[sullysnet]

note I do not have an ASUS router. I have an Cisco one and I would still see the freezes. Static IP never helped me in my tests. Seems the only thing for me is doing the shares inside the Shield. I watched The Outsiders the other night and about 20 minutes in I got the buffer warning and once it got to 100% it ran the whole movie. If I had watched this with NFS, SMB and shares inside Kodi it would have froze right at that point 20 minutes in. It's odd to me that your 2005 doesn't work in this way. It seems to have the same settings. Have you tried this again but leave the buffer default settings? I do believe this is something with the Shield network updates. I recall they did apply some fixes to the WIFI in one of the patches. Seems maybe it helped some but hurt others.

[VonMagnum]

note I do not have an ASUS router. I have an Cisco one and I would still see the freezes. Static IP never helped me in my tests. Seems the only thing for me is doing the shares inside the Shield. I watched The Outsiders the other night and about 20 minutes in I got the buffer warning and once it got to 100% it ran the whole movie. If I had watched this with NFS, SMB and shares inside Kodi it would have froze right at that point 20 minutes in. It's odd to me that your 2005 doesn't work in this way. It seems to have the same settings. Have you tried this again but leave the buffer default settings? I do believe this is something with the Shield network updates. I recall they did apply some fixes to the WIFI in one of the patches. Seems maybe it helped some but hurt others.

I tried using shares inside the Shield.  It would freeze for too slow transfers or the like. It was slower than direct.

[Pirivan]

note I do not have an ASUS router. I have an Cisco one and I would still see the freezes. Static IP never helped me in my tests. Seems the only thing for me is doing the shares inside the Shield. I watched The Outsiders the other night and about 20 minutes in I got the buffer warning and once it got to 100% it ran the whole movie. If I had watched this with NFS, SMB and shares inside Kodi it would have froze right at that point 20 minutes in. It's odd to me that your 2005 doesn't work in this way. It seems to have the same settings. Have you tried this again but leave the buffer default settings? I do believe this is something with the Shield network updates. I recall they did apply some fixes to the WIFI in one of the patches. Seems maybe it helped some but hurt others.

Really appreciate the feedback.  I did try the SMB mounts from within the Shield itself while on hotfix version 32.5.205.81 (8.0.1+ HotFix image for the 2015/2017 SHIELD TVs) with no advancedsettings.xml and still encountered the issue.  It really makes senses how mounting the SMB shares on the Shield might help mitigate the issue by masking it via a different SMB client library (no idea what SMB client library the Android OS on the Shield TV uses), like Mrmc does.  It seems like other SMB clients handle some sort of very brief wireless network 'drop' without interrupting playback.  I may give it another shot now that I am on an even newer hotfix branch (32.5.205.110) and see if it masks the issue.

Interesting to note that it's not only related to Asus routers though it's possible that you have a slightly different issue with the same symptoms.  It sounds like your issue is fixed so it would be annoying for you to reproduce (who wants to intentionally break something?), but it would be interesting to know if you are able to correlate a router wireless disconnect/error message with the Kodi playback error as I am.  If you aren't seeing a wireless status error at the same time you get the playback exited issue, it's likely that you had a different issue that is solved by using Shield SMB mounts instead of Kodi SMB mounts.

I now have a Synology router that I can setup/test with as well, though it will take some time to setup.  It's possible it uses the same broadcom chipset as my Asus of course BUT there is always the likelihood that the driver used in the router OS would be different between Asus/Synology even if the exact same underlying broadcom chipset is in both.

[sullysnet]

yes I'd need to reset everything and check my log settings on my routers. I use my routers as an AP and not a router.

[Pirivan]

I have done some fairly extensive testing after setting up the new Synology RT2600AC wireless router.  So far, my initial conclusion is that as expected, throwing money at the issue resolved the problem.  12-14 1080p 26 minute TV show episode playback tests succeeded (normally it would fail at least once in 2-4 playbacks, maybe once in as many as 8) and an entire 4K movie played back without halting and dropping back to the menu.  The 4K movie did buffer very briefly twice but it did not halt, which is a first for me.  It's possible any buffering could actually be addressed by creating/tweaking advancedsettings.xml.  Either way I am happy to trade that for not dumping me back to the Kodi interface.

