Dolby Vision Artifacts

[AbSoluTc]

So this weird issue started yesterday. My ATV was fine and now all of a sudden, there are weird green lines in the app icons. Not all of them. In settings, the image on the left (cog) has green fuzzy pixels on the top 1/3 of it. There are also green fuzzy pixels/lines in white scenes and colored scenes (like on faces). It's like the highlights are having issues. I reset the ATV and setup new, nada. Updated Onkyo, nada. Only after I turned off Dolby Vision (switched back to 4k HDR), did the issue stop.

Nothing has changed. My cables are fine. What happened? Is this some sort of bug or update from my TV/Apple mess something up?

 

[w5jck]

Can you take and post a photo of the TV screen so we can better understand what is happening?

When you set the ATV 4K to always use Dolby Vision (DV), it definitely displays the menus and interface way too bright IMO. Honestly I’m not sure why you would want to use that setting because it merely converts everything into a faux DV. Since most programming is not in DV, you are forcing it to simulate DV, and that messes up the view of that programming more often than not. You can set up the ATV 4K to use DV when the programming is actually created for DV but still use the formatting all other programming was created to use. You get a much more accurate picture that way and the menus and interface are much better looking too.

 

[AbSoluTc]

Can you take and post a photo of the TV screen so we can better understand what is happening?

When you set the ATV 4K to always use Dolby Vision (DV), it definitely displays the menus and interface way too bright IMO. Honestly I’m not sure why you would want to use that setting because it merely converts everything into a faux DV. Since most programming is not in DV, you are forcing it to simulate DV, and that messes up the view of that programming more often than not. You can set up the ATV 4K to use DV when the programming is actually created for DV but still use the formatting all other programming was created to use. You get a much more accurate picture that way and the menus and interface are much better looking too.

I’ll get some pics. What are you saying to set the settings to then?

 

[cynics]

Like this?

Onkyo TX-SR608 Green Artifacts on Output

www.avsforum.com

This is also the symptoms of a failing HDMI cable. I would get a new high speed HDMI cable and plug the AppleTV directly into the TV. If its good try new high speed HDMI cables from the receiver to the TV and ATV to receiver. Cables as short as will reach is preferable, a 20 foot HDMI wrapped around the back of the AppleTV is asking for EMI.

Somewhere the data is being lost or can't be processed fast enough for real time playback. It manifest itself on a scene by scene bases, if its gets bad enough the decoder will freeze. I would see this all the time on mp4 encodes that are too complex for the playback device to decode in real time, not an issue you should be having if its mainstream content.

 

[AbSoluTc]

Like this?

Onkyo TX-SR608 Green Artifacts on Output

www.avsforum.com

This is also the symptoms of a failing HDMI cable. I would get a new high speed HDMI cable and plug the AppleTV directly into the TV. If its good try new high speed HDMI cables from the receiver to the TV and ATV to receiver. Cables as short as will reach is preferable, a 20 foot HDMI wrapped around the back of the AppleTV is asking for EMI.

Somewhere the data is being lost or can't be processed fast enough for real time playback. It manifest itself on a scene by scene bases, if its gets bad enough the decoder will freeze. I would see this all the time on mp4 encodes that are too complex for the playback device to decode in real time, not an issue you should be having if its mainstream content.

It was similar to that yes. Oddly the Onkyo is “new”. Just under a year old. Also, the issue was not happening last night. I’m guessing it was a glitch? Who knows. I also randomly have my picture go PINK. I have to switch HDMI inputs and go back to fix or just restart the ATV.

 

[w5jck]

First of all, use whatever settings you like best. Only you know what works best for you. But here are some suggestions that many of us use in order to get the most flexibility and best video quality out of our ATV 4Ks.

Second, Apple made the Settings a bit non-intuitive, so it does get a bit confusing at times. I'll walk you through the settings I like. Try them if you like. Hopefully this will help you out a bit.

1. Open Settings on ATV 4K.
2. In the Settings menu, select the Video and Audio menu option.
3. In the Video and Audio menu, select the Format menu option.
4. In the Format menu, select the 4K SDR option.
5. Back out of the Format menu to return to the Video and Audio menu.
6. In the Video and Audio menu, select the Match Content menu option.
7. In the Match Content menu, set Match Dynamic Range to ON.
8. In the Match Content menu, set Match Frame Rate to ON.
9. Close Settings.

Here is why I use these settings. Most of the content we can stream is still in the SDR (Standard Dynamic Range) format. Very little HDR is actually available to stream at this time. So I set the ATV 4K to default to streaming 4K in SDR because that is what most content is still using. However, I do want content that is streamed in 4K HDR format to be seen in HDR format. So I set the Match Content options to match the dynamic range of the streaming content. With this option turned ON, even though my default is to use the SDR format, any HDR format will override the SDR setting and be streamed in HDR format. The last option I change is to match the frame rate of the streaming content. Streaming content can come in a variety of frame rates, including 24fps, 30fps, 60fps, and so forth. I find that setting the option to match the frame rate that the streaming content comes with makes the video look best.

