The Apple Discussion Forums (Apple TV Hardware section) is chocked full of questions and issues about getting Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos working with their Apple TV 4K, AVR gear, sound bars, and TVs. Lots of arguing over HDMI cables (48gbps certified, 16gbps certified, etc.) AVR and TV settings to enable things, misinformation about HDR, HDR10, HDR10+, Dolby Vision. It usually boils down to blaming the Apple TV for all their troubles. I mean, how could Sony, Denon, Samsung, Marantz, Yamaha, TCL possibly be the cause. Third party hardware/firmware is always assumed to be perfect by those with issues.
The HDMI cable is the root cause of issues most of the time with the the length, the speed, the version being the culprits. And of course Samsung TVs don't support Dolby Vision but hawks Samsung's proprietary HDR10+ format. Talk about a labyrinth.
My biggest issue has been HDCP. Trying to play copy protected content from an Apple device has turned into a crap shoot. I’ve even had movies stop playing 30 minutes in.
Yup. This can be finicky. Like, it will work one day, and not work the next, or mid-stream like you say.
There is so much streaming content now that you'd think that they'd think that protecting against pirates isn't worth it anymore. How many people are actively torrenting now when we are so awash in video content? I don't think anybody casually pirates anymore as streaming has become super cheap for the vast majority of the market.
Apple should create a new cable (USB-C?) that makes HDMI obsolete. HDMI has so many issues nowadays it needs to be discontinued.
A new high bandwidth cable that isn’t dependent on itself, so it doesn’t matter if you bought it at a thrift store or a high end audio website it acts the same. The bandwidth is future proof to 20 years+ so it can handle anything that’s thrown at it. New features will be dictated by the hardware/software and the cable is just a tube for features. For example PlayStation 6 wants to add 3D images to a TV: done. Apple TV 6 wants to add an exclusive audio standard like Spatial Audio to receivers: done. The cable you bought is irrelevant because the capability is so high from the start.
Can a new “HDMI 3.1a gen 3x Series 2” standard add these features? Sure. But the fact it has the same form-factor adds more chaos to sort through. HDMI needs to end ASAP.
Except USB C isn’t any better. In many ways it’s worse. For starters, USB C is just the connector. You have no idea what it’s connecting to. It could be USB 3, USB 4, thunderbolt or just a plain power port. And a given USB C cable may be capable of supporting one use but not the others.
In general, HDMI cables have been simpler. They either work or they don’t.
USB C is actually the worst because of all it's capable of, but not every cable can do everything and rarely are the cables marked! USB 2 (480Mbps) or USB 3 (5Gbps) or USB3 (10Gbps) or USB 4 or Thunderbolt? Power? Does it support Power Delivery (PD) and if so, what charge rates (anything from 10W up to 100W) with all sort of maximums. Data only or data+charge? If data+charge, what speed data? Then there are E-Marker chips in some cables. Does mine have an E-Marker chip? Who knows...
It's great when you're buying a cable because the product information tells you what the cable is capable of. But, after a while, you have a drawer full of cables that no one knows what each one does.
There are devices you can use to read cables e-marker chips that will tell you the cables abilities, but then that is more money spent.
What a mess. I just replaced my receiver and cables because they were not 4K HDR compatible. But so far I haven’t gotten my Apple TV 4K (2020) to do anything other than multi channel stereo output. HDR works. UHD Blu-ray is outputting as expected. What I do know is they have screwed up HDMI royally. It used to be an easy, high-quality solution for consumers. Now it’s Byzantine.
Yet another convoluted mess. Many of the cables aren't even marked. So if you have them stuffed into a bag there's no way to know which ones are worth keeping.
Apple should create a new cable (USB-C?) that makes HDMI obsolete. HDMI has so many issues nowadays it needs to be discontinued.
A new high bandwidth cable that isn’t dependent on itself, so it doesn’t matter if you bought it at a thrift store or a high end audio website it acts the same. The bandwidth is future proof to 20 years+ so it can handle anything that’s thrown at it. New features will be dictated by the hardware/software and the cable is just a tube for features. For example PlayStation 6 wants to add 3D images to a TV: done. Apple TV 6 wants to add an exclusive audio standard like Spatial Audio to receivers: done. The cable you bought is irrelevant because the capability is so high from the start.
Can a new “HDMI 3.1a gen 3x Series 2” standard add these features? Sure. But the fact it has the same form-factor adds more chaos to sort through. HDMI needs to end ASAP.