I will continue to test but given that playback has NEVER worked this well, it looks like my issue is/was caused by some kind of compatibility issue between my Asus RT-AC88U router and the chipset and/or driver used by the Shield TV 2015 on the latest ShieldTV experience.  If anyone reading this is experiencing a similar issue, I would highly encourage you to look carefully at your router/WAP wireless logs and compare them to the exact time when Kodi playback fails.  If you are seeing drops/disconnects at that time, it may not be that your router/WAP is 'bad' per say, just that there is some sort of issue between your ShieldTV and the router/WAP.  Given that getting NVIDIA and/or <wireless device manufacturer> to fix the issue is going to either A) take a long time at best even IF you spend time gathering logs and "proving" the issue to them or B) literally never happen, somtimes spending money is the best way to solve technical problems.

----Edit/Update----
Playback of 1080p TV episodes continue to work flawlessly, which was never the case before.  I have not tested 4K extensively but I consider the precise previous issue I was having resolved.

[VonMagnum]

I have done some fairly extensive testing after setting up the new Synology RT2600AC wireless router.  So far, my initial conclusion is that as expected, throwing money at the issue resolved the problem.  12-14 1080p 26 minute TV show episode playback tests succeeded (normally it would fail at least once in 2-4 playbacks, maybe once in as many as 8) and an entire 4K movie played back without halting and dropping back to the menu.  The 4K movie did buffer very briefly twice but it did not halt, which is a first for me.  It's possible any buffering could actually be addressed by creating/tweaking advancedsettings.xml.  Either way I am happy to trade that for not dumping me back to the Kodi interface.

I will continue to test but given that playback has NEVER worked this well, it looks like my issue is/was caused by some kind of compatibility issue between my Asus RT-AC88U router and the chipset and/or driver used by the Shield TV 2015 on the latest ShieldTV experience.  If anyone reading this is experiencing a similar issue, I would highly encourage you to look carefully at your router/WAP wireless logs and compare them to the exact time when Kodi playback fails.  If you are seeing drops/disconnects at that time, it may not be that your router/WAP is 'bad' per say, just that there is some sort of issue between your ShieldTV and the router/WAP.  Given that getting NVIDIA and/or <wireless device manufacturer> to fix the issue is going to either A) take a long time at best even IF you spend time gathering logs and "proving" the issue to them or B) literally never happen, somtimes spending money is the best way to solve technical problems.

----Edit/Update----
Playback of 1080p TV episodes continue to work flawlessly, which was never the case before.  I have not tested 4K extensively but I consider the precise previous issue I was having resolved.

How much was that router?  I've been looking into a MOCA adapter as a possible solution (Ethernet over AC wiring never worked great, was susceptible to speed changes and put noise in the audio system).  It sounds like MOCA works better on average, but the cost of two adapters (send/receive) is around $160-170.  The ideal solution would be to run CAT6 all the way to the other side of the house, but that'd be some serious work.

[Pirivan]

How much was that router?  I've been looking into a MOCA adapter as a possible solution (Ethernet over AC wiring never worked great, was susceptible to speed changes and put noise in the audio system).  It sounds like MOCA works better on average, but the cost of two adapters (send/receive) is around $160-170.  The ideal solution would be to run CAT6 all the way to the other side of the house, but that'd be some serious work. 

$200 for the replacement router.  I ordered it making the assumption that if it had 0 impact on my issue, I would return it.  MOCA blows away speeds of ethernet over power (you can get 800-900Mbps on MOCA) but it does require a decent amount of additional adapters/cabling but it can be nearly as good as running CAT6.  If the router had not worked, that is what I would be investigating (I still might someday).  $200 isn't precisely a cheap solution but to me that was absolutely nothing compared to the amount of hours I burned testing various fixes; I would have paid double that for anything that would really fix the issue.

So far everything is working flawlessly with 1080p television content (that was NEVER the case previously).  I have barely tested 4K playback of movies but that has not been perfect.  Some occasional buffering and once it appeared to 'stop' and but when I skipped backwards 30 seconds, playback continued without any issue.  However, again, compared to my previous experience where movies would almost ALWAYS exit at some random point back to the Kodi menu, it's a significant improvement as far as I am concerned.  I am playing with advancedsettings.xml to see if I can eliminate even any buffering but so far not much progress.

