[Issue]: Decoding NV stream errors, corrupted graphics on Snapdragon 8s Gen 3

[unikevin]

Describe the bug

Simply put, on my Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 tablet, Moonlight Android v12.1 encounters video decoding errors when receiving an HEVC stream transmitted by the Nvidia Encoder. These issues include partial smearing, screen artifacts, and tearing.

• Does the same Moonlight client, receiving the same stream, have issues on other devices?
  No. On iOS, the video displays normally. On a Snapdragon 888 device running Moonlight Android v12.1, the video also displays normally.

• Does changing the encoder affect the issue?
  No. When switching to software encoding AVC , the decoded video becomes normal on my Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 tablet. (However, the encoding latency becomes very high, making gaming difficult, so this is not a complete solution to the problem.)
  update: The probability of graphic corruption is reduced, but similar corruption still exists.

• Does changing the encoding format affect the issue?
  Unfortunately, I tested three formats: H.264, HEVC, and AV1. When using the Nvidia Encoder, H.264 exhibits almost the same issue as HEVC, while AV1 is fortunately unaffected. However, AV1 presents a different issue: After starting an AV1 session, within random(0, 30) seconds, the video freezes on a single frame and stops updating, while audio continues playing, touch input remains responsive, and decoding latency drops to 0ms. This issue does not resolve itself, regardless of waiting time—you have to restart the session, only for the issue to reappear. If necessary, this could be tracked as a separate issue.
  

• Does changing the game you are playing affect the issue?
  No. This issue occurs in any scenario, including the Windows desktop.
  

• Could the GPU driver be at fault?
  I used DDU to completely uninstall the GPU driver in Safe Mode and then reinstalled the latest driver recommended by Nvidia. The issue persists.

• Could the GPU be physically damaged?
  Unlikely. When streaming, I do not observe any graphical issues on my physical monitor. While gaming locally, I experience no visual problems. I also re-encoded a video using FFmpeg, and the output displayed correctly. Additionally, I exported a simple project using Adobe Premiere Pro, and the resulting video file appeared normal.

• Is this issue related to resolution or bitrate settings?
  No. The corruption is a specific issue. On iPhone and Snapdragon 888 devices, the image remains normal regardless of resolution and bitrate settings. On the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3, image corruption occurs regardless of these settings.

• How severe is this issue?
  The corruption does not occur consistently but appears randomly at any time during streaming. It usually lasts for a period before disappearing.

• Do all Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 devices have this issue, or is it specific to my device?
  I’m not sure. I only have one device with this SoC, which is the Xiaomi Pad 7 Pro. I don’t know if other Xiaomi Pad 7 Pros have this issue, nor whether other Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 devices are affected. If necessary, I will ask users in the community, but I have not done so yet.

👆
That’s all the information I have at the moment. If you need any additional details, please let me know.

If anyone has relevant information about this issue, please share it.
If you own a device with the same SoC or specifically the same model, please let me know whether you encounter the same issue under the same Moonlight client version and a similar Sunshine setup.

I plan to keep my affected device long-term while investigating this issue. If any developers need detailed reports or logs, feel free to contact me.

Steps to reproduce

Like I said above

Affected games

Unfortunately, this problem occurs in any screen, including the Windows desktop.

Other Moonlight clients

iOS

Moonlight adjusted settings

Yes

Moonlight adjusted settings (please complete the following information)

I also tested changing the "Performance Preset" and "Secondary Encoding Mode", nothing seems to work

Moonlight default settings

Yes

Gamepad-related connection issue

No

Gamepad-related input issue

No

Gamepad-related streaming issue

No

Android version

Android 15

Device model

Xiaomi Pad 7 Pro

Server PC OS version

Windows 11 22H2

Server PC GeForce Experience version

No, now use NVIDIA App 11.0.2.312

Server PC Nvidia GPU driver version

Game Ready 572.16

Server PC antivirus and firewall software

yeah, Windows Defender and Windows Firewall

Screenshots

No response

Relevant log output

Additional context

No response