2021 new gen Apple tv 4k Dolby Atmos Problems

[msimanyi]

It’s all about security Robert. I think the base iPad should be a really nice product, and not a ton of money. Great for browsing, as well as controlling Roon or music streamers.

I respect choice and non-Apple products, but I think when it comes to tablets… well, Apple‘s product is the clear class of the field.

You really shouldn’t have to rely on your daughter’s phone or a factory reset, just for an OS update. The iPad delivers on that for you.

 

[ttocs]

I've updated the ATV4K from tvOS 15.6 to tvOS 16 and wired it to the network.

Watching NETFLIX Drive To Survive in DV/ATMOS when wired with tvOS 15.6 caused audio dropouts almost immediately, and repeatedly. With tvOS 16 there hasn't been a dropout yet after watching a couple episodes, about 80 minutes total so far.

 

[Robert D]

I've updated the ATV4K from tvOS 15.6 to tvOS 16 and wired it to the network.

Watching NETFLIX Drive To Survive in DV/ATMOS when wired with tvOS 15.6 caused audio dropouts almost immediately, and repeatedly. With tvOS 16 there hasn't been a dropout yet after watching a couple episodes, about 80 minutes total so far.

I'm 4 episodes into The Silent Sea and no drops. So far so good

 

[Robert D]

It’s all about security Robert. I think the base iPad should be a really nice product, and not a ton of money. Great for browsing, as well as controlling Roon or music streamers.

I respect choice and non-Apple products, but I think when it comes to tablets… well, Apple‘s product is the clear class of the field.

You really shouldn’t have to rely on your daughter’s phone or a factory reset, just for an OS update. The iPad delivers on that for you.

I just feel like Apple needs to let customers know that some procedures can't be carried out unless you have another IOS device.
When you don't own others, you feel like you've been tricked and forced into spending more on their products. It's the principle of the matter. We can buy a new Ipad for $330 which is cheap, but I don't like being railroaded.

 

[RDrake523]

I still ended up having the sound drop-out issue even after my AppleTV 4k updated to tvOS 16. Have others continued to see the issue go away for them as was initially reported on this thread? We watched our first show last night that had Dolby Atmos since our AppleTV updated - the first episode of Bridgerton Season 2 on Netflix. In the 1 hour 10 minute show, we had two drop-outs of sound. That's probably about in-line with what we were seeing prior to tvOS 16 too.

 

[brockrohl]

I haven't had any issues since I started on the beta for TVOS 16 and have been on the official release since it came out and haven't had any issues. That's just me though.

 

[Robert D]

I still ended up having the sound drop-out issue even after my AppleTV 4k updated to tvOS 16. Have others continued to see the issue go away for them as was initially reported on this thread? We watched our first show last night that had Dolby Atmos since our AppleTV updated - the first episode of Bridgerton Season 2 on Netflix. In the 1 hour 10 minute show, we had two drop-outs of sound. That's probably about in-line with what we were seeing prior to tvOS 16 too.

Man, that blows. I made it through an entire season of a show and had zero dropouts. I thought maybe things were fixed.

Are you using hardwired ethernet or wifi? What is you home theater setup?

 

[twodogs112]

I posted on the forum back in June/July about this. I called Apple and have a case with them now, and plan on calling them back tomorrow.

The problem is only sound, and only occurs when watching shows in dolby atmos. This happened to be after I got it new this year, so it's always been there. I received it in the mail directly from Apple on day 1 of release because I pre-ordered it.

The sound will sometimes drop out on Netflix, but the DolbyVision is fine. It will eventually come back on in about 10 seconds, or if I pause the show and then play it is fine after that. It's random, and occurs at any time. Sometimes I can watch a whole movie and it never happens, other times it can happen 3x in a 45 minute show. If I rewind over where the sound error occurred, and then play it again; it plays fine and the error doesn't happen.

Sometimes the sound will make a popping sound on random speakers and then fade away, lasting just 5 seconds or so. This happens on Apple tv + shows too. So it's not just Netflix. Apple tv+ hadn't had the sound totally cut out and mute like Netflix, but it makes the popping sounds on speakers.

I'm using the apple tv connected by a wireworld ultraviolet hdmi cable to my Marantz sr8012 11.2 receiver. I'm able to play atmos just fine through my 4k Panasonic player and also through my cheap Amazon Firestick 4k. So it's not a hardware problem with the receiver, and I've never had a problem with the wireworld hdmi cables. It's a high quality cable.

Wondering if anyone else is having this problem. When I called Apple, in June, they told me they had other reports of problems already. At that point it had only been out for a month or so. Online I've found several threads with similar problems.

This page shows that the problem was on the last gen too. So the problem has followed along onto the new one.

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/251882832
My Apple tv is hardwired with ethernet and gets around 500 mbps, so no wifi to worry about. A member on here had me check my connection quality and it tested very good. So it's not my internet connection.

Seems to be some software issue, unless my apple tv box is a lemon. I may see about sending it in for a new one, since it's well within warranty.

