NUC 11: stuttering 4K video playback

[klamann]

Hi,

I recently bought a NUC 11 NUC11ATKC4 which comes with a Celeron N5105 and a Jasper Lake GT1 iGPU. The GPU should support hardware decoding of 4K 60Hz HDR material encoded in HEVC, VP9 and other formats, which is what I planned to use it for.

I managed to connect my TV via HDMI with 4K@60Hz, then I did some tests with 4K content and it was... underwhelming, to say the least. I got some video files from https://kodi.wiki/view/Samples, all 4K content in HEVC and VP9, with 24Hz and 60Hz framerate, tested with VLC. Also, I tried some 4K content on Youtube. Here are the results:

On Windows 10:

• all video files had occasional frame drops. sometimes more noticeable, sometimes less, but even VLC reported dropped frames in its statistics panel, so it's not just my imagination
• youtube videos in Firefox were really bad, even 1440p content was stuttering. Was unable to play 2160p@60Hz content
• youtube videos in Chrome were much better, 1440p content was fine, 4K content had occasional frame drops, similar to the local files

On Ubuntu 22.04:

• all local files had frequent frame drops, it was very noticeable. Would not enjoy watching a movie like this.
• Getting hardware accelleration to work in Firefox was a pain, but I figured it out after some research. All videos (even the 1440p) had noticable frame drops, worse than the local files.
• I was unable to get hardware accelleration working for Chromium and the CPU can't handle the load, as expected

On both setups, I was on the latest OS version and I had installed the latest available drivers. Good old HD content was played without any frame drops. All video files and youtube videos can be played smoothly on my reference system (Xeon E3-1230, GTX 1060).

Is the NUC 11 even capable of 4K video playback without frame drops? If so, what am I doing wrong?

edit: more info on the hardware: 16GB DDR4-2933, 480GB Patriot P310, connected via RJ45 to uplink, 1Gbit downstream. So no IO limitation, no buffering or anything.

[klamann]

I think I'm going to return the NUC. 4K video playback just isn't working... so disappointing

[AndrewG_Intel]

Hello @klamann

Thank you for posting on the Intel® communities.

Based on the Technical Product Specifications the Intel® NUC 11 Essential Kit - NUC11ATKC4 supports a Max resolution of 4096x2160 (4K) at 60Hz for both HDMI* and DisplayPort* (DP). However, I don't see any reference to HDR support.

Also, when checking the HDR Technical White Paper for Intel® Graphics it seems to indicate that only Intel Core™ Processors support HDR. There is a "footnote" in the document (page 12) stating: "Non-Core products may not support HDR. For HDR support, please only use Core products".

Based on these facts, I would like to do additional research to confirm HDR support. However, just to make sure I have the proper information, could you please confirm the following details?

1- You mentioned that even videos with lower resolution than 4K were having "stuttering or frame drops", for instance, 1440p videos on Firefox*.

Are the 1440p videos you tested rated as "HDR content"? Or is this also happening with videos that are not HDR content? This is to be clear if the issue is only related to "HDR content" videos.

2- From the link that you provided (KODI Samples*), could you please point out some of the specific samples that you tested? For instance, were they the "4K HDR 10-bit HEVC and the VP9 Profile 2 HDR" files?

3- Have you tested the behavior with another display and/or different video cables (e.g.: premium high-speed HDMI cables)?

Or, have you tested this using the DisplayPort (DP) on the Intel® NUC?

4- Is the Intel® NUC running the latest BIOS version 0035 and the latest customized Intel® Graphics DCH Driver version 30.0.101.1191? If not, we recommend installing these updates and testing the behavior again.

Best regards,

Andrew G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[richard_crl032]

Hello, I have the same NU11 with 5105 CPU ... it is HDR capable/enabled.  I had the same poor info support i.e. wrong info from support but proof is in the pudding.  Quite disappointing and cheers,

[klamann]

Hi @AndrewG_Intel, thanks for your suggestions!

