Sound cutting out

[DaveSanDiego]

I have a ATV (4k) a Samsung TV and a soundbar The Soundbar is connected to the TV via an optical cable, the ATV to the TV via HDMI2
I also have an OvertheAir tuner/DVR connected via HDMI1

The OTA stuff works just fine, but when I got to ATV (any streaming service). The sound is there during navigation, and trailers... but the instant a show starts to stream the SOUND vanishes... I then spent 10 minutes trying various things (no pattern has been found) then all of a sudden the sound returns.... only to vanish when the next episode starts to stream

I do not know if the issue is the ATV? the soundbar? the TV itself? and no idea how best to isolate the issue....

 

[shakopeemn]

I have a ATV (4k) a Samsung TV and a soundbar The Soundbar is connected to the TV via an optical cable, the ATV to the TV via HDMI2
I also have an OvertheAir tuner/DVR connected via HDMI1

The OTA stuff works just fine, but when I got to ATV (any streaming service). The sound is there during navigation, and trailers... but the instant a show starts to stream the SOUND vanishes... I then spent 10 minutes trying various things (no pattern has been found) then all of a sudden the sound returns.... only to vanish when the next episode starts to stream

I do not know if the issue is the ATV? the soundbar? the TV itself? and no idea how best to isolate the issue....

Play with the audio settings on the Apple TV.

 

[w5jck]

Optical cables are finicky sometimes. I used an optical cable for a while and had the same issues. Turned out to be the TV settings for audio. My TV had three options for audio out: Auto 1, Auto 2, and PCM. I found that PCM worked with nearly everything, as did Auto 2, but Auto 1 wouldn’t work with my ATV 4K. Once I switched the option to Auto 2 then all was well…

BTW, HDMI-CEC is much better if you have that capability. When I bought a new TV this year I switched to an HDMI-CEC and got rid of the optical connection. My older TV didn’t support HDMI-CEC, hence the optical cable.

 

[Lammers]

I have a ATV (4k) a Samsung TV and a soundbar The Soundbar is connected to the TV via an optical cable, the ATV to the TV via HDMI2
I also have an OvertheAir tuner/DVR connected via HDMI1

The OTA stuff works just fine, but when I got to ATV (any streaming service). The sound is there during navigation, and trailers... but the instant a show starts to stream the SOUND vanishes... I then spent 10 minutes trying various things (no pattern has been found) then all of a sudden the sound returns.... only to vanish when the next episode starts to stream

I do not know if the issue is the ATV? the soundbar? the TV itself? and no idea how best to isolate the issue....

We have exactly this problem with an ATV 4K and Samsung Frame TV in the bedroom (no soundbar). Audio is fine during navigation but then sometimes no audio when content is played, and it comes back after a bit of playing around stopping and starting different bits of content. It’s driving my wife nuts.

 

[waw74]

HDMI-CEC is much better if you have that capability. When I bought a new TV this year I switched to an HDMI-CEC and got rid of the optical connection. My older TV didn’t support HDMI-CEC, hence the optical cable.

HDMI-CEC is only used to pass control between devices, no audio
HDMI-ARC is used for passing audio "backwards" down the HDMI cable.


Most of the time if a device supports one, it will support the other, but they are separate things, and it's possible to have one without the other.
If it supports it, a TV will have CEC on all HDMI ports, but most TVs will only have one ARC port.

Audio is fine during navigation but then sometimes no audio when content is played,

You'll want to check the audio output options in the aTV, Most of the time TVs are only capable of outputting stereo on the optical out. so the TV will down mix anything else. It's possible that the aTV is giving your TV an audio signal it can't down mix.
you might need to go into the aTVs audio settings, and set it to only output stereo. or possibly change the audio mode to 16bit.

 

[DaveSanDiego]

I recently changed the ATV from 5.1 to Stereo, and so far the cutting out seems to be gone...
Rather strange that two state of the art devices don't like each other

 

[AL2TEACH]

I recently changed the ATV from 5.1 to Stereo, and so far the cutting out seems to be gone...
Rather strange that two state of the art devices don't like each other

what soundbar do you have?

 

[BigBag]

I have this same issue with my Sonos Arc. Annoying for me to deal it, but painful when it’s my wife or kids.