Hi. My sound randomly stops working (not for UI elements, only for actual content) in between videos, most often in either YouTube or the Computers app. Everything's fine, but when I finish something and choose the next thing to watch, it's silent. This happens VERY randomly—I can go weeks without it and then have it happen at least once a day for a week or more. Sound is set to play through the TV itself rather than a sound bar. I can't identify a pattern in terms of what kind of content sets it off, nor can I find a consistent solution. Very occasionally just switching audio output to my Sonos Ray soundbar (bluetooth) and back will fix it, but usually I have to restart both the ATV and the TV multiple times until it just starts working again. I know I could just use the soundbar all the time, but I often have the TV on late at night, or very quietly, and the lower-quality built-in TV sound is much less intrusive. The whole setup is just my ATV, TV and soundbar, apart from the Mac Mini on my network that holds my iTunes music and TV/film libraries.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Annoying sound issue: ATV4K + 2019 Samsung Frame TV
- Thread starter Logan in LA
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
Multiple variables, so you need to do some process of elimination to narrow it down until you know which of the 3 pieces is causing the problem. If you want to assume AppleTV is fine, change the wiring for a test. It reads like you are wired AppleTV to Samsung to Sonos, so switch to AppleTV (through Extractor or Receiver) Optical to Sonos Ray and HDMI to Samsung. Then go a few weeks to see if the problem happens again. If:
Else, if the TV is a smart TV, drop the AppleTV for a few weeks and use the TVs version of YouTube app. With AppleTV disconnected, see if you can make the problem happen again only between TV and soundbar. if so, you know the problem is in those 2 links. If not, that would be more evidence against AppleTV.
Another test: next time it does it, hard reboot (unplug, wait maybe a few minutes, plug back in) only ONE piece of the 3 pieces and see if the problem repeats. For example, hard reboot the soundbar since it is the far end of the audio chain. If all is well again for a while, wait & see if the problem occurs again. If so, try the same remedy. If hard reboot solves the problem a few times in a row, the bar likely has the issue.
Next try the same with only the middle link- the TV. Again, if it resolves, wait for it to happen again and do the same through a cycle of maybe 3 times in a row.
Lastly, try the first link in the chain with rebooting only AppleTV. If it resolves, wait for it to happen again and do the same. Again, maybe repeat this through 3 cycles.
This process can help you narrow in on which of the 3 is likely causing the issue too. Once you know which, you can dig into menus and instructions for that link in search of perhaps a setting change or similar to resolve the issue.
My wild guess is the TV optical out is causing this: changes in audio format in videos in YouTube and Computers are reaching the optical out and not getting forwarded to the soundbar... like one video is mono or stereo and the next is 5.1 Dolby or vice versa.
So one more test: the next time this happens, try to repeat the events that preceded the problem. For example, after you get it working again, go back to the SAME video that worked correctly before the event and then try to play the SAME video that wouldn't play after it. If the same 2 videos cause the problem again, perhaps repeat this procedure one more time, so you know this combination of videos will trigger the problem. Then dig into the details of the 2 videos- particularly their audio track details- and see if something changes.
For example, was video 1 in stereo or mono and video 2 in 5.1 (or vice versa)? If so, find 2 other videos that have identical audio formats and play them in the same order to see if that will also cause the problem. If so, you'll learn that the change in audio format is triggering the event and this will give you something to check in TV audio settings (such as changing pass-through audio to stereo only (or vice versa), which might resolve the issue).
One more guess is that you switching from Sonos to TV speakers and back again often is "confusing" the optical out port on the TV, which leads to these events when using the Sonos bar. Generally, stick with the Sonos and just turn the volume down low enough so it is no louder than when you switch to the TV speakers, effectively retiring the TV speakers from any use at all. This + what was shared in the prior 2 paragraphs in combination might be "confusing" the optical port from time to time when audio formats in select videos change. TV speakers will be stereo and when they are in charge, certain setting may change in support of stereo playback. Sonos Ray may accommodate pass through 5.1 signals but those changes to stereo may not revert back when you switch back to Ray. If so, stereo may pass through just fine but then it chokes on 5.1 audio.
- not, the TV is likely at fault and you need to look through settings to see if you can adjust anything that might make the difference for that optical OUT.
- so, the soundbar is likely at fault and you need to look through settings to see if you can adjust anything that may make the difference for that optical IN.
Else, if the TV is a smart TV, drop the AppleTV for a few weeks and use the TVs version of YouTube app. With AppleTV disconnected, see if you can make the problem happen again only between TV and soundbar. if so, you know the problem is in those 2 links. If not, that would be more evidence against AppleTV.
Another test: next time it does it, hard reboot (unplug, wait maybe a few minutes, plug back in) only ONE piece of the 3 pieces and see if the problem repeats. For example, hard reboot the soundbar since it is the far end of the audio chain. If all is well again for a while, wait & see if the problem occurs again. If so, try the same remedy. If hard reboot solves the problem a few times in a row, the bar likely has the issue.
Next try the same with only the middle link- the TV. Again, if it resolves, wait for it to happen again and do the same through a cycle of maybe 3 times in a row.
Lastly, try the first link in the chain with rebooting only AppleTV. If it resolves, wait for it to happen again and do the same. Again, maybe repeat this through 3 cycles.
This process can help you narrow in on which of the 3 is likely causing the issue too. Once you know which, you can dig into menus and instructions for that link in search of perhaps a setting change or similar to resolve the issue.
My wild guess is the TV optical out is causing this: changes in audio format in videos in YouTube and Computers are reaching the optical out and not getting forwarded to the soundbar... like one video is mono or stereo and the next is 5.1 Dolby or vice versa.