I went a month or so without watching shows with Atmos, so I kinda forgot about it. Now I'm watching more and the problem is still there. There have been numerous software patches since June ,but none took care of this .The problem is in both Apple tv+ and Netflix. I've never heard the problem on HBO Max, but haven't watched much on Atmos there.

Thought I'd throw this up and see if anyone else has had this and if anyone has an idea about what's going on.

Interesting post, been following for some time now. I have never been able to run my ht setup in Dolby with my Apple TV . Either the latest generation or the last one. Just running in 7 channel stereo on my Yamaha 2000 reciever(used as a preamp/decoder) just figured that’s just the way it is. Movies/dvds work great. Just nothing with the streaming services. I’ll play with it some in the future. Perhaps I’m missing out.

 

[RDrake523]

Man, that blows. I made it through an entire season of a show and had zero dropouts. I thought maybe things were fixed.

Are you using hardwired ethernet or wifi? What is you home theater setup?

I'm glad to hear though that tVOS 16 has fixed this issue for some folks.

I had been using Wi-Fi prior to upgrading to tvOS 16 but went back to hard-wired initially once the OS upgraded. I've tried a few things since my original post. We had a second Apple TV 4k in our bedroom and I swapped it with the one in the TV room which is where our Dolby Atmos capable soundbar is. I also tested to see the impact of going back to Wi-Fi again. In both instances, trying another AppleTV as well as changing back to Wi-Fi didn't have any impact. Two sound drop-outs in an approx 1 hour episode (again Bridgerton Season 2 episodes on Netflix).

Our Apple TV 4k is connected to a Samsung 55" QN55Q80TAFXZA. The eARC on the TV then connects to a Vizio Elevate 5.1.4 soundbar.

 

[Robert D]

I'm glad to hear though that tVOS 16 has fixed this issue for some folks.

I had been using Wi-Fi prior to upgrading to tvOS 16 but went back to hard-wired initially once the OS upgraded. I've tried a few things since my original post. We had a second Apple TV 4k in our bedroom and I swapped it with the one in the TV room which is where our Dolby Atmos capable soundbar is. I also tested to see the impact of going back to Wi-Fi again. In both instances, trying another AppleTV as well as changing back to Wi-Fi didn't have any impact. Two sound drop-outs in an approx 1 hour episode (again Bridgerton Season 2 episodes on Netflix).

Our Apple TV 4k is connected to a Samsung 55" QN55Q80TAFXZA. The eARC on the TV then connects to a Vizio Elevate 5.1.4 soundbar.

Ok. Well, I'm not ready yet to declare the OS 16 as a success for us, but right now things look good. I won't be surprised if the problem comes back on a later show. So far so good though. I've never made it through a whole season, newest season of Umbrella Academy, without a sound drop.

I'm using hardwired internet. Apple tv is plugged into my Marantz receiver which is then connected to my LG oled. I'm watching shows now mostly in 5.1, but did watch at least one other movie in Atmos. I'm sure I'll watch more Atmos soon.

 

[DaVinci Media]

I have similar issues. No sound at start of playback. I usually I have to drop out to main menu and go back in and its fine, but there are still brief dropouts mid playback

 

[Robert D]

I have similar issues. No sound at start of playback. I usually I have to drop out to main menu and go back in and its fine, but there are still brief dropouts mid playback

Dang, and youre running the latest OS 16? We all had it really bad on the various versions of operating system 15, but the 16 has given me zero problems so far. Ive watched the entire last season of Umbrella Academy too.

Was it Netflix that gave you the issue? Netflix seems to be the top offender, but some of us also had Atmos dropping out on Apple TV shows too.

 

[JonFo]

Interesting post, been following for some time now. I have never been able to run my ht setup in Dolby with my Apple TV . Either the latest generation or the last one. Just running in 7 channel stereo on my Yamaha 2000 reciever(used as a preamp/decoder) just figured that’s just the way it is. Movies/dvds work great. Just nothing with the streaming services. I’ll play with it some in the future. Perhaps I’m missing out.

That is likely because your TV is not 4K, and the Atmos soundtrack seems to be linked on most content to the 4K version, and the HD (1080p) version just gets the 5.1 soundtrack.

I get around that in my HT by spoofing the 4K TV part by using an HDMI splitter that informs the input device that it is 4K, so the original ATV4K belives there is a 4K display, so it will play those streams along with the Atmos soundtrack. Works like a charm.

I've mentioned it several times on this thread and the site, here is a link: 2021 new gen Apple tv 4k Dolby Atmos Problems

 

[JonFo]

I have similar issues. No sound at start of playback. I usually I have to drop out to main menu and go back in and its fine, but there are still brief dropouts mid playback

Might want to cold reboot (pull power) on the ATV, as sometimes after a major OS update, there is cruft left behind, best to fully reboot.

During the beta period, I would need to restart (using the settings app) every couple of days. But now on the final TVOS16, it seems stable over the long term.

