If you’ve been in a movie theater recently, you may have noticed that the sound is a whole lot more immersive. That’s thanks to spatial audio, a type of surround sound. The most well-known version is Dolby Atmos, but there are others, including DTS:X and Sony’s 360 Reality Audio.
There’s no doubt that spatial audio makes watching more enjoyable —?who doesn’t love hearing things zoom and swirl around you, or the shock of an unexpected noise coming from behind you?
Best of all, you don’t have to go to the theater to experience it; you can get the effect in your home with the right equipment. And spatial audio is now being used to mix music, meaning we could be at the beginning of another sound revolution. Here’s how to get in on it.
How does spatial audio work?
Before spatial audio, surround sound was encoded so that sounds were assigned to specific speakers. Voices usually came out of the center speaker, and background music and effects often came from rear speakers.
Instead of assigning sounds to specific speakers, spatial audio places them in space — an effect could be above and to the right of center, for example. Based on the number of speakers and your speaker layout, your system figures out how best to make it seem like the sound is coming from that spot.
Spatial audio also adds height to the equation, making a dome of sound possible. You can hear a helicopter lift and fly over your head, or get the sensation of a bullet whizzing past your ear.
Applying spatial audio to music is similar, but the effect on your experience is different. When a song is mixed for spatial audio, the music can literally surround you —?you can feel like you’re in the middle of the band. The vocal can be in front of you, while the guitar may be coming from the right side and the backing vocals from behind you.
It can be a fun experience —?or completely disorienting. When you’re used to a stereo mix of a favorite song, a spatial audio mix can bring out things you’ve never heard before, or it can make you wish you were hearing it the way you always have and love.
What do I need to play spatial audio?
To experience spatial audio, you need two things: media mixed in the format and a device that can play that media.
For video, you have lots of media options. Netflix, Amazon, HBO Max, Disney+ and others offer a lot of their recent movies and TV shows mixed for Atmos. Movies on 4K Blu-ray discs usually use spatial audio. Many games are also encoded for the format, including popular ones like Halo Infinite, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Horizon Forza 5.
Right now, three music streaming services offer spatial audio: Amazon Music Unlimited, Apple Music and Tidal —?Spotify hasn’t joined the surround sound party yet. Each service has thousands of spatial audio songs, and the number is growing. But that’s still a fraction of the overall catalog each service has. Don’t be surprised if your favorite songs haven’t gotten the spatial audio treatment yet.
Once you’ve got some spatial audio media, you’ll need something to play it on. Recent iPhones and many Android phones can play Atmos content, as can most newer TVs, gaming consoles and streaming boxes.
What do I need to hear spatial audio?
The easiest ways to hear spatial audio are through headphones or single speakers that are designed for the format.
You don’t need special headphones —?any should work if your phone supports Atmos. Apple has its own spatial audio spin that adds a layer onto an Atmos mix if you’re listening on AirPods Pro, AirPods Max and many Beats headphones. With Apple’s spatial audio, as you move your head, the sound stays centered on the playback device.
Many soundbars, from the relatively affordable $399 Polk Signa S4 to the pricier $899 Sonos Arc, can play Atmos content. To get the best effect out of a soundbar, pick one that has upfiring speakers to produce the height