every.channel/evolution/proposals/ECP-0033-x264-cmaf-fmp4.md
2026-02-15 16:17:27 -05:00

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# ECP-0033: Deterministic x264 + CMAF(fMP4) Segment Mode
## Summary
Add an optional stream mode that publishes HLS-compatible CMAF-style fragmented MP4 segments (`.m4s`) encoded with single-threaded `libx264` + AAC, alongside a separate init segment (`init.mp4`). The init segment is published on a dedicated MoQ side-track so subscribers can start playback without out-of-band files.
This is an incremental step toward a MoQ-native media pipeline while keeping browser playback practical via standard HLS fMP4 semantics.
## Goals
- Provide a "mature codec path" for experimentation: `libx264` + AAC.
- Make output more browser-friendly than raw MPEG-TS while staying simple.
- Preserve deterministic encoding constraints where feasible:
- single-threaded encoder
- `+bitexact` flags
- fixed GOP
- Keep the change reversible:
- default remains raw TS chunk publication
- CMAF mode is opt-in via CLI
## Non-Goals
- Full CMAF compliance validation across players.
- Multi-track audio language selection.
- End-to-end determinism across independent antennas (this requires timebase normalization and additional constraints).
- MoQ wire-level media standardization (that belongs in a later ECP).
## Design
- Publisher (`ec-node moq-publish`) adds `--encode {ts|cmaf}`.
- In `cmaf` mode:
- ingest bytes from the source (TS file/HDHR/iptv adapter)
- invoke `ffmpeg` to encode and segment to HLS fMP4:
- writes `init.mp4` and `segment_%06d.m4s`
- publish:
- `init.mp4` as a single MoQ object on `--init-track` (default: `init`)
- `.m4s` segments as MoQ objects on the main track
- all MoQ tracks (objects, init, manifests) are created before the broadcast is published
to avoid implementation quirks where late-added tracks are not deliverable
- manifests remain per-epoch over the segment objects only (init is out-of-manifest for now)
- Subscriber (`ec-node moq-subscribe`) adds:
- `--container {ts|cmaf}`
- `--subscribe-init` to fetch `init.mp4` from `--init-track`
- local output becomes:
- `index.m3u8` with `#EXT-X-MAP:URI="init.mp4"`
- `init.mp4`
- rolling window of `segment_*.m4s`
## Rationale
- fMP4 (CMAF-style) is broadly supported by modern HLS implementations and aligns with future MoQ media layouts.
- `libx264` is stable and widely available, making it a pragmatic baseline for determinism experiments.
- Publishing init as a side-track avoids special cases in the primary segment stream and keeps the UI/receiver model "a stream is a stream".
## Risks
- MP4 muxers can embed non-deterministic metadata (timestamps/brands). We mitigate by:
- `+bitexact` flags and single-threaded encoding
- stripping container metadata where feasible (future follow-up may be needed)
- Segment boundaries are time-based and depend on timestamps/keyframes; cross-antenna byte equality is not guaranteed yet.
## Rollout
- Land CMAF mode behind `--encode cmaf` and `--container cmaf`.
- Add an ignored HDHomeRun E2E test that exercises split-source mesh in CMAF mode.