[JGrana01]

I agree that the problem/crash occurs before any part of the video is displayed. I should have been clearer on the crashes. The spinning wheel happens, the upper part of the display shows the name of the file and the "play" icon, but the display dims, wheel spins and....when you press "Stop"...crash.
BTW, this only happens with .mkv files. The .mp4's seem to play just fine.

Did you simply try to press the "Back" button on the remote?

I use the default remote which doesn't have a "Stop" key. When I am in the same situation with the spinning wheel and press the "Back" button, it is possible to choose another file, for example the P81.mkv to "repair the faulty start". 

Regards Hoppel

No, I pressed Stop. Shortly after, Kodi crashes. The next time I get the spinning wheels of death I will try Back.
BTW, things are still inconsistent as far as P4. I set the Shield back to 30 hz refresh (left Kodi at 29.97 hz), put the Shield to sleep and tried again this morning.
P4 started fine... No P8 needed.