Netflix Atmos Issues and Problems.

Glad I am not the only one but also concerned (and very disappointed) that Apple hasn’t corrected this after all this time. If I only knew when my Apple TV was new I would have returned it for sure. It’s also nonsensical that Disney plus and Prime don’t have this issue, you would guess they do something right, or their atmos is less rich than Netflix and TV+? Not even sure this makes sense :)
I only know that this is a shame for a company like Apple to let people down with this issue.
I have ATV 4K with JBL9.1 sound bar.
 
Glad I am not the only one but also concerned (and very disappointed) that Apple hasn’t corrected this after all this time. If I only knew when my Apple TV was new I would have returned it for sure. It’s also nonsensical that Disney plus and Prime don’t have this issue, you would guess they do something right, or their atmos is less rich than Netflix and TV+? Not even sure this makes sense :)
I only know that this is a shame for a company like Apple to let people down with this issue.
I have ATV 4K with JBL9.1 sound bar.
I have been dealing with this issue for 6 months, first with an LG OLED tv and a Sony HT-Z9F soundbar. then I bought a Sony A8H tv with same sony s/b but still and issue. Contacted Sony and they said and updated F/W would help, it didn't. Then thinking it was the soundbar which was under warranty and sent in to NJ for repair. They could not duplicate the issue so sent it back to me. I was determined to have this be a soundbar issue but sent back a 2nd time(after complaining) and they still could not duplicate and at the same time they damaged my soundbar. Make a long story shorter, I made them buy back my sony s/b and rear speakers for full price. I am surely thinking this is Netfix issue. I have another Klisph soundbar on backorder from Crutchfield. Hopeful that this get resolved soon,
 
I always thought it would be an issue with Netflix’s Atmos. On my Apple TV, Atmos comes through the Apple TV app, Apple TV+, Disney+ and (back when they cared about audio) Amazon absolutely perfectly. And it’s not like it’s limited to certain titles, every Atmos mix I’ve played through my system has this fault.
 
So, I may have found a way to solve the issue, which seems to be related, as someone else pointed out, to a variable bit rate issue on our WiFi or wired network.
I have a mesh WiFi system and even with very good speed tests on the ATV (160/120) I was experiencing the Atmos issue.
My system supports QoS but it was disabled, I enabled it and prioritized streaming traffic, the problem seems to have stopped (I have watched a full episode of Our Planet with no weird Atmos issues, which never happened before).
I suspect QoS improved the shaping of the traffic reducing the variance in the bit rate, but this is just a theory.
 
So, I may have found a way to solve the issue, which seems to be related, as someone else pointed out, to a variable bit rate issue on our WiFi or wired network.
I have a mesh WiFi system and even with very good speed tests on the ATV (160/120) I was experiencing the Atmos issue.
My system supports QoS but it was disabled, I enabled it and prioritized streaming traffic, the problem seems to have stopped (I have watched a full episode of Our Planet with no weird Atmos issues, which never happened before).
I suspect QoS improved the shaping of the traffic reducing the variance in the bit rate, but this is just a theory.
This might explain why I have never had any issues with Atmos on my Apple TV 4K, mine is hardwired and I get over 360-385 down / 36 up speeds :)
 
Interesting, I haven't noticed any issues with my Apple TV 4K running Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, Apple TV+ or iTunes movie using Dolby Atmos.
Can somebody provide some content and time stamp so I can re-check?
I have a Apple TV 4K directly attached to a Denon AVR-X4500H which is then connected to a LG C8 65".
Running in Atmos 5.1.2.
If you look at each of my posts and the ones between (posts 125-140ish) there are tons of content examples. For me it’s limited to Netflix & AppleTV+. Software updates haven’t helped yet. I have 600 meg internet & both my receiver & AppleTV are connected via lan so it’s not a bandwidth issue. Seems like a decoding issue. It only happens with atoms decoding. Tiny world (episode 2), operation Christmas drop (Netflix), haunting of bly manor (Netflix) are some examples.
 
