Solution: Play MKV files on a Sony Bravia TV by USB

Seán

Just recently, we bought a new Sony Bravia TV, the KDL37EX403U, with a few reasons including that it supports RTE HD (Saorview), is Freeview HD compliant (if we get the signal once full strength) and plays HD video files directly from USB.

All went well until I loaded a few MKV (720p AVC/H264 encoded) files onto a USB drive and found that the TV does not list them. As this TV states that it plays AVC video, I had a go at trying out different file containers and it turns out that it plays the MP4 container format fine, even with a Dolby Digital (AC3) soundtrack.

The process to convert MKV to MP4 is very straight forward and takes just a minute or two per gigabyte of video, as no re-encoding is necessary, assuming it contains an audio and video format already supported by the TV.

First you need to get AviDemux, which is a freeware video editing/conversion tool. Install and run it:

Converting_MKV_to_MP4.png

1. When you open the MKV file, it'll say "H264 detected". Click 'Yes'.
2. For the 'Video' drop-down select 'Copy'
3. For the 'Audio' drop-down select 'Copy'
4. For the 'Format' drop-down, select 'MP4'
5. Save the video with a filename ending in '.MP4' and click 'Save'.
6. If it says "Invalid audio stream detected", click 'Yes'.

For our TV model, the TV seems to play 720p video perfectly smooth, including with a Dolby Digital soundtrack even though it's a non-standard soundtrack for the MP4 container.

This should hopefully work on similar Bravia models such as the KDL40EX403U, KDL37EX503U, KDL40EX503U, etc. Obviously the TV must be able to support AVC (H264) video for this to work. If you have an MKV file with a different type of soundtrack (e.g. DTS or MP3), you could try selecting "AAC" for the Audio drop-down, as an audio-only conversion would still go very quick, unlike carrying out a complete video conversion.

olyteddy

Good tutorial Seán. I tend to recommend AviDeMux quite a bit. My guess as to why the MKV wasn't supported is that TVs add playback from USB as an afterthought and just use the routines (and hence the codecs and containers) that are already part of the firmware that plays television.

__________________

Mr. Belvedere

You're still not plaing MKV files. You're playing converted files.

__________________
"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. When things start getting weird, it's pitchfork o'clock."

Do you have too much money? Give bitcoins to 1AdobZQNvfyZuDEbderRfT46KQEKkaW5dE

extra21

hi!

I just got myself a SONY Bavaria KDL 40EX402, and ive been trying all night to converty MKV files to mp4 or avi. but when i click on save project, it shows a warning sign, and the when i open up the program again, it says that it has a corrupt file...
if i press on the "save disk" to the left, (save video) it comes out ok. i see the file on the tv and all, but it wont play it...

all i want is to be able to play the MKV files converted to any sort on my new tv.

i would really apreciate it if someone could guide me in the right path... :S

Seán

Welcome aboard

Sorry, I had a mistake in the above image (now corrected) as I didn't notice I pointed at the wrong save icon. It should be the 'Save' button next to the 'Open' video icon.

I'm not quite sure off hand what the difference is between the Bravia 402 & 403 TV model, but going by the specification, your TV should be able to play MPEG4. However, it is quite possible that your MKV file is using either an unsupported video codec (e.g. VP6) or is using a codec feature not supported by the TV.

Just in case it is the Audio codec, I would suggest trying "AAC (faac)" for the Audio drop-down field, make sure the Format drop-down is "MP4" and save the video. Also make sure the file name you save as ends in ".mp4"

Unfortunately, if this does not work, you will need to re-encode the video. You can do this by selecting "MPEG-4 AVC" from the video-drop down field, "AAC (faac)" for the Audio drop-down field and "MP4" for the Format field and carrying out the conversion. This process could take a few hours depending on the performance of your system, but should result in it being playable.

You can check the details of your MKV file by opening it in AviDemux and going to File -> Information.

extra21

cool! thanks for the quick answer!
ill try that and get back to you!
cheers!

UTR

I'll take this opportunity to make a quick promotion for using a computer to playback video on your HDTV. This can be done with a laptop that has an HDMI output or even an older computer you have collecting dust. I built an HTPC (Home Theater PC) from spare parts I had lying around over a year ago and haven't looked back. I can play any file format necessary and have the added bonus of being able to connect to the Internet to surf or play online video. Just thought I would mention this as an option to solve your problem.

debro

PS3 Media Server will serve suitably encoded 720p/1080p mkv's in an mp4 format to bravia tv's, with ethernet, using TSmuxer (no video conversion). Saves you doing it manually

If it's not compatible, it will re-encode on the fly to Mpeg2 (which is crappy, but Ok until real MKV support comes along).

Somehow I doubt Sony will ever support MKV's in their TV's & Consoles

__________________

sandeepsalone

Thanks, i was able to convert to Mp4. But when I connect my Seagate HDD 320GB, my sony TV 46HX803 does not detect it! It was in NTFS format, i created a FAT32 partition it it, but still wont detect. Any idea?

debro

Video resolution must be the full 1080p or 720p, not cropped in any way.

