Z9X Pro crashing on MKV files.

WiFi card is a different hardware than PC wired card. So you have a defective PC wired card or you have the defective router wired ports/interface inside or both or something else is messing around your network
And if talking about SMB protocol and speeds:
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/troubleshoot/windows-server/networking/slow-smb-file-transfer

I would first disconnect everything from your network (even WiFi devices) to make the test setup as most "sterile" as possible and then do testing using PC - router - Z2000 or PC - router - Laptop... so nothing else in the network, even no Internet.
I would also try to buy any cheapest router but with 1Gb LAN and WAN ports... and just connect PC and Z2000 to it (and also make it sterile = no other devices connected / even no Internet), and then redo the tests. After testing you should properly narrow it down... Good luck.
P.S. do not connect the new router to the existing one not checking for IP addresses' conflicts if both are configured to same 192.168.x.x value (e.g 192.168.1.1), in such case the new router must be reconfigured to some different IP (bot on WiFi and wired e.g. to 192.168.10.1 or whatever pool is not used at your network) .
P.S.2. You can still return the new router and get the refund if you will be fast enough with the testing...
P.S.3 - If your PC wired card is embedded into the main board, you can still buy the pci-e slot NIC and do the testing...and get the refund if fast enough.

 

Ok just to clarify, I did not buy a new router. I got a new one from my ISP.

 

I am not quite sure how to use lan if no modem connected but I will see

 

Ok says network cable unplugged even though plugged from pc and router and router to box

 

Can you describe from the socket on the wall how everything is connected normally. A drawing would be great but a specific step by step description would be useful.

this is what I think you have. From the wall socket into the modem, out of the modem into the router and out of the router to the various devices?

 

Yes. Internet from Coax cable from wall to Spectrum (my ISP) modem. From modem, ethernet cable to Internet input on Router. Then I have 3 ethernet ports. One going to my PC, one going to my old Himedia Q10 media player in my bedroom and one going to my Powerline Ethernet adapter. That is what usually connects to my Z2000 in my living room.

I used to have my Q10 out there prior to the Z2000 and I would get like 80 MB/s through it. Then it went down to 30 MB/s. Then down to 15. I replaced it with the Z2000 and would only get like 7.5 speeds through the powerline. But when i would bring the Z2000 to my bedroom where the router was and connected directly to it, I would get max 14 or 15. I have been trying to figure it out for a while and since I use internal drives, I would transfer any files over night because it would take hours to do 1 ISO or MKV file over. Occasionally if i had a lot of files I would use portable drives to go back and forth but that is not ideal.

If I can get 60 MB/s like I did at my son's house last week via direct ethernet I will be ecstatic. I do believe there is some issue with NTFS formatted drives that cap LAN speeds at that on the most recent firmware. Even if using the powerline cuts that in half it would be a significant improvement. I also have 25 ft cables I use sometimes for testing but that is not sustainable due to my layout. I can't have an ethernet cable running through my bedroom door lol.

I have a Z9 8X coming tomorrow and I was planning on using the Z2000 internal drive as a source so I need to figure this out since there is no internal drive option and I will need to do everything over LAN.

 

Holy crap. New router worked. I now have 65 MB/s when going from PC to Z2000 and full 110 MB/s transfer speeds when going from Z2000 to my PC when both plugged direct into the new router in my bedroom. LAN Speed Test app shows 87.91 MB/s Reading and 103.77 MB/s Writing.

All this time wasted...my own fault. I was convinced it was a setting because like I said I was getting speeds up to 80 MB/s on my Q10 before it just dropped to 30, then 15. I thought Windows may have updated and changed something I couldn't figure out and I spent hours trouble shooting and asking for help on this and other forums. Then I would give up for a while and use workarounds until getting fed up and trying again every few months. Not sure how the routers ports went bad but that must have been what happened.

I sincerely appreciate everyone who took the time to read any of my posts and attempted to help troubleshoot the issue.

 

Ok. Glad that you have finally figured it out.

