4K Events Discussion Thread

[Bobby]

Tried to watch the Fresno USC game on 148-01. Picture but no sound.
Changed the channel, tried to tune again, dish when dark, no response to remote.
Rebooted.
Went back to 148-01, no sound again.
I try a full power down tomorrow, but not now because the wife is trying to watch her shows in another room.
4K works fine with sound on YTTV though.

Let me ask, are you going directly from your Hopper to the TV or from the Hopper to an AVR? If it is an AVR what is the brand of that AVR?

 

[reubenray]

I am looking forward to watching the LSU game in 4K tonight.

 

[jsmit86]

Let me ask, are you going directly from your Hopper to the TV or from the Hopper to an AVR? If it is an AVR what is the brand of that AVR?

No AVR - same HDMI as always. Same issue again this morning pic is good but no sound. I did a reset with the red switch last night, and a fill power down this morning. Before the actual broadcast started, I got the music on the splash screen, but now that the broadcast is starting, no sound again. Trying a menu reset now to see if that solves the issue.

 

[jsmit86]

No AVR - same HDMI as always. Same issue again this morning pic is good but no sound. I did a reset with the red switch last night, and a fill power down this morning. Before the actual broadcast started, I got the music on the splash screen, but now that the broadcast is starting, no sound again. Trying a menu reset now to see if that solves the issue.

Well - here is the issue. If I turn off the Dolby audio in the Dish settings, it works.
I know that there is not generally an issue with the TV/Soundbar handling Dolby audio. I have watched a ton of Dish 4k before, and I have only seen this issue a couple of times.

I did several other settings on the TV to the sound bar, etc.. PCM, No eARC, Pass Through on and off, AUTO etc... the only fix is to turn the Dolby Audio setting off in the Dish sound menu.

brittanygarden
FYI - No Sound on the Fox 4k unless I turn Dolby audio off in the Dish sound menu. Perhaps you can let the engineering team know about this.
Most of the time I have sound with no problems, but I have seen this or a similar issue before. Often a restart solved the problem, but not this time.
Audio via YouTube TV doesn't have this problem.
Thanks!

 

[Bobby]

Well - here is the issue. If I turn off the Dolby audio in the Dish settings, it works.
I know that there is not generally an issue with the TV/Soundbar handling Dolby audio. I have watched a ton of Dish 4k before, and I have only seen this issue a couple of times.

I did several other settings on the TV to the sound bar, etc.. PCM, No eARC, Pass Through on and off, AUTO etc... the only fix is to turn the Dolby Audio setting off in the Dish sound menu.

brittanygarden
FYI - No Sound on the Fox 4k unless I turn Dolby audio off in the Dish sound menu. Perhaps you can let the engineering team know about this.
Most of the time I have sound with no problems, but I have seen this or a similar issue before. Often a restart solved the problem, but not this time.
Audio via YouTube TV doesn't have this problem.
Thanks!

I just saw that fix at the AVS Forum site and indeed it works. I have had this issue for over a year. I will be reporting this to Dish .

 

[jsmit86]

This audio issue does not affect the Joey 4.
Surround sound is fine on that set.
The same issue on the Hopper for both FOX4K and ESPN 4K

 

[jsmit86]

I just saw that fix at the AVS Forum site and indeed it works. I have had this issue for over a year. I will be reporting this to Dish .

It's weird because while I have had a similar issue in the past, resetting the Hopper used to fix it. Today I also pulled the HDMI cable and reset the HDMI input. That fixed the remote control issues that I have had since the new 711 software.
During the World Cup, my audio was fine.

 

[reubenray]

I didn't get to watch the LSU game due to an over two hour weather delay. I was in bed before the game even started.