There should be some sort of handheld device that when you plug in the cable, it can detect which version.
👍 That's an interesting idea. Not just HDMI but how other cables are rated, too. I have C+USB-C cables that are a mess: 60W v 100W PD, PD v data.
Yes, good idea - may simply the device you are using it with could tell you that? Simply and intuitively?
I would think it would always come down to the lowest / slowest common denominator. So, the input device would have to figure out whether the source or the cable was the restriction.
What a mess. I just replaced my receiver and cables because they were not 4K HDR compatible. But so far I haven’t gotten my Apple TV 4K (2020) to do anything other than multi channel stereo output. HDR works. UHD Blu-ray is outputting as expected. What I do know is they have screwed up HDMI royally. It used to be an easy, high-quality solution for consumers. Now it’s Byzantine.
My Apple TV 4K and Yamaha Aventage RX A-720 (from 2012) with a 2.1 HDMI cable are reproducing Atmos very well even though the receiver only outputs HDMI 1.4a. I love it with Apple Music. And, rewatching Schmigadoon I got a demo of it when somebody threw a rock and, from behind my right ear, I heard the "Thunk" when it landed (all from the rear speaker, no other speaker made a sound -- complete separation). Plus Apple has a playlist demonstrating their spatial audio ("made for spatial audio") where they compare mono, stereo and spatial/atmos from the same song -- it's amazing!
But, the settings for the receiver are very complex -- it took me hours to figure out how to get it to even send a signal -- any signal -- to any of the speakers much less Dolby Atmos. I can see how it could easily get stuck on stereo.
Best of luck -- once you get it to reproduce Atmos you won't look back. It's worth it.
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Sorry, I didn't realize they had updated that playlist. I just listened to it again and not only were they different songs but it was primarily just stereo.
Apple should create a new cable (USB-C?) that makes HDMI obsolete. HDMI has so many issues nowadays it needs to be discontinued.
A new high bandwidth cable that isn’t dependent on itself, so it doesn’t matter if you bought it at a thrift store or a high end audio website it acts the same. The bandwidth is future proof to 20 years+ so it can handle anything that’s thrown at it. New features will be dictated by the hardware/software and the cable is just a tube for features. For example PlayStation 6 wants to add 3D images to a TV: done. Apple TV 6 wants to add an exclusive audio standard like Spatial Audio to receivers: done. The cable you bought is irrelevant because the capability is so high from the start.
Can a new “HDMI 3.1a gen 3x Series 2” standard add these features? Sure. But the fact it has the same form-factor adds more chaos to sort through. HDMI needs to end ASAP.
Sounds easy peasy. Predicting 20 years of development, what a cinch. They should make batteries that don't degrade and carry 100 years of charge while they're at it.
Also, when has Apple ever made anything that is future proof to anything like that degree?
What a mess. I just replaced my receiver and cables because they were not 4K HDR compatible. But so far I haven’t gotten my Apple TV 4K (2020) to do anything other than multi channel stereo output. HDR works. UHD Blu-ray is outputting as expected. What I do know is they have screwed up HDMI royally. It used to be an easy, high-quality solution for consumers. Now it’s Byzantine.
I have 5 channel Dolby surround coming out of my 25 year old Sony receiver via ATV4K > HDMI > optical > Sony receiver. You shouldn’t have any issues with a new HDMI receiver unless you’re doing something wrong.
Apple should create a new cable (USB-C?) that makes HDMI obsolete. HDMI has so many issues nowadays it needs to be discontinued.
A new high bandwidth cable that isn’t dependent on itself, so it doesn’t matter if you bought it at a thrift store or a high end audio website it acts the same. The bandwidth is future proof to 20 years+ so it can handle anything that’s thrown at it. New features will be dictated by the hardware/software and the cable is just a tube for features. For example PlayStation 6 wants to add 3D images to a TV: done. Apple TV 6 wants to add an exclusive audio standard like Spatial Audio to receivers: done. The cable you bought is irrelevant because the capability is so high from the start.
Can a new “HDMI 3.1a gen 3x Series 2” standard add these features? Sure. But the fact it has the same form-factor adds more chaos to sort through. HDMI needs to end ASAP.
Always with the armchair engineering from you. You think if they could’ve invented a 20 year future proof cabling system they would’ve done so by now? Do you have any concept of the bandwidth limitations of copper wiring? You know active fiber optic cables with massive bandwidth exist but are prohibitively expensive?