I've had no audio dropouts on 16 after a restart, even playing hours and hours of DV/Atmos content.

 

[DaVinci Media]

Might want to cold reboot (pull power) on the ATV, as sometimes after a major OS update, there is cruft left behind, best to fully reboot.

During the beta period, I would need to restart (using the settings app) every couple of days. But now on the final TVOS16, it seems stable over the long term.

I've had no audio dropouts on 16 after a restart, even playing hours and hours of DV/Atmos content.

Oh, I’ve tried lots of reboots and I’ve made sure firmwares and OS is there all up-to-date. Tried booting in different orders. Also after the latest update it seems to be a little bit better along with AV processor firmware update helped. My latest issue now is Dolby Vision going on and off.

 

[DaVinci Media]

Dang, and youre running the latest OS 16? We all had it really bad on the various versions of operating system 15, but the 16 has given me zero problems so far. Ive watched the entire last season of Umbrella Academy too.

Was it Netflix that gave you the issue? Netflix seems to be the top offender, but some of us also had Atmos dropping out on Apple TV shows too.

That’s Netflix does seem to be the biggest offender things have been a little bit better lately I updated everything including the new iOS and updates on my TV and AV processor firmware. The sound issues have gotten much better, but now I’m having problems with Dolby Vision going in and out.

 

[JonFo]

but now I’m having problems with Dolby Vision going in and out.

That might be down to cables then, as DV or HDR has been very reliable for me.

My signal chain is ATV4K --> X3600H --> 4K splitter --> 10' cable --> LG 65 C9

So even a convoluted setup, with extra cabling is pretty stable. The cables are nothing fancy, just correct specs.

 

[Robert D]

That’s Netflix does seem to be the biggest offender things have been a little bit better lately I updated everything including the new iOS and updates on my TV and AV processor firmware. The sound issues have gotten much better, but now I’m having problems with Dolby Vision going in and out.

Thats wild, i never had Dobly Vision going in and out, but admittedly I probably wouldnt know because I have the Apple upscaling all video to Dolby Vision. So that is all I see now.

 

[user 49813]

but now I’m having problems with Dolby Vision going in and out.

Can you elaborate on this a little on how this is manifesting itself, and maybe describe the setup?

I started getting video dropouts lately, too. Started (coincidentally?) around the latest tvOS 15 I tired prior to jumping to the 16 beta, and has continued. No more audio crackling/popping/muting/decoder-dropping since moving to 16. When video issues happen, I'll see the TV go blank for a fraction of a second, see the TV's "looking for signal" screen, and then it returns to my Apple TV content with it paused. The whole sequence of events is similar to the ATV's "match dynamic range/match frame rate" handshake that happens when starting content (that gets a bit annoying, but livable - I think QMS fixes this?). Anyway, I've been able to rule out my Apple TV on this one (99% sure), so the culprit for me is either my TV or my Marantz (or, cabling). I was watching a disc the other night and had it happen, so can't see how it would be the ATV in my case, unless it was doing something weird in the background that somehow affected a different source on the Marantz, but not sure that's too likely. It also seems wildly variable; once I thought I was clocking it happening every 30 min. Other times seemed like it went away entirely. Another weird correlation (not necessarily causation) is that I have been playing with my DHCP lease times on my network that coincided with change in frequency of occurrence, as well as my adblocking config (that my TV absolutely hates - sits there and broadcast storms my network when I block access to the tracking URL's. Also, just taking it off the network induces the LEDs to flash twice every two sec and is super annoying - they want their ad revenue and are dicks about it). I'm wondering if the TV trying to lease a new address and it's somehow affecting the AV processing. I don't think that's too likely, but it is hard to ignore to regular frequency of occurrence and my newer short DHCP leases. In the end, it's probably an HDMI thing. Going to shorten some connections temporarily to see if that solves it.

 

[JonFo]

Also, just taking it off the network induces the LEDs to flash twice every two sec and is super annoying - they want their ad revenue and are dicks about it). I'm wondering if the TV trying to lease a new address and it's somehow affecting the AV processing. I don't think that's too likely, but it is hard to ignore to regular frequency of occurrence and my newer short DHCP leases

Wow, that's some pretty nasty behavior from that TV!

On the LG OLEDs, they will happily live offline for years, I keep mine disconnected unless I plan on applying a firmware update. All the onboard apps are a lesser version of what can be found on the ATV4K, and the networking stack of all smart TV's I've seen really suck. For instance, on wifi, they will connect to the first access point they see, even if it's the furthest / weakest one of the three in the home. Luckily, I run an Omada managed network of switches and wifi APs, and it will 'push' devices that stupid like that to the closest AP.
But all my AV gear is wired, so no problems there.

As for frequent lease renewal, that should never interrupt video delivery, so guessing that's just a coincidence. I'd check the HDMI connections (they get loose if under strain), and the cables themselves.

If cable strain is an issue, then some of these HDMI cable holders / locks can help: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07GX8N78B/