So, I may have found a way to solve the issue, which seems to be related, as someone else pointed out, to a variable bit rate issue on our WiFi or wired network.
I have a mesh WiFi system and even with very good speed tests on the ATV (160/120) I was experiencing the Atmos issue.
My system supports QoS but it was disabled, I enabled it and prioritized streaming traffic, the problem seems to have stopped (I have watched a full episode of Our Planet with no weird Atmos issues, which never happened before).
I suspect QoS improved the shaping of the traffic reducing the variance in the bit rate, but this is just a theory.
My setup is mesh but it’s hardwired & I have a rock solid internet connection. I’m watching the ATV+ movie Palmer right now and it’s atmos decoding. Hasn’t done it yet but it definitely did it during the preview for the Billy Eilish tv+ show.
 
I emailed senior officials at Apple in early February thinking that my concerns would go unheard. Surprisingly, I received a phone call about a week later from a senior technician operating from Apple’s Austin, Texas campus. I have since been working with engineers to isolate the Dolby Atmos problem within tvOS. Each time I experience an issue, I run a diagnostic from the remote control and upload the related analytics file to Apple. I hope this effort is successful and that the AT4K/ATMOS problem will be remedied. So far, I have transmitted 4 uploads. I will update when we’ve made some headway...
 
I emailed senior officials at Apple in early February thinking that my concerns would go unheard. Surprisingly, I received a phone call about a week later from a senior technician operating from Apple’s Austin, Texas campus. I have since been working with engineers to isolate the Dolby Atmos problem within tvOS. Each time I experience an issue, I run a diagnostic from the remote control and upload the related analytics file to Apple. I hope this effort is successful and that the AT4K/ATMOS problem will be remedied. So far, I have transmitted 4 uploads. I will update when we’ve made some headway...
Thanks for the update! This sounds like very positive traction. If they need more people to contribute I am sure there are many on this thread that would be willing to help. Thanks for the effort you’re putting in on this.
 
I emailed senior officials at Apple in early February thinking that my concerns would go unheard. Surprisingly, I received a phone call about a week later from a senior technician operating from Apple’s Austin, Texas campus. I have since been working with engineers to isolate the Dolby Atmos problem within tvOS. Each time I experience an issue, I run a diagnostic from the remote control and upload the related analytics file to Apple. I hope this effort is successful and that the AT4K/ATMOS problem will be remedied. So far, I have transmitted 4 uploads. I will update when we’ve made some headway...
I wish you luck but this is my exact same experience, I collected logs 4 times, they also wanted a video (for which reason I don’t know) of when the issue was occurring, no outcome whatsoever.

But I did solve the issue finally, now I am a happy owner of a new Nvidia Shield TV, no more Atmos problems!!!
 
I wish you luck but this is my exact same experience, I collected logs 4 times, they also wanted a video (for which reason I don’t know) of when the issue was occurring, no outcome whatsoever.

But I did solve the issue finally, now I am a happy owner of a new Nvidia Shield TV, no more Atmos problems!!!
Thank you. Many of us who've experienced the Apple TV/Atmos problem also enjoy some form of workaround. For myself, I can use Smart apps on my television which routes the error-free Atmos audio to my receiver via ARC. My UHD Blu-Ray player and its smart apps also deliver flawless Atmos. Regardless, I will continue to work with Apple engineers to resolve the issue.
 
Has anything happened about this? I am noticing the same effect with the Tiny World episodes too. (Apple TV 4K, Denon X3600H). I have just updated to 14.5, hopefully that will fix it? I can order the updated Apple TV in a few days... :)
 
Has anything happened about this? I am noticing the same effect with the Tiny World episodes too. (Apple TV 4K, Denon X3600H). I have just updated to 14.5, hopefully that will fix it? I can order the updated Apple TV in a few days... :)
I updated to tvOS 14.5 this morning as well. Watching Season 2 of Tiny World on Apple TV+, I have not experienced "channel-jumping" yet. But, I did hear a loud pop through my home theater that has also been an ongoing issue with the Apple TV 4K hardware. I have been working with Apple engineers on both the channel jumping and pop issues. The annoying pop generally occurs after rewinding or fast-forwarding using voice commands from the remote, e.g., "Go back 1 minute" or, "Go forward 30 seconds." The pop only occurs when the source audio is Dolby ATMOS and is intermittent...
 
Last edited:
I am still working with senior Apple engineers on the LOUD POPs that occur when listening to ATMOS on the Apple TV 4K, even the 2021 version. They have heard similar complaints from other ATV4K users and appear serious about eliminating this annoying problem.
 

The latest video from AVForums

TV Buying Guide - Which TV Is Best For You?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom