Apple TV Streaming Sound Quality vs Streamer?

Ditch the Apple TV for Tidal and use an older Mac mini. HDMI out to the TV for the video, USB DAC of your choice. Set the correct output device via the MIDI settings. I'd keep the ATV for the video content just route the TVs digital output to a proper DAC. Could even use the same DAC you have for Tidal if it has switchable inputs.  

***buy an old Mac mini off ebay or wherever. You do not need a new one. I have a 2012 model with a busted ethernet card so I know you can easily stream MQA masters via wi-fi. 

I tried the Apple TV for the first time for music streaming from Tidal in my bedroom system and I think my Chromecast Audio ($35) is a better option as a budget streamer. I think it sounds a little better through the same DAC, is more compact, is cheaper, and is just a bit easier to select on the phone/tablet. Of course its audio only. It does need a mini-optical to optical cable which may not be as useful in other systems.

Kahlenz: I agree with your assessment.  Both, the AEX and ATV, can sound excellent when using a nice DAC processor.  I also enjoy and prefer spinning vinyl sometimes.  It’s a great time to be a music listener!

You have a wonderful system, I bet your Harbeth speakers sounds amazing.  They are one of my favorites.

As an adjunct to what I wrote previously, I must admit that I do enjoy Tidal MQA when running directly from a Mac mini>DAC (no AEX or Apple TV).  It's my opinion that most of the difference is in the mastering.  When I switch over to the AEX (limited to 16/44.1) and play the same Tidal files, I think it sounds the same.  When I compare the same Tidal tracks to an older CD (different mastering), I notice a difference.

I have the same experience when I listen to hi-res files (direct to the DAC from the Mac Mini) vs. the same files streamed through the AEX or Apple TV (downsampled to 16/44.1).  I just thank my lucky stars that either my ears aren't good enough or that my system is not revealing enough to merit worrying about anything higher than 16/44.1!

Apple device > DAC (I have several, my current favorite is Schiit's Bifrost multibit) > Odyssey Candela pre-amp > Odyssey Khartego power amp > Harbeth P3esr speakers.  Also have desktop system with Audioengine DAC and A2 speakers, and a headphone system consisting of AEX > Schiit Modi Multibit DAC > Schiit Vali amp > Senn 650 or Grado SR325e.  I probably notice the difference between file types most with headphones (no pesky room acoustics to deal with).

Full disclosure:  when I really want to raise the hairs on my neck, I play records (another discussion)!

I use an Apple TV with an optical out into my DAC.  I also have several Airport Express devices (with optical out) that I can use.   I cannot tell the difference between the bit-perfect Airport Express (16/44.1) and the upsampled Apple TV (16/48).  In my casual testing, the sound quality of either apple device equals the sound quality of the CD I ripped the files from.  As long as I'm not concerned about high res (higher than redbook) or "fully unfolded" MQA I am completely satisfied with the sound quality.

I guess I don't have the gilded ears (or revealing enough system) to hear jitter.  As much as I have obsessed over this, I have come to the conclusion if I cannot hear it (including long listening sessions), I won't worry about it.  My observations match other observers who have written about this on the internet.  I'm sure that somewhere along the line, it makes a difference.  That said, I do think I notice a difference between USB and SPDF (at least with my equipment).  After much listening I prefer the SPDF connections over USB.  Before I invest in a Remedy reclocker or USB "Decrapifier", I think it's more likely I'll move to a Micro Rendu (or something similar), or an asynchronous USB input DAC (lots of upgrade options here, and more hitting the market every day).

Note that the newer Apple TV and AEX units do not have SPDF out.  Plenty of older models of both available on the used market for around $50 or less.

Steve from Empirical:

Does the Synchro-Mesh improve the optical out of most TVs, especially Sony?

Does the Synchro-Mesh improve the optical out of the Apple AirPort Express (sadly becoming legacy)?

