[mythtv-users] issue playing mp3 using Internal player

[Stephen Worthington]

On Tue, 24 Mar 2020 20:02:26 -0500 (CDT), you wrote:

>I have an mp3 podcast I to which I like to listen most days on my MythTV 
>system. I don't have plugins on this system anymore and I wasn't really 
>able to comprehend the working of MythMusic when I did have that 
>installed. So I'm just trying to play this using MythTV's internal player.
>
>By adding the mp3 extension to video file types I was able to get most of 
>the way, meaning the audio plays fine. Problem is, I just get a black 
>blank screen while the mp3 is playing. So I'm looking for ways to get some 
>kind of graphic to display while the mp3 is playing.
>
>When I play the file outside MythTV using mpv, a graphic does show 
>up--apparently that's embedded in the mp3 somehow. But Myth's internal 
>player won't display that. I tried specifying mpv as the player to open 
>the mp3 file type, but it doesn't work (nothing happens when I try to open 
>the file). I also tried specifying vlc as the player to use but it also 
>doesn't work: at least in that case the player notifies me that it can't 
>open the mrl.

I do not think there is any graphic information embedded inside .mp3
files.  What you see playing it in mpv is likely simply a graphic that
mpv chooses to play.  It probably has options to select what graphics
it uses.

>I also tried using ffmpeg to make the mp3 plus a looping .jpg file into an 
>mp4. That process seems to succeed but Myth's internal player seems to 
>have some problem with it; there is too much audio stuttering for it to be 
>listened to.

Yes, creating a playable video file that way has its problems.  I did
that for my mother's opera recordings that I used to do from an FM
radio station.  I did work out what settings to use to create a
playable file, but that was a very long time ago and the way I did it
back then does not work now with newer versions of MythTV.  But the
settings to make ffmpeg create a file MythTV can play may still work.
I actually used avconv instead of ffmpeg and here is the command I
used:

avconv -loglevel quiet -f image2 -loop 1 -r 25 -i:v:0
/usr/local/bin/audio_only.jpg  -f s16le -channels 2 -ar 48000 -i:a:1
/dev/video24  -f mpegts -map 0:v -vcodec libx264 -map 1:a -acodec aac
-ab 512k -strict experimental -shortest $recording_file

What that is doing is recording audio from the /dev/video24 device (of
a Hauppauge PVR-150 card with FM) and adding a looping video image
from the /usr/local/bin/audio_only.jpg file.  The output is an MPEG2
transport stream file (.ts) with AAC audio and H.264 video, similar to
the DVB-T broadcast programs we record here in New Zealand.

Of course, since it is a long time ago, I am not sure that such a file
will still play properly, but it is likely.  The downside of your
using the above conversion is that it would convert the audio from MP3
format to AAC format.  So, as with all lossy conversions, the quality
will be reduced a bit.

>So I'm currently at a bit of a loss for how I might play this mp3 podcast 
>through my MythTV system while having a graphic displayed. Currently, I 
>just navigate to an adjacent virtual desktop and play it there using mpv. 
>But to do that I have to use the keyboard and set aside the remote. A more 
>desirable to find a way to play it as wanted through MythTV.
>
>Anyone have suggestions for how I might accomplish this goal? Thanks.