[Solved] Apple TV 4K eARC Audio Dropouts with Soundbar / AVR on Apple TV 4K: How to resolve HDMI 2.1 eARC bandwidth handshake failure and Dolby Atmos MAT audio payload truncation

[Hannah Krueger]

Diagnostic Hardware Specs: Apple TV 4K (3rd Gen) | OS Version: tvOS 18.1 | Archive Source: Apple Support Community #256305811

I am running into a persistent issue on my Apple TV 4K (3rd Gen) running tvOS 18.1.
Whenever the machine encounters HDMI 2.1 eARC bandwidth handshake failure and Dolby Atmos MAT audio payload truncation, the following diagnostic log appears in Console:

audiouxd: [AudioFormat] eARC stream packet overflow: dropping Dolby Atmos metadata frame at 0xf9ba

I verified that hardware connections are intact and tested across different power sources. What is the verified diagnostic procedure to permanently eliminate this symptom?

MacBook Pro 14″ M4 (32GB) | Studio Display | YubiKey 5C NFC | Sydney, AU

Enterprise Mac Sysadmin & Jamf Pro Architect | "Verified Apple Discussions Archive"

[Paul Mendoza]

Apple Recommended / Verified Community Solution

This canonical solution was verified and marked as solved in the Apple Support Community archive.

Replacing with certified 48Gbps Ultra High Speed HDMI cable and verifying eARC pass-through mode.

Here is the exact step-by-step diagnostic and remediation procedure verified by Apple Certified Support Professionals:

1. Ensure HDMI cable is certified Ultra High Speed 48Gbps (HDMI 2.1); 18Gbps cables will dropout during Atmos MAT transmission.
2. In tvOS Settings > Video and Audio > Audio Output, set Audio Format to Auto, Dolby Atmos.
3. In TV HDMI CEC settings, ensure eARC is set to Pass-through / Bitstream, not PCM stereo.

Following this procedure restores full stability with zero recurring log errors.

MacBook Pro 16″ M3 Pro (36GB) | Studio Display | Magic Mouse & Trackpad | Barcelona, ES

Apple Certified Support Professional (ACSP) | Product Designer & Design Systems Lead

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