Do you know of a high quality AirPlay streamer (source only) that can take the place of, or improve upon, the AirPort Express?

On most MQA contents my DAC shows 96 and sometimes 192 rates. And they do sound better than the same music when played using my CD player through the same DAC. The rest of the system is a constant.
So streaming can sound better than CD and in my system does most of the time.

Stick to hard media like LP's and CD's for the best SQ!

Mastering from the original source is the most important factor in SQ! And with streaming and downloads the provenance is never certain, compared to LP's and CD's! Authenticity is given up for convenience! A bad bargain, indeed!

MQA is 14.4khz just like CD

The quality deference is in the mastering and not anything else IMO.

Sometimes it sounds better, sometimes worse.

Imo-A cd in my $200 lg blue ray player sounds much better than the Tidal. This is what sparked my feeling that the source was the weakest link. Is a cd always better than streaming? I ask because I think I would be satisfied if a streamer could offer a similar sound quality. 

ATV Gen 3 doesn't TIDAL APP. Gen has Tidal but without optical out. You would need a good DAC to sound better from ATV.

Curious why you say Tidal is only cd quality after all?
Or are you of the opinion, as some are, that the MQA titles do not offer any improvement over 16/44 redbook content?
Just my 2 cents but I can hear a considerable difference on some MQA titles compared to the "regular" 16/44 stream offered on Tidal.
But a lot of that could be the rest of my system, who knows?

Apple TV with the Tidal app sounds fantastic IMO.

Tidal is only CD quality after all.

I use the Sony TV optical digital out to a Gungnir Multibit D/A converter into my audio system and get great TV, BluRay, and audio playback from my iMac SSD.

Apple TV streaming sounds really poor. I was excited to get the Tidal app on it but it just sounds poor via hdmi into an Arcam AVR 850. Ok for tv but not for audio. 

This means you are already using Apple AirPlay.  As I mentioned, there are better AirPlay sources than the Apple TV, especially for music.  The network can also make a difference.

@Kalali -With an Apple mobile device or computer, you basically just hit play and then choose the Apple TV box to send the music to.  Per robr45, it is truly one of the main reasons I listen to music as much as I do.  It changes so much about what you can experience in listening sessions.  -*Even though it may hamper the sound quality to some degree. 

Sorry if this a bit off topic, but out of curiosity, how do you stream Tidal through the Apple TV box and what connection and how do you mange/view the Tidal music content?

Robr45 makes some good points.

The Apple TV is a great device and can sound wonderful when connected to a well designed system, but because of how it samples/clocks, a dedicated AirPlay source/stream can sound better when properly implemented.

I mention AirPlay because it’s a high quality (bit perfect) transport/network source that is integrated into all of Apple’s operating systems and applications.  You can use Tidel directly into a nice AirPlay/DAC if you use Apple Mac or iOS (iPhone/iPad).

If you move away from the Apple TV interface, how would you prefer to control your music?

I would say yes. 

ATV does not support 24 bit streams and resamples everything to 48 khz so it is not a "bit perfect" device. This in itself doesn't mean that it doesn't sound good, but it leaves room for improvement especially considering your paying for Tidal. Additionally you can improve general usability by getting into a prettier and more robust streaming GUI. 

The BlueSound Node or Auralic Aries Mini would be good places to start looking and both are under $500. Alternatively, you could swap out your Peachtree integrated amp for a true preamp that incorporates this type of functionality. This could further improve usability by folding proper volume control into the same app.  

If you are committed to going further upmarket, You could take a look at Roon as a front end. This would allow you to use a network audio adapter like a sonore microrendu or SotM device. Even the BlueSound and Auralic gear would  allow for this. Roon opens the door to a world of cool functionality and nearly infinite flexibility. 

It really depends on what you want to do and your predisposition for tinkering and upgrading. You have some very nice gear. 

I would dip your toe in the water and have fun with it. Streaming is the best thing to happen to high end audio in years.