# Pluto recordings **URL:** \ **Category:** Commercial Removal\ **Created:** [July 2, 2024, 6:35pm UTC](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/t/pluto-recordings/5498 "2024-07-02T18:35:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![stratman](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/e68b1a/32.png) [@stratman](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/u/stratman)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2024, 6:35pm UTC](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/t/pluto-recordings/5498/1 "2024-07-02T18:35:54Z")
Why doesn’t mcebuddy remove the commercials from pluto recordings? Is there something different I have to do to make mcebuddy see them? ---
**Author:** ![Goose](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/g/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Goose](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/u/Goose)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2024, 8:25pm UTC](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/t/pluto-recordings/5498/2 "2024-07-08T20:25:20Z")
Try to tune your comskip settings to make the more aggressive or tweak them. If you can [upload your video](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/t/5076) recording we can also take a look ---
**Author:** ![poundman](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/p/dfb087/32.png) [@poundman](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/u/poundman)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2026, 4:22pm UTC](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/t/pluto-recordings/5498/3 "2026-10-15T16:22:18Z")
Any luck with finding a solution? ---
**Author:** ![Goose](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/g/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Goose](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/u/Goose)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 1:58pm UTC](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/t/pluto-recordings/5498/4 "2026-10-17T13:58:53Z")
Have you tried to tune your comskip ini to make it more aggressive? That’s the first thing to do since the default comskip is tuned to be medium aggressive to target 99% of recordings. ---
**Author:** ![Forum\_Helper\_bot](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/f/a183cd/32.png) [@Forum\_Helper\_bot](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/u/Forum_Helper_bot)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2026, 2:00pm UTC](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/t/pluto-recordings/5498/5 "2026-10-17T14:00:18Z")
Commercial detection on **Pluto TV** (and other FAST/IPTV streams like Tubi or Samsung TV Plus) is notoriously tricky compared to traditional OTA (Over-The-Air) or cable broadcast recordings. Here is why Pluto recordings often don’t detect commercials out-of-the-box, along with the most effective ways to tune and resolve it. * * * ### Why Comskip Misses Pluto Commercials By default, Comskip is calibrated for broadcast television, which uses several reliable cues that Pluto TV handles differently: 1. **Logo Detection:** Traditional broadcasts drop the station bug/logo during commercials and bring it back when the program resumes. On Pluto, either there is no consistent network bug, or the Pluto logo remains present across both the show and the ads. If Comskip is waiting for a logo change that never happens, it won’t trigger ad breaks. 2. **Missing / Short Black Frames:** Broadcast TV typically inserts uniform black frames (with audio silence) at commercial boundaries. Pluto often uses seamless, hard cuts directly into dynamic ad insertions or loops a static “Commercial Break in Progress” screen with background music, which does not trigger black-frame or silence detection. 3. **Uniform Audio Format:** Cable/OTA broadcasts frequently shift between 5.1 surround sound during the show and 2.0 stereo during commercials. Pluto streams are usually 2.0 stereo throughout with normalized volume. * * * ### Steps to Fix and Tune Detection #### 1. Visually Inspect with `comskipGUI` Before guessing which settings to change, you can see exactly what Comskip is detecting: 1. Go to your MCEBuddy installation directory: `C:\Program Files\MCEBuddy2x\comskip\` (or `ComskipINIEditor.exe` / `comskipGUI.exe`). 2. Drag and drop your Pluto recording into `comskipGUI.exe`. 3. Watch the graph along the timeline (brightness, audio volume, scene changes, and logo presence). This will show whether it failed because of persistent logos, missing black frames, or pod length. * * * #### 2. Tune `comskip.ini` for Streaming / Aggressiveness You can create a custom `comskip.ini` specifically for Pluto recordings (or adjust it in _Conversion Task_ $\rightarrow$ _Expert Settings_ $\rightarrow$ _Comskip INI_): - **Tweak Logo Reliance:** If the Pluto bug stays on during ads (or isn’t present at all), Comskip’s logo detector will cause false negatives. Try: ```ini punish_no_logo=0 detect_method=43 ; Disables logo-heavy reliance and weights scene/black/silence detection ``` - **Loosen Black Frame / Brightness Thresholds:** Transitions on streaming services may not drop to pure black: ```ini max_brightness=70 ; Increases tolerance for dark/gray transition frames (default is ~60) min_black_frames_for_bracket=1 ; Allows single/very brief transition frames black_frame_threshold=0.001 ``` - **Adjust Break Durations:** Streaming ad pods can be shorter than cable ad breaks: ```ini min_commercial_break=20 max_commercial_break=360 ``` For more details on setting up custom task-specific INIs, check out the guide on [Tuning Comskip and Custom Comskip INIs](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/t/tuning-comskip-and-custom-comskip-inis-country-channel-specific/29). * * * #### 3. Try ShowAnalyzer In your **Conversion Task** settings, change the **Commercial Removal** dropdown from _Comskip_ to **ShowAnalyzer**. ShowAnalyzer uses different heuristics for video and audio transitions and can sometimes catch cuts that Comskip misses on IPTV feeds. * * * #### 4. If Recording via Channels DVR or PlayOn (Use Markers / EDL) - **Channels DVR:** Channels DVR often generates its own `.edl` cut files or uses SCTE-35 stream cue markers. If Channels DVR successfully detects the commercials, ensure MCEBuddy is set to read external EDL files or check for markers. - **PlayOn Cloud / Desktop:** PlayOn embeds chapter markers for ad segments directly into the MP4 file. In your _Conversion Task_ $\rightarrow$ _Expert Settings_ $\rightarrow$ _Subtitle and Chapters_, ensure **Check chapters for Ad markers** is enabled, or set commercial removal to _Yes (Use markers)_. * * * ### Still Not Working? If tuning the INI still doesn’t catch them: 1. Open your MCEBuddy conversion log and search for `.edl` or `Comskip` to see what segments were flagged and why they were discarded. 2. [Upload a short sample clip and your log](https://discussion.mcebuddy2x.com/t/5076) file to a cloud drive (or DM it to @Goose) so the team can inspect the specific stream characteristics.