No audio on certain TV channels and all radio channels (NextPVR backend)

[CVasilakis]

I use Prysm to watch live TV from my Raspberry Pi TV Hat, using NextPVR as the backend. While the app is generally great, I am experiencing missing audio on several channels. Specifically:

• Some TV channels play video perfectly but have no sound.
• All radio channels have no audio.
• Radio channels that broadcast a video feed (displaying the currently playing song) show the video fine, but still have no audio.

For comparison, the VLC Android app plays both video and audio perfectly on all of these exact same channels and radios.

Environment:

• Device: Google Pixel 8 Pro
• OS: Android 16 QPR2
• Target SDK: 36
• Backend: NextPVR (via Raspberry Pi TV Hat)

Logcat & Reproduction Timeline:

I attach a logcat file that maps to the following timeline:

Prysm log.txt

• 15:20: Started playing a working TV channel (Both video and audio work).
• 15:21: Started playing a failing TV channel (Video works, but no audio).
• 15:22: Started playing a failing radio channel (No video transmission for this stream, but no audio works).
• 15:23: Started playing a failing radio channel that broadcasts a video of the currently playing song (Video works, but no audio).

Note that there is a IllegalStateException related to android.media.MediaCodec$EventHandler sending a message to a dead thread in this timestamps.

Additional Context & Codec Information:

I pulled the Current Media Information from the VLC Windows application to compare a working channel against the broken ones (just in case it helps):

^ Working TV Channel (Video + Audio works)

^ Failing TV Channel (Video works, NO Audio)

^ Failing Radio Channel (NO Audio)

^ Failing Radio Channel with Video (Video works, NO Audio)

[dereferencex]

Hi, thanks for the detailed report — this issue has now been fixed.

The missing audio on certain TV channels (AC3/EAC3) and radio streams was caused by a combination of decoder fallback and audio track selection issues. This has been addressed in commit f24b9b0

Fixes included:

• Enabled software decoder fallback for AC3/EAC3 streams (common in DVB-T)
• Ensured audio tracks are selected even with partial decoder support
• Fixed audio muting on radio/audio-only streams by using the correct audio content type

This fix is included in v1.2.0, so updating to that version should resolve the problem.

Let me know if you still run into any issues.

[CVasilakis]

Unfortunately, these issues persist in the latest release (v1.2.0).

Here is a summary of the current behavior:

• Missing Audio: The same regular channels that had no audio in v1.1.1 still do not output any audio in v1.2.0.
• Radio Channels Failing to Load: Radio channels do not load at all in v1.2.0. They get stuck in an endless "buffering" state.

I've included the logcat demonstrating the issue below:

Prysm log.txt

Please refer to the timestamps from 19:47 onwards. During this specific session, I reproduce the issue by opening the regular channels (which play without audio) and also opening the radio channels (which hang indefinitely on the buffering screen).

[dereferencex]

Thanks for sharing the logs , that really helps.

I’ve made some fixes in v1.2.1 that should improve this. In particular, I fixed a thread-related issue in the player by clearing the video surface before releasing ExoPlayer. This was causing dead thread errors and might be the reason behind the behavior you’re seeing.

You can check the specific fix here:
13006e9

Please try updating to v1.2.1 and let me know how it works on your end .

[CVasilakis]

Unfortunately, these issues persist in the latest release (v1.2.1). The same behavior with my previous message.

Here is the new logs after clean installing the latest release:

Prysm log.txt.

I reproduce the issue by opening the regular channels (which play without audio) and also opening the radio channels (which hang indefinitely on the buffering screen).

In the logs you will find:

1. Media Playback & ExoPlayer Errors:

   • ExoPlayerImplInternal: Playback error
   • androidx.media3.exoplayer.ExoPlaybackException: Source error

2. Threading & Handler State Exceptions:

   • java.lang.IllegalStateException: Handler (android.media.MediaCodec$EventHandler) {...} sending message to a Handler on a dead thread

3. Hardware Codec & Surface Issues:

   • Failed to query component interface for required system resources: 6
   • Codec2Client: setOutputSurface -- failed to set consumer usage (6/BAD_INDEX)
   • CCodecBufferChannel: [...] MediaCodec discarded an unknown buffer
   • GraphicsTracker: Tried to deallocate non dequeued buffer

4. React Native & UI Warnings:

   • ReactNative: Can't cancel already finished gesture. Is a child View trying to start a gesture from an UP/CANCEL event?
   • ReactNativeJS: setBehaviorAsync is not supported with edge-to-edge enabled

[dereferencex]

I’ve addressed the dead thread and related playback issues in v1.2.2

The fix is part of commit: c9581b8.

Please update to the latest version and let me know if you still run into any problems.

[CVasilakis]

Unfortunately the issue still persists in version 1.3.1 and 1.2.2. The behavior remains the same. Most channels get stuck in an infinite "buffering" loop this time. To help with debugging, I attach:

Log file after clean install of version 1.3.1:
Prysm log 04d6c01d03e1.txt

Screen recording (Prysm): A video demonstrating the issue in action corresponding to the above logs:
https://www.swisstransfer.com/d/a3f76ca6-1d3f-47f1-a50a-f76272353323

Screen recording (VLC): A video showing the exact same channels playing normally in VLC, for comparison:
https://www.swisstransfer.com/d/1400d0c5-8938-4453-8395-a10eadd8b113

[dereferencex]

Thanks for the detailed report and for providing the logs.

In the latest release, Prysm v1.4.0, I have added support for the VLC playback engine as an alternative to ExoPlayer. Since VLC is able to play these channels correctly on your device, switching Prysm to use the VLC engine may resolve the missing audio issues you're seeing with certain TV and radio channels.

Please update to v1.4.0 and try the VLC engine from the player settings. If the problem persists even when using VLC, feel free to share the results and we'll continue investigating.

Thanks for helping improve Prysm!

[CVasilakis]

Using the latest (v1.4.0) version the issue is resolved using the VLC as player engine. Though using the default exoplayer (media3) the issue persist. I think it is ok to close the issue.