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AllyPally12's avatar
AllyPally12
Newbie
2 years ago
Solved

Roku media player not playing MP4 files from external harddrive connected via USB

When trying to play a movie in MP4 format on my external harddrive connected to the TV via USB port, the Roku media player will list out the files, but when I try play the video, I get this error mes...
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  • RokuEmmanuel-D's avatar
    RokuEmmanuel-D
    2 years ago

    Hi, AllyPally12.

    A warmest welcome here in the Roku Community!

    We understand you're having issues playing movie through an external drive via USB. We're happy to provide information.

    Encountering this type of issue might be caused by several problems. You may want to check the following to isolate the problem you're experiencing:

    1. Make sure that you added the Roku Media Player to the Streaming Store. Roku Media Player allows you to watch personal videos, listen to music, and view photos using the USB port on your Roku device or by accessing a media server on your local network.
    2. Also, try checking if your Media File is compatible to play on your Roku device.

    You might check it out here...

    The following file formats are supported:

    • Video – H.264/AVC (.MKV, .MP4, .MOV)
    • Audio – AAC (.MKV, .MP4, .MOV); MP3(.MP3, .MKV); FLAC (.FLAC, .MKV), PCM (.WAV, .MKV, .MP4, .MOV), AC3/EAC3 (.MKV,.MP4. .MOV, .AC3), DTS (.MKV, .MP4, .MOV,.DTS), ALAC (.MKV, .MP4, .MOV, .M4A), Vorbis (.OGG,.MKV,.WEBM)
    • Playlists –.M3U, .M3U8, .PLS
    • Image – JPG, PNG, GIF (non-animated)

    The following media formats are supported on Roku devices that support 4K

    • 4K Video – H.265/HEVC (.MKV, .MP4, .MOV); VP9 (.MKV, .WEBM) and AV1 (.MKV, MP4) on some Roku devices.
    • 4K Video – H.264 (Roku Premiere, Premiere+, and Ultra only)

    The following media formats are supported on Roku devices that support 8K

    • 8K Video – AV1 (.MKV, MP4) and H.265/HEVC (.MKV, .MP4)

    The following media formats are supported on Roku TV systems and some Roku streaming players

    • Video – H.262 (.MKV)

    Note: 

    • The Roku Media Player app will not display unsupported file types or files it has determined cannot be played by your Roku device. DRM-protected content is not supported.

    For more information about playing content on Roku Media Player via USB, see How to use Roku Media Player to play your videos, music, and photos.

    Let us know how this works.

    All the best,
    Emman

SpezmanNJ's avatar
SpezmanNJ
Reel Rookie
3 months ago

the solution posted is not enough.  there seems to be issues on the how the audio is encoded. I can't provide exact details but do know our newer Roku can decide 5.1 or more audio channels and mux them down to stereo if needed while the older Roku can not.  Is this because of the connected TV or is it actually the Roku device itself?

what's odd is that our new or Roku has some issues with 7.1 audio, but if I launch the LG TV media player, that media player can play the same file that the Roku device cannot. By saying play, I mean that the audio will not play on the Roku but the audio will play on the LG media player.

perzaklie's avatar
perzaklie
Streaming Star
3 months ago

I have no audio problem. I have video issue. Audio plays, screen is black on some files, other will Roku displays a message that  File Not Playable  The codec used to compress the video is not supported. Strange that every single video I have on that USB drive was encoded with the same software program with the EXACT same setting, yet Roku will play some and not others. I am re-encoding them all with Handbrake so I will not have this issue in the future. I only wish Roku would address this issue properly as, according to the posts I have found, has been ongoing for quite a long time. Sad, it is.