos/67af1629-79b4-032b-001f-3992e205f0be/stream.mkv?MediaSourceId=67af162979b4032b001f3992e205f0be&Static=true&VideoCodec=h264&AudioCodec=mp3&AudioStreamIndex=1&api_key=<token>&Tag=256f95e94f831f5fe9a4a259981d0409"
[2023-06-19 14:04:20.598 +10:00] [WRN] [18] Jellyfin.Server.Middleware.ResponseTimeMiddleware: Slow HTTP Response from "http://192.168.1.3:8096/Items/67af162979b4032b001f3992e205f0be/PlaybackInfo?format=json" to "192.168.1.49" in 0:00:00.6371016 with Status Code 200
[2023-06-19 14:04:22.581 +10:00] [WRN] [24] Jellyfin.Server.Middleware.ResponseTimeMiddleware: Slow HTTP Response from "http://192.168.1.3:8096/Items/bac7ab7e-eb1d-e6e0-6514-0479c95adbab/Images/Backdrop?maxHeight=1080&quality=90&format=Webp&blur=16" to "192.168.1.49" in 0:00:01.3431995 with Status Code 200
[2023-06-19 14:04:28.866 +10:00] [INF] [18] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: User policy for "sc-jellyfin". EnablePlaybackRemuxing: True EnableVideoPlaybackTranscoding: True EnableAudioPlaybackTranscoding: True
[2023-06-19 14:04:28.867 +10:00] [INF] [18] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: StreamBuilder.BuildVideoItem( Profile="AndroidTV-Zidoo-External", Path="/volume1/Media/TV/The Simpsons/Season 1 (DVD)/S01E02 - Bart The Genius.mkv", AudioStreamIndex=1, SubtitleStreamIndex=null ) => ( PlayMethod=DirectPlay, TranscodeReason=0 ) "media:/videos/e7d0cbb6-fc34-d3bc-36db-a5e398a38777/stream.mkv?MediaSourceId=e7d0cbb6fc34d3bc36dba5e398a38777&Static=true&VideoCodec=h264&AudioCodec=mp3&AudioStreamIndex=1&api_key=<token>&Tag=2f23a78d004044ef8cf21807dbc8db64"
[2023-06-19 14:04:31.157 +10:00] [INF] [35] Emby.Server.Implementations.Session.SessionManager: Playback stopped reported by app "Android TV" "0.14.9-zidoo_edition.beta11" playing "Bart the Genius". Stopped at "0" ms[/color]

[crobibero]

The Zidoo client is not supported by the Jellyfin team in any capacity, you’ll find support on their forum.

[Six66Mike]

The feedback there is that it's not a Zidoo or an app problem, and strangely limited only to the first few seasons of The Simpsons, everything else seems to be playing OK.

[Xanohel]

The feedback there is that it's not a Zidoo or an app problem, and strangely limited only to the first few seasons of The Simpsons, everything else seems to be playing OK.

Based on the information given, they might very well be right, as there isn't much to work with. Some media info of episodes failing and succeeding would be nice for starters. Are they in the same library, or separate ones, etc, etc.

The log lines

Code:

[2022-12-26 09:54:25.410 +10:00] [INF] [92] Emby.Server.Implementations.Session.SessionManager: Playback stopped reported by app "Android TV" "0.14.9-zidoo_edition.beta11" playing "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire". Stopped at "0" ms

seem to indicate that the client actively stops playing, by itself. 

What's different with Season 2? Different container, different codec? If so, try recoding season 1 episode into the season 2 format, etc.

Sidenote: Change the "Slow response" setting in the server, so it will not clutter your logs as much. Disable the entry in the Dashboard -> Logs -> "Log a warning message ..." or set the time to like 5000ms. Or change the setting

Code:

<EnableSlowResponseWarning>

from True to False in the

Code:

system.xml

file. Unless you like it of course.

[Six66Mike]

What's different with Season 2? Different container, different codec? If so, try recoding season 1 episode into the season 2 format, etc.

Good call, changed the slow to answer prompt.  Season 1-12 are all from my DVD collection, 13+ are a combination of Bluray and WEB sourced.  Just went through and tried to play episode 1 from every even numbered season all the way through to Season 30 and none of them play at all.  They are all part of the same TV share on the NAS as all my other content on the same volume.  File path you can see in the 2nd line of the mediainfo, each season has it's own folder.

