Stutter on Amazon Prime Video?

[DJ Bobo]

Hi guys
I know, there is a guy here that seems to work at Amazon, but I forgot his name, so please feel free to tag him if you know him.

The problem I've got is, the video has become stuttery on the PS5 since a few months.
Many movies have a regular stutter, like on every keyframe or so. Particularly clear on pans, obviously, but not always (!)
Examples:
- Gladiator (Theatrical cut)
- Jean-Claude Van Johnson, in the beginning of Episode 5 (pan over the car)
- State of Play

I can't be the only one having this, right?!

[wonkey_monkey]

Many movies have a regular stutter, like on every keyframe or so.

Keyframes aren't regular these days (unlike the days of DVD). They could be many seconds apart. If the stutter is actually regular, on the scale of a second or two, then I'd check what framerate the console is outputting to the TV (Info button on the remote may show it).

If it's fixed to 60p (edit: from what I read, the PS5 doesn't allow streaming apps to switch to 24p), 24p streams will exhibit some stuttering. There might be settngs on the TV you can change (take it out of Game mode, for a start, but also check for things like "Accurate IFC" or similar), or maybe settings on the console (120p output might make it less noticeable).

[RetsimLegin]

Aside from any playback issues you may be having at your end, Amazon are quite capable of (and often do) actually having technically faulty encoded material. Particular issues I have seen include:
- 23.976 fps source re-encoded at exactly 24 fps (results in a duplicated frame every ~40 sec)
- 25 fps source re-rendered at 23.976 or 24 fps (results in a dropped frame every ~second)
- etc.

[DJ Bobo]

Can you guys check if you have the same issue on your PS5? Jean-Claude Van Johnson is available for free right now, just go to Episode 5, it is right at the beginning.

@ wonkey
PS5 at 60Hz, TV at 60Hz; happens only with some films on Amazon Prime, everything else runs just fine, incl. other streaming apps on the PS5.

@ RetsimLegin
May be, but it doesn't seem to be the case here, as playback on PC is smooth.

[Blue_MiSfit]

May be, but it doesn't seem to be the case here, as playback on PC is smooth.


Zero guarantee that the same encode is running on PC. Any premium content streaming service will have multiple encoding ladders with multiple codecs and encryption modes. For example, you might need an SDR ladder encoded with AVC capping out at 1080p, and you might need to package it once with CTR mode for legacy devices and once with CBCS mode for newer devices. Amplify that by multiple additional ladders for different flavors of HDR (HDR10(+) vs Dolby Vision) and or multiple codecs (HEVC, AV1, etc).

If you're watching in the browser you're probably getting AVC SDR, and on PS5 you might be getting HEVC with some form of HDR. Most of the time that would mean different masters (though some services like Netflix master in IMF with Dolby Vision and derive SDR from that).

[Emulgator]

Thanks for that insight, Derek !

[DJ Bobo]

@ Blue_MiSfit
You might be right.
Unfortunately, I cannot tell what format is being streamed :/