 

[jsmit86]

I am adding some more detail on my post regarding no audio on 4K channels.
This only applies to the Hopper3, the Joey 4s do not have this issue.
Problem: When watching 4K events on the 148-0x channels, there is no sound.
Solve - If you turn off Dolby Audio in the SOUND menu, there is sound again, but not Dolby Digital.
The connected equipment is a Samsung 85Q80T TV and a Samsung Q800 Sound Bar.
No settings on the TV will change the situation to provide sound.
For example PCM, or even only selecting the TV speaker. Still no sound.
So.. the only work around is to turn off Dolby Audio is the Hopper Menu.

The Samsung system works fine with YouTube TV, Amazon Prime and other streaming services. This includes Atmos audio when it's supported on the broadcast/stream. I don't see how this can be related to the TV or Soundbar since it works fine with other content. Only issue is 4K dish channels.

I have removed and replaced the HDMI cable, and done multiple reboots and full power downs on the Hopper.

I also have removed the Soundbar so the Hopper connects to the TV, and with only the TV speaker available, there is no sound unless you turn off Dolby Audio.

Grok Summary below:
Current status of the issue

• Hopper 3 (H711) only — Joey 4s play the same 148-xx 4K channels with audio and Dolby enabled.
• Silence only on the 148-xx 4K event channels when Dolby Audio is On.
• Turning Dolby Audio Off restores sound (PCM).
• All other sources (YouTube TV, Prime with Atmos, etc.) and regular Dish channels work normally on the same TV/HDMI cable.
• HDMI cable swaps, multiple full power cycles, and every relevant TV audio setting (PCM / Bitstream / Auto, etc.) have already been tried.

This points to a Hopper 3-specific problem with how it is packaging or passing the audio bitstream for those particular 4K satellite feeds under software H711. The 4K event channels often use different encoding (higher bitrate, different Dolby variant, or different packaging) than regular HD channels, and the Hopper's HDMI output can fail the downstream device's expectations in exactly this way—producing video but no audio—while the Joey 4's independent HDMI path does not.Recommended next actions

1. Contact Dish support promptly and give them the clean, isolated description above. Key details to emphasize:
   • Software version: H711
   • Hopper 3 only (Joey 4s unaffected)
   • Only 148-xx 4K channels
   • Dolby Audio On = no audio; Off = audio returns
   • Direct connection to TV speakers only — no soundbar/eARC in the path
   • Same HDMI cable and TV work perfectly with every other source
   Ask them to check for known issues with H711 + 4K event channel audio encoding or to escalate for a software fix / receiver replacement if needed.
2. Temporary workaround remains reliable: leave Dolby Audio Off on the Hopper 3 when watching those 4K events. You lose native multi-channel Dolby bitstream but get usable sound.

brittanygarden
Scott Greczkowski

 

[jsmit86]

CFB, Oklahoma at Michigan, Saturday 9-12, 9AM PDT, Channel 148-01.
CFB, Arizona at BYU, Saturday 9-12, 12:30PM PDT, Channel 148-01.
CFB, Ohio State at Texas, Saturday 9-12, 4:30 PM PDT, Channel 148-03.

I checked my guide last night when you posted this, and these were not showing in the guide. It must have updated overnight, and it's showing these now. It seems that the 4K events don't get updated until about 3-4 days prior to the event on my hopper.

 

[jsmit86]

I am adding some more detail on my post regarding no audio on 4K channels.
This only applies to the Hopper3, the Joey 4s do not have this issue.
Problem: When watching 4K events on the 148-0x channels, there is no sound.
Solve - If you turn off Dolby Audio in the SOUND menu, there is sound again, but not Dolby Digital.
The connected equipment is a Samsung 85Q80T TV and a Samsung Q800 Sound Bar.
No settings on the TV will change the situation to provide sound.
For example PCM, or even only selecting the TV speaker. Still no sound.
So.. the only work around is to turn off Dolby Audio is the Hopper Menu.

The Samsung system works fine with YouTube TV, Amazon Prime and other streaming services. This includes Atmos audio when it's supported on the broadcast/stream. I don't see how this can be related to the TV or Soundbar since it works fine with other content. Only issue is 4K dish channels.

I have removed and replaced the HDMI cable, and done multiple reboots and full power downs on the Hopper.

