New Chromecast 4K, better than expected

[Dwaipayan]

@ankitbhargava can you confirm something for me if it is not too much of a hassle?

When playing a local HDR file on CCWGTV on a non-hdr display, does it accurately tone map from HDR to SDR? I tried the same on my new FS4KMax and everything looks washed out. Tried with both Kodi and Jellyfin player and got the same result. Interestingly enough, this used to work perfectly on my old FS4K (non-Max) before.

There are also open tickets on Kodi's GitHub page, but i don't think it is a problem with the software. The issue lies somewhere at the driver/OS level for the stick.

Just wanted to post an update on this issue w.r.t. tone mapping. There are two solutions to this as far as I could find out.

1. Using Kodi with Jellyfin addon, force transcoding on the addon configuration page. Also need to enable hardware acceleration and tone mapping on Jellyfin server. In this approach, tone mapping works well but on the other hand audio also gets transcoded, which is a big negative. Also requires significant processing power (GPU assisted) on the server end.

2. Using Jellyfin client with external player and install Vimu media player with the engine set to Vimu V2 + tunneling. This approach does proper tone mapping on the fire stick with no additional load to the server.

I must say I would never be able to figure out #2 by myself. The workaround was posted on the GitHub issue page by another person. The downside of this approach is that this player need to be side loaded to bypass the geo restrictions.

 

[superczar]

@ankitbhargava
Have you tested Hotstar ATMOS on the device yet?
Most of my content comes from NF and HS.
If this does HS atmos then this device is a no brainer for the cost.

As for your query on NF Atmos on ATV 4K, that support has been there since the launch days of even the older gen ATV 4k

 

[revolty]

Hello everyone,

I am facing a peculiar problem in Zee5 app through "Chromecast with Google TV". First time, the content in it runs in 4K and dolby 5.1 audio. But, when it is switched off and on; the content plays in 1080p and stereo audio. After, uninstalling and installing the app; it plays in 4k and 5.1.
But, same circus; whenever it is switched off and on. Everytime, I have to uninstall and install the App for watching my content. I could not get any proper response from Zee5 team.
Is anyone else facing the same issue here? Any guidance would be helpful.

 

[gopichandpai]

Exact same issue on Nvidia Shield Pro too. It works when it is uninstalled and installed again. But stops working later. It is working fine on Fire Stick 4k.

 

[revolty]

Exact same issue on Nvidia Shield Pro too. It works when it is uninstalled and installed again. But stops working later. It is working fine on Fire Stick 4k.

Ok.
I have shield 2017 version. In it, Zee5 4K content didn't play in Dolby 5.1 audio. Only 1080p content played in Dolby 5.1. Let's hope there is some permanent solution for this.

 

[greenhorn]

The HD version of the new Chromecast seems to have been silently launched on Flipkart https://dl.flipkart.com/s/pfq2pruuuN

 

[ankitbhargava]

Ankit did you upgrade to series X or the observations are against One X ? Chromecast seems interesting..

I have now upgraded to Xbox Series X finally
In terms of OTT streaming I did not find any exciting difference between One S and Series X

@ankitbhargava
Have you tested Hotstar ATMOS on the device yet?
Most of my content comes from NF and HS.
If this does HS atmos then this device is a no brainer for the cost.

As for your query on NF Atmos on ATV 4K, that support has been there since the launch days of even the older gen ATV 4k

So sorry for late response, are you still looking for this information?

Hello everyone,

I am facing a peculiar problem in Zee5 app through "Chromecast with Google TV". First time, the content in it runs in 4K and dolby 5.1 audio. But, when it is switched off and on; the content plays in 1080p and stereo audio. After, uninstalling and installing the app; it plays in 4k and 5.1.
But, same circus; whenever it is switched off and on. Everytime, I have to uninstall and install the App for watching my content. I could not get any proper response from Zee5 team.
Is anyone else facing the same issue here? Any guidance would be helpful.

It could be the internet speed playing around, I recently observed the same while playing some content on Chromecast Google TV. First few minutes it shows 1080p and then shifts to 4K after stable streaming speed.

 

[revolty]

I have now upgraded to Xbox Series X finally
In terms of OTT streaming I did not find any exciting difference between One S and Series X

So sorry for late response, are you still looking for this information?


It could be the internet speed playing around, I recently observed the same while playing some content on Chromecast Google TV. First few minutes it shows 1080p and then shifts to 4K after stable streaming speed.

