Level 1

26 points

AppleTV audio cuts out and pops on Dolby Atmos audio content

There are several threads about issues with audio dropping and pop/crackle sounds when watching video on AppleTV. Some of the threads are marked as "solved", but I do not believe the root issue has been addressed. I'm posting this so 1) people experiencing this issue might understand what is happening sooner than I did. 2) Apple can see how widespread the issue is and acknowledges the problem and releases a fix.

1) The problem occurs when watching video content with Dolby Atmos encoded audio using an Atmos enabled sound system. The audio will intermittently drop completely for 2-5 seconds, and/or there will be a series of audible pops witch can be rapid or few and far between. Usually the sound will return to normal, but it may happen again, but not in any noticeable interval.

2) Often people complain about a problem with the Netflix app on AppleTV. HBO Max, has also been mentioned. I have the problem with any video with Dolby Atmos audio, regardless of the app delivering it, including iTunes movies I've purchased.

3) I have NOT noticed the problem when playing Atmos encoded music from the Apple Music app when using AirPlay to the same home theater system (goes directly to the AVR which has Airplay, bypassing the AppleTV)

4) Many discussions here, and elsewhere on the internet, point to cabling as the possible culprit. In this case, it is not.

-I use Cat6 shielded cable directly connecting the AppleTV to a gigabit switch and have gigabit fiber internet access. The SpeedTest app on the appleTV itself shows 960+MB/s bandwidth. It is NOT a bandwidth or network cable issue.

-The HDMI cables (a frequent source of trouble in many systems) I'm using are elite 8K/48Gb rated cables. They are reliably providing 4:2:2 color space 4K HDR video without problem, and are unlikely to be the problem.

5) Many system components are also mentioned in posts. The system I'm using has the AppleTV connected to a Marantz 7706 AVR which is connected to a Samsung - 85" QN90A TV. This setup is using ARC and I am able to turn everything on/off and control the volume with the AppleTV remote. Everything is playing well together, and other than Atmos encoded audio in video content, I'm having no issues.

6) After reading what other people have tried, I should mention that I have played with various speaker and Atmos configuration settings. I've got a 7.1 speaker configuration, and have the option to simulate ceiling speakers for Atmos content with the Marantz 7706. Some people have said turning this off helped the problem, I had no such luck. I've also turned off ARC (also suggested) with no effect. Again, I'm mentioning these things because i saw them posted as possible solutions and am hoping this saves others some headache.

I guess my question is this: After all this time, is Apple aware of this problem?

Apple TV 4K

Posted on Aug 8, 2022 9:43 PM

Top-ranking reply

MW4513

Level 1

14 points

Posted on Dec 8, 2022 10:40 AM

I have been having this exact same problem, but stumbled on a fix that worked for my setup. Your mileage may vary, of course, but I should let you know what worked for me just in case it helps anyone on this thread.

I have an Apple TV 4K (2022), connected via HDMI into an Anthem MRX receiver which is in turn connected via HDMI to an LG OLED TV. It's a fairly typical setup for anyone who's using a receiver/amp to power external speakers. The audio and video are thus running (1) from the Apple TV into the receiver via HDMI, and the receiver in turn (2) is outputting audio to external speakers and (3) sends video to the LG via HDMI. No HDMI ARC here.

In this setup I have seen intermittent cutting out of audio for 2-3 seconds at a time, video is unaffected, and the cutting out would happen at somewhat random times. It persisted across multiple formats but seemed more common for Dolby encoded audio. It also seemed to happen more often when using Apple Music, or Airplay from an Apple device, than apps like Netflix or YouTube, but it still did occur when using those apps. I tried everything to isolate possible variables, including switching HDMI cables, using different HDMI inputs/output ports on the receiver/TV, etc., to try to eliminate those as possible causes.

I note that other features, like using "Audio->Change Format" to remove Atmos, did not solve this problem.

The problem has since gone away, and so far hasn't returned for two days, after I used the "Reset Video Settings" feature in Settings->Video and Audio. Even though the command is to "Reset Video Settings," it seems to have fixed what was likely an HDMI syncing problem between the Apple TV and the receiver that was causing intermittent audio cutouts. I don't know what "Reset Video Settings" actually resets, but whatever it did, it solved my problems. The user-selectable settings in the Video section of that menu (Match Content, etc.,) were set to the same default values both before and after the reset.

Obviously there's no guarantee that this will help others on this thread, but I do suspect that very few have tried it because they figured the reset command only affected video, but it obviously resets parameters more generally relating to the HDMI connection.

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124 replies

Feb 9, 2023 9:30 PM in response to smackthud

This has been happening with my 2nd Gen ATV4K for months. I use it almost exclusively with AirPods Pro so I don't think it's an HDMI thing. I've been through all the settings experiments that have been noted and nothing seems to help. If I restart the box, it seems to help for about a day. Personally, I think there is a software clock in there that's drifting.

The only thing I haven't tried, that I'm about to try is getting a 1st Gen ATV4K from eBay and trying that. I've read in several places that version doesn't have this problem. Can anyone here confirm?

I would add that this 2nd Gen unit didn't have the problem when I first got it so it's pretty clear that the problem was introduced in an update.

doogalan

Level 1

0 points

Dec 26, 2022 12:28 AM in response to smackthud

I do not think it’s an issue with Dolby or any receiver or sound bar. It’s an issue with AppleTV. We have used our AppleTV service (not the Apple TV device) on our Samsung television and it goes away. It has something to with Apple TV hardware or software. They need to fix it because it has been happening for a while Joe and we are over it.

Druopp1

Level 1

8 points

Jan 18, 2023 5:59 AM in response to smackthud

So this is what I found optical cable has been plugged in however, I’m still using HDMI arc I’m running monster 8K cables HDMI from Apple TV 4K 2022 directly to Vizio M-series sound bar TV is set which is an LG 75002HDMII arc. I unplug the sound bar for 10 minutes unplugged all HDMI cables as well plugged everything back in and set my Vizio sound bar to HDMI not HDMI arc. The problem has been solved so far I’ve got the plus and minus buttons when I control the volume back and I’ve had no audio drop out.

I’m running format 4K HDR chroma, 4.2.2 default audio TV. Speaker told me Atmos on with change format off. I don’t know if this helps anybody. I don’t know if I’m replying to an old post. I’ve also turned off beta updates. I have a funny feeling that may have led to an issue to begin with.

DJrapcat

Level 1

8 points

Feb 23, 2023 8:58 AM in response to AppleFan7512

this is false. The issue is only affecting my new Apple TV. My Apple TV 4K model from last year doesn’t do this. It’s only the newest model.

i swapped back to the previous gen Apple TV and the problem isn’t there

OrbZero

Level 1

8 points

Mar 5, 2023 5:07 AM in response to smackthud

I had this issue up until yesterday. I am using a Vizio sound bar with Sony TV. I updated and reset my ATV and then plugged the ATV directly into Sony TV HDMI 2, then I plugged the soundbar into HDMI ARC (3) on TV and ARC out on Soundbar. Counterintuitive but I have had no issues since with the sound loss. Hopefully this work around works for some others. I agree though Apple needs to actually address the issue. Apple doesn’t seem to care anymore about product testing and releasing only quality and technically stable products.

Jan 14, 2023 10:30 AM in response to Mattasldkfjasldfjk

I decided to change my new cable to another new cable and that worked! It was a cheap Amazon basics 4k/high speed HDMI that fixed it. Go figure

Nov 9, 2022 6:01 PM in response to smackthud

I just got a new Apple tv 4k 2022 running tvOS 16.1 and has same issues with YouTube, Netflix and Apple Music sometimes. I thought it was my sound bar system at first but after switching to my native TV (LG C1 and sonos arc) for days I didn't have any problems with it. And then I found out this post so I'm pretty sure it's apple tv issues.

Apple must fix this issue asap :(

Nov 12, 2022 7:22 PM in response to dk401

I have a gen2 Apple TV 4K running tvOS 16.1. I have an HDMI going directly into an LG projector, and an optical cord from the projector going to a sound bar (Roku streambar). All pass through from the Apple TV.

It works great for 90-120 seconds but all sound fades to a drop out for half a second and then does it again a half of a second later. Then it’s fine again for the next minute and a half.

I’ve confirmed this only happens with the Apple TV. Dolby Digital 5.1 … I’ve changed cords, and even tested with an older Apple TV (which doesn’t have this problem). The Apple TV 4K (gen2) with tvOS 16.1 is always the issue.

rothfunk

Level 1

8 points

Dec 10, 2022 1:00 PM in response to 2FSt

I found a potential solution for a C1+ATV+Sonos Beam setup.

I went into the C1 settings > all settings > sound > additional settings > set “digital sound out” to auto (mine was set to pass through when I was having the intermittent sound drop out).

now, for me, Dolby Atmos content plays fine, 5.1 and stereo content plays fine too.

Sîdh

Level 1

8 points

Dec 27, 2022 7:18 AM in response to smackthud

Confirmed on the Apple TV side. I had the HD model and hoped this situation will improve with the 4K and this is the same... I have to force stereo to have "sounds". My hardware is the same for a few years now and native video from my Roku in Dolby Atmos is still working fine. Please Apple, fix this.

iBren

Level 1

12 points

Jan 24, 2023 12:25 AM in response to smackthud

As somebody said in at least one of the comments this does seem to be related to HDMI communication issue at some level or a components of the HDMI standard, but it only effects certain combinations of components. For example with me with the Apple TV connected directly to the Samsung TV connect box, Dolby Atmos cuts out approximately every 20 mins for about 2 seconds. However, if I connect the Apple TV to the Denon surround amp instead, there's no problem atall. Which is interesting because Smackthud in the the original post experiences an issue (not necessarily exactly the same type) when connected in this config. So it would be interesting to see if he experiences the problem if takes the Apple TV via the tv first into the amp via earc rather than through the amp first. I assume he'll still have the same problem, but then that would beg the question, how come in my setup there's no problem going to directly to the amp? What's different? Is it a chip issue, to do with standardisation .. some amps / tv's have different HDMI chips.. or something..

Jan 31, 2023 2:07 AM in response to smackthud

Definite Apple TV issue. Watching any of the same sources through the exact same setup - LG G1 panel, Samsung Q990b Soundbar, but replacing Apple TV with Nvidia Shield - ATMOS sound is perfect. No dropouts or issues whatsoever.

Really hoping Apple can address this in a TV OS update.

osonaliz

Level 1

8 points

Oct 21, 2023 7:43 PM in response to smackthud

On AppleTV

Go to video and audio

then match content

and make sure match dynamic range is set to off

audio is no longer cutting out.

Donric40

Level 1

8 points

Dec 2, 2023 5:52 AM in response to smackthud

I resolved the situation by changing the HDMI format to RGB high.

2FSt

Level 1

8 points

Oct 17, 2022 12:09 AM in response to winn60

I have the same issue with my Apple TV 4K purchased in February. I am running the latest tvOS 16 and all my apps are up to date. I have an LG C1 and a Sonos Beam soundbar with two Symphonisk bookshelf speakers. When watching movies, most notably on HBO Max, the sound will cut out every 10-20 minutes. The only way I have found to restore the audio is to exit the app to the Home Screen and move the cursor around until the system sounds trigger the audio to start again. Then I can return to the app and resume the movie.

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AppleTV audio cuts out and pops on Dolby Atmos audio content