Extremely poor audio quality with NOW TV desktop player - why?

[Anonymous User]

As other threads have discussed, the audio quality using the NOW TV desktop player is really, really poor. It sounds like 32 kbps AAC-LC. Mushy, no high frequencies, barely intelligible.

When will this be improved? Underneath the player just uses familiar chunked H.264 streaming with some encryption to protect against stream recording. The player is just an Electron web app in a Windows wrapper.

Technologically there's no reason why the audio bit rates should not be better for the NOW TV desktop streams. It seems like an artificial quality reduction to force people to use smart TV apps / NOW TV boxes and sticks.

For many people, the Windows player is our primary method of viewing. Why should we have to put up with degraded quality?

[Anonymous User]

On a jvc smart tv.
Problem has been solved by simply swapping to another hdmi port but NOW tech couldn’t tell me why it wasn’t working on the first port despite re setting router and NOW stick.

##- Please type your reply above this line

[Anonymous User]

On a smart tv.

Since posting I had it running ok by swapping hdmi ports but turned it on last night to find audio is not working again. Have just swapped ports for the 3rd time and now working so seems to be a communication break down between the hdmi port and the stick when the tv is turned off and back on again. An auto setting problem somewhere perhaps but I have tried all that I can find under the settings menu.

I will just have to carry on like that until the month pass runs out, then cancel it.

I had this stick running with no problems on a different tv over last Xmas. Annoying!

[RoyB]

@Anonymous User 

Settings on the NowTV device, or on the TV?

Do you have any other devices in your HDMI ports that work OK when swapped into the port where the Stick was giving trouble?

Also, how are you powering the Stick? If off a USB port on the TV, try it off the power brick that came with the stick instead,

[Anonymous User]

Settings on the stick menu.
Powered off the usb which has been reliable as has both hdmi ports for other devices.

[RoyB]

@Anonymous User 

I remember the sound on Westworld was appalling, which I tentatively ascribed to it being 5.1 badly transcribed to stereo, but I have no complaints lately.

Where are you running the app, on what equipment, and have you got a Boost pass?