Stutter watching Live TV on ATV (non-4k)

Channels Apple TV Troubleshooting
#41

Yeah, I think we're (likely) getting off on a tangent here with the speeds because nothing about the Channels app indicates there is a network speed issue, but... to put this to bed:

Ethernet

  • Speedtest App on ATV using Ethernet: 94Mbps up, 94Mbps down (it's a 100Mbps Ethernet port)
  • Port 57000/speedtest on Ethernet with no other apps running and nothing streaming to Channels: 20Mbps-40Mbps (varies wildly, almost like the app itself can't keep up)

Wi-Fi

  • Speedtest App on ATV using Wi-Fi: 351Mbps down, 399Mbps up (I'm on gigabit fiber)
  • Port 57000/speedtest on Wi-Fi: 210Mbps reported

No other apps (Plex, VideoStation, Infuse, Apple TV+, Netflix, etc) have trouble with stuttering on this Apple TV or network. It really is limited to channels only. AND... if I'm streaming to my M1 Pro-based MacBook Pro, iPhone, or iPad (all running the Apple Silicon app), I can stream at full bandwidth and not experience any stuttering.

So it's Channels (only) on this Apple TV (only), and I'm pretty confident that the network is solid.

I wish there were a way to look at Activity Monitor on the Apple TV to see if my theory about Channels just hitting a CPU wall is correct.

#42

Instruments on macOS may let you see cpu activity.

I'm uploading a TestFlight build which could help if that is in fact the problem.

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#43

Good luck streaming any of the 4K Jellyfish test videos with only 20Mbps.

#44

I tested this briefly earlier today and the difference was instantly noticeable. I set it to "Original" quality, then started playing the same file I've been having trouble with, and it just started playing. In the past, even "success" meant seeing it stutter for 5 seconds at startup and then settling in. This was, smooth, silky 1080p right from the get go. I loaded up the geeky stats and confirmed. No dropped output frames.

I only tested for a few minutes, but it seems like this is the answer.

2 Likes
#45

Ok, yeah, we watched a show for an hour (CBS recording from TVE) and had zero stutter/skips. I'm calling this one solved, but I do have a question...

Is this issue somewhat new? I swear 6 weeks ago this wasn't there, but... maybe I just overlooked it back then?

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#46

My guess is this started with one of the tvOS 15 updates. Performance took a dive on those old A8s

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#47

Makes sense. And thanks for digging in and finding a fix for us all!

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#48

Most of us don't use 6+ year old devices! So was it really a fix for us all?

#49

Seems like it given that there were some folks with current-model Apple TV 4K units experiencing the exact same stuttering.

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