Solving playback issues

[mitchstein]

the reason 1080 might not be working is a two part reason, the first part is if the commerciasls playing in your area are lower then 1080p even if just one is then you need to go down to that level.

Also, it could be network conditions, if the network lags to the point that the "smooth streaming" forces a lower resolution thast could trip up the synch as well, though not consistantly..

It is possible, though I have not seen anyone report it thast if the masin program is running at 60fps and the commercial is running at 30fps it could cause the out of synch issue..

Again though it comes down to the Ad server not matching the programming bitrates, resolution and frame rates. which SHOULD be a requirement by the service providers like Roku. I mean Roku demands the content providers provide images in certain resolutions for our channels to provide a reasonably decent experience for the users, but then thast quality control does not seem to carry over to the advertisers...

ALso it is MOST prevalent on the Roku Devices then any other device, though all of htem do have the issue, it is consistant on ROku whereas random on other platforms, for instance, might happen once every 10 times there is a commerciasl break on the PC, but happens EVERY commercial break on the Roku. And it seems to affect all ROku devices over 1080p every commercisl break on certain channels...

A quick fix, (better then chsnging the channel and going bsck to it ot bring it back into synch) is to just hit rewind for 1-2 seconds or longer if you do not have as quick a trigger finger as my wife does and then press play. pops it right bsck into synch every time. We were watching one of the 4 channels todysa with the Practical Jokers MArathon playing and all day we just hit rewind - play as soon as the main progrsm casme back on and it was resynched. the few times my wife wasn't paying attention, it went right out of synch.,. rewind - play back in..

A PIA but livable..

[FishOutOfWater]

I too have experienced this issue and its incredibly frustrating. I found this setting today:

Settings->System->Advanced Settings->Auto-Adjust Display Refresh Rate

I set this to On and it may have fixed my issue.

Actually, no it seems to have gone out of sync, Just took a little longer.

[Stevepariseau]

I have also been experiencing an approximate 4 second audio lag issue following ad breaks on the Hulu app with my 65" TCL Roku TV, and two other Roku Sticks. I don't have this issue with any other app, just Hulu, so I think it must to be a Hulu issue.

[RokuNimfa-C]

Hello @Stevepariseau, 

Welcome to the Roku Community. 

Have you tried to remove the channel and see if it helps? If you haven't tried it yet, you can remove the affected channel and re-install it. To ensure the process is successful, restart your device before adding the channel back in. We would recommend doing this from the Settings menu by navigating to Settings > System > Power (If you do not see a Power submenu, skip to the next step.) > System restart.

For detailed instructions, refer to this Support link: How do I resolve channel playback issues?

If the issue persists, and the issue is with the channel alone, this is a good indication that there is likely an issue within that specific channel that will need to be addressed with an update from the channel publisher. 

Channels on Roku are created and maintained by each channel publisher. In this case, you'll want to reach out to Hulu support directly to share your feedback. 

Regards, 
Nimfa

[Third3]

I know that I have tried removing channels and it has not helped.  Anywhere you look for help on the internet, the first thing they suggest is removing and reinstalling channels.  But I also note that most of the issues being raised here relate to multiple channels all doing the same thing - audio out of sync with picture.

As far as identifying a bad channel and working with the maker of the channel, if it’s Hulu, good luck.  They don’t even want to hear about it.

[Third3]

Steve, I suspect that the way a Roku works, the signal coming in is grabbed and processed per specs, and there is no setting that will adjust that.  The settings that allow you to dumb down the signal for viewing come AFTER that processing, and the 4K stream the Roku has prepared to deliver to your TV must then be reprocessed to deliver at 1080p.

All I can tell the good people on this forum is - after I replaced my Roku Ultra (4K), latest model, with a Roku Basic (1080p), latest model, my problem is resolved.  It’s not a perfect world, and accepting 1080p picture quality is a small price to pay for aggravation free viewing.

But I want my Ultra back!  That’s why I am here — in search of a REAL solution to the problem!

[Third3]

Mitch,  I believe you are dead on with this:

”Again though it comes down to the Ad server not matching the programming bitrates, resolution and frame rates. which SHOULD be a requirement by the service providers like Roku.”

[panaxdave]

Whoever that is suggesting that you remove the channel and reinstall it hasn't taken 3 minutes to read even part of the rest of the forum..  like others have said, I think Roku and Hulu need to get in a room together and figure it out but that's not going to happen. 

[mike313]

I have the same issue on Hulu Live TV and the audio. Doesn’t matter if I use the built in tv speakers or the TCL soundbar. 

[mitchstein]

the audio lag is being caused by an incompatibility between the ad server and the player and the tv.

Aparently some of the ads are either at a higher or lower bitrate than the programming or the ad before or after the different one. then the roku player passes this information to the tv which 90% of the tv's (newer 1080 and higher) will switch modes and when they do the audio falls out of synch with the video.

the ONLY way anyone has so far been able to fix the issue is that when it happen you simply press rewind and then play, it puts it back into synch, a pain in the **bleep**, but, better then watching mouths move and then speech take place, as if it was a 1970's karate movie... lol