DVD rip:

Code:

General
Unique ID                                : 219125552479082194328386084013358444672 (0xA4DA0BDAF8A3D24D83B4893E2D0FF080)
Complete name                            : G:\TV\The Simpsons\Season 1 (DVD)\S01E01 - Simpsons Roasting On An Open Fire.mkv
Format                                  : Matroska
Format version                          : Version 1
File size                                : 200 MiB
Duration                                : 23 min 12 s
Overall bit rate mode                    : Variable
Overall bit rate                        : 1 207 kb/s
Encoded date                            : UTC 2007-02-07 00:20:45
Writing application                      : mkvmerge v2.0.0 ('After The Rain Has Fallen') built on Jan 13 2007 19:58:56
Writing library                          : libebml v0.7.7 + libmatroska v0.8.0

Video
ID                                      : 1
Format                                  : AVC
Format/Info                              : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile                          : High@L5.1
Format settings                          : CABAC / 16 Ref Frames
Format settings, CABAC                  : Yes
Format settings, Reference frames        : 16 frames
Codec ID                                : V_MPEG4/ISO/AVC
Duration                                : 23 min 12 s
Bit rate                                : 1 033 kb/s
Width                                    : 528 pixels
Height                                  : 400 pixels
Display aspect ratio                    : 4:3
Frame rate mode                          : Constant
Frame rate                              : 29.970 (30000/1001) FPS
Color space                              : YUV
Chroma subsampling                      : 4:2:0
Bit depth                                : 8 bits
Scan type                                : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame)                      : 0.163
Stream size                              : 168 MiB (84%)
Writing library                          : x264 core 54 svn-616
Encoding settings                        : cabac=1 / ref=16 / deblock=1:1:1 / analyse=0x3:0x133 / me=umh / subme=7 / brdo=1 / mixed_ref=1 / me_range=16 / chroma_me=1 / trellis=2 / 8x8dct=1 / cqm=0 / deadzone=21,11 / chroma_qp_offset=0 / threads=3 / nr=0 / decimate=1 / mbaff=0 / bframes=3 / b_pyramid=1 / b_adapt=1 / b_bias=0 / direct=3 / wpredb=1 / bime=1 / keyint=250 / keyint_min=25 / scenecut=40(pre) / rc=2pass / bitrate=1033 / ratetol=1.0 / rceq='blurCplx^(1-qComp)' / qcomp=0.60 / qpmin=10 / qpmax=51 / qpstep=4 / cplxblur=20.0 / qblur=0.5 / ip_ratio=1.40 / pb_ratio=1.30
Language                                : English
Default                                  : Yes
Forced                                  : No

Audio #1
ID                                      : 2
Format                                  : MPEG Audio
Format version                          : Version 1
Format profile                          : Layer 3
Format settings                          : Joint stereo / MS Stereo
Codec ID                                : A_MPEG/L3
Codec ID/Hint                            : MP3
Duration                                : 23 min 12 s
Bit rate mode                            : Variable
Bit rate                                : 84.3 kb/s
Minimum bit rate                        : 32.0 kb/s
Channel(s)                              : 2 channels
Sampling rate                            : 48.0 kHz
Frame rate                              : 41.667 FPS (1152 SPF)
Compression mode                        : Lossy
Stream size                              : 14.0 MiB (7%)
Title                                    : English
Writing library                          : LAME3.97b
Encoding settings                        : -m j -V 5 -q 3 -lowpass 16 --vbr-new -b 32
Language                                : English
Default                                  : Yes
Forced                                  : No

Audio #2
ID                                      : 3
Format                                  : MPEG Audio
Format version                          : Version 1
Format profile                          : Layer 3
Format settings                          : Joint stereo / MS Stereo
Codec ID                                : A_MPEG/L3
Codec ID/Hint                            : MP3
Duration                                : 23 min 12 s
Bit rate mode                            : Variable
Bit rate                                : 84.2 kb/s
Minimum bit rate                        : 32.0 kb/s
Channel(s)                              : 2 channels
Sampling rate                            : 48.0 kHz
Frame rate                              : 41.667 FPS (1152 SPF)
Compression mode                        : Lossy
Stream size                              : 14.0 MiB (7%)
Title                                    : Commentary
Writing library                          : LAME3.97b
Encoding settings                        : -m j -V 5 -q 3 -lowpass 16 --vbr-new -b 32
Language                                : English
Default                                  : No
Forced                                  : No

Bluray rip:

Code:

