Netflix Dolby Atmos problems with new Apple TV 4k

Same 1.136 HDMI firmware on my tvOS 15.3 Gen 1.

I was using the Gen 1 remote and there is no "down". You need to touch (not click) the touchpad.

Reconnecting the Gen 1 was my solution to the Gen 2 Atmos problem. The Gen 2 an "upgrade"? I think not.

Well, except for the remote.

DragonByte79 had the VRROOM, not I. But I do have Gen 2 alternatives that support DV and Atmos just fine. My Gen 1 ATV4K works flawlessly, as does the latest Roku Ultra and the Android TV apps in my Sony TV. I will say that the ATV4K is my go-to streamer as I find the Roku interface simplistic and outdated and has ads, and my 2017 Shield doesn't support DV and is buggy. The Android TV apps in my Sony aren't as responsive as in the latest streamers, but they work fine. The Gen 2 ATV4K is my only streamer with Atmos issues. If Apple doesn't fix the Atmos issues, they should offer everyone a refund. We should not have to put up with the Atmos performance in its current state.

I found the Shield a bit buggy as well...i mostly bought it for the Match Frame Rate (beta) thing, but it doesnt seem to work very well.

I had a Roku and found the stuttering very annoying, so the ATV 4K sounded great, but the Atmos issues were way more annoyng than my Roku's stuttering video.

At this point i am hoping that the Shield Frame Rate feature makes it out of Beta, or hoping Android 12 is released for it.

If i hear that Apple finally fixes their Atmos problem and if the Shield Frame Rate is still flakey, I will probably go and buy an Apple TV 4K again. But at least Nvidia seems to be trying to address peoples concerns with their Frame Rate Beta option, whereas Apple support was just trying to convince me my Denon was the problem and was in full denial mode

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Ignoring the randomness of the Atmos problem and taking your results at face value, your test suggests that the higher video data throughput produces more Atmos errors/artifacts. I don't know if you can isolate it to fewer errors being generated on the ATV4K end, versus reduced ability to correct or mask any errors on the receiver end, though I would point my finger at the ATV4K end. It is not very encouraging that the Atmos problem is present even on 1080p SDR.

I have same issues with my Apple TV 4K 2nd gen. It is connected to my Denon X6700H and I get intermittent clicking popping noises only when playing Dolby Atmos content. Netflix , HBO Max, Disney + , and even iTunes movies all do it.

I opened a support case with Denon and got nowhere. If anyone at Apple reads this, I would be happy to send any diagnostics to help troubleshoot this.

Dont bother, I literally had one swapped out for a different one. Its not a hardware issue. Its something software related. No one knows, apple dosnt know. It seems to be happening more tho now because Allot of people are finally starting to notice that ATMOS does not work on gen 2!!! No matter what you have it hooked up too. Gen 2 sucks!

I never had these pops and clicks. I have these rithmic mute/unmute on all channels at once. Mostly first few times mute for 2 seconds, then fine, then mute 2 seconds for a while and then all channels start 'stuttering' all at once starting with a very fast rythm that gets a longer and longer period. Hard to explain.

I've had it with other apps as well. But, Netflix by far most frequent and most extreme of them all to a point it is unwatchable once it starts.

I also recently acquired a TV with Atmos and DV and there the apps have no issue. But unfortunately I'm sensitive to framerate mismatch, so yeah there's that. Android 12 can't arrive fast enough. Though, first see then believe... ATV also ticks all boxes but, in practice it really doesn't. Yet.

Thanks for your time and effort on this img60, seems like a reasonable analysis…

… I watch several movies and other content a week, all in Dolby Atmos, and didn’t have any of the massive pops/clicks since swapping out a gen 1 to a gen 2 in June 2021. My first encounter was 21 October 202, according to my Netflix activity log, and I’m assuming it was after a s/w update - seem to remember 14.1/2 then into 15?

As mentioned, I can wait too, thanks to a new TV that plays Netflix well and feeds audio to my AVC…

… so there’s a few shows/films I’m starting to watch again. For me I watch as much Disney+ and quite a big Apple TV+ Apps as Netflix and, so far, all programmes have been great (best pictures and sound I’ve seen) in Dolby Atmos with no issues. I know others have had issues with these other Apps, but not me?

it's disappointing that they are still telling people to swap out their ATV's with a replacement, and still looking at things like:

"...HDMI somewhere in the chain (Port on ATV, HDMI cable itself, or the receivera bad HDMI cable, etc."

I was also told back in December to bring in my ATV and try another one, and they then sent me a replacement HDMI cable when the new ATV did the same thing. It sounds like they are no closer to figuring this out :-(

Well. Got the replacement ATV. Tested it and immediately had dropouts on atmos. Of course they closed my case when they sent the replacement so I had to call and reopen that. Tried watching heavy atmos content tonight and experienced my audio switching from atmos to Dolby digital during the cutout and not coming back until I restarted the show (drive to survive). Will get this sent to my new advisor. Also pointed them to this thread again noting how many pages and people are having this issue. I will keep at this.

Thanks for sharing your theory. I don't believe the DV Match Content and Atmos

issues are related. I have never noticed any video anomalies associated with the

Atmos glitches/dropouts. Also, others have noted that the Atmos issue is also

present in Atmos music streams, so that would be unrelated to DV.

I have both the Gen 1 and Gen 2 ATV4K units (both currently connected to my

Denon AVR so I can test the latest tvOS beta releases) and never had the Atmos

issue on the Gen 1 in the same setup. To be honest, I haven't noticed any Atmos

issues on the last couple betas while watching DV + Atmos content on Netflix,

but it could be that I am watching less problematic content.

Posting on this thread too. Sound seems to hesitate 5-15s before starting when starting most programs on most apps. All updated OS + fast cables. Rewinding the program once sound starts shows no issue. Currently, testing turning off ATMOS sound.

I am having the same issue as everyone else.

Dropouts and cracking only when watching Netflix via ATV 4K 2nd Gen with Dolby Atmos content. I’ve had to resort to watching Netflix via Sky again!

I picked up the ATV to enhance my viewing and sound pleasure, It is a shame that the ATV 4K is the weakest link in my setup!

Apple, please sort this problem.

Many thanks,

Keir

You are assuming that there’s no logic in TVOS that checks the hardware version it’s running on and then does extra processing if it sees it’s a Gen2…I am thinking it might do a lot more work on the Spatial Audio side on the more powerful Gen 2.

I am thinking the issue is more likely related to hardware design than purely software, and that’s why this hasn’t been fixed by now.

if the fix requires a change to the hardware it would be very expensive and possibly restore in recalls and bad publicity.

Then explain why most users are not experiencing any issues. I’m not with Apple TV 4K 2021->Denon AVR-5960H->Sony XR-65X90J. No dropouts at all, ever, not even while playing Spacial Audio on Apple Music. If it’s a hardware design issue, meaning Apple engineers are incompetent, then the issue should be affecting a lot more than the few in this thread.