I hope this helps. I suggest you experiment a bit to see what works best for you. The settings I have shown are designed to allow the most content to be streamed and viewed in its native formatting, which generally is the best way to view it. If we force SDR into a faux HDR, it might look okay or it might not. It we force everything into Dolby Vision (which is HDR) then content that is SDR might not look as good, and not all HDR content uses Dolby Vision as some uses HDR10, HDR10+, and other HDR settings. And as I stated in the earlier post, forcing everything into Dolby Vision makes the menus and interface used on the ATV 4K look too bright and glitchy.

Two quick final comments.

These settings above will show any Dolby Vision content in Dolby Vision. But again, only if it is the ative formatting of the streaming content.

The match content setting turned on will occasionally cause the ATV 4K to switch its settings automatically to match the content you want to stream at that moment. When this occurs the TV screen might briefly change or even momentarily freeze while the settings are in the process of being updated. That is normal. It does slow down scrolling through selections sometimes, but it isn't really that noticeable once you get used to it. And of course the video quality will be improved once the settings automatically change to be optimized for the content you are streaming.

 

[AbSoluTc]

First of all, use whatever settings you like best. Only you know what works best for you. But here are some suggestions that many of us use in order to get the most flexibility and best video quality out of our ATV 4Ks.

Second, Apple made the Settings a bit non-intuitive, so it does get a bit confusing at times. I'll walk you through the settings I like. Try them if you like. Hopefully this will help you out a bit.

1. Open Settings on ATV 4K.
2. In the Settings menu, select the Video and Audio menu option.
3. In the Video and Audio menu, select the Format menu option.
4. In the Format menu, select the 4K SDR option.
5. Back out of the Format menu to return to the Video and Audio menu.
6. In the Video and Audio menu, select the Match Content menu option.
7. In the Match Content menu, set Match Dynamic Range to ON.
8. In the Match Content menu, set Match Frame Rate to ON.
9. Close Settings.

Here is why I use these settings. Most of the content we can stream is still in the SDR (Standard Dynamic Range) format. Very little HDR is actually available to stream at this time. So I set the ATV 4K to default to streaming 4K in SDR because that is what most content is still using. However, I do want content that is streamed in 4K HDR format to be seen in HDR format. So I set the Match Content options to match the dynamic range of the streaming content. With this option turned ON, even though my default is to use the SDR format, any HDR format will override the SDR setting and be streamed in HDR format. The last option I change is to match the frame rate of the streaming content. Streaming content can come in a variety of frame rates, including 24fps, 30fps, 60fps, and so forth. I find that setting the option to match the frame rate that the streaming content comes with makes the video look best.

I hope this helps. I suggest you experiment a bit to see what works best for you. The settings I have shown are designed to allow the most content to be streamed and viewed in its native formatting, which generally is the best way to view it. If we force SDR into a faux HDR, it might look okay or it might not. It we force everything into Dolby Vision (which is HDR) then content that is SDR might not look as good, and not all HDR content uses Dolby Vision as some uses HDR10, HDR10+, and other HDR settings. And as I stated in the earlier post, forcing everything into Dolby Vision makes the menus and interface used on the ATV 4K look too bright and glitchy.

Two quick final comments.

These settings above will show any Dolby Vision content in Dolby Vision. But again, only if it is the ative formatting of the streaming content.

The match content setting turned on will occasionally cause the ATV 4K to switch its settings automatically to match the content you want to stream at that moment. When this occurs the TV screen might briefly change or even momentarily freeze while the settings are in the process of being updated. That is normal. It does slow down scrolling through selections sometimes, but it isn't really that noticeable once you get used to it. And of course the video quality will be improved once the settings automatically change to be optimized for the content you are streaming.

This is great info! I did this partially last night after reading the other persons post in the thread. I just didn't know what to set as my default video format. 4K SDR it is. I did set the match content but not frame rate. So your info will help me flesh it out more.

I agree that I want everything the way it's meant to be seen and not automatically modified. I also agree that DV makes the main ATV menu super bright.

 

[w5jck]

This is great info! I did this partially last night after reading the other persons post in the thread. I just didn't know what to set as my default video format. 4K SDR it is. I did set the match content but not frame rate. So your info will help me flesh it out more.

I agree that I want everything the way it's meant to be seen and not automatically modified. I also agree that DV makes the main ATV menu super bright.

Good luck, I hope you get it set up the way you want. I had to do a lot of forum searching and experimenting to get mine where I like it. Apple didn’t really make it clear what the various settings do, so it was not intuitive.