General
Unique ID                                : 198026047519009786775176700806199054140 (0x94FA6DF1A6A57B4F84858B1279010F3C)
Complete name                            : G:\TV\The Simpsons\Season 20 (BD 720p)\S20E01 - Sex, Pies and Idiot Scrapes.mkv
Format                                  : Matroska
Format version                          : Version 2
File size                                : 629 MiB
Duration                                : 21 min 58 s
Overall bit rate                        : 4 000 kb/s
Encoded date                            : UTC 2010-01-16 01:55:35
Writing application                      : mkvmerge v3.0.0 ('Hang up your Hang-Ups') built on Dec 12 2009 15:20:35
Writing library                          : libebml v0.7.9 + libmatroska v0.8.1

Video
ID                                      : 1
Format                                  : AVC
Format/Info                              : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile                          : High@L4.1
Format settings                          : CABAC / 9 Ref Frames
Format settings, CABAC                  : Yes
Format settings, Reference frames        : 9 frames
Codec ID                                : V_MPEG4/ISO/AVC
Duration                                : 21 min 58 s
Bit rate                                : 3 551 kb/s
Width                                    : 960 pixels
Height                                  : 720 pixels
Display aspect ratio                    : 4:3
Frame rate mode                          : Constant
Frame rate                              : 23.976 FPS
Color space                              : YUV
Chroma subsampling                      : 4:2:0
Bit depth                                : 8 bits
Scan type                                : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame)                      : 0.214
Stream size                              : 546 MiB (87%)
Title                                    : The Simpsons S20E01 720p BluRay DTS x264
Writing library                          : x264 core 80 r1369M ec8e586
Encoding settings                        : cabac=1 / ref=9 / deblock=1:-3:-3 / analyse=0x3:0x113 / me=umh / subme=9 / psy=1 / psy_rd=0.6:0.0 / mixed_ref=1 / me_range=24 / chroma_me=1 / trellis=2 / 8x8dct=1 / cqm=0 / deadzone=21,11 / fast_pskip=0 / chroma_qp_offset=-2 / threads=3 / sliced_threads=0 / nr=0 / decimate=1 / mbaff=0 / constrained_intra=0 / bframes=6 / b_pyramid=2 / b_adapt=2 / b_bias=0 / direct=1 / wpredb=1 / wpredp=2 / keyint=250 / keyint_min=25 / scenecut=40 / rc_lookahead=50 / rc=2pass / mbtree=1 / bitrate=3551 / ratetol=1.0 / qcomp=0.60 / qpmin=10 / qpmax=51 / qpstep=4 / cplxblur=20.0 / qblur=0.5 / ip_ratio=1.40 / aq=1:0.60
Language                                : English
Default                                  : Yes
Forced                                  : No

Audio
ID                                      : 2
Format                                  : AC-3
Format/Info                              : Audio Coding 3
Commercial name                          : Dolby Digital
Codec ID                                : A_AC3
Duration                                : 21 min 58 s
Bit rate mode                            : Constant
Bit rate                                : 448 kb/s
Channel(s)                              : 6 channels
Channel layout                          : L R C LFE Ls Rs
Sampling rate                            : 48.0 kHz
Frame rate                              : 31.250 FPS (1536 SPF)
Bit depth                                : 16 bits
Compression mode                        : Lossy
Stream size                              : 70.4 MiB (11%)
Title                                    : AC3 5.1 English @ 448 kbps
Language                                : English
Service kind                            : Complete Main
Default                                  : Yes
Forced                                  : No

Here's more logs when trying to play the first episode of each season:

Code:

