Recordings won't play correctly in Windows client

[qam1600]

Trying to move from WMC to NextPVR and have everything mostly working, but can't get recordings to play properly in NextPVR.exe Windows client. Recordings are OTA from HDHomeRun Flex 4K, MPEG2 for normal channels and HEVC with audio transcoded to AC3 on the ATSC 3.0 channels. Installed the latest 6.1.1 on Windows 11 22H2, installed LAV 0.77.1 that has both 32 and 64-bit, and even copied the install.bat files from the 32-bit portable zip download and ran them to make sure 32-bit LAV was registered. Recordings play "choppy" and audio is nowhere near in sync. Recordings play fine in Windows Media Center, so I am baffled.

Uidroid on Fire stick and Chromecast Google TV works, as well as Roku, but no fast-forward is a critical missing piece on those clients for me. The Kodi PVR client failed wouldn't play anything for me. Hopefully I can find some client where fast-forward works. Would love to finally get off WMC.

[mvallevand]

I don't plan on adding fast-forward to my clients (uidroid or Roku channel) for several reasons

- there aren't generally enough keys to support it as well as skipping
- quite often 8x is as fast as it gets, it can easily top out 100Mbs and it uses a lot of wifi bandwidth.
- UI client protocol doesn't support changing the speed so it is client dependent method.
- trick play rewind is tough on UI clients using http and it is clumsy to jump from FF keys to skip keys for rewind.
- long and sort skip work very well, and even better with a remote was a number key for time based skipping
- comskip can be better than skipping.

Perhaps you missed the note to swap the default setting in config.xml to have the arrows work more logically. <LeftRightBehaviour>Long Skip</LeftRightBehaviour> You can also adjust the long and short skip time jumps to meet your needs. Once you get used to the long and short skip you might find you will get used to it too, many NextPVR users have.

Another issue is you play mkv files which don't come from NextPVR. Playback of those in NextPVR.exe use Windows decoders and splitters not NextPVR control.

How did you import your mkv files. Kodi should work fine and a bad import would explain some playback issues. We should be able to get pvr.nextpvr working like pvr.wmc on Android assuming that is what you are using. I didn't know WMC played mkv files their proprietary wtv container is actually good.

I do see some remuxing to mpg too which makes zero sense in the NextPVR world. There is no value for mpeg-ps in any NextPVR clients.

Martin

[qam1600]

I don't plan on adding fast-forward to my clients (uidroid or Roku channel) for several reasons

Perhaps you missed the note to swap the default setting in config.xml to have the arrows work more logically.  <LeftRightBehaviour>Long Skip</LeftRightBehaviour>  You can also adjust the long and short skip time jumps to meet your needs.  Once you get used to the long and short skip you might find you will get used to it too, many NextPVR users have.

Another issue is you play mkv files which don't come from NextPVR.  Playback of those in NextPVR.exe use Windows decoders and splitters not NextPVR control.

How did you import your mkv files.  Kodi should work fine and a bad import would explain some playback issues.  We should be able to get pvr.nextpvr working like pvr.wmc on Android assuming that is what you are using. I didn't know WMC played mkv files their proprietary wtv container is actually good. 

I do see some remuxing to mpg too which makes zero sense in the NextPVR world. There is no value for mpeg-ps in any NextPVR clients.

Thanks for taking a look. If I had fast-forward working in NextPVR.exe, I would be happier to settle for skips in other clients. After trying FFDShow 32-bit, and uninstalling it after it didn't work, audio doesn't play at all in normal Transport Stream files. Reinstalling LAV and even Shark007 codecs didn't bring audio back. Still have audio in transcoded MKVs, but won't play properly. The remuxed MPEG Program Stream files actually play better than anything else in NextPVR.exe - audio works and is in sync sith video, just a little jerky. The reason for remuxing to MPG is that I record those shows for the purpose of editing out sections with Mpg2Cut2. Avidemux takes forever to load an MPEG-TS file for editing. Those MPG files do not play nice in Uidroid, I see. I could probably buy a better editor.

Do I need to use NScriptHelper.dll after reencodeing to MKV? <CheckForRenamedRecordings> is true so I thought it was working fine as is.

I don't reencode to MKV on WMC since it can't record ATSC 3.0 channels. Yes, the pvr.wmc works great in Kodi for me, possibly because it opens recordings directly with SMB I think. 

I did figure out to set <SkipFFSeconds> bigger (180) and left <SkipForwardSeconds> at 60 so I would have two different lengths of skip forward, and left <LeftRightBehaviour> at default. I use Harmony hub remotes and have plenty of keys on the remote. I should probably take a look at Comskip, too.

[mvallevand]

UI clients and mpeg-ps are going to be undefined behaviour for sure, they won't have indexed seeking or the seeking needed by Android and Roku. Skipping won't work with them either.

Do you have the 32 bit LAV splitter installed, I seem to recall that being required for mkv in NextPVR.

Kodi should use the file system too, if you recording to a share it would do the translation for your, otherwise you can use advancedsettings.xml to map if you aren't on the same PC.

Do you get extra keys on your FTV or Roku with the Hub? I was never able to do that.

Martin

[qam1600]

UI clients and mpeg-ps are going to be undefined behaviour for sure, they won't have indexed seeking or the seeking needed by Android and Roku.  Skipping won't work with them either.

Do you have the 32 bit LAV splitter installed, I seem to recall that being required for mkv in NextPVR.

Kodi should use the file system too, if you recording to a share it would do the translation for your, otherwise you can use advancedsettings.xml to map if you aren't on the same PC.

Do you get extra keys on your FTV or  Roku with the Hub?  I was never able to do that.

Martin

I am remuxing some recordings to MKV instead of MPG now, able to edit with Avidemux, and plays everywhere.

The LAV installer has both 32-bit and 64-bit. To make sure 32-bit was registered, I copied the install.bat files from the portable zip download and ran them.

The PVR add-on for Kodi is working now, but HEVC recordings with AC3 audio won't play correctly on my mini-PCs. I got around the codec issue by installing Kodi on the server, and HEVC plays fine in Kodi there, since it's more powerful than the mini PCs.

Logitech has some extra buttons in their Amazon Fire TV device definition, like Skip as well as FF, but there are no number buttons.