Netflix Dolby Atmos problems with new Apple TV 4k

Shocking. The problem is we have no idea of how many people own the one of the ATV 4K models vs. the HD models. And of those, how many know or care about or even have the capability for Atmos sound and have changed the audio settings to enable Atmos sound.

But you are correct, if Apple is going to pass it off to the streaming services, we need to complain to the streaming services that we are experiencing the issue with. I complained to Netflix on Monday. Who knows what will happen. But if enough folks call and complain to Netflix, maybe something will happen.

Also, complain to the media outlets, youtubers and blogs that cover Apple.

It is just the ATV4K. You can install any other streamer for problem-free Atmos, or you can try one of the workarounds I have suggested -- WiFi or forced 1080p.

A lot of people turn their noses up at the forced 1080p suggestion, but odds are they are seated too far from the screen to tell the difference. Oddly, many are even turning their noses up at WiFi, even though there will be no difference in quality with a good WiFi connection. Some people would rather complain about the Atmos problem.

That's to be expected if you tell them the dropouts are only on Netflix. Tell them the dropouts are also on other services, such as their own ATV+ -- which they are -- and they will have a hard(er) time blaming someone else.

Im only speaking from experience bro-cha-cha. I don't have Disney or Paramount - so I can't experience it - and most people complaining about "Disney" or "Paramount" aren't listing specific shows/episodes.

However Im now echoing that its other apps/programs as well (Disney/Paramount) to Apple and about 10 tech blogs I emailed today.

Time to start making lots of noise.

I also have a call into Dolby waiting for a response - going to push for Apple certification for the Apple TV to be removed (figure that ought to get someones attention).

I have two apple tv 4k 2021 both running 15.5.1. Both have exhibited this issue at one point or another on any service streaming atmos. My main device connected to my denon was so bad while watching stranger things season 4 that i had to use my nvidia shield pro 2019 to finish watching the series. I swapped hdmi cables (zeskit maya 8k certified) between shield and apple tv. No change. Today I swapped the apple tvs from main to office and office to main.

Office apple tv has been behaving as of late so took its cheap hdmi cable and moved it along with the office apple tv to main position and used 5g wireless instead of ethernet. So far so good. The main apple tv along with its 8k certified cable moved to office and connected to the tv directly using earc to soundbar and ethernet. It too is now behaving. Go figure. This thing is fickle and i still cant pin it to one thing.

Good letter! I can offer several suggestions/corrections:

The problem has been around since the Gen 2 release, but was far less frequent on tvOS 14.x.

The tvOS release was last September, so the Atmos issue has been really problematic for over 6 months -- more like 8 months.

I would only mention DtS as it has the most consistent and frequent dropouts due to its higher bandwidth, since it is 4K@50Hz. If someone tests this out for themselves, you want them to experience the problem at its worst. But it does occur on any 4K show with Dolby Atmos.

Definitely mention that it also happens on Apple's own ATV+ service.

Funny -- I've posted on most of those other forums.

Just asking for clarification. As in, I can make my Apple 4K TV work fine on my tv, my sound bar, my receiver with no audio dropouts. Of course, I have to make sure I turn off Atmos output on the Apple TV 4K.

I would say yes, that is the point and I just wanted clarification and wanted to make sure no other changes were made. You have to understand what has been discussed in this thread and suggested workarounds such as:

1) Remove you ethernet cable and use WIFI - Fixed Atmos issue

2) Change 4K to 1080p - Fixed Atmos issue

These are not fixes in my book, they are band aids or compromises. If you had told me 4 months ago that if I wanted to by an Apple TV 4K and use Atmos in my setup that I had to do either of those 2 fixes, I wouldn't have made my purchase. Any, just wanted to make sure I understood what you did.

Ok, so i do understand what is discussed in this thread and its workarounds. I have made no changes. I removed ethernet from one device (and its working. The other is working with ethernet). I will not change 4k to 1080p as that is just a BS fix and a nonsensical workaround. As I’ve said before, currently my setup is working correctly so what is your point?