__________________

rhshah123

after converting the resultant file doesnot have any file format, when i mention a format while saving the file, the resultant file works well in my computer but its is too shaky and doesnot work well on my son bravia ex520 what should i do?

Seán

Welcome aboard

Unfortunately, as I've also discovered myself, the TV is quite picky about the audio or video encoding itself, so certain MKVs and AVIs will not play even when repackaged as MP4 files. For example, my TV will not handle MP3 as the audio format. Also make sure you add '.mp4' to the filename in AviDemux's save field, as AviDemux does not do this automatically.

If you're lucky, it might just be audio encoding, so my first suggestion is to choose 'AAC' for the "Audio" drop-down in AviDemux before saving. This will convert the audio into the AAC format. If the video encoding itself is fine, then the resulting video should play fine.

If this does not work, then you will need to carry out a full conversion, e.g. choose "MPEG-4 AVC" for the "Video" drop-down and "AAC" for the "Audio" drop-down. This is a very time-consuming process and can take an hour or two for an hour of video, depending on your computer's processing power and the video resolution of the source video.

rhshah123

can you suggest me any othe mkv convertor which is less time consumin.....n the result is also good enough

debro

If you have a Core i-2 series, you can purchase an encoder that will utilise the CPU's quicksynch capabilities. to transcode the video stream.

Otherwise, you'll just have to try using avidemux, and make sure the video is on "copy, the audio is stereo AAC,and the output is MP4 file format.

If the file doesn't work, or plays badly, you're up for a complete Transcode of the video stream, which takes ages.

__________________

platinumsword

This could be the header compression problem.

I.E.

If the mkv file(s) were created with a version of mkvmerge that compresses the headers by default, then this could be causing the problem. Use mkvextractGUI to take the file a part then put in back together with a newer version of mkvmerge. Make sure that you disable header removal compression in the options.


Use tools like mediaInfo to do comparisons between files.

Know the supported codecs, containers and size/bitrate restrictions for your TV.

__________________
Monster HDP 2500 / Toshiba 55UL610U / Onkyo TX-NR818 / Energy RC-70,RC-LCR,CF-70 / Velodyne EQ-Max 12 / Oppo BDP-83 / LG LDA-831


Three simple rules:

1. Never Change the Deal
2. No Names.
3. Never Open the Package.

kracker94

hii sean ,i have this (POTC On Stranger Tides 2011 720p BDRip Dual Audio Hindi English AC3 x264 NiCkkkDoN) movie file .and as u say i had converted it into .mp4 but if i play it in my sony bravia kdl-ex520 t.v ,the vedio works fine but audio does'nt work.
what shouls i do?

imkidd57

@kracker94: you should go and buy the movie. We will not help with illegally distributed material.

__________________
.
.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you are new to the internet, have a query about digital storage, or would maybe like to tell us a bit about yourself: just register with us
and try either the Newbie forum or the MyCE Living Room. Alternatively, if you fancy some chit-chat (without technical help),
then you're welcome to use the Chatbox to have a natter to other experienced members and staff.

So what are you waiting for? Click the smiley to join -->
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

kermbey

thank you. i am trying to view movie with subs. Is that possible?

rishabjaswal

thanks

daftt

thanks to whoever posted

korachi_guy

NIce Share, I was looking for it

Excellent Forum, Loving it

Escorsario

Oh cool thanks so much, first time in this forum and i see a great answer for my TV sony bravia!!

by the way, i am using a normal pendrive for use in TV, but it's getting a little head, will be bad?

macbass

Yesterday I went into a sony store and asked an assistant how play MKVs on my sony TV ( KDL-32L4000 ) with my sony blu ray S370 player. I had a flash card with a MKV file and he played it through a newer player. He said I needed to update my firmware which required making a CD-R disc. I went home and followed the sony instructions on my computer and then inserted it into my player. The TV took a few minutes to successfully update the firmware but when I put the flash card into the player, it still would not play the MKV file. The assistant played it through 2 players, both newer than mine and my question is: will a newer player solve the problem or is the TV the problem? Like yourself, I have been converting the MKVs to MP4s using Visual Hub or sometimes iSkysoft both of which are not free. VH is no longer available but is still very usable. If you have any info, please let me know.
macbass

DrageMester

If you're using a player that supports MKV files, then the TV will simply show what the player is playing.

In other words, if you use an USB port or card-slot in the TV directly, then the capabilities of the TV will determine what can and cannot be played. But if you use an external device, then the capabilities of that external device will determine what can be played.

That being said, I don't know which Sony players (if any) can play MKV files.

__________________
Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.

UTR

I would suggest looking into one of the PC-on-a-stick units that can be had for around $50. I have the MK808 which is a dual core CPU/quad core GPU that plays about any video format very smoothly. It outputs up to 1080p via HDMI and turns your HDTV into a large Android tablet. It comes with Android 4.1 and even is Flash compatible. It also has an OTG USB and a microcard slot. It will read a USB drive (flash or HD) and even supports a USB hub. It will also support a wireless keyboard and mouse, or wired ones. It is a great device and even functions respectably as an HTPC. The downside is it doesn't support 5.1 audio if that is important to you.