[color=#000000][2023-06-19 17:55:47.662 +10:00] [INF] [10] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: User policy for "sc-jellyfin". EnablePlaybackRemuxing: True EnableVideoPlaybackTranscoding: True EnableAudioPlaybackTranscoding: True
[2023-06-19 17:55:47.662 +10:00] [INF] [10] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: StreamBuilder.BuildVideoItem( Profile="AndroidTV-Zidoo-External", Path="/volume1/Media/TV/The Simpsons/Season 16 (BD 720p)/S16E01 - Treehouse of Horror XV.mkv", AudioStreamIndex=1, SubtitleStreamIndex=null ) => ( PlayMethod=DirectPlay, TranscodeReason=0 ) "media:/videos/cceb2713-b6f8-618a-20b5-2449c42cf90b/stream.mkv?MediaSourceId=cceb2713b6f8618a20b52449c42cf90b&Static=true&VideoCodec=h264&AudioCodec=ac3&AudioStreamIndex=1&api_key=<token>&Tag=ff6e0eb3e3165ee6f9acad52de885ef9"
[2023-06-19 17:55:49.343 +10:00] [INF] [43] Emby.Server.Implementations.Session.SessionManager: Playback stopped reported by app "Android TV" "0.14.9-zidoo_edition.beta11" playing "Treehouse of Horror XV". Stopped at "0" ms
[2023-06-19 17:55:49.897 +10:00] [INF] [83] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: Playback stop did not have a tracker : "0e95a18cc32dde38a4e5e51335c07a17e703ef60-a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847-cceb2713b6f8618a20b52449c42cf90b"
[2023-06-19 17:56:02.097 +10:00] [INF] [53] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: User policy for "sc-jellyfin". EnablePlaybackRemuxing: True EnableVideoPlaybackTranscoding: True EnableAudioPlaybackTranscoding: True
[2023-06-19 17:56:02.098 +10:00] [INF] [53] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: StreamBuilder.BuildVideoItem( Profile="AndroidTV-Zidoo-External", Path="/volume1/Media/TV/The Simpsons/Season 18 (720p WEB)/S18E01 - The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and Her Homer.mkv", AudioStreamIndex=null, SubtitleStreamIndex=null ) => ( PlayMethod=DirectPlay, TranscodeReason=0 ) "media:/videos/0fac5350-f55f-d64d-d1de-122daa6d1f9b/stream.mkv?MediaSourceId=0fac5350f55fd64dd1de122daa6d1f9b&Static=true&VideoCodec=h264&AudioCodec=aac&AudioStreamIndex=1&api_key=<token>&Tag=225bdc8c4c7bc76a8755086472c37bd5"
[2023-06-19 17:56:04.051 +10:00] [INF] [83] Emby.Server.Implementations.Session.SessionManager: Playback stopped reported by app "Android TV" "0.14.9-zidoo_edition.beta11" playing "The Mook, the Chef, the Wife, and Her Homer". Stopped at "0" ms
[2023-06-19 17:56:04.655 +10:00] [INF] [53] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: Playback stop did not have a tracker : "0e95a18cc32dde38a4e5e51335c07a17e703ef60-a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847-0fac5350f55fd64dd1de122daa6d1f9b"
[2023-06-19 17:56:17.737 +10:00] [INF] [10] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: User policy for "sc-jellyfin". EnablePlaybackRemuxing: True EnableVideoPlaybackTranscoding: True EnableAudioPlaybackTranscoding: True
[2023-06-19 17:56:17.738 +10:00] [INF] [10] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: StreamBuilder.BuildVideoItem( Profile="AndroidTV-Zidoo-External", Path="/volume1/Media/TV/The Simpsons/Season 20 (BD 720p)/S20E01 - Sex, Pies and Idiot Scrapes.mkv", AudioStreamIndex=null, SubtitleStreamIndex=null ) => ( PlayMethod=DirectPlay, TranscodeReason=0 ) "media:/videos/c80d54ac-2e95-2ce1-a0e5-8b5ea9303916/stream.mkv?MediaSourceId=c80d54ac2e952ce1a0e58b5ea9303916&Static=true&VideoCodec=h264&AudioCodec=ac3&AudioStreamIndex=1&api_key=<token>&Tag=3bf2ea23a0b98d0f6dc8f70f79cbe391"
[2023-06-19 17:56:19.677 +10:00] [INF] [78] Emby.Server.Implementations.Session.SessionManager: Playback stopped reported by app "Android TV" "0.14.9-zidoo_edition.beta11" playing "Sex, Pies and Idiot Scrapes". Stopped at "0" ms
[2023-06-19 17:56:20.279 +10:00] [INF] [10] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: Playback stop did not have a tracker : "0e95a18cc32dde38a4e5e51335c07a17e703ef60-a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847-c80d54ac2e952ce1a0e58b5ea9303916"
[2023-06-19 17:56:36.232 +10:00] [INF] [67] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: User policy for "sc-jellyfin". EnablePlaybackRemuxing: True EnableVideoPlaybackTranscoding: True EnableAudioPlaybackTranscoding: True[/color]

[Xanohel]

Okay, so now compare that to an episode that does play, and maybe try to recode an episode that does not play with the settings of an episode that does play.