So one more test: the next time this happens, try to repeat the events that preceded the problem. For example, after you get it working again, go back to the SAME video that worked correctly before the event and then try to play the SAME video that wouldn't play after it. If the same 2 videos cause the problem again, perhaps repeat this procedure one more time, so you know this combination of videos will trigger the problem. Then dig into the details of the 2 videos- particularly their audio track details- and see if something changes.
For example, was video 1 in stereo or mono and video 2 in 5.1 (or vice versa)? If so, find 2 other videos that have identical audio formats and play them in the same order to see if that will also cause the problem. If so, you'll learn that the change in audio format is triggering the event and this will give you something to check in TV audio settings (such as changing pass-through audio to stereo only (or vice versa), which might resolve the issue).
One more guess is that you switching from Sonos to TV speakers and back again often is "confusing" the optical out port on the TV, which leads to these events when using the Sonos bar. Generally, stick with the Sonos and just turn the volume down low enough so it is no louder than when you switch to the TV speakers, effectively retiring the TV speakers from any use at all. This + what was shared in the prior 2 paragraphs in combination might be "confusing" the optical port from time to time when audio formats in select videos change. TV speakers will be stereo and when they are in charge, certain setting may change in support of stereo playback. Sonos Ray may accommodate pass through 5.1 signals but those changes to stereo may not revert back when you switch back to Ray. If so, stereo may pass through just fine but then it chokes on 5.1 audio.
Last edited:
Thank you so much for the very good suggestions! The problem will probably lay dormant for awhile, just to spite me now that I have a handful of ideas about what to do, but I will try all of this stuff next time.
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
I believe that is one of Murphy's laws. Just be ready- especially the bit about taking note of what you just watched on- say- YouTube that played just fine and then the one you tried to watch right after that one that did not play. The key to narrowing in on a problem is getting all variables ruled out. One side goal in any of this is to find a way to actually cause this to happen in a repeatable every time scenario. Once you can control the trigger, diagnosis becomes much simpler. Seemingly random events are much harder to diagnose.
HobeSoundDarryl
macrumors G5
Update: others are reporting this same problem with a variety of TVs, cables and soundbars. Do a search here or elsewhere and there are many matches. See some references to this in today's thread about a tvOS update. I no longer suspect your equipment or even settings. I now think this is a bug in Apple tvOS that Apple will need to fix.
It is probably still worth trying to narrow down the problem just in case, but I suspect it will take a tvOS update or two at some point to fix it.
This problem doesn't affect everyone. For example, I'm not experiencing it myself. But the common elements seem to be your setup: AppleTV HDMI to Various TVs to Soundbar. In my case, I'm AppleTV HDMI to Receiver which then splits Video via HDMI to TV and audio via speaker wires to a surround sound setup.
If you happen to have even an old Receiver laying around, perhaps put it into the chain and see if you can make this happen again. A receiver could do the audio splitting before signals get to the TV vs. leaning on the TV to do it. If that solves it for now, use it until Apple updates tvOS and then try the current connections again.
It is probably still worth trying to narrow down the problem just in case, but I suspect it will take a tvOS update or two at some point to fix it.
This problem doesn't affect everyone. For example, I'm not experiencing it myself. But the common elements seem to be your setup: AppleTV HDMI to Various TVs to Soundbar. In my case, I'm AppleTV HDMI to Receiver which then splits Video via HDMI to TV and audio via speaker wires to a surround sound setup.
If you happen to have even an old Receiver laying around, perhaps put it into the chain and see if you can make this happen again. A receiver could do the audio splitting before signals get to the TV vs. leaning on the TV to do it. If that solves it for now, use it until Apple updates tvOS and then try the current connections again.
Last edited:
FWIW, I have 8 TVs with Apple TVs connected over various locations. None of them demonstrated this issue until I installed a Samsung Frame TV 2023. Now there's an annoying sound cut out every few seconds, but only on certain apps. Like it does it on Max & Netflix, but not on YouTube, and it never does it if I use the apps on the TV. Reset the TV, the Apple TV, changed the HDMI cables, changed the port, even used a different Apple TV, same result with the same apps. The only way I could make it go away was on the Apple TV to force audio conversion to Stereo and disable Dolby Atmos. (Turning off Atmos on the Samsung doesn't help.)
I only know a surface amount of HDMI low level specs, but I'd speculate a high definition signal is causing some kind of bandwidth overload and the audio is the thing that's getting dumped as a result, but that's only a guess. This would explain why apps like YouTube and the previews in Apple TV don't blip, but 4k streams from Netflix and Max do.
Given the combinations of equipment and the high number of Google results for Samsung TVs having this problem, it really does feel like an issue specific to Apple TV + Samsung. None of our Sony, Toshiba nor LG screens have ever had a problem like this. My problem is solved by dumbing down the audio, but I wanted to share this data point (and solution) for any others who find this.
I only know a surface amount of HDMI low level specs, but I'd speculate a high definition signal is causing some kind of bandwidth overload and the audio is the thing that's getting dumped as a result, but that's only a guess. This would explain why apps like YouTube and the previews in Apple TV don't blip, but 4k streams from Netflix and Max do.
Given the combinations of equipment and the high number of Google results for Samsung TVs having this problem, it really does feel like an issue specific to Apple TV + Samsung. None of our Sony, Toshiba nor LG screens have ever had a problem like this. My problem is solved by dumbing down the audio, but I wanted to share this data point (and solution) for any others who find this.
I'm having this issue too. Just bought a 2023 Samsung Frame TV (an absolute piece of garbage, I must say—a complete, unqualified disappointment) to use with my Apple TV, and the sound cuts out every few seconds exactly like you say: virtually every app and native content, but not audio from Previews. And no audio problems with any of the TV's built-in apps.
Switching the audio to Stereo did the trick. Like you I'm not happy about it, but at this point it's the least of my problems with this TV. So thank you!
