Apple TV mirroring lag and freeze

[Dkafwac]

Hi, so I'm wondering if anyone out there has their Apple TV working without a lag when they mirror their devices, especially a Mac Pro since that's what I'm having the most trouble with.

I assume my Internet is fast enough because I can stream video on the Apple TV or Mac Pro, but when I try stream something from the Mac Pro TO Apple TV it will lag or freeze periodically. Depending on what it is it might be worse, ie YouTube is usually worse. Just in case, I connected my ISP rental router/modem to the Apple TV thinking the wifi might be the problem. A little better but still lags and freezes!

Even though I need to use my ISP router because I have DSL, would it be helpful to get an airport express to setup my home network?

Any questions? Suggestions? I'm nearing my wits end with this because I've never had such issues with apple products before!

[waw74]

what mac do you have?
airplay mirroring is not supported on mac pros. (supported models here)

if you're using a third party app to mirror, you will have issues, as the processor is having to convert the screen image on the fly. the supported models have a hardware chip that handles the conversion.

it could be a wi-fi issue, if your signal is not strong or there is a lot of interference it can cause problems.
an airport express is not something magical, it's a very base level wifi router. if you are having problems with another router, you will probably have problems with the express.

[Dkafwac]

Yeah, sorry I should have been more clear about my hardware. I've got a MacBook Pro fresh off the shelf with an i5 processor. It doesn't seem to be an issue with the computer because it runs great by itself. Also, I have had similar issues with my iPad 2.

I guess that's why I assumed it might be my network and why I was hoping the airport express would solve the issue for me. Also, FYI, my router is connected directly to the Apple TV via the Ethernet cable and all devices plus router are in the same room within 15 feet of each other. Its all somewhat maddening.

Thanks for the help and thanks in advance to anyone else that might have suggestions.

[waw74]

what kind of buliding do you live in? (mainly what i'm asking is how close are your neighbors)
your wifi channel may be over crowded.
get istumbler, and see what channels your neighbors are on, pick a channel away from them, the channels overlap, so it must be at least 5 channels away, (for example 1 & 6 are clear, 1 & 5 are not) you'll probably not be able to get something completely clear, but that should help.

what kind of speeds are you getting?
alt-click on the wifi icon in your title bar. what's the transmit rate and PHY mode you're seeing.

actually now that i think about it, an express could help, you could turn off the wifi on your ISP supplied modem, and just use the wifi on the express, which would gain you N, which would help tremendously.

If you can try plugging your laptop in via ethernet and see if that helps

keep in mind, you'll never get the same quality, i just tried over wired ethernet with a blu-ray rip, its pixelaled and has a bit of judder. looks like a lower quality youtube video. (i've got a retina MBP, and an aTV3)

[corydavis22]

im actually having the same problem too. Im using the i5 mac mini to my apple tv. Everything runs perfectly on the mac and im not using any 3rd party software just using safari. Im also using cable internet thats pretty fast (never had any issues with it at all). But all in all, im still getting the lag and freeze. My mac is literally feet away from the atv, although my main router is upstairs. I just live in a regular house (no brick work). Not sure what would be the problem... any help would be great!

[iapplelove]

op there is definitely a lag. All my devices do it

[palmerc]

Originally Posted by Dkafwac

Yeah, sorry I should have been more clear about my hardware. I've got a MacBook Pro fresh off the shelf with an i5 processor. It doesn't seem to be an issue with the computer because it runs great by itself. Also, I have had similar issues with my iPad 2.

I guess that's why I assumed it might be my network and why I was hoping the airport express would solve the issue for me. Also, FYI, my router is connected directly to the Apple TV via the Ethernet cable and all devices plus router are in the same room within 15 feet of each other. Its all somewhat maddening.

Thanks for the help and thanks in advance to anyone else that might have suggestions.

If you are expecting realtime updates to the screen then you're going to be disappointed. The usual updates intervals are between 250ms and 1000ms and which is at least partially dependent on the network throughput and latency. When using airplay for demos make sure you look at your screen, not the remote screen for navigation.

I would expect the latency to become reduced with future updates, but for now it isn't gaming friendly.

[AutoUnion39]

Is your aTV wired? I had insane lag from all my devices when it was wireless. I plugged it in via Ethernet, and it seems to be manageable. Some lag, but it isn't very noticeable anymore.