Issues with Experimental Audio Driver

I have been using the experimental audio driver for quite some time. As of this afternoon, however, it is completely garbled.

More details please. Client platforms and version, what content source has the problem, etc.

AppleTV 4K using HomePods as audio. All content sources experience the issue.

I think there are a number of users with homepods using experimental and so far I think you’re the only one reporting the issue. Have you already tried turning everything off and on again? :grimacing:

I have HomePods and Minis. The Minis work pretty much flawlessly with the experimental driver. The OGs, on the other hand, will occasionally cause the stream to pause, or for the Channels App to freeze while the buffer is drained (ie; changing channels or such).

I find with the OGs the regular driver works better. The only issue I see there is that about 5-7 seconds after a stream starts or the volume is changed there is a second or two of garbled audio.

The OGs don't seem to have any issues with apps using the native player. (ie; Netflix, ATV+)

The OGs sound great, but I am considering moving back to Sonos once they come back in stock.

Yes. And I, too, have been using it for a long time without issue. I've resorted back to the default driver which works for the most part, except the audio hiccups about 15-20 seconds after starting the stream.

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Funny enough, I experience this with my minis. The entire app hangs if the buffer is longer than 5 seconds.

Just tried the default audio driver (with experimental video) for the first time in months and not seeing the same freezing.

I was waiting for tvOS 15 and HomePod OS 15 to re-evaluate performance of the experimental audio driver. It's definitely improved with the ability to pair my minis to the default audio output, and I think it helps a lot that the Apple TV is continuously outputting audio and system sounds to the HomePod minis even when not playing video.

However, there's still a pretty terrible freezing period when you exit live TV to the guide. The audio keeps playing for 5-10 seconds while the guide is stuck until audio stops. Also changing channels through the quick guide or channel up/down buttons can take up to 15 seconds. If the devs are reading this, is there any chance the experimental audio driver can be better optimized for HomePod/AirPlay 2 playback?

Indeed, the continuous audio and freezing guide are quite a nuisance!

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I’m seeing the same as reported above and also periodically see the audio out of sync with the video by significant (15-20 secs).

The default audio driver still performs better than the experimental with the exception of a short “warble” in audio when starting or changing a channel or changing the volume.

Haha ok I have a quick update: I got a good deal on the newest Apple TV 4K and it came sooner than expected. I set it up this morning and the default audio driver is flawless with a HomePod mini stereo pair set up with ARC.

Experimental audio is still extremely laggy even with ARC set up.

Yea, the Minis work well even with the experimental. The problem setup is the HomePods.

Apologies for not making that clearer in my earlier post.

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Unfortunately, the audio is out of sync when not using the experimental audio driver.

Yeah now I'm seeing this. Not sure what happened but I swear the default was working great for a few hours with the newest Apple TV 4K and ARC set up. Now I'm back to getting the warbling and slightly off-sync audio. Back to the experimental driver for now...

Please try the latest changes in TestFlight: BETA: Audio improvements for Apple TV and iPhone/iPad

I have a pair of Minis that I tested with and it seems to work fine with the Experimental driver.

If there are issues with the OG homepods, I would like to hear more about what the issue is and see diagnostics from the new TestFlight build.