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Firestick Netflix Sound/Picture Not Working

I’ve been using my Fire TV stick for a while but one day the sound on my Netflix stopped working. I got to the bottom of the problem by trying a bunch of different things and doing a lot of research, and here’s how to get it working again.

As a general rule, the easiest and best thing to try first is to restart the Fire TV stick device. Start from the Fire TV stick home screen, and then select ‘Settings’ that is one of the options at the top of the screen. After that select My Fire TV > System/device > Restart.

Family sitting on living room couch watching Tv

In a minute or two it will show the home screen again. From there attempt to watch something on Netflix again.

There are a few additional things to try to get it working again if that doesn’t work. And below, I’ll explain exactly how to do each of them so that Netflix works as it should on your Fire TV stick.

Firestick Netflix Black/Blank Screen/No Picture

Family sitting on couch about to turn on and watch TV

An issue I got was that when I played a movie or TV show all I got was a blank screen. I looked into the official help documents about using Netflix with a Firestick to see how to fix this issue. Here’s what I found.

Attempt to play a different TV show or movie. Verify if it now displays video output. If it is a specific TV show or movie that does not display video, then report the issue to Netflix. However if the problem remains then the Fire TV stick device should be restarted.

This is accessed from the home screen. At the top of the screen you will see a few options such as Apps, and Settings. Select Settings using your Fire TV stick remote and then select ‘My Fire TV’, then ‘System/Device’, after that select ‘Restart’.

The Fire TV stick device will turn itself off and then turn itself on again. It will take a few minutes and will display some random info on the screen. After that, you will be back on the Fire TV stick home screen.

Test your internet connection

From there reopen Netflix and attempt to watch it again. Another reason you could be experiencing this issue is if your internet connection is running slowly or is disconnected. When that happens it’s because Netflix can’t download the video and as a result can’t play it.

To test your internet connection access the settings on your Fire TV stick to see if there is an error message. To do that go to:

Copyright protected content owner: ReadyToDIY.com and was initially posted on June 29, 2021.

  1. The Fire TV stick home screen
  2. Settings
  3. Network
  4. Press the play/pause button

On that screen it will display the status of your internet connection. It will typically be connected or disconnected. If it’s connected you should check the speed of your internet connection.

Connect another device to your home Wi-Fi for example an iPhone or an iPad. Chances are you already have a smartphone or computer already connected to the same Wi-Fi connection. Go to speedtest.net and press the test button.

That will tell you whether your internet is running slow. If you have any issues with your internet connection then it’s a good idea to contact your internet service provider and they can typically help you to get your internet working again over the phone.

Uninstall and reinstall the Netflix App

Here’s a short video that shows exactly how to uninstall an App on a Fire TV stick, and then I’ll explain how to reinstall it.

The steps are very simple, I’ve summarized them below so they are easy to follow:

  1. Hold down the house button on your Fire TV stick remote
  2. With apps highlighted press the middle button – the big round button
  3. A list of the apps you have installed will be shown on the screen
  4. Navigate to Netflix using the arrow buttons – the round black circular ring.
  5. Then press the button on your Fire TV stick remote that has three horizontal lines.
  6. That brings up a menu with some options.
  7. One of them is uninstall – select that and it will uninstall Netflix from your Fire TV stick.

After that you need to reinstall the Netflix app. From the home screen navigate to ‘Apps’ at the top of the screen from there find in the list of apps. You can also search for Netflix by selecting the magnifying glass icon.

That will bring up a keyboard and use your Fire TV stick remote to type in ‘Netflix’. Once you select Netflix select download. And then after it has downloaded it will automatically install. It will typically take less than 5 minutes and on broadband or fiber it takes under 1 minute.

Firestick Netflix Sound/Audio Not Working

Family watching TV during the day

You may have another issue where the video will play but you don’t get any sound. To get it working again here’s what you need to do:

As a general rule, you need to check a few things to resolve this issue and get the sound working again. Start by testing the audio using another input such as the built in TV channels on your TV or a device like an Xbox or DVD player.

Also, ensure your Fire TV stick is plugged in all the way. You can unplug it, and then plug it in again. You will know when it’s plugged in all the way as you can’t push it in any further.

Copyright article owner is ReadyToDiy.com for this article. This post was first published on June 29, 2021.

After that check to see if you get any sound when playing a different TV show or movie. And through other apps such as games. When the audio doesn’t play on only one TV show or movie then you should report the issue to Netflix.

When this happens, it’s because the file wasn’t loaded into Netflix correctly and after some time Netflix will put up a new copy of it.

Different HDMI Port

If it still doesn’t work then you should check the HDMI port as it might be faulty. To do that plug the Fire TV stick into a different HDMI port on your TV.

When doing that you also need to switch the source or input using your TV. Or the remote for the receiver on your home theater system.

For example, if your Fire TV stick is plugged into HDMI1 then the input will need to be set to HDMI1 on your TV. Or, on the receiver for your home theater system. Depending on whether you’re using the TV speakers or a home theater system.

Lastly you should check that you have the correct settings for the speaker setup you’re using on your TV. The best resource for that is this article on the official Netflix website that provides detailed steps about how to adjust the audio input for each different type of device. For example, if you’re using a SmartTV or you’re using an Apple TV.

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ReadyToDIY is the owner of this article. This post was published on June 29, 2021.

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