Sony BDP-S370: .mkv Playback Problems

[MWisBest]

Well, a while ago I used to play MKVs just fine on my BDP-S370 off of my portable WD HDD (500GB). I just decided to get into doing that again, and now it can't play any of my .mkv's. Whenever it starts the MKV I just get a bright red screen and the player freezes. After about a minute it will restart the unit and go back to the home menu. I don't understand why it's doing this now, other than the fact that I did a firmware update when I started it up a few days ago which might be causing the issue.

The MKVs I made myself are about 3.75GB, with 640kpbs 5.1 channel AC3 audio and a little over 4000kbps x264 video.

One thing that is strange, is that I was able to play an MP4 just fine (it was definitely less kbps then my MKVs though), although it had a pretty slow start-up time.

The big thing I don't want to do is have to convert all my MKVs to MP4s, unless somebody could tell me how to keep the same video and same audio stats as the AC3 but as AAC.

So my big question is why is there a red screen when I play my MKVs, can I fix it, and if not is there a way to easily convert my MKVs to MP4s without losing any quality. Oh, and the files can't be 4GB or over because I'm stuck using FAT32.

And one last thing, the MKVs play back fine on my computer in Windows Media Player (I have all the codecs for it and whatnot).

[jman98]

NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER apply a firmware update to any DVD or BluRay player unless you are 100% absolutely convinced that it fixes a problem that cannot live with and anything has to be better than living with the problem. I wish I could get paid for every time somebody posted here about how a firmware update screwed them.

Geez man, You're REALLY going to consider converting because of this? Look the truth is that TVs and BluRay and DVD players were never designed as "play everything" type devices. Yes, the firmware update probably screwed you here. Just buy a streaming media player like a Western Digital model or something similar and use it to play your files without conversion. The idea you propose of converting your files is insane and my personal rule is that I don't help people to do insane things here. But others have no such rule so maybe they will help you. By the way, a streaming media player does not have a FAT32 limit. NTFS (and thus larger files) works fine there, which is another reason to consider it.

MP4 does now allow AC3. I don't know where your information is from but that's been true for years. Now maybe Sony doesn't allow it for all I know, but the MP4 container guys reluctantly blessed AC3 audio a few years ago. Finally the fact that the MKVs play in WMP only proves that there is actual video there, but PCs can always play files that will make players like your barf.

[MWisBest]

NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER apply a firmware update to any DVD or BluRay player unless you are 100% absolutely convinced that it fixes a problem that cannot live with and anything has to be better than living with the problem. I wish I could get paid for every time somebody posted here about how a firmware update screwed them.

Geez man, You're REALLY going to consider converting because of this? Look the truth is that TVs and BluRay and DVD players were never designed as "play everything" type devices. Yes, the firmware update probably screwed you here. Just buy a streaming media player like a Western Digital model or something similar and use it to play your files without conversion. The idea you propose of converting your files is insane and my personal rule is that I don't help people to do insane things here. But others have no such rule so maybe they will help you. By the way, a streaming media player does not have a FAT32 limit. NTFS (and thus larger files) works fine there, which is another reason to consider it.

MP4 does now allow AC3. I don't know where your information is from but that's been true for years. Now maybe Sony doesn't allow it for all I know, but the MP4 container guys reluctantly blessed AC3 audio a few years ago. Finally the fact that the MKVs play in WMP only proves that there is actual video there, but PCs can always play files that will make players like your barf.

Converting isn't a real issue. I don't have THAT many files to convert. I know MP4 doesn't allow AC3. That's why I asked for a way to convert the AC3 to AAC and not lose quality. And this isn't "insane".

To be honest, I don't know if the firmware update is the issue or if it's the files. I should try one of my old files that played fine before the update, because right now I'm just trying my new ones.

...after typing the above...

I just tried opening one of my old MKVs in tsMuxer and it opened fine. My new ones that I try to open however, complain about "invalid h264 nal unit", which is something I don't understand.

On top of that, I just tried opening my original source MKVs for the new ones I had made to convert the audio to AC3 from DTS to save space, and they opened up fine as well.

I have been using mkvmerge GUI, and I'm wondering if there's something fishy going on with that now.

EDIT: I just remuxed my MKV and changed the header compression setting and my files are opening in txMuxer now, so I assume they'll start working in my BluRay player as well. I'll report back after I test out the BluRay.

[Baldrick]

Be sure to disable header compression in mmg. File->Options.


And mp4 does allow ac3 as jman98 mentions...

[MWisBest]

Be sure to disable header compression in mmg. File->Options.


And mp4 does allow ac3 as jman98 mentions...

...EDIT: I just remuxed my MKV and changed the header compression setting and my files are opening in txMuxer now, so I assume they'll start working in my BluRay player as well. I'll report back after I test out the BluRay...

...The big thing I don't want to do is have to convert all my MKVs to MP4s, unless somebody could tell me how to keep the same video and same audio stats as the AC3 but as AAC...

I wish somebody would pay attention to me asking about AAC in the first post...

EDIT: This is where I noticed the compression issue: http://www.bunkus.org/videotools/mkvtoolnix/faq.html#header_removal_compression. It also mentions that the WDTV device also suffers from the same issue. I don't appreciate people telling me to go and buy something rather than helping with the real issue. -.-

[wulf109]

At least two posters told you that ac3 is compatible with mp4,so why convert to aac? I have a 370 and 380 and mkv files are hit and miss. The way an mkv can be created is to variable. I've used a program called MKVtoVOB to convert mkv to mp4 so my Sony players can play the file. It adds a little to the converted file but leaves the original video and audio intact.

[Baldrick]

I don't appreciate people telling me to go and buy something rather than helping with the real issue. -.-

Probably because

Well, a while ago I used to play MKVs just fine on my BDP-S370 off of my portable WD HDD (500GB). I just decided to get into doing that again, and now it can't play any of my .mkv's

It really sounds like all mkvs worked fine and now the same don't. Then it would probably be a firmware issue.


But anyway. Did it work with the header removal?

[MWisBest]

My mistake, I thought they were telling me MP4 didn't support AC3, which I have read that it doesn't. None of the MP4 encoders I have opened up let me input AC3 as an audio track. I looked in other places and didn't see that it supported AC3. Actually, this is the only place I've been told MP4 supports AC3. Everywhere else says it doesn't support it.

And currently I'm remuxing all my MKVs that didn't work. Once they're all done, I'll see if they work in the BluRay player.

And if this is the issue, what would have happened had I gone out and bought the WDTV? I'd be out of money because it would've had the same problem.

EDIT: It was the header issue. Everything is working okay now.

[mark1978]

I solved it by adding an extra ac3 audio track to the mkv. Bluray player will play it without freezing.