I did all my tests with Graphics DCH Driver version 30.0.101.1660 (well, on Windows. On Ubuntu, I had the xorg drivers provided by the distribution). I previously had BIOS version 0029 installed, updated it to 0035 and ran some of my tests again but there was no noticeable difference.

Also, I repeated some tests on a different 4K Monitor I have here (3840x2160@60Hz, just 8 bit per color, no HDR), connected via Displayport. Again, no difference to the results on my TV.

The amount of dropped frames is definetly worse if I have 60Hz or HDR content and it is by far the worst (up to 20% of dropped frames according to VLC and YouTube) if I pay 60Hz 4K HRD videos.

Still, I even have occasional frame drops with h.264 30fps HD content. This should be easy for the CPU without hardware decoding, but the GPU seems to run into issues even here. The frame drops are rare, but when they occur, it's usually in short lags where like 3-5 frames are dropped at once; that's a 100-166 ms gap at 30fps and that's arguably more noticeable than consistently losing every 10th frame on a 60fps video. The videos are played back from a M.2 SSD or streamed via a Gigabit connection, so it's unlikely that this is an I/O issue.

It would be really helpful to have some kind of data sheet that tells me which codecs are supported at which resolution, frame rate, color depth, and encoding profile by the different NUC models. The Technical Product Specifications do not mention anything in that regard.

If I want to buy a NUC which actually supports 4K HDR 60Hz decoding with HEVC and VP9, which model do I need?

cheers
klamann

[AndrewG_Intel]

Hello klamann

Thank you for your response and for the details. We also apologize for the delay in getting back to you.

After reviewing this further, we have confirmed that the Jasper Lake Processor included in the Intel® NUC 11 Essential Kit - NUC11ATKC4 supports HDR.

Just to make sure, do you still have the Atlas NUC or was it returned to the vendor?

If we understand correctly, on Windows* you only tested using the Graphics DCH Driver version 30.0.101.1660. Could you please test with the latest customized Graphics DCH Driver for this NUC which is version 30.0.101.1191? To install the driver, please perform a Clean Installation of Intel® Graphics Drivers.

Please let us know the outcome using this driver version. If the behavior persists, could you please provide us with a quick video or screenshots of the dropping frames while playing a video and detailed steps to replicate the behavior?

Best regards,

Andrew G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[richard_crl032]

Hi Andrew, missed this ... much better !  Tks

After reviewing this further, we have confirmed that the Jasper Lake Processor included in the Intel® NUC 11 Essential Kit - NUC11ATKC4 supports HDR.

[klamann]

Sorry, I have returned the device by now so I can't run any tests anymore.

I wouldn't have expected the driver version 30.0.101.1660 to give reason for concern, since the version number is higher than 30.0.101.1191.

I didn't take any screenshots, but it should be easy to replicate by playing the linked video files in VLC; even if you don't notice the stuttering, you can check the stats panel to see if any frames were dropped. Same for 4K YouTube videos by opening the "stats for nerds" panel.

[AndrewG_Intel]

Hello klamann

Thank you for your response. We understand that you have returned the device.

Please allow us to check this scenario and we will be posting back in the thread as soon as possible.

Best regards,

Andrew G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[AndrewG_Intel]

Hello klamann

We would like to know if you sent the Intel® NUC for replacement or for a refund.

In case you are replacing the Intel® NUC with the seller/place of purchase, we can wait for you to receive the replacement unit, test the behavior to verify if the issue was hardware related, and continue the support from that point with further troubleshooting if necessary in case that the behavior persists.

Best regards,

Andrew G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[klamann]

Hi Andrew,

I got a refund, and I'm not planning to buy another NUC device in the near future, unless someone can convince me that this was a random hardware fault and a replacement device will work just fine.

cheers
klamann

[AndrewG_Intel]

Hello klamann

Thank you for your response. We do apologize for the issues you experienced and for any inconvenience.

