Apple TV remote microphone stops working again 2025

My first report of Apple TV remote microphone stops working was posted two years ago when tvOS was 16. During the half year that followed, I updated that the problem disappeared then reappeared then disappeared again. By my last update, tvOS was 17.3.

Earlier this year (about 1 year after that last update), the exact same symptoms returned. No dictation, no voice Siri search. The mic input icon shows as orange at the upper-right corner and the Siri bubble at lower-right corner but no waveform line - and no input at all. tvOS is now 18.6. (The symptom returned in 18.5.)

I have searched this forum and that. None of the suggested procedures - whether in my old thread or elsewhere, has changed anything. This includes the magical sequence of rebooting remote which I hadn't learned till my previous post. I even reset my Apple TV and started afresh. At this point, I no longer have doubt about the hardware. This is purely a software bug that is hard to get over. But still, I want a sequence to avert this symptom.