I have lost my apple TV remote and replaced it with a new one, but cant seem to pair it with the base unit. Any suggestions?

this solution does not work for me. Lost remote and bought the new one. Cannot use the new one at all. Trying to unpair ("LEFT (rewind) + MENU") using the new remote doesn't work nor does any other combination of buttons. Have replaced battery in the new remote. Still nothing. Any ideas appreciated.

Definitely sounds like old remote is still paired, try restoring thru iTunes

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT203028

Apple TV: Pairing and unpairing the Apple Remote

This would be a great resource if it weren't the same instructions from the apple site, the instructions that don't work as it is. If you don't have the remote & can't pair a new one the way it says (which I certainly can't, not for lack of trying), then you can't select or deselect anything on the AppleTV. The AppleTV won't even wake up from the screen saver. A pricey new remote, totally worthless...

Actually, one of the links at the side of this page had the exact problem I'm having. Seeing as how a lost remote is still a paired remote, you can't pair the new remote until the old remote is unpaired. Fortunately, you can use ANY remote to unpair--just hold down the "LEFT (rewind) + MENU" buttons to unpair the old remote. Once you see that this step has been completed, you can simply use the new remote to pair with the AppleTV by holding down "RIGHT (forward) + MENU" to pair the remote as per the instructions on Apple's help page. Hope that helps for those like me who lost their old remote & couldn't understand why the new one didn't want to pair. When the old remote is still paired, there is no message when you try to pair another remote, though there probably should be. 😁

Thank you, John. That tidbit about any remote being to unpair is not explicitly stated by Apple.

its in the apple support docs.

I'm glad I was able to help, Christy. I had the same problem. It wasn't until I ran across somebody else who mentioned unpair the lost remote that I was able to fix my problem. It's also nice to know that you can use ANY remote to unpair the lost remote. Apple definitely should mention this because a lost or non-functioning remote is the primary reason for buying a new remote. Anyway, share the knowledge when you can. The hallmark of the Apple community, for me, is our willingness to help each other & to not judge anyone simply because they don't know something that someone thinks is common knowledge. I've found so many great people in the Apple community & that makes me proud to be a member of that community. If you have any other questions about this or anything Apple, I'll be glad to help if I can or refer you to someone else who can help. :-) I'm glad your problem has been solved--at least I hope it's been solved! :-) Best wishes. jf

Thanx John worked like a charm and I earned points with my 16 year-old daughter as an added bonus!

I have spent hours trying to figure this out. Thank you very much John. When I finally googled the question and found your answer I was able to unpair and pair the new remote! Again, thank you!!

Thanks John, your instructions are more clear than the Apple KT db Apple TV: Pairing and unpairing the Apple Remote

Always a good safety to have the iPhone Remote app (assuming you have an ios device) configured as an extra remote 🙂

Wow, that actually did work. Thought I bought a faulty remote. Thank you.