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-Gonzo-

macrumors 65816
Nov 14, 2015
1,445
786
That all sounds interesting but are you talking about changing options on your tv or on the Apple TV? Can you give some directions where to look for those changes? I'm just running HD, not 4K and mostly I'm streaming movies from my computer. I don't know how changing the chroma setting on the TV would affect the bluetooth remote to Apple TV. Or even changing Chroma on the Apple TV (if that's what you're talking about) because There really shouldn't be any relationship between the chroma setting and bluetooth.
For me at least Apple TV set to 4KSDR, HDMI Output to ycbcr then the chroma option will be under that as seen in this screenshot.

64086659-C478-4E34-95CE-A64EDAF29670.jpeg
 
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-Gonzo-

macrumors 65816
Nov 14, 2015
1,445
786
Thanks. but does anyone know why this would affect the bluetooth?
As far as the ATV4K 1st gen was concerned it was just down to interference through the HDMI cable when using higher bandwidth video.
Lower the video bandwidth and no more interference.
I’ve since changed out the HDMI cable, set back to 4:4:4 and no issues.

I’ve not actually tried it with the ATV4K 3rd gen as up until this morning I haven’t had any remote issues at all while using the same HDMI cable.
So far the remotes working fine so if it does happen again I’ll set to 4:2:0 and see what happens.

Edit: Just checked and Chroma doesn’t show up as an option under 1080p SDR.
 
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AStaleyUK

macrumors newbie
Oct 20, 2014
21
17
I’d almost forgot this was an an issue, when I first got my 4K 3rd gen I was getting several disconnects an evening but I’ve not seen a single disconnect now for weeks if not months, no idea what changed maybe a firmware update to another device or my router but so far so good.
 

Fpmtngal

macrumors member
Oct 27, 2022
42
40
Anything electrical/electronic makes my mind go into neutral and my eyes glaze over. How do the remotes communicate with the AppleTV? I had thought it was by IR, but is it by bluetooth only? Or is it IR from the remote to the AppleTV but Bluetooth from the AppleTV to the remote? Or can IR be done by bluetooth? I really don’t understand these things!

Up until a couple of days ago I hadn’t seen any of the symptoms in this thread, and I started using the 4K 3rd gen when it first came out. Then all of a sudden, I keep seeing a notice to bring the remote closer to complete pairing, while the remote was still working (had not disconnected). I move it closer but the notice didn’t go away. Figured maybe the remote needed to be charged and plugged it in, the notice went away for a while but came back.

The only thing that changed a couple of days ago was that I changed my headphones. I always watch TV with headphones and bought a pair of AirPods Max when I bought the new AppleTV. They sound great for music but I’ve been having issues understanding voices (they sounded muffled to me, my hearing isn’t the greatest), so a couple of days ago I bought a pair of Bose QC45 headphones and paired them to the AppleTV. No problem pairing them, BUT that’s when I started seeing the notice - could the Bose headphones be causing some sort of interference with the AppleTV remote (bluetooth interference like someone above mentioned)? The remote is maybe 6’ away from the box and while it’s not exactly line of sight when it’s resting on a table, it is line of sight when I use it.
 

rhaezorblue

macrumors 6502
Sep 18, 2012
427
330
Update: So the new remote Apple gave me seems to have fixed the issue. The only thing I've noticed is when waking the Apple TV up by pressing the Menu button on the remove seems to need direct line of sight, as if its using the IR blaster instead of bluetooth? But I will admit my knowledge on how the two talk to each other is limited
 

Nikhil72

macrumors 65816
Oct 21, 2005
1,433
1,153
knock on wood, it’d been happening for months to me and in the last two weeks, not a single event of the remote failing to work.
 

rhaezorblue

macrumors 6502
Sep 18, 2012
427
330
Yep, still happening unfortunately. This is ridiculous.
You'll want to contact Apple support - I doubt this will be fixed by software unfortunately. Brand new remote I received from support fixed the issue for me.

Especially before your warranty runs out.
 
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Fpmtngal

macrumors member
Oct 27, 2022
42
40
The remote only uses bluetooth to communicate to the Apple TV. If you have your Apple TV setup to use IR for the TV or soundbar control, then IR is used for volume.
Thanks for the information, so my issue could be connected to the new headphones (using them on Bluetooth). However, now I don’t know - after I mentioned it here, I noticed that there was an update to the OS and installed it. I haven’t had an issue since, and I’ve continued to use the Bose headphones.
 

Lobwedgephil

Contributor
Apr 7, 2012
5,708
4,648
You'll want to contact Apple support - I doubt this will be fixed by software unfortunately. Brand new remote I received from support fixed the issue for me.

Especially before your warranty runs out.
Been through 5 remotes on 2 different tv boxes. If it isn't software, it is the box hardware, not the remotes.
 
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bozzykid

macrumors 68020
Aug 11, 2009
2,431
493
Been through 5 remotes on 2 different tv boxes. If it isn't software, it is the box hardware, not the remotes.
It could also be interference which is the more likely scenario given the randomness of the issue. And it's possible a software fix or even a remote firmware fix could alleviate the issue but only Apple knows.
 

SatchNZ

macrumors newbie
Mar 7, 2011
18
31
UK
I had a replacement remote delivered today but I’m not holding much hope based on what I’ve read here. The other option was for Apple to monitor the Bluetooth and Wi-Fi traffic too and from the Apple TV, but that only lasts for 72 hours and it might not be long enough (they can roll that over if required). I find my remote loses connection every three or so days, and it is only functional when close to and in line of sight of the Apple TV, until I restart the Apple TV).

I’ve managed to stop Apple from insisting the Apple TV is not in a cabinet or behind my TV (which is where all three of my Apple TVs are on their respective TVs, older generation 4k models). That is the first thing they say until I suggested it isn’t a sensible solution given my older Apple TVs have worked fine behind TVs, and even my latest 4k works fine for three days or so behind my TV.

Guess I’ll have to go the monitoring route next.
 

kryptticAZ

macrumors 6502a
Feb 26, 2007
818
1,104
Phoenix, AZ
I had a replacement remote delivered today but I’m not holding much hope based on what I’ve read here. The other option was for Apple to monitor the Bluetooth and Wi-Fi traffic too and from the Apple TV, but that only lasts for 72 hours and it might not be long enough (they can roll that over if required). I find my remote loses connection every three or so days, and it is only functional when close to and in line of sight of the Apple TV, until I restart the Apple TV).

I’ve managed to stop Apple from insisting the Apple TV is not in a cabinet or behind my TV (which is where all three of my Apple TVs are on their respective TVs, older generation 4k models). That is the first thing they say until I suggested it isn’t a sensible solution given my older Apple TVs have worked fine behind TVs, and even my latest 4k works fine for three days or so behind my TV.

Guess I’ll have to go the monitoring route next.
Yeah, my AppleTV is right out in the open with nothing in the way and still loses the remote connection, so suggesting your cabinet is the problem seems like a non-starter.
 

-Gonzo-

macrumors 65816
Nov 14, 2015
1,445
786
Yeah, my AppleTV is right out in the open with nothing in the way and still loses the remote connection, so suggesting your cabinet is the problem seems like a non-starter.
Just out of interest what video settings are you using?
 

-Gonzo-

macrumors 65816
Nov 14, 2015
1,445
786
The same as you posted above (SDR, Match Range). I'm using the newest HDMI cables from Monoprice, so there shouldn't be any issue with bandwitdh.
It’s really baffling why some have continued issues while others don’t 🤷🏻‍♂️
 

Canyda

macrumors 65816
Sep 7, 2020
1,017
1,240
For what it's worth (and I have the 2021 4K ATV), I had this problem twice early January-ish where my remote became unresponsive and needed to be rebooted. I haven't had it before then or since then, so I'm assuming it was a software issue of some kind.
 

winstars

macrumors regular
Dec 10, 2015
157
65
For what it's worth (and I have the 2021 4K ATV), I had this problem twice early January-ish where my remote became unresponsive and needed to be rebooted. I haven't had it before then or since then, so I'm assuming it was a software issue of some kind.
How do you reboot the remote only?
 
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