Amazon is pushing a new software update to the 3rd-gen Fire TV Cube that should make video and audiophiles happy. Software version 7.6.1.3 (PS7613/3686) is currently rolling out to devices with improvements to the Super Resolution Upscaling feature that should make non-4K content look even sharper. The update is also adding a feature that has long been requested by surround sound enthusiasts, which is support for DTS, DTS-HD, and Dolby True HD audio passthrough.
Super Resolution Upscaling is a feature that is unique to the 3rd-gen Fire TV Cube and is Amazon’s answer to Nvidia’s AI Upscaling feature on the latest Shield TV and Shield TV Pro. Both upscaling features are supposed to go beyond standard upscaling to make lower-resolution video look even better on 4K TVs. While Nvidia’s advanced upscaling results in a noticeable change compared to standard upscaling, the Fire TV Cube’s advanced upscaling seemed to make little to no difference. This latest software update is supposed to improve things. Stay tuned for an upcoming article from me comparing the Cube’s new upscaling to the Shield TV and detailing whether or not the update has made a difference.
In addition to upscaling improvements, as mentioned, Amazon has added support for DTS, DTS-HD, and Dolby True HD audio passthrough. Support for these lossless surround sound formats has long been missing from Fire TV devices. Fire TV devices have supported several Dolby formats with onboard decoding for a long time, but these more advanced formats have been missing. That finally changes with the latest software update currently rolling out. You won’t find any new audio settings to enable or disable, but the aforementioned audio formats should be passed through automatically when used.
Amazon has confirmed to me that both of these new video and audio improvements are included in the version 7.6.1.3 (PS7613/3686) software update that is currently rolling out to devices. Amazon says the update should be available to all 3rd-gen Fire TV Cube owners by the end of the week. I’m unsure if other Fire TV models will also receive support for the new audio passthrough formats. I’ve asked Amazon for clarification and will update this article if I receive a response.
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Do you know if Dolby true HD includes Dolby true Dolby Atmos HD.
And do you Know if The 4K Firestick will get update as well as the max and Cube 3.
If it passes through TrueHD the Atmos will come with it.
It’s about time Amazon upped their game as the devices are great value. Hopefully they can upgrade the 4k firestick as well in the near future.
I have the 4k Max, I’d be interested to know this too
Looking forward to seeing a comparison between the new cube and the Shields upscaling. Thank you for keeping us updated Elias.
7.6.1.4/3227 is the update my Fire TV TV’s got. Seems to be the same update?
How about Mirroring without an app
for me, the main thing is that Amazon has finally added
support for NTFS drives ! [even the Fire TV Cube 2 has
MUCH BETTER picture quality than any Stick Fire TV ]
but for 3 years I have been asking to add support for all
languages, as is done in the normal Android OS and iOS
.
I like to get the Cube 3 and compare it to the 4k firestick for picture quality. As I have my firestick connected in the hdmi port on my receiver and it always displays the picture in Dolby Vision. Sometimes it is not or not only about the streaming device but how your TV setup and picture settings in the TV Menu. Unfortunately at this time to get the Cube 3 to my County it is About 500.00. But I like to get one and see how it performs. Not just the sounds and picture quality. But overall performance. Unfortunately one thing is you still can’t get Dolby Atmos music from the Amazon music app. That one thing you can get apple Dolby Atmos music on there New Devices.
Im confused does the cube not already output dolby true hd and atmos? I get that through all apps… Does this mean for certain apps?
No it doesn’t. It already supports Dolby Digital plus Atmos from streaming services. True HD comes from disc rips for playback with Plex, Emby, Kodi and similar apps.
Honestly, how much better could it possibly be over the 2nd gen cube?
I mean the PQ…
Well considering the Shields upscaling is miles and miles better picture than the gen 2 cube, I’d imagine any upscaling the 3rd cube is doing is going to be miles better than the non existent upscaling the 2nd cube does.
This improvement is part of update 7.6.1.3 (PS7613/3686). Is there a way to get this improvement if I am running FOS 7.6.1.3 (PS7613/3675), and I am using ADB Clear Software OTA command to prevent auto updates. Thanks for your help.
Will they be adding more ads? Cause I don’t feel like they’ve quite taken hardware I paid for and used it to incessantly try to sell me shit quite enough.
Yeah, it was one thing when the devices were cheaper, but now you can get a more powerful AppleTV for less.
Are there any department stores that carry the new u]dated fire TV cube in N.H?
The fire tv cube gen 2 supports 16bit/192khz audio. Does the gen 3 support higher resolution?
Just bought a 3rd gen fire cube and the upscaling is excellent. Looks better than the Shield, the Shield sometimes overdoes it on the upscale.
Watched a couple NBA games, one through an OTA signal going to a media player run through the cube via hdmi and the other on Fubotv through the cube. Both looked significantly better than regular HD.
Being able to play your cable box/media device through the Cube for upscaling is a big advantage. Great product.
How does it do with upscaling 720p? I want something that will make TubiTV look decent
It helps with that too. I used Kodi to watch some fights recently and that’s usually 720p or low quality 1080i. We have the lowest Netflix sub also playing in 720p and that looks great too.
It won’t make 720p look like real 4k but it’s a massive improvement. Well worth the $140. For me it was being frustrated not having 4k sports to watch, this is a nice bridge until that’s available
Interesting. I am not that worried about 1080p to 4k. More so about 720p to 1080 or 4k. Most those ad supported services like Tubi seem stuck at 720p, and wish there was something that made the look a bit better. Also, with how little I watch my Netflix, I would like to drop it down to the 720 plan.
It seems most of the feedback I have seen since launch, people said the upscaling did not make any noticeable difference. But maybe I had gotten better with updates.
Yeah you can’t go off of the previous reviews, the update is the difference maker. Amazon should’ve waited to release the unit until that update was ready.
I’ll take a look at tubi and let you know the comparison.
I actually was going to ask, but didn’t want to be a pest. Thanks!
I have a couple cubes now, and unless the upscaling is good, I was not going to pay the price to upgrade. At least not until the prices come down.
Just tested it. It’s a huge difference between Tubi on my TV’s app and the Fire Cube. While the cube didn’t make Tubi look like 4k it cleared it up a lot, more than I expected.
Cool, thanks for checking. Maybe I will upgrade one of my Gen2 cubes during the next sale.
“Looks better than the Shield”
Aww, sure it does, little guy.
“the Shield sometimes overdoes it on the upscale.”
BTW, you can adjust the upscaling on the Shield from None, Low, Medium, or High. Surely /somewhere/ in there is a level that doesn’t “overdo” it for you.
I mean, if you’re being honest.
OTOH, if you’re not, then yeah, the Cube’s upscaling is FAR superior to the Shield’s.
its just that you seem to be the /only/ guy on the net that thinks so. Which is weird. And not video or screenshots to back up your assertion that isn’t supported by anyone else.
Maybe offer something other than “No. You guys. It TOTALLY beats teh competing product.
FR. FR tho.
secondo voi si vede meglio della fire stick 4k pro con netflix o prime? perche a natale ho provato apple tv del 2019 ma differenze non ne ho notate.
As of 20 February 2023 The Firestick Max Software Version is Fire OS 7.6.2.4 (PS7624/3338).
And 7.1 Dolby Atmos is still not displaying/working properly. But all there others are All versions of DTS 7.1/5.1 Abd 5.1 Dolby Atmos Are Working and Displaying Correctly.
do you think it looks better than the fire stick 4k pro with netflix or prime? because at Christmas I tried the 2019 apple tv but I didn’t notice any differences.
It looks much better. I have both.