Why is VLC lagging when playing MP3 files over my LAN?

Solution 1:

It is possible that the values for file cache times are too low. To be on the safe side, the buffer can be made larger.

Go to Preferences and navigate to the Input / Codecs tab. Click the Show All button.

Ensure Input and Codecs is selected in the sidebar and scroll way down to the Advanced section. In Network caching slider, enter larger values than the default ones. I found 1000ms for Local and 3000ms for Network to be sane. If you still see stuttering, try progressively larger values until playback is smooth.

Click the Save button. It might be necessary to restart VLC. Now you don't have any playback problems anymore.