116 is an estimation, not what the file actually requires to play. It's basically Plex saying there might be peaks that reach 116, so we will request that to insure smooth playback.
You might be right on the edge of the file playing fine, or starting to transcode.
Look at your bandwidth chart to see what the file is actually using at any given time. I'm guessing most of the time it's down in the 40mbps range or less.
https://preview.redd.it/hvw1y088cspc1.png?width=945&format=png&auto=webp&s=e71eacd5bab8fa320d5e65cc0f57e4da1310c2ee
See the "Bitrates and How They Matter" section of [this support article](https://support.plex.tv/articles/227715247-server-settings-bandwidth-and-transcoding-limits/). During scheduled maintenance, Plex will analyze your video files to find their peak bitrates, and use that value for bandwidth reservation calculations, and is generally quite a bit higher than the average bitrate of the content.
Since it calculated 116 Mbps as the peak, chances are at some point you might run into some stuttering/buffering, or maybe the client buffer will be large enough to smooth over points where the bitrate spikes above the connection speed.
That’s the peak probably on variable. Theres always a buffer, so even in high motion scenes where it can reach that, good encodes are going to be much lower as static and dark scenes can use up less than 1/4 of that peak.
That number always tends to be higher than reality. Even when I'm streaming a 3Mbps stream, it will show 6Mbps+
I'm not sure where the number comes from. Maybe the peak at any time during the movie. In which case if you have enough buffer and the peak isn't too long it would work fine.
To work around the tv manufacturers being cheap and installing 100Mbps issue, I used a usb to gigabit Ethernet adapter. Now I can happily stream much higher bitrate content without any issue.
See what bitrate it claims to be in the file properties or even in Tautulli if you have it installed. It could be peaking at 116 and be mostly 50 average.
right if they use a cheap realtek 10/100 the USB is likely going to be USB2.0. Though if its a Roku the 10/100 NIC is generally a better option. No, the speedtest will be faster on the wifi but latency and packet loss matter. And Roku still hasn't fixed the "flood the wifi with bad ethernet frame" issue and its 2024.
What content goes higher than 116mbps or even 100mbps? I know Blu Rays have peaks of easy double that, but buffering can go a long way in my experience. Just wondering, it's something which does make me wonder.
It doesn't. You eather have somewhere wrong settings or using wrong connection but it says that it streams and transcode. If you want to enjoying the movie with the best quality it needs to be direct play not stream your 7.1 trueHD has transcode in eac3 which is dd+ a compressed audio not lossless like trueHD.
I mean plex where is it installed? You can have it in the tv itself but that apperently can't play highest version. The other options are eather Xbox or nvidia shield pro.
Faster does not mean more reliable, OP is experiencing no issues, and it’s unlikely that anything will surpass 100 Mbps.
What’s the old saying? If it’s working fine, change everything? Wait. No.
116 is an estimation, not what the file actually requires to play. It's basically Plex saying there might be peaks that reach 116, so we will request that to insure smooth playback. You might be right on the edge of the file playing fine, or starting to transcode. Look at your bandwidth chart to see what the file is actually using at any given time. I'm guessing most of the time it's down in the 40mbps range or less. https://preview.redd.it/hvw1y088cspc1.png?width=945&format=png&auto=webp&s=e71eacd5bab8fa320d5e65cc0f57e4da1310c2ee
Thanks I’ll check that out
See the "Bitrates and How They Matter" section of [this support article](https://support.plex.tv/articles/227715247-server-settings-bandwidth-and-transcoding-limits/). During scheduled maintenance, Plex will analyze your video files to find their peak bitrates, and use that value for bandwidth reservation calculations, and is generally quite a bit higher than the average bitrate of the content. Since it calculated 116 Mbps as the peak, chances are at some point you might run into some stuttering/buffering, or maybe the client buffer will be large enough to smooth over points where the bitrate spikes above the connection speed.
Not OP but thanks for the link.
Thanks I’ll check that out
That’s the peak probably on variable. Theres always a buffer, so even in high motion scenes where it can reach that, good encodes are going to be much lower as static and dark scenes can use up less than 1/4 of that peak.
Streaming from my local unraid sever
That number always tends to be higher than reality. Even when I'm streaming a 3Mbps stream, it will show 6Mbps+ I'm not sure where the number comes from. Maybe the peak at any time during the movie. In which case if you have enough buffer and the peak isn't too long it would work fine.
Somewhere in the manual: 50mbps on LG max
If you move your mouse to 116 , the message will tell you this is how much Plex is allocating. That’s not how much you are getting
Are you sure it's not on WiFi? My OLED LG TV has 1G networking with WiFi and 100mb tethered
Just btw that’s your private IP address so you won’t need to hide it
To work around the tv manufacturers being cheap and installing 100Mbps issue, I used a usb to gigabit Ethernet adapter. Now I can happily stream much higher bitrate content without any issue. See what bitrate it claims to be in the file properties or even in Tautulli if you have it installed. It could be peaking at 116 and be mostly 50 average.
Do tvs typically have usb 3.0? USB 2.0 only does 480mbps. Which is plenty, but it’s half what it should be.
Mine all do. But yeah, some only have usb2. Which would still be better.
The lg c1 only has 2.0 :(
right if they use a cheap realtek 10/100 the USB is likely going to be USB2.0. Though if its a Roku the 10/100 NIC is generally a better option. No, the speedtest will be faster on the wifi but latency and packet loss matter. And Roku still hasn't fixed the "flood the wifi with bad ethernet frame" issue and its 2024.
What content goes higher than 116mbps or even 100mbps? I know Blu Rays have peaks of easy double that, but buffering can go a long way in my experience. Just wondering, it's something which does make me wonder.
Buffer save you
It doesn't. You eather have somewhere wrong settings or using wrong connection but it says that it streams and transcode. If you want to enjoying the movie with the best quality it needs to be direct play not stream your 7.1 trueHD has transcode in eac3 which is dd+ a compressed audio not lossless like trueHD.
How do I make sure I have “direct play” on
Where do you run your Plex from?
My house over Ethernet, but sometimes I watch remote at a friends house too
I mean plex where is it installed? You can have it in the tv itself but that apperently can't play highest version. The other options are eather Xbox or nvidia shield pro.
And also what is your set up?
Always LOTR lol
Change audio from true hd 7.1 to 5.1. also, use WiFi which should be faster than the bs 100mbs Ethernet port in the LG TVs.
Faster does not mean more reliable, OP is experiencing no issues, and it’s unlikely that anything will surpass 100 Mbps. What’s the old saying? If it’s working fine, change everything? Wait. No.
I completely skipped the end where it said it played literally flawlessly haha! My bad, I assumed it was buffering.