Hi,
On the same internet speed; I used ATV4k, Shield (2017), Chromecast with 4K TV (CC) and Firestick 4K max (FS). Internet speed was not the issue but the App's compatibility with the respective devices. Even Zee5, Aha technical team could not help. So, I bought FS and it played all the contents in the respective Audio format.
In fact, CC didn't buffer at all for any content, FS does. It takes 2 minutes for FS to achieve stable streaming speed, but it is compatible with all OTT apps. So, I have been using FS for OTT purpose now.

 

[sivag08]

The HD version of the new Chromecast seems to have been silently launched on Flipkart https://dl.flipkart.com/s/pfq2pruuuN

Great..!

I am planning to buy this one, but the caveat though is I have a 4K tv.. So using a HD version of CCGTV would make any impact on the picture quaIity by any means..?!

How much visible difference (which human eyes can recognize) w.r.t. the PQ+SQ between a Chromecast HD vs Chromecast 4K when used in a 4K QLED tv + Denon 5.1 AVR connected..?

Note: I've connected all my HT gear in the living room wherein the distance from the sofa (seating position) to TV would be 12-14ft.

Would love to hear thoughts from the members..

@ankitbhargava Thank you so much mate for creating this post btw.. Very insightful!

 

[vbutani]

I am using Chromecast 4k on my HD tv for a month and have to admit that never heard such clear dialogues and bass in the vocals!
However, as I have 5.0 setup without subwoofer, overall bass is less compared to native tv or fire tv stick.
I think it would be resolved after adding subwoofer.
But overall picture quality, sound and device speed is awesome!
Also, the wifi strength of 5ghz is quite good! Works flawlessly despite it's behind AVR in covered tv unit.

I couldn't find any incognito mode for YouTube or other apps, please advise if someone aware of it.

 

[sivag08]

I am using Chromecast 4k on my HD tv for a month and have to admit that never heard such clear dialogues and bass in the vocals!
However, as I have 5.0 setup without subwoofer, overall bass is less compared to native tv or fire tv stick.
I think it would be resolved after adding subwoofer.
But overall picture quality, sound and device speed is awesome!
Also, the wifi strength of 5ghz is quite good! Works flawlessly despite it's behind AVR in covered tv unit.

I couldn't find any incognito mode for YouTube or other apps, please advise if someone aware of it.

Not sure about the incognito mode, but i would say try using SmartTube Next from the github or F-Droid store. Plays without ads and comes with SponsorBlock (just like what Youtube vanced does in the mobile).

 

[sivag08]

But overall picture quality, sound and device speed is awesome!

CC4K does better compared to that of the native android tv apps and Fire tv stick..?

 

[vbutani]

I have non Android HD tv so not sure about it, but it's better than my native tv apps.

CC4K does better compared to that of the native android tv apps and Fire tv stick..?

 

[Ravi546]

I have purchased the new Apple TV 4K (2022). Can confirm that it doesn’t play AHA on Dolby audio. I am getting PCM signal which is being converted to stereo by my AVR. I have gold subscription . Did anyone get Aha working on atleast 5.1 on Apple TV

 

[amrutmhatre90]

I have ordered these devices from a friend in CA, while I am familiar with Android TV,
what are the pros which this has over firestick?

 

[skumar]

How much visible difference (which human eyes can recognize) w.r.t. the PQ+SQ between a Chromecast HD vs Chromecast 4K when used in a 4K QLED tv + Denon 5.1 AVR connected.

a) Your 4kTV or your AVR (if capable and configured) will upres the HD signal to 4K, so the final output depends on them as well.
b) At 12ft, I guess the difference in PQ will be negligible (HD v 4K upres), especially with low quality 4k streaming from OTT platforms

 

[greenhorn]

Simply upscaling doesn't do much. If you want useful 4k quality, you need shield type ai upscaling. I've that too, and it's waaay better, and the cost will pay for the 4k subscriptions

 

[arvindjshetty]

May have reported Audio issue on this thread!. Buy Firestick blindly and it works flawlessly. Stay away from this chromecast

I found this Chromecast to be a total SCAM! Apart from the "Android" experience, its an average product. The major issue is with Audio and it sounds very bad and does not support many codecs. My Samsung Sound bar is Dolby Digital certified but this Chromecast does not even recognize it and sounds worse than old car speakers. I got this for 4K experience and regret it now, I own a Firestick 3rd Gen (1080 p) which sounds fantastic with/without the soundbar and bludy supports all Audio formats. Many contents in Netflix detected as "Spatial Audio" and sounds horrible through my sound bar as well as inbuilt TV Speakers (which I performed for testing purposes)! No Issues with Video though.

Firestick is laggy sometimes but does require cleanup every now and then to improve the performance but it works with full potential.