I would definitely try what the other poster suggested about the HDMI cable as well as it very well could be bad. I’ve got HDMI cables lying around that must be 15 years old now so in the past year I’ve started replacing ALL of them with new cables that have the latest specs.

 

[AbSoluTc]

Good luck, I hope you get it set up the way you want. I had to do a lot of forum searching and experimenting to get mine where I like it. Apple didn’t really make it clear what the various settings do, so it was not intuitive.

I would definitely try what the other poster suggested about the HDMI cable as well as it very well could be bad. I’ve got HDMI cables lying around that must be 15 years old now so in the past year I’ve started replacing ALL of them with new cables that have the latest specs.

Thanks. I did try newer cables from Blue Jean cables but no matter what I did, they would not pass Dolby Vision. My cheap Vizio cables did. So I used them. Go figure.

 

[faffing]

4K SDR can def help

Two words of warning:
Has youtube been fixed? know in the past, it doesnt trigger HDR, unless the whole system is set for HDR

Setting 4K SDR means one misses out out on that sweet HDR Aerial action

 

[w5jck]

4K SDR can def help

Two words of warning:
Has youtube been fixed? know in the past, it doesnt trigger HDR, unless the whole system is set for HDR

Setting 4K SDR means one misses out out on that sweet HDR Aerial action

YT on the ATV 4K 2017 model still won't stream in HDR. I don't know about the 2021 model. On the 2017 model, enabling Dolby Vision or HDR in general will NOT cause YT to stream HDR, it merely causes the ATV 4K to convert YT SDR streaming into pseudo HDR. That is not the same thing as true HDR.

I updated the following after conducting a few tests on my ATV 4K 2017:

I just changed my ATV 4K setting from SDR to HDR to test the Aerial screensavers and discovered that there are different screensavers that display for SDR than those which display for HDR. I’m not sure why Apple did this, but they only show HDR ones when HDR is set as default, and they only show SDR one when SDR is set to default. So yes, setting SDR to default means you won’t see the actual HDR screensavers. That is really sloppy on Apple’s part. They also refuse to display 16-bit photos in 16-bit (HDR) in their crappie Photos app on the ATV 4K opting to display them in lower 8-bit color, which can cause color banding.

Except in Photos and Screensavers, setting the ATV 4K to display SDR by default with Match Dynamic Range set to ON will cause true HDR content to be displayed in true HDR, assuming the content is in a format supported by the ATV 4K. Unfortunately that won't make Photos use 16-bit (HDR) color, and it will not display the screensavers that are in true HDR, it merely converts the SDR screensavers to pseudo HDR. Apple really screwed up with their own apps.

 

[priitv8]

If you are watching a movie/show in HDR and the screensaver kicks in (e.g. you paused for long enough), the aerial that is shown is also the HDR version.

 

[w5jck]

Wow, that doesn’t surprise me. Apple really sucks at developing software. iPadOS 15 was terrible so I downgraded to 14.8. A lot of the stuff they have done in tvOS 15 is really stupid, like ruining their own user interface when you force Dolby Vision, and to a lesser extent, HDR in general. Their developers must be the ones who can’t get jobs anywhere else. Amazon is even worse, but not by much.

 

[priitv8]

Why?
In my opinion, the screensaver should not cause the display to switch from SDR to HDR and back again.
This takes time and creates 2 blackouts, so would be bad user experience.

 

[w5jck]

Why?
In my opinion, the screensaver should not cause the display to switch from SDR to HDR and back again.
This takes time and creates 2 blackouts, so would be bad user experience.

It is bad because the default to SDR but match dynamic range should work for everything, including the Photos app and the screensavers. If you don't like the brief change over, then don't use the set default to SDR and match dynamic range options, just set it to HDR. Those options should work as advertised. If you use the match dynamic range it implies that you don't mind the brief change overs, otherwise you would have used a different setting.

 

[priitv8]

Those options should work as advertised. If you use the match dynamic range it implies that you don't mind the brief change overs, otherwise you would have used a different setting.

I still do not get it.
I use Match DR setting to keep my TV in SDR mode for UI and most of the content (that is still in SDR and that includes photos). If I start watching HDR content, I experience one mode switch blackout at the beginning. Shall the screensaver kick in during that HDR-active period, it will also be in HDR. For that to happen has Apple created 2 sets of screensavers - in SDR and in HDR, invoked depending on the display mode during screensaver activation time. This avoids the switchover and makes return to watching fast and smooth.
The only thing I can agree with is the tvOS total lack of support for HDR content shot with iPhone, that includes watching them movies in Photos app.
AFAIK there is no agreed standard for viewing HDR photos in HDR on HDR-capable displays.
At this time I need to render them as slideshows and master to HDR movies, to be seen on HDR screen.