 

ChatGPT:

Why Zidoo Z9X Can Read HFS+ (Mac Format) Drives, but Z9X Pro Can not?

✅
Zidoo Z9X (older model)

• Based on the Realtek RTD1619DR chipset
  
  
• Uses an older Linux kernel that included basic support for HFS+ (Mac file system)
  
  
• Some firmware versions had built-in HFS+ support, at least read-only
  
  
• That’s why it could read Mac-formatted drives (HFS+) without issues

❌
Zidoo Z9X Pro (newer model)

• Based on the Realtek RTD1619BPD chipset
  
  
• Runs a newer, more restricted Android/Linux system, which no longer includes HFS+ support
  
  
• HFS+ is not supported by default, not even in read-only mode
  
  
• Due to changes in the Android kernel and stricter driver policies, HFS+ was dropped

❌
Zidoo Z9X 8K (Amlogic S928X-K) & HFS+ Support

• No native HFS+ support (read or write)
  
  

Why Did This Change Happen?

• Licensing issues: HFS+ is a proprietary Apple file system. Including HFS+ support in new systems without a proper licence is legally sensitive.
  
  
• Stability & Compatibility: Modern Android/Linux systems focus more on exFAT and NTFS, which are widely supported and better documented.
  

 

and this, for someone out there with same problems ...

I have a Mac Mini M2 with the latest macOS Tahoe update. I have 7 external drives (all 5TB) connected to it via a USB hub. In the living room, I have two Zidoo players: the Z9X, updated to v6.4.68, and the Z9X Pro, which stayed on v1.0.75 (on v1.0.95, even worse)

One clear difference is that I can connect a USB drive formatted for Apple computers directly to the older Z9X via USB, which works perfectly. The Pro, however, cannot read this format.

Now for the problem: when I connect both players to the Mac Mini via SMB, they both detect and see all 7 drives. The Z9X plays movies from any of them—including complete 4K UHD rips up to 90GB—without any issues. The Z9X Pro, on the other hand, has problems with most files and the playback stutters.

Why is there such a difference? The Pro is newer and should theoretically perform better and faster, but in reality, it’s significantly worse.



ChatGPT:



What you’re describing is quite an interesting paradox – the older Zidoo Z9X handles SMB playback better than the newer Z9X Pro. This isn’t really surprising, because the Zidoo Pro series underwent some changes in architecture and firmware support that lead exactly to these issues.



Here are the main differences and reasons why the Z9X Pro stutters:




1. Differences in operating system and SMB support

• Z9X (older model) is built on the Realtek RTD1619DR chip with a long-optimized SDK and firmware support, where the SMB protocol (including on a macOS server) is well-tested and fine-tuned.
  
  
• Z9X Pro uses the newer Realtek RTD1619BPD chip and a newer Android 11/12 OS, where Zidoo is still refining the SMB implementation.
  
  → In practice, the SMB client on the Pro is less optimized, causing stuttering on larger files (4K UHD remuxes of 70–100GB).

2. Differences in SMB versions

• macOS Sonoma/Tahoe defaults to SMB3 (for security and speed), while the older Z9X can also switch smoothly to SMB2.
  
  
• Z9X Pro sometimes “struggles” because SMB3 isn’t fully compatible with its player. Result: buffering and micro-stutters.

3. Throughput and SMB caching

• Z9X has more stable buffering for large files.
  
  
• Z9X Pro theoretically supports faster gigabit throughput, but the firmware (especially buffer management) isn’t well-optimized → this is why large remuxes (90GB) stutter.

4. Disk formats

• Exactly as you said: the older Z9X can read HFS+ or APFS disks directly over USB (a big plus).
  
  
• Z9X Pro can no longer do this → you must use SMB, which adds system load and increases the chance of errors.

5. Real-world user solutions

On forums (e.g., AVSForum, Zidoo Community), most users recommend:

• NFS works best, not SMB – especially on Z9X Pro.
  
  
• If possible, open an NFS share on macOS instead of SMB. Zidoo Pro has far fewer issues with NFS.