[Six66Mike]

This South Park episode was encoded around the same time. Same software version and audio/video codecs used, plays fine.

Code:

General
Unique ID                                : 260665599553327993858675497299779470272 (0xC41A5E4D2D8811295107BB4A36DF43C0)
Complete name                            : G:\TV\South Park\Season 7 (BD)\S07E01 - Cancelled.mkv
Format                                   : Matroska
Format version                           : Version 4
File size                                : 405 MiB
Duration                                 : 22 min 7 s
Overall bit rate                         : 2 561 kb/s
Encoded date                             : UTC 2018-03-17 11:51:28
Writing application                      : mkvmerge v19.0.0 ('Brave Captain') 64-bit
Writing library                          : libebml v1.3.5 + libmatroska v1.4.8

Video
ID                                       : 1
Format                                   : AVC
Format/Info                              : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile                           : High@L4.1
Format settings                          : CABAC / 9 Ref Frames
Format settings, CABAC                   : Yes
Format settings, Reference frames        : 9 frames
Codec ID                                 : V_MPEG4/ISO/AVC
Duration                                 : 22 min 7 s
Bit rate                                 : 1 838 kb/s
Width                                    : 1 280 pixels
Height                                   : 720 pixels
Display aspect ratio                     : 16:9
Frame rate mode                          : Constant
Frame rate                               : 23.976 (24000/1001) FPS
Color space                              : YUV
Chroma subsampling                       : 4:2:0
Bit depth                                : 8 bits
Scan type                                : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame)                       : 0.083
Stream size                              : 291 MiB (72%)
Writing library                          : x264 core 152 r2851kMod ba24899
Encoding settings                        : cabac=1 / ref=9 / deblock=1:-3:-3 / analyse=0x3:0x113 / me=umh / subme=11 / psy=1 / fade_compensate=0.00 / psy_rd=0.50:0.00 / mixed_ref=1 / me_range=32 / chroma_me=1 / trellis=2 / 8x8dct=1 / cqm=0 / deadzone=21,11 / fast_pskip=0 / chroma_qp_offset=-3 / threads=12 / lookahead_threads=2 / sliced_threads=0 / nr=0 / decimate=1 / interlaced=0 / bluray_compat=0 / constrained_intra=0 / bframes=9 / b_pyramid=2 / b_adapt=2 / b_bias=0 / direct=3 / weightb=1 / open_gop=0 / weightp=2 / keyint=230 / keyint_min=23 / scenecut=40 / intra_refresh=0 / rc_lookahead=40 / rc=crf / mbtree=0 / crf=18.0000 / qcomp=0.60 / qpmin=0 / qpmax=69 / qpstep=4 / vbv_maxrate=50000 / vbv_bufsize=62500 / crf_max=0.0 / nal_hrd=none / filler=0 / ip_ratio=1.40 / pb_ratio=1.30 / aq=3:0.50
Language                                 : English
Default                                  : Yes
Forced                                   : No

Audio #1
ID                                       : 2
Format                                   : AC-3
Format/Info                              : Audio Coding 3
Commercial name                          : Dolby Digital
Codec ID                                 : A_AC3
Duration                                 : 22 min 7 s
Bit rate mode                            : Constant
Bit rate                                 : 448 kb/s
Channel(s)                               : 6 channels
Channel layout                           : L R C LFE Ls Rs
Sampling rate                            : 48.0 kHz
Frame rate                               : 31.250 FPS (1536 SPF)
Bit depth                                : 16 bits
Compression mode                         : Lossy
Stream size                              : 70.9 MiB (17%)
Language                                 : English
Service kind                             : Complete Main
Default                                  : Yes
Forced                                   : No

Audio #2
ID                                       : 3
Format                                   : AC-3
Format/Info                              : Audio Coding 3
Commercial name                          : Dolby Digital
Codec ID                                 : A_AC3
Duration                                 : 22 min 7 s
Bit rate mode                            : Constant
Bit rate                                 : 224 kb/s
Channel(s)                               : 2 channels
Channel layout                           : L R
Sampling rate                            : 48.0 kHz
Frame rate                               : 31.250 FPS (1536 SPF)
Bit depth                                : 16 bits
Compression mode                         : Lossy
Stream size                              : 35.5 MiB (9%)
Title                                    : Commentary
Language                                 : English
Service kind                             : Complete Main
Default                                  : No
Forced                                   : No