At that distance you can’t tell the difference between 1080p and 4K. In fact, you are only just within range to see any benefit from 1080p over 720p. I know what I am taking about, as I have a similar situation in our family room where I am 16’ from a 85’ 4K TV, which we only use for casual viewing. In my home theater I sit 7’ from a 75” TV, so 4K does make a difference. There are lots of TV viewing distance calculators available online. I suggest you take a look.

I am at a complete loss why you would call this “a BS fix and a nonsensical workaround.“ When I suggested this workaround, and in follow up posts, I was very clear that it was best for those whose seating distance was too far to benefit from 4K, such as yourself and, I suspect, the majority of viewers.

I was only trying trying offer several effective workarounds that I found during my troubleshooting. Personally, I don’t use either of them, as my workaround is to use my ATV4K Gen 1 (or Roku Ultra or Sony TV apps). If I didn’t have other streaming options, I would switch to WiFi, as at 7’ from my 75” TV, I benefit from 4k. If I were 10’ or more from my TV, I would force 1080p and use a wired connection. Note that the WiFi option isn’t completely free of dropouts, while the 1080p option should be, based on my limited testing with DtS.

"How's that 1080 HDR working for you?"

When I tested DtS forced to 1080p@50Hz, the DV and Atmos looked and sounded great.

But if you could have made it all the way through to the end of my last post (it wasn't even one of my longer ones), you would have read that I don't use my WiFi or forced 1080p workarounds, as I have other streaming options that don't have the Atmos dropouts, including a Gen 1 ATV4K. I also shared what workarounds I would use based on my seating distance, if I didn't have those other streaming options. Sigh....

"At that distance you can’t tell the difference between 1080p and 4K. In fact"

You can but it depends on how picky you are and your eyesight. The source totally matter too as most streaming is a step down. My 1080 blu-rays look as good or better then cable for sure and most streaming. 4k streaming is a joke for the most part it's somewhere closer to what 1080 should be. Even if you have 4k blu-rays a lot of movies and shows are not shot in native 4k and so on. It more about the bandwidth and maybe better compression that a 4k stream may have.

The main thing is at most any in a home distance I can totally tell when something like Prime is toggling between 480/720 then 1080 and then 4k as the connection settles. It's not doing that as much and never seems to happen on Netflix but it was a good way to see the difference.

The TV viewing distance calculators are based on someone with 20/20 being able to distinguish details that are 1/60th of a degree apart. They are based on the eye's physiology and math. I have no reason to question them, since they are consistent with personal experience.

We are only talking about streaming on the ATV4K and 1080p versus 4K resolution. Of course Blu-ray and 4K Blu-ray offer better quality than streaming, largely due to bandwidth, as you stated, but 4K Blu-ray also benefits from wider color gamut and HDR, so the difference goes beyond just resolution and compression.

Refreshing to come across an informed post.

If I were too far to benefit from 4K, as I'd wager the majority here are, I would rather watch virtually identical image quality and enjoy Atmos without dropouts, than turn off Atmos or deal with the dropouts.

If folks don't understand the science behind the TV viewing distance calculators, that's fine. I am not trying to convince anyone -- I am just trying to offer some sound advice that some will and have benefited from.

I fully understand the science of viewing distance, and for context, I’ve worked in the AV industry for the past 25 years. On the Apple TV in particular there probably isn’t a huge difference between 1080 and 4K at certain distances, but there is with Dolby Vision. I still got dropouts switching to 1080, and there was a difference in quality. I sit about 9.5 feet from a 65” OLED in my living room. The difference is negligible between 1080 and 4K at that distance, but I can tell the difference depending on what exactly I’m watching. I refuse to accept that a device that was intended to play 4K with Dolby Atmos isn’t working to spec, and I also refuse to use a “work around” by dropping resolution, which for me didn’t even work. The ONLY thing that has helped is switching to Wi-Fi from a hard wired connection, but it doesn’t stop them completely. Apple just needs to get off there *** and fix the issue. It’s not Netflix, or HBO Max, or Disney +, or any of the other apps that offer Atmos, it’s Apples problem, and it’s a waste of time for people to contact the providers as they don’t care because it’s not their issue that it’s not working. It would be different if Netflix or HBO Max were having Atmos issues across multiple platforms, but they’re not, so the responsibility to fix it, is Apples and Apples alone.

And in my main theater, I don’t stream so it doesn’t matter.