Netflix Dolby Atmos problems with new Apple TV 4k

"5) The only thing that seems to help is connecting via WiFi and not ethernet. I have no idea why but it does appear to make a difference (at least for me and many others)"

Was just speculating on why WIFI might work vs wired ethernet. I haven't tried to see if this is a fix because I don't care if it fixes it. If I can't hardwire my Apple TV 4K and have it work as well or better than WIFI, then I would never have purchased it. Agreed, Apple needs to fix.

There is a lot of theorizing to do behind the issue.

It may boil down to how the ethernet controller is implemented. How does it connect to the CPU? What PCIE lane does it share?

Another point - is that the AppleTV uses a A12 Bionic processor - and this is traditionally implemented with WiFi connectivity. The ATV, iirc, is the only application of the A12 Bionic that has a wired ethernet controller connected.

Apple could probably fix this through firmware/drivers (hopefully?) - but until its done its not done.

[Edited by Moderator]

There is nothing consistent or repetitive about this issue except for it only happens with Dolby Atmos! Number 1 used to be true, but apparently it's happening on some gen 1 devices as well. Your number 2 and 4 are completely useless. It happens regardless if it's wired or wireless and saying it's specifically NETFLIX and a specific show is untrue.

I’ve tried resetting the Apple TV, but not connecting it to the tv because TV’s can’t decode Atmos so it won’t really matter unless you’re TV passes Atmos via ARC, but then you’re still re-introducing the receiver at the point so that’s why I said connecting it directly to the tv is pointless.

It would be different if the Apple TV had multiple HDMI outputs like my Panasonic 820 4K player. This way you could run just the audio to the receiver and just the video to the tv, and even then I don’t know if this would work.

Adding a data point:

I have an ATV 4K 1G it is run to a Pioneer VSX-LX505 AVR then a Sony X90CJ tv.

About a month ago, I noticed the center channel audio does not play on Atmos content. This is true across all apps and corrects when I turn atmos off on the settings.

Soooo...... I just reset my Apple TV 4K like support wanted. I chose to go to factory defaults with the latest updates. I then had to set everything back up and reinstall Netflix. First think I tried was Stranger Things Season 4, and guess what, audio still drops out randomly with Atmos. Then I plugged my Apple TV 4K directly in to my TV and after several attempts, I could not get the audio to drop. Because this is random, it would take more testing to verify, but honestly, who cares. My TV does not support Atmos and I didn't buy the Apple TV 4K to plug directly in to my TV. I bought it hookup to my home theater receiver. I guess I could try factory defaults and not install any of the iOS updates, has anyone tried that?

If your TV doesn’t have an Atmos speaker arrangement, or isn’t passing through the Atmos signal via eARC to a capable receiver or soundbar, then your TV won’t be getting an Atmos track from the ATV.

Hence, why no dropouts.

An update: I'm also trying to watch "Stranger Things", which has a fantastic Atmos soundtrack.

Before the first episode of the new season, in response to a suggestion, I unplugged my gigabit ethernet from the AppleTV 4k 2021 (now running 15.5.1) , forcing it to use WiFi. I didn't think this would have much effect since my WiFi is as fast as my wired internet (200mpbs, verified with an iPhone 12 Pro Max which is my internet download speed) but I figured it couldn't hurt. I also rebooted the box.

The first episode yesterday (1:15 long) had two dropouts -- the stuttering/helicoptering chopping sound. I backed up a few second both times to hear the dialog.

Today, to watch the second episode, I plugged the Ethernet wire back in and rebooted the box. There were constant audio dropouts -- 3 in the first 5 minutes! I finally couldn't stand it, so I unplugged the wire and again power-cycled the AppleTV again. This time there was only one dropout, about 1/2 way through the hour+ long episode.

So there may be something to using WiFi over wired Ethernet. I did notice that shows also took longer to get started at full resolution. The first 30 seconds or so of the first episode of "Stranger Things" yesterday (where the scientist is walking around the hallway) was streamed at very low-resolution and at first, I thought it was supposed to be an old-timey effect but it was pretty awful. I paused hoping the streaming would catch up, and it did after a few seconds, when I finally got a 4k picture. That never happened with the wired connection.

I'm assuming that Apple really isn't interested in fixing this problem. It's not very hard to reproduce.

Its tough to wrap our heads around - but the issue isn't "muh bandwidths"

the issue is "how is the ATV handling data incoming on the wired ethernet connection"

this could be - how it caches the data, how it purges the cache.

it also could be - is the wired ethernet controller sharing a lane with some other device/function and its interrupting it.

keep reporting it to Apple. there is zero reason why this thing should be doing this - but keep reporting it and sharing the info about it.

I called Apple support today and escalated a ticket - supposed to get a follow up call Thursday.

Video bandwidth is most definitely a factor. It explains why DtS (4k 50 Hz) consistently has more dropouts than any other 4k 24 Hz show, and why the same episode of DtS forced to 1080p 50Hz has no dropouts, even on a wired connection. The higher video bandwidth requires more processing resources, which apparently leaves the MAT 2.0 Atmos stream creation at a potential deficit and susceptible to errors.

I would not blindly point at the Ethernet implementation as the cause of the problem, because it isn’t — Wi-Fi still has dropouts, just a lot fewer than wired. I previously suggested it is because Ethernet has more processing overhead than Wi-Fi, for whatever reason. Anything more specific is just a WAG. Of course this is all just speculation, and I have gone into far more detail in much longer posts that very few here actually read (though the Wi-Fi and 1080p workarounds can be traced to my posts).

I appreciate you keep trying to hammer home your advice in order to assist people, but a workaround is a workaround. It only masks the problem and it lets Apple off the hook.

For this reason I am not a fan of workarounds. Due to the debacle over HDMI 2.1 over the past couple of years, I don't give manufacturers much chance to fob me off. Far too many manufacturers have pushed products to market claiming to be compliant with HDMI 2.1 and they're not, they do not work OOTB. My patience has run out.

If Apple refuse to acknowledge the problem and a fix isn't coming, this little black box that cost a premium, gets thrown back at the point of purchase as 'unfit for purpose'.

I spend a lot of money on my AV gear and I'm not cutting corners with workarounds. I want something that works and gets the best out of my system. If a fireTVstick or Roku, two items that cost less than £40 here, can manage Atmos and DV, then so should ATV, as is claimed.

In addition to contacting, I suggest contacting the provider(s) where you are having problems. I called Netflix on Monday and reported the problem. Maybe if enough people report the problems to the streaming providers, they will get together with Apple to get this thing fixed. It's worth a try to contact both Apple and the streaming service and bug the crap out of them.

What OS version did the ATV have when you reset it? I thought that if you reset the box, it would retain the latest OS update. Is that not correct? Would it default to the OS version it came with before all the OS updates?

Thanks for any thoughts.

You have a choice, reset to factory with whatever OS it shipped with or rest to factory + latest update. I did the latest update. When I first got my ATV, I updated it right out of the box, back in the end of February of this year. Had dropouts right away.

############ Update ##############

As suggested by others, please open a support case with Apple. I am jumping through their hoops, but they are documenting things as we go along and submitting them for review. The technician I am working with is very good. He is digging through reported issues and solutions. This particular issue is not showing up yet in their knowledgebase. The more of us that call in and get it reported the better chance we have of it getting addressed.