[VonMagnum]

How much was that router?  I've been looking into a MOCA adapter as a possible solution (Ethernet over AC wiring never worked great, was susceptible to speed changes and put noise in the audio system).  It sounds like MOCA works better on average, but the cost of two adapters (send/receive) is around $160-170.  The ideal solution would be to run CAT6 all the way to the other side of the house, but that'd be some serious work. 

$200 for the replacement router.  I ordered it making the assumption that if it had 0 impact on my issue, I would return it.  MOCA blows away speeds of ethernet over power (you can get 800-900Mbps on MOCA) but it does require a decent amount of additional adapters/cabling but it can be nearly as good as running CAT6.  If the router had not worked, that is what I would be investigating (I still might someday).  $200 isn't precisely a cheap solution but to me that was absolutely nothing compared to the amount of hours I burned testing various fixes; I would have paid double that for anything that would really fix the issue.

So far everything is working flawlessly with 1080p television content (that was NEVER the case previously).  I have barely tested 4K playback of movies but that has not been perfect.  Some occasional buffering and once it appeared to 'stop' and but when I skipped backwards 30 seconds, playback continued without any issue.  However, again, compared to my previous experience where movies would almost ALWAYS exit at some random point back to the Kodi menu, it's a significant improvement as far as I am concerned.  I am playing with advancedsettings.xml to see if I can eliminate even any buffering but so far not much progress.  

I'll probably give MOCA a try when I get back.  It seems like WiFi would always be susceptible to interference, noise, etc. that hard wiring would be far less likely and since the Shield is the only device giving me problems, I can either use it alone for now or add a switch and have more options downstairs.  I think 4K would be far less likely to have trouble over MOCA.  The Zidoo X9S might work better with NFS over wire as well.  Too bad MP4/M4V audio support on its native player (that is otherwise rock solid on 23.976 frame rates) isn't so great (no DTS support for MP4/M4V; I'd have to convert half my library to MKV.  I used M4V as much as I could for a long time since it also worked with older AppleTV units and iTunes).  KODI does just fine with M4V, but I've had so much trouble with stable playback as of late.

[VonMagnum]

I'm back finally and I've changed my Shield to use a static address.  I'll see if that makes any difference when I get some time to watch a movie in the next few days).

[std_ren]

I mounted my SNB share within Shield and not KODI. Within KODI I attached them as local drives (Something like that). Anyway, now KODI doesn't exit when streaming (4K, 1080p, etc.). KODI stops and buffers sometimes, not always but usually once when watching a movie from my Synology NAS. Works for me for now.

[VonMagnum]

I just watched Saving Private Ryan (2K Atmos) on the Shield from my Mac server after changing the Shield to a fully static IP address (from just reserved).  The movie was 2 hours and 45 minutes until the credits.  It never froze or stopped.  I'm hopeful that made the difference, but I've been fooled before (but never that long at one shot).

[VonMagnum]

I spoke too soon, as usual.  I don't know how it could make it through 2 hours and 45 minutes without an issue and then dump at the usual ~40 minute time frame on the next movie (Jack Ryan Shadow Recruit).  I'm afraid there may be no other solution than a hard line of some kind to the device or another router.

[Pirivan]

I'd highly suggest stringing ethernet cable across the floor or something (I used a few long Ethernet cables and a switch in the middle across the floor) and then doing a test to validate if wireless network issues are the culprit.  It's easiest to just start the movie and walk away, then check back later and see if the movie has a 'resume from x' time on it or not when you check it to see if it completed (reset the watched flag first before you start it).

[VonMagnum]

I'd highly suggest stringing ethernet cable across the floor or something (I used a few long Ethernet cables and a switch in the middle across the floor) and then doing a test to validate if wireless network issues are the culprit.  It's easiest to just start the movie and walk away, then check back later and see if the movie has a 'resume from x' time on it or not when you check it to see if it completed (reset the watched flag first before you start it).

The KODI player is on the opposite side of the house on a different floor.... I'd have to drill through the floor and through multiple walls to get it there....(about 150 feet of it).

[sullysnet]

right now I'm testing out another router with the theory that this a an issue with compatible between routers and the shield tv. The other night I was curious if I turned the buffer down to 4mg to see the results. It did exit the video 2x. I now hooked up a older Cisco n router to test. So far with a setting of 4mb buffer it seems to be holding out. It's a 4k movie. I'll see how it goes.