I also have removed the Soundbar so the Hopper connects to the TV, and with only the TV speaker available, there is no sound unless you turn off Dolby Audio.

Grok Summary below:
Current status of the issue

• Hopper 3 (H711) only — Joey 4s play the same 148-xx 4K channels with audio and Dolby enabled.
• Silence only on the 148-xx 4K event channels when Dolby Audio is On.
• Turning Dolby Audio Off restores sound (PCM).
• All other sources (YouTube TV, Prime with Atmos, etc.) and regular Dish channels work normally on the same TV/HDMI cable.
• HDMI cable swaps, multiple full power cycles, and every relevant TV audio setting (PCM / Bitstream / Auto, etc.) have already been tried.

This points to a Hopper 3-specific problem with how it is packaging or passing the audio bitstream for those particular 4K satellite feeds under software H711. The 4K event channels often use different encoding (higher bitrate, different Dolby variant, or different packaging) than regular HD channels, and the Hopper's HDMI output can fail the downstream device's expectations in exactly this way—producing video but no audio—while the Joey 4's independent HDMI path does not.Recommended next actions

1. Contact Dish support promptly and give them the clean, isolated description above. Key details to emphasize:
   • Software version: H711
   • Hopper 3 only (Joey 4s unaffected)
   • Only 148-xx 4K channels
   • Dolby Audio On = no audio; Off = audio returns
   • Direct connection to TV speakers only — no soundbar/eARC in the path
   • Same HDMI cable and TV work perfectly with every other source
   Ask them to check for known issues with H711 + 4K event channel audio encoding or to escalate for a software fix / receiver replacement if needed.
2. Temporary workaround remains reliable: leave Dolby Audio Off on the Hopper 3 when watching those 4K events. You lose native multi-channel Dolby bitstream but get usable sound.

brittanygarden
Scott Greczkowski

I sent this recap to Dish this morning including Brittany, and one other exec that I know. Hopefully they can sort this out.
FYI.

 

[Scott Greczkowski]

Brittany is out of the office until tomorrow. It may take her a bit to get back to you.

 

[jsmit86]

Brittany is out of the office until tomorrow. It may take her a bit to get back to you.

Yep - Have not seen a reply yet, but IIRC, she just got back yesterday.

On a side note, I am wondering if other members here have seen the same behavior?
I seem to recall at least one post here, and also on AVS forum.
I suppose it's possible to be a Hopper issue on my unit, but this all worked fine until recently, probably after the 711 update.

 

[jsmit86]

Got a reply from Brittany, and one if the Dish OPS guys.
They are looking into the issue.

Thanks!

 

[reubenray]

Got a reply from Brittany, and one if the Dish OPS guys.
They are looking into the issue.

Thanks!

Great, they have until Saturday to fix it in time for the LSU/Ole Miss game.

 

[Bobby]

Great, they have until Saturday to fix it in time for the LSU/Ole Miss game.

In the meantime, turn off your Dolby Digital in Audio and your sound will return.

 

[jsmit86]

Great, they have until Saturday to fix it in time for the LSU/Ole Miss game.

do you have the same issue? Note that you can get sound back by turning off dolby digital in the sound menu.. At least you get stereo then.

 

[reubenray]

do you have the same issue? Note that you can get sound back by turning off dolby digital in the sound menu.. At least you get stereo then.

I don't know. This is my first chance to watch something 4K.

 

[jsmit86]

I got an email this morning from the tech team. They checked my Hopper logs, and found no issues. They tried to duplicate the issue at their location, and they could not.
They are continuing to investigate.

What would be helpful, is if other members confirm YES or NO to the following.

Using a Hopper 3, with NO PLUS!!
Watch a 4K Event with Dolby Sound "ON" in the Dish Menu
Connected to Dolby capable Sound Bar or AV system
If you get no sound -
Respond YES

If your sound works as expected
Respond NO.
(Note that sound will work with Dolby sound switched OFF.)

 

[Bobby]

Yes