After rolling out 5.1 Dolby audio support on Roku, Android TV, and Chromecast with Google TV devices –YouTube TV is now bringing the enhanced audio format to a new platform.
Amazon has confirmed to The Streamable that 5.1 audio for YouTube TV has started to become available on Fire TV Stick 4K Max, Fire TV Stick, and Fire TV Stick Lite. Support for the Fire TV Stick 4K is coming soon.
To access 5.1 Dolby audio, viewers will need the latest version of the YouTube TV App from the Amazon App Store. If you don’t get it automatically, you can go to the Amazon App Store and manually force the update.
Users with Apple TV HD or Apple TV 4K devices will still have to wait a bit longer until 5.1 audio becomes available. YouTube TV says, “We’re still working internally and with partners to enable 5.1 on Apple TV and game consoles, and we’ll update you here once they’re available.”
While 5.1 audio is an added bonus to YouTube TV, it will only come into effect on content that fully supports surround sound. Up until now, DIRECTV STREAM was the only service that widely supported 5.1 audio across most channels. Hulu Live TV added support for select channels in September 2021.
YouTube TV
YouTube TV is a live TV streaming service with more than 60 channels for $72.99/month. This plan includes local channels, 32 of the top 35 cable channels, and regional sports networks (RSNs) in select markets. The service includes an unlimited DVR.