We understand that you returned the NUC and got a refund. In this case, we will proceed to close the thread now since you no longer have the device to perform further tests. However, we would like to inform you that your feedback has been documented and shared with the relevant department.

If you need any additional information, please submit a new question as this thread will no longer be monitored. It has been a pleasure to assist you.

Best regards,

Andrew G.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[richard_crl032]

Get 2nd stick of 8GB RAM and 4K 60fps like Top Gun 4K works fine ... my same NUC is now with dual channel of 2x8GB Crucial 3200Mhz RAM that downclocked to mobo's 2993Mhz and I have HDR turned on without any issue while noting that Appearance setting is at performance. 

Integrated graphic solution of such UHD is helped tremendously for struggling ones by improvement in RAM performance like dual channel configuration since RAMs arely used in conjunction with the UHD graphic for needed bandwidth.

Hope this helps anyone with the same issue .. from someone who tried and tested with real life experience.

Cheers,

[lkuty]

I have this exact problem since a few months. I have just ordered 2 sticks of RAM to replace my single RAM and I will post back here to give you a feedback of my success or failure regarding the stuttering of 4K content.

[klamann]

I had 2x 8GB RAM (Mushkin D4S 8GB 2933-21) in my NUC when I ran all my tests and it didn't work for me. But please let me know if it works with your system!

[richard_crl032]

Hi, NUC did not work at all or 4k HDR does not work ? Mentioned crucial ram works fine and of course pls ensure your display is 4k hdr capable in the 1st place. Cheers.

[klamann]

the NUC did work, at least the OS did run without issues. Bit lots of frame drops with 4K HDR, some frame drops with regular 4K (8 bit color), and even occasional issues with plain old HD content. Video playback on the NUC did not work for me at all.

[richard_crl032]

Sorry to hear .. mine works fine ... now 2x16gb but previously 2x8gb was also fine.

Set to mentioned performance with win 11 pro ?

Cheers.

[halohalo]

When I play UHD Blu-ray discs on my NUC10i3FNH with one 8GB RAM stick, I have to set IGD Aperture Size to 2048MB to avoid choppy playback. The option is for UEFI mode only.

NUC 11 and later NUCs no longer support the 2048MB option. Besides, the default value is 256MB.

https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000028294/graphics.html 

[lkuty]

I received the sticks today and it didn't work.

I have the Intel NUC7i5BNK with 2 Crucial 8GB DDR4 3200 SODIMM (CT2K8G4SFRA32A) which replaced my "old" Corsair 8GB ValueSelect DDR4 2133 SODIMM (CMSO8GX4M1A2133C15). I used both MPC-BE and VLC with standard parameters and tried a few tweaks but without success.

Maybe the combination of CPU and GPU is not enough for 4K rendering. I tested a movie with Dolby Vision which is supported by my Sony XR-55X94J. When I used my old gaming laptop with a Core i7-6700HQ, a Nvidia GTX1070 (not the laptop one) and 32 GB RAM (different sticks) it is working well without any stuttering.

EDIT:

Apparently it is due to a mismatch between the frame rate of the video and the refresh rate of the TV set. 60 Hz for the TV and 23.976 Hz (fps) for the video. Cfr. community.intel.com/t5/Intel-NUCs/NUC7i7DNHE-video-playback-stutters-at-1080P-or-2160P-Windows-10/m-p/548738#M45235

When I set the frequency of the TV set to 23.976, the stuttering disappears.

[lkuty]

Still using the NUC. I also had flickering at times when watching content on browsers (Firefox and Chrome) and it looks like changing the HDMI cable improved the experience: I now use a StarTech 1m Premium High Speed HDMI Cable for 4K at 60 Hz (HDMMV1M).

I cannot say that the stuttering has completely disappeared but it is better too. That means that my previous attempt which resulted in "EDIT" in the previous post was not 100% successful.