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Why clips get adjusted
Sometimes a playlist says it is adjusting clips before it starts. Here is what that means and how to avoid it.
To play several videos back to back as one continuous stream, they have to be joined. Joining is only possible when the files agree with each other. When they do, EchoStream copies the video straight through, untouched, at full original quality.
When they do not agree, it rewrites the files that are out of step so that they do. That is what Adjusting clips means. It happens once per file, and the result is reused every time after.
What has to match
| Property | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Resolution | The same across every file |
| Frame rate | The same across every file |
| Video codec and profile | The same across every file |
| Keyframe interval | 4 seconds or shorter, in every file |
The keyframe rule catches people out most often, because a set of files can be identical in every visible way and still need adjusting. A library exported at a 5 second keyframe interval looks perfectly consistent and still cannot be joined.
How long it takes
Roughly a few minutes per 1080p clip, one at a time. The status shows how many are left and counts down as each finishes. It is normal for the number to sit still for a few minutes; it is not normal for it to sit still for an hour.
Export everything from the same preset: same resolution, same frame rate, and a keyframe interval of 2 seconds. Files exported that way are joined without being touched, they start instantly, and they keep the exact quality you exported.
A file that fails repeatedly is left alone and the playlist plays anyway, converting as it goes. The stream still runs, but it is re-encoded live, which costs quality. Re-exporting that file is the fix.