Text #1
ID                                       : 4
Format                                   : UTF-8
Codec ID                                 : S_TEXT/UTF8
Codec ID/Info                            : UTF-8 Plain Text
Language                                 : English
Default                                  : No
Forced                                   : No

Text #2
ID                                       : 5
Format                                   : UTF-8
Codec ID                                 : S_TEXT/UTF8
Codec ID/Info                            : UTF-8 Plain Text
Title                                    : SDH
Language                                 : English
Default                                  : No
Forced                                   : No

Menu
00:00:00.000                             : en:00:00:00.000
00:00:33.992                             : en:00:00:33.992
00:09:14.804                             : en:00:09:14.804
00:16:20.730                             : en:00:16:20.730
00:21:40.299                             : en:00:21:40.299

If Jellyfin is passing playback to the Zidoo, and the Zidoo native file explorer can play the file, is it really likely to be an encoding issue? Especially considering the later seasons are also encoded differently and from different source material?

What about this line in the log?

[2023-06-19 17:55:49.897 +10:00] [INF] [83] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: Playback stop did not have a tracker : "0e95a18cc32dde38a4e5e51335c07a17e703ef60-a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847-cceb2713b6f8618a20b52449c42cf90b"

I searched the logs for the last part of the string and pasted a larger log that contains the string. I see an error saying audio codec not supported, but it's the same as the South Park episode that plays fine. Do the logs suggest Jellyfin is doing the transcoding & playback is not being controlled by the media player as I assumed?

Code:

[2023-06-19 13:21:41.472 +10:00] [INF] [18] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: User policy for "sc-jellyfin". EnablePlaybackRemuxing: True EnableVideoPlaybackTranscoding: True EnableAudioPlaybackTranscoding: True
[2023-06-19 13:21:41.473 +10:00] [INF] [18] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.MediaInfoHelper: StreamBuilder.BuildVideoItem( Profile="Anonymous Profile", Path="/volume1/Media/TV/The Simpsons/Season 1 (DVD)/S01E03 - Homer's Odyssey.mkv", AudioStreamIndex=null, SubtitleStreamIndex=null ) => ( PlayMethod=Transcode, TranscodeReason=VideoCodecNotSupported, AudioCodecNotSupported ) "media:/videos/3c6a79bf-f2e3-1781-09f9-54e8d131c6fa/master.m3u8?MediaSourceId=3c6a79bff2e3178109f954e8d131c6fa&VideoCodec=h264,h264&AudioCodec=mp3&AudioStreamIndex=1&VideoBitrate=139955999&AudioBitrate=44001&AudioSampleRate=48000&MaxFramerate=29.97003&api_key=<token>&TranscodingMaxAudioChannels=2&RequireAvc=false&Tag=7a794acd1a3a4368728c967ed392a9a9&SegmentContainer=ts&MinSegments=1&BreakOnNonKeyFrames=True&h264-level=51&h264-videobitdepth=8&h264-profile=high&h264-audiochannels=2&h264-rangetype=SDR&h264-deinterlace=true&TranscodeReasons=VideoCodecNotSupported,%20AudioCodecNotSupported"
[2023-06-19 13:21:41.518 +10:00] [INF] [144] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: Adding playback tracker : TW96aWxsYS81LjAgKFdpbmRvd3MgTlQgMTAuMDsgV2luNjQ7IHg2NCkgQXBwbGVXZWJLaXQvNTM3LjM2IChLSFRNTCwgbGlrZSBHZWNrbykgQ2hyb21lLzEwNC4wLjAuMCBTYWZhcmkvNTM3LjM2fDE2NjA5NTg2ODkzOTM1-a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847-e7d0cbb6fc34d3bc36dba5e398a38777
[2023-06-19 13:21:41.518 +10:00] [INF] [144] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.Data.PlaybackTracker: PlaybackTracker : Adding Start Event : 06/19/2023 13:21:41
[2023-06-19 13:21:41.518 +10:00] [INF] [144] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: Creating StartPlaybackTimer Task
[2023-06-19 13:21:41.518 +10:00] [INF] [118] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : Entered
[2023-06-19 13:21:42.017 +10:00] [INF] [79] Jellyfin.Api.Controllers.DynamicHlsController: Current HLS implementation doesn't support non-keyframe breaks but one is requested, ignoring that request
[2023-06-19 13:21:42.018 +10:00] [INF] [79] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.TranscodingJobHelper: "/var/packages/ffmpeg/target/bin/ffmpeg" "-analyzeduration 200M -fflags +genpts -f matroska,webm  -i file:\"/volume1/Media/TV/The Simpsons/Season 1 (DVD)/S01E03 - Homer's Odyssey.mkv\" -map_metadata -1 -map_chapters -1 -threads 0 -map 0:0 -map 0:1 -map -0:s -codec:v:0 copy -start_at_zero -codec:a:0 copy -copyts -avoid_negative_ts disabled -max_muxing_queue_size 2048 -f hls -max_delay 5000000 -hls_time 6 -hls_segment_type mpegts -start_number 0 -hls_segment_filename \"/volume1/@appstore/jellyfin/var/data/transcodes/34b00500ccb2333569b343a51da27255%d.ts\" -hls_playlist_type vod -hls_list_size 0 -y \"/volume1/@appstore/jellyfin/var/data/transcodes/34b00500ccb2333569b343a51da27255.m3u8\""
[2023-06-19 13:21:43.402 +10:00] [INF] [144] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.TranscodingJobHelper: Stopping ffmpeg process with q command for "/volume1/@appstore/jellyfin/var/data/transcodes/34b00500ccb2333569b343a51da27255.m3u8"
[2023-06-19 13:21:43.512 +10:00] [INF] [134] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.TranscodingJobHelper: FFmpeg exited with code 0
[2023-06-19 13:21:43.512 +10:00] [INF] [144] Jellyfin.Api.Helpers.TranscodingJobHelper: Deleting partial stream file(s) "/volume1/@appstore/jellyfin/var/data/transcodes/34b00500ccb2333569b343a51da27255.m3u8"
[2023-06-19 13:21:45.052 +10:00] [INF] [144] Emby.Server.Implementations.Session.SessionManager: Playback stopped reported by app "Jellyfin Web" "10.8.9" playing "Homer's Odyssey". Stopped at "967" ms
[2023-06-19 13:21:45.729 +10:00] [INF] [134] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: Playback stop did not have a tracker : "TW96aWxsYS81LjAgKFdpbmRvd3MgTlQgMTAuMDsgV2luNjQ7IHg2NCkgQXBwbGVXZWJLaXQvNTM3LjM2IChLSFRNTCwgbGlrZSBHZWNrbykgQ2hyb21lLzEwNC4wLjAuMCBTYWZhcmkvNTM3LjM2fDE2NjA5NTg2ODkzOTM1-a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847-3c6a79bff2e3178109f954e8d131c6fa"
[2023-06-19 13:21:58.775 +10:00] [INF] [118] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: Processing playback tracker : "TW96aWxsYS81LjAgKFdpbmRvd3MgTlQgMTAuMDsgV2luNjQ7IHg2NCkgQXBwbGVXZWJLaXQvNTM3LjM2IChLSFRNTCwgbGlrZSBHZWNrbykgQ2hyb21lLzEwNC4wLjAuMCBTYWZhcmkvNTM3LjM2fDE2NjA5NTg2ODkzOTM1-a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847-e7d0cbb6fc34d3bc36dba5e398a38777"
[2023-06-19 13:21:58.776 +10:00] [WRN] [118] Trakt.ServerMediator: Received playback progress from user "sc-jellyfin" but initial state was never set - setting it now!
[2023-06-19 13:21:59.670 +10:00] [INF] [165] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: Adding playback tracker : TW96aWxsYS81LjAgKFdpbmRvd3MgTlQgMTAuMDsgV2luNjQ7IHg2NCkgQXBwbGVXZWJLaXQvNTM3LjM2IChLSFRNTCwgbGlrZSBHZWNrbykgQ2hyb21lLzEwNC4wLjAuMCBTYWZhcmkvNTM3LjM2fDE2NjA5NTg2ODkzOTM1-a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847-3c6a79bff2e3178109f954e8d131c6fa
[2023-06-19 13:21:59.670 +10:00] [INF] [165] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.Data.PlaybackTracker: PlaybackTracker : Adding Start Event : 06/19/2023 13:21:59
[2023-06-19 13:21:59.670 +10:00] [INF] [165] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: Creating StartPlaybackTimer Task
[2023-06-19 13:21:59.671 +10:00] [INF] [18] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : Entered
[2023-06-19 13:22:01.518 +10:00] [INF] [119] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: session.RemoteEndPoint : "192.168.1.2"
[2023-06-19 13:22:01.518 +10:00] [INF] [119] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : event_playing_id     = "e7d0cbb6fc34d3bc36dba5e398a38777"
[2023-06-19 13:22:01.519 +10:00] [INF] [119] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : event_user_id        = "a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847"
[2023-06-19 13:22:01.519 +10:00] [INF] [119] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : event_user_id_int    = 1
[2023-06-19 13:22:01.519 +10:00] [INF] [119] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : session_playing_id   = "3c6a79bff2e3178109f954e8d131c6fa"
[2023-06-19 13:22:01.519 +10:00] [INF] [119] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : session_user_id      = "a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847"
[2023-06-19 13:22:01.519 +10:00] [INF] [119] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : play_method          = "Transcode"
[2023-06-19 13:22:01.519 +10:00] [INF] [119] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : e.ClientName         = "Jellyfin Web"
[2023-06-19 13:22:01.519 +10:00] [INF] [119] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : e.DeviceName         = "Chrome"
[2023-06-19 13:22:01.519 +10:00] [INF] [119] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : ItemName             = "The Simpsons - s01e02 - Bart the Genius"
[2023-06-19 13:22:01.519 +10:00] [INF] [119] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : ItemId               = "e7d0cbb6fc34d3bc36dba5e398a38777"
[2023-06-19 13:22:01.519 +10:00] [INF] [119] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : ItemType             = "Episode"
[2023-06-19 13:22:01.519 +10:00] [INF] [119] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : Details do not match for play item
[2023-06-19 13:22:01.519 +10:00] [INF] [119] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : Exited
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.670 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: session.RemoteEndPoint : "192.168.1.2"
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.670 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : event_playing_id     = "3c6a79bff2e3178109f954e8d131c6fa"
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.670 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : event_user_id        = "a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847"
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.670 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : event_user_id_int    = 1
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.671 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : session_playing_id   = "3c6a79bff2e3178109f954e8d131c6fa"
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.671 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : session_user_id      = "a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847"
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.671 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : play_method          = "Transcode"
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.671 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : e.ClientName         = "Jellyfin Web"
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.671 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : e.DeviceName         = "Chrome"
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.671 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : ItemName             = "The Simpsons - s01e03 - Homer's Odyssey"
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.671 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : ItemId               = "3c6a79bff2e3178109f954e8d131c6fa"
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.671 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : ItemType             = "Episode"
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.671 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : All matches, playback registered
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.671 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: Playback tracker found, adding playback info : "TW96aWxsYS81LjAgKFdpbmRvd3MgTlQgMTAuMDsgV2luNjQ7IHg2NCkgQXBwbGVXZWJLaXQvNTM3LjM2IChLSFRNTCwgbGlrZSBHZWNrbykgQ2hyb21lLzEwNC4wLjAuMCBTYWZhcmkvNTM3LjM2fDE2NjA5NTg2ODkzOTM1-a5021a4aaa9c42a7a7c3879d51e87847-3c6a79bff2e3178109f954e8d131c6fa"
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.671 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: Saving playback tracking activity in DB
[2023-06-19 13:22:19.839 +10:00] [INF] [81] Jellyfin.Plugin.PlaybackReporting.EventMonitorEntryPoint: StartPlaybackTimer : Exited

[Venson]

This South Park episode was encoded around the same time.  Same software version and audio/video codecs used, plays fine.

[code]General
Unique ID                                : 260665599553327993858675497299779470272 (0xC41A5E4D2D8811295107BB4A36DF43C0)
Complete name                            : G:\TV\South Park\Season 7 (BD)\S07E01 - Cancelled.mkv
...

Could you please try and rename the folder from G:\TV\South Park\Season 7 (BD)\ to G:\TV\South Park\Season 7\

[Six66Mike]

Why? The South Park episodes play fine, The Simpsons is the one with the issue. My entire collection has (source) after the season and they all play fine as well.

[jellyfinsuer1234]

I could not find how to create a new thread, I'm a new member and user of jellyfin so sorry if I'm using the incorrect method. My setup is as follows:

Version: 10.8.10

Operating System: Windows

Architecture: X64

The picture quality is not as good as it should be and I would like to change settings to improve it. I went to the playback settings and changed the ones that said I could do this or that to improve the quality but that did not seem to help. I have a screenshot of the setting but it won't let me paste it into this screen and I don't see an option to attach them. I also have my logs and can send them via DM to the appropriate support person. Any help is appreciated. Thanks.