What a mess. I just replaced my receiver and cables because they were not 4K HDR compatible. But so far I haven’t gotten my Apple TV 4K (2020) to do anything other than multi channel stereo output. HDR works. UHD Blu-ray is outputting as expected. What I do know is they have screwed up HDMI royally. It used to be an easy, high-quality solution for consumers. Now it’s Byzantine.
I have 5 channel Dolby surround coming out of my 25 year old Sony receiver via ATV4K > HDMI > optical > Sony receiver. You shouldn’t have any issues with a new HDMI receiver unless you’re doing something wrong.
Yeah I’m sure it’s just something on the AppleTV end. I haven’t messed with it much.
What a mess. I just replaced my receiver and cables because they were not 4K HDR compatible. But so far I haven’t gotten my Apple TV 4K (2020) to do anything other than multi channel stereo output. HDR works. UHD Blu-ray is outputting as expected. What I do know is they have screwed up HDMI royally. It used to be an easy, high-quality solution for consumers. Now it’s Byzantine.
I have 5 channel Dolby surround coming out of my 25 year old Sony receiver via ATV4K > HDMI > optical > Sony receiver. You shouldn’t have any issues with a new HDMI receiver unless you’re doing something wrong.
Yeah I’m sure it’s just something on the AppleTV end. I haven’t messed with it much.
Possibly, but I would bet on something in the receiver. (For instance, mine has a setting for "2 channel stereo")
The Apple Discussion Forums (Apple TV Hardware section) is chocked full of questions and issues about getting Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos working with their Apple TV 4K, AVR gear, sound bars, and TVs. Lots of arguing over HDMI cables (48gbps certified, 16gbps certified, etc.) AVR and TV settings to enable things, misinformation about HDR, HDR10, HDR10+, Dolby Vision. It usually boils down to blaming the Apple TV for all their troubles. I mean, how could Sony, Denon, Samsung, Marantz, Yamaha, TCL possibly be the cause. Third party hardware/firmware is always assumed to be perfect by those with issues.
The HDMI cable is the root cause of issues most of the time with the the length, the speed, the version being the culprits. And of course Samsung TVs don't support Dolby Vision but hawks Samsung's proprietary HDR10+ format. Talk about a labyrinth.
My biggest issue has been HDCP. Trying to play copy protected content from an Apple device has turned into a crap shoot. I’ve even had movies stop playing 30 minutes in.
And as someone else mentioned - you blame the Apple device, when it is probably the cable, receiver, TV, etc. (anything else in the chain). Just because you ONLY have issues with the Apple device, doesn't mean the Apple device is the issue.
What a mess. I just replaced my receiver and cables because they were not 4K HDR compatible. But so far I haven’t gotten my Apple TV 4K (2020) to do anything other than multi channel stereo output. HDR works. UHD Blu-ray is outputting as expected. What I do know is they have screwed up HDMI royally. It used to be an easy, high-quality solution for consumers. Now it’s Byzantine.
I have 5 channel Dolby surround coming out of my 25 year old Sony receiver via ATV4K > HDMI > optical > Sony receiver. You shouldn’t have any issues with a new HDMI receiver unless you’re doing something wrong.
Always with the armchair engineering from you.
A cable that isn't to spec, or doesn't support the bandwidth to carry 4K + multi-channel surround sound could also be the problem.
Comments
There is so much streaming content now that you'd think that they'd think that protecting against pirates isn't worth it anymore. How many people are actively torrenting now when we are so awash in video content? I don't think anybody casually pirates anymore as streaming has become super cheap for the vast majority of the market.
It's great when you're buying a cable because the product information tells you what the cable is capable of. But, after a while, you have a drawer full of cables that no one knows what each one does.
There are devices you can use to read cables e-marker chips that will tell you the cables abilities, but then that is more money spent.
It's a mess.
Of course their labelled! "High Speed!" /s
Just what we need, more cables...
I would think it would always come down to the lowest / slowest common denominator. So, the input device would have to figure out whether the source or the cable was the restriction.
Also, when has Apple ever made anything that is future proof to anything like that degree?
“HDMI cable purchasing is about to get a whole lot more complicated”
Possibly, but I would bet on something in the receiver. (For instance, mine has a setting for "2 channel stereo")
A cable that isn't to spec, or doesn't support the bandwidth to carry 4K + multi-channel surround sound could also be the problem.