Apple TV AirPlay to Powered Speakers = low audio

Question

Apple TV AirPlay to Powered Speakers = low audio

I'm using the newly-introduced AirPlay functionality that allows users to send audio from apps like Hulu and Netflix directly to AirPlay enabled speakers.

This works just fine, but the audio output is relatively low and requires me to max-out the speakers. This is not the case when I send audio from iOS apps to the same speakers via AirPlay.

I'm using a second generation Apple TV and sending the audio to an Apple AirPort Express hooked up to a pair of AudioEngine A5+ speakers. Any suggestions for why the audio output is low?

Thanks,

Chris

Apple TV (2nd generation)

Posted on Feb 19, 2013 4:17 PM

Reply

Answer 1

Feb 21, 2013 4:19 AM in response to christophereatworld

Found it on appleinsider discussing the ios6 beta. Airplay does not support 5.1 surround so you must turn off Dolby Digital in Audio & Video settings. Have not yet tried as I'm not home but I have the same issue. Sounds like the fix as long as nothing changed after release.

Reply

Answer 2

Feb 21, 2013 3:54 PM in response to tommylikey

Thanks for the suggestion. It didn't do the trick for me, but I did notice that I get much better / more authentic volume when playing music from the Apple TV to the AirPlay speakers, so I'm assuming that it may have something to do with the video apps.

I know Apple only recently introduced the capability in a recent update, so perhaps it hasn't been perfected yet?

Reply

Answer 3

Feb 21, 2013 4:59 PM in response to christophereatworld

Just posted solution in the other thread too, but I'll put it here too since this is a specific thread:

When you are watching or listening to content in an airplay friendly app, you can press and hold select, then a dialog will pop up. When you are in an audio app, the speaker option is clear - when in a video app (like Netflix) there are two menu lists at the top i.e. 'subtitles' and 'speakers'. Either way, select it, them your desired speakers, and here you will see an audio level scrubber. Adjust, and enjoy!

Reply