BD-S580 no longer works after upgrade from 0.5.2 to 0.6.0.1

I would like to stress that there is obviously a possibility that my created mkvs are unusual, and that is why ffmpeg is not happy (ie this is a problem unique to me) but ..... I am doing nothing out of the ordinary - the files created with handbrake are pretty much vanilla High Profile output , so as I am following a pretty standard workflow, this could well be the problem that (a very small number of) others are seeing ...

Also, for the sake of completeness, I compared the transcode commands for the given test file coming out of serviio 0.5.2 and 0.6.1 and, unsurprisingly, they are identical, so serviio itself is not doing anything different - it's definately a change in ffmpeg that is causing my problem ...

Patters - I built your version of ffmpeg from the tarball you linked to and, using serviio's generated transcode command (taken from the log), manually tried to transcode (edit: actually, its a remux rather than a transcode) the test file using all 3 versions (i.e. yours, ffmpeg packaged with V0.6.1, ffmpeg packaged with 0.5.2 )

Results are as follows :

pattter's supplied version - version 0.8.2.git-05a2673 - (FAIL):

  Code:

 sudo ffmpeg -i "Test File 1.mkv" -y -vcodec copy -vbsf h264_mp4toannexb -copyts -acodec copy -map 0:0 -map 0:1 -sn -f mpegts /tmp/Serviio/transcoding-temp-2539-MPEG2TS.stf

ffmpeg version 0.8.2.git-05a2673, Copyright (c) 2000-2011 the FFmpeg developers
  built on Oct  5 2011 07:40:27 with gcc 4.5.2
  configuration:
  libavutil    51. 13. 0 / 51. 13. 0
  libavcodec   53. 11. 0 / 53. 11. 0
  libavformat  53.  9. 0 / 53.  9. 0
  libavdevice  53.  3. 0 / 53.  3. 0
  libavfilter   2. 34. 1 /  2. 34. 1
  libswscale    2.  0. 0 /  2.  0. 0
[matroska,webm @ 0x93493a0] Estimating duration from bitrate, this may be inaccurate

Seems stream 0 codec frame rate differs from container frame rate: 180000.00 (180000/1) -> 100.00 (100/1)
Input #0, matroska,webm, from 'Test File 1.mkv':
  Duration: 00:25:07.80, start: 0.000000, bitrate: 128 kb/s
    Stream #0.0(eng): Video: h264 (High), yuv420p, 720x574 [SAR 64:45 DAR 512:287], SAR 233:164 DAR 20970:11767, 25 fps, 100 tbr, 1k tbn, 180k tbc (default)
    Stream #0.1: Audio: ac3, 48000 Hz, stereo, s16, 128 kb/s (default)
[mpegts @ 0x934ed80] muxrate VBR, pcr every 100 pkts, sdt every 200, pat/pmt every 40 pkts
Output #0, mpegts, to '/tmp/Serviio/transcoding-temp-2539-MPEG2TS.stf':
  Metadata:
    encoder         : Lavf53.9.0
    Stream #0.0(eng): Video: [0][0][0][0] / 0x0000, yuv420p, 720x574 [SAR 233:164 DAR 20970:11767], q=2-31, 90k tbn, 1k tbc (default)
    Stream #0.1: Audio: ac3, 48000 Hz, stereo, 128 kb/s (default)
Stream mapping:
  Stream #0.0 -> #0.0
  Stream #0.1 -> #0.1
Press [q] to stop, [?] for help
[mpegts @ 0x934ed80] Application provided invalid, non monotonically increasing dts to muxer in stream 0: -7200 >= -7200
av_interleaved_write_frame(): Invalid argument

ffmpeg packaged with V 0.6.1 - version 0.8.git - (FAIL)

  Code:

sudo ffmpeg-061 -i "Test File 1.mkv" -y -vcodec copy -vbsf h264_mp4toannexb -copyts -acodec copy -map 0:0 -map 0:1 -sn -f mpegts /tmp/Serviio/transcoding-temp-2539-MPEG2TS.stf

ffmpeg version 0.8.git, Copyright (c) 2000-2011 the FFmpeg developers
  built on Sep 25 2011 08:14:32 with gcc 4.5.2
  configuration:
  libavutil    51. 11. 0 / 51. 11. 0
  libavcodec   53.  8. 0 / 53.  8. 0
  libavformat  53.  6. 0 / 53.  6. 0
  libavdevice  53.  2. 0 / 53.  2. 0
  libavfilter   2. 25. 0 /  2. 25. 0
  libswscale    2.  0. 0 /  2.  0. 0
[matroska,webm @ 0xa882380] Estimating duration from bitrate, this may be inaccurate

Seems stream 0 codec frame rate differs from container frame rate: 180000.00 (180000/1) -> 100.00 (100/1)
Input #0, matroska,webm, from 'Test File 1.mkv':
  Duration: 00:25:07.80, start: 0.000000, bitrate: 128 kb/s
    Stream #0.0(eng): Video: h264 (High), yuv420p, 720x574 [PAR 64:45 DAR 512:287], PAR 233:164 DAR 20970:11767, 25 fps, 100 tbr, 1k tbn, 180k tbc (default)
    Stream #0.1: Audio: ac3, 48000 Hz, stereo, s16, 128 kb/s (default)
[mpegts @ 0xa884e80] muxrate VBR, pcr every 100 pkts, sdt every 200, pat/pmt every 40 pkts
Output #0, mpegts, to '/tmp/Serviio/transcoding-temp-2539-MPEG2TS.stf':
  Metadata:
    encoder         : Lavf53.6.0
    Stream #0.0(eng): Video: [0][0][0][0] / 0x0000, yuv420p, 720x574 [PAR 233:164 DAR 20970:11767], q=2-31, 90k tbn, 1k tbc (default)
    Stream #0.1: Audio: ac3, 48000 Hz, stereo, 128 kb/s (default)
Stream mapping:
  Stream #0.0 -> #0.0
  Stream #0.1 -> #0.1
Press [q] to stop, [?] for help
[mpegts @ 0xa884e80] Application provided invalid, non monotonically increasing dts to muxer in stream 0: -7200 >= -7200
av_interleaved_write_frame(): Invalid argument


ffmpeg packaged with V 0.5.2 - version UNKNOWN - (SUCCESS)

  Code:

sudo ffmpeg-052 -i "Test File 1.mkv" -y -vcodec copy -vbsf h264_mp4toannexb -copyts -acodec copy -map 0:0 -map 0:1 -sn -f mpegts /tmp/Serviio/transcoding-temp-2539-MPEG2TS.stf

FFmpeg version UNKNOWN, Copyright (c) 2000-2011 the FFmpeg developers
  built on Oct  4 2011 13:56:56 with gcc 4.5.2
  configuration:
  libavutil     50.36. 0 / 50.36. 0
  libavcore      0.16. 0 /  0.16. 0
  libavcodec    52.108. 0 / 52.108. 0
  libavformat   52.92. 0 / 52.92. 0
  libavdevice   52. 2. 3 / 52. 2. 3
  libavfilter    1.72. 0 /  1.72. 0
  libswscale     0.12. 0 /  0.12. 0
[matroska,webm @ 0xaaa74c0] Estimating duration from bitrate, this may be inaccurate

Seems stream 0 codec frame rate differs from container frame rate: 180000.00 (180000/1) -> 500.00 (500/1)
Input #0, matroska,webm, from 'Test File 1.mkv':
  Duration: 00:25:07.80, start: 0.000000, bitrate: 128 kb/s
    Stream #0.0(eng): Video: h264, yuv420p, 720x574 [PAR 64:45 DAR 512:287], PAR 233:164 DAR 20970:11767, 25 fps, 500 tbr, 1k tbn, 180k tbc
    Stream #0.1: Audio: ac3, 48000 Hz, stereo, s16, 128 kb/s
[mpegts @ 0xaaad810] muxrate VBR, pcr every 100 pkts, sdt every 200, pat/pmt every 40 pkts
Output #0, mpegts, to '/tmp/Serviio/transcoding-temp-2539-MPEG2TS.stf':
  Metadata:
    encoder         : Lavf52.92.0
    Stream #0.0(eng): Video: [0][0][0][0] / 0x0000, yuv420p, 720x574 [PAR 233:164 DAR 20970:11767], q=2-31, 90k tbn, 1k tbc
    Stream #0.1: Audio: ac3, 48000 Hz, stereo, 128 kb/s
Stream mapping:
  Stream #0.0 -> #0.0
  Stream #0.1 -> #0.1
Press [q] to stop encoding
frame= 9955 fps=9130 q=-1.0 size=  162435kB time=399.48 bitrate=3331.0kbits/s   
frame=16561 fps=10334 q=-1.0 size=  262562kB time=664.04 bitrate=3239.1kbits/s 
frame=18165 fps=7474 q=-1.0 size=  290020kB time=728.36 bitrate=3261.9kbits/s   
frame=22999 fps=7848 q=-1.0 size=  373290kB time=921.72 bitrate=3317.7kbits/s   
frame=26382 fps=7680 q=-1.0 size=  429487kB time=1057.12 bitrate=3328.2kbits/s 
frame=32113 fps=8153 q=-1.0 size=  490314kB time=1287.80 bitrate=3119.0kbits/s 
frame=34838 fps=7801 q=-1.0 size=  527146kB time=1396.96 bitrate=3091.3kbits/s 
frame=37563 fps=8022 q=-1.0 Lsize=  569020kB time=1507.68 bitrate=3091.8kbits/s   
video:499946kB audio:23560kB global headers:0kB muxing overhead 8.694141%


Conclusion : oldest version of ffmpeg (i.e. the one packaged with 0.5.2 ) is the only one that works for me with mkvs

What's troubling me is the fact that if everybody's mkv playback was broken, there would be a lot more posts here about it - this is quite perplexing ...

You've got to factor in:
Number of people using Serviio ÷ Number of People Using this device ÷ Number of those participating in the forum.

might be only two or three of us!

[Cerberus]

You've got to factor in:
Number of people using Serviio ÷ Number of People Using this device ÷ Number of those participating in the forum.

might be only two or three of us!

lol theres a hell of alot more than that but only a few that are able to help with this kind of issue

You've got to factor in:
Number of people using Serviio ÷ Number of People Using this device ÷ Number of those participating in the forum.

might be only two or three of us!

That gave me a thought ...
If the root cause of my ffmpeg problem is a remux of the container without transcoding the audio/video i.e. -vcodec copy -acodec copy ,
how many serviio device profiles have this matroska "catchall" rule ( that would be used if the more specific rules are not met ...) ?

Quick scan of the profiles.xml gives the answer of ..... The Sony profiles and the Panasonic Viera profile.
So , user changed profiles aside, that limits it to us here + the panny users

So a bit more research and a bit of guessswork/deduction resulted in :

A container that has the variable frame rate flag set , such as (mediainfo output):

  Code:

Height                           : 574 pixels
Display aspect ratio             : 16:9
Original display aspect ratio    : 16:9
Frame rate mode                  : Variable
Frame rate                       : 25.000 fps
Color space                      : YUV[/i]


can cause ffmpeg -i to output:

  Code:

Seems stream 0 codec frame rate differs from container frame rate: 180000.00 (180000/1) -> 100.00 (100/1)

and this would appear to be a root cause for newer versions of ffmpeg to bomb out on a remux request.

Note : This "problem" is created by myself letting handbrake do its "framerate = Same as source" default option

The creation of a new mkv from my Test File using handbrake with the "framerate = 25" option (its a 25fps pal recording ) means that
patters' supplied ffmpeg, and the ffmpeg version supplied with serviio V0.6.0.1, now work for the test file (the rest are obviously still not playing )

So ...
- if you have a "catchall" rule (or even a distinct rule) in your device profile that just remuxes mkvs and
- if you have mkvs that mediainfo shows as "Frame rate mode : Variable" and
- ffmpeg -i shows the "Seems stream 0 codec frame rate differs from container frame rate ..." warning and
- you are running a version of ffmpeg that is newer than the one supplied with serviio 0.5.2,

this might be a cause for a playback problem ...

I obviously need to try other files (1 is not a valid sample size!) , but that will take time to test.
If such testing contradicts the above, I will update ...

Thanks for the input to this problem, and thanks to Kahanamoku - you got me thinking in a different direction ...

( It's lucky that I said that it might be my mkv files earlier in this thread , or I would look pretty dumb )
( and if this is already discussed on this site, I humbly apologise for the wasted bandwidth this thread caused ... but I did search - honest )

edit - I previously stated that it wasn't just handbrake created files that were the problem. That was wrong ( a mistake on my part ) and I have edited such posts so as not to confuse anyone .....

[Cerberus]

think someone need to do a recommended setting for handbreak thread so other can learn and know the best settings to use

[zip]

good posts guys. The fact it worked in 0.5.2 is probably down to the fact that FFmpeg was patched, unline the newest versions. I thought it has been mostly fixed, but it looks like it's not completely.

You might give the guys here a bit of a push and maybe provide your examples to help them solve the problem: http://roundup.libav.org/issue807
Alternatively you can try applying the patch from there, although it's against a rather old code base.

The 2010 players support MKV too, it's just that they have problems (see the readme sticky in this forum folder), hence they're remuxed to overcome them.

Can you clarify what 'fails completely' means? No files listed? Or some? As mentioned earlier in the thread, there are no material changes to the profile, so it's surprising,

As for the DivX issue - the players were built to support DivX but it's apparently a bug in the firmware relating to MP3 playback, which these files use as audio. It fails when a certain parameter is not declared in the header, which is quite common. There's a thread on here about it and apparently it has been raised with Sony. It affects all 2011 Bravias and BDPs, and there is no way currently of separating files that will play from those that won't.

As I understood it MKV support while present was not "officially" supported on the 2010 players, it wasn't in the supported codec list for DLNA but it IS for the 2011 players.

Things that don't work for me (show as file is corrupted when trying to play) on my BDP-S480 using the Sony BD 2010 Profile:

WMV transcoding to M2TS, FLV transcoding to M2TS, MOV transcoding to M2TS, MP4 transcoding to M2TS.

MKV didn't work either but I removed all mention of transcoding/remuxing in the profile to get that to work. There may be others too, this is not an extensive list just ones I could quickly test.

To be fair, I'm not sure any of those worked on my BDP-S370 or older Serviio either, as I only centralised all my media files recently when I build a dedicated NAS box for Serviio.

[patters]

As I understood it MKV support while present was not "officially" supported on the 2010 players, it wasn't in the supported codec list for DLNA but it IS for the 2011 players.

They officially supported "DivX HD" by DLNA, which is mkv containing h264 and AAC audio. As it turns out, it's not fussy with other audio types.

Things that don't work for me (show as file is corrupted when trying to play) on my BDP-S480 using the Sony BD 2010 Profile:
WMV transcoding to M2TS, FLV transcoding to M2TS, MOV transcoding to M2TS, MP4 transcoding to M2TS.

In my testing, nothing seems to remux VC1 properly so the first one in that list is pretty normal. FLV shoud be transcoded to Mpeg2. Are your non-working MOVs and MP4s ones you've authored? I use downloaded files of these types without issue, but it's possible you have hit the framerate issue described by roswellgrey above.

MKV didn't work either but I removed all mention of transcoding/remuxing in the profile to get that to work.

As per last answer.

[patters]

@roswellgrey - nice find on the framerate. This issue isn't one I've encountered at all, but then I never bother encoding my own files. I haven't had a look yet, but I wonder whether we can force over-ride the framerate during an ffmpeg remux somehow, to stop it erroring like that.

[Illico]

... I wonder whether we can force over-ride the framerate during an ffmpeg remux somehow, to stop it erroring like that.

Not sure that Zip would like to add this "forceFrameRate" feature.

Just a quick note to say that ALL the files I tried that work or fail are downloads.

The bottom line is that if I have to remux files to make them work, then why would I bother using Serviio in the first place? :p

Anyway, is there any way I can get AVIs to playback without transcoding to MPEGTS? I keep trying to disable the transcoding to see if it would work (seeing as its not working WITH the transcoding anyway) but it always seems to still report them as MPEG format, surely it should say something different such as XviD?

[Cerberus]

it will report MPEG if the video codec is mpeg inside the avi container. can you post a ffmpeg -i information on this file as i suspect if you just rename the .AVI to .mpg it may play.

[patters]

It will report MPEG in the player's menus but it's actually using native playback for AVI. If you use something like the Intel uPnP tools you'll see that Serviio is serving up the unadulterated AVi file. Its mime type is set to MPEG to allow playback on US firmwares. If AVIs are not working for you then it's likely your 2011 model is encountering the bug with certain MP3 audio settings. It has been reported on here. Unfortunately it's a gotcha in the 2011 firmware, whereas the 2010 ones are fine.
It's likely Sony will fix this, but in the meantime you will probably need to transcode AVIs to mpeg2.