Why does the audio go out of sync on my Apple TV?

Question

Level 1

16 points

Why does the audio go out of sync on my Apple TV?

Over the past couple of weeks I have noticed that the audio goes out of sync with any streaming video on my Apple TV (3rd gen) after about 20 minutes of usage. I have never had this experience in the past and am not sure why it is happening, but one theory is that it has something to do with AirPlay. I'm pretty sure that this problem only happens after I use AirPlay to connect my Mac to the Apple TV. I'm not sure if this is the exact source of the issue and was wondering if anyone else has experienced this, and if so, what solutions may be available. Thanks.

Apple TV (3rd generation), iOS 5.1.1

Posted on Sep 14, 2013 7:58 PM

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Answer 1

Sep 15, 2013 5:42 AM in response to Boberts227

The following article(s) may help you.

Troubleshooting AirPlay

Troubleshooting Wi-Fi networks and connections

Recommended Wi-Fi settings

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Answer 2

Sep 17, 2013 3:18 AM in response to Boberts227

Seeing the same problem with our Apple TV 3 watching YouTube videos and Long-form content streamed via Home Sharing.

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Answer 3

Heruan

Level 1

0 points

Jan 28, 2014 2:42 AM in response to Boberts227

I confirm this on Apple TV 3 while watching AirPlay content from iTunes. No problem with video files < 20min long but with an hour or longer video files the audio goes out of sync after 30-60 seconds.

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Answer 4

Feb 3, 2014 5:41 PM in response to Boberts227

I discovered the root cause of my issues were due to HDMI's Audio Return Channel (ARC) function.

My original setup was like this:

Apple TV HDMI ---> Television HDMI Input ---> Television HDMI ARC Output ---> Audio System HDMI Input.

When I changed the Apple TV HDMI to connect directly to the Audio System HDMI Input, all audio sync problems were resolved.

Apple TV HDMI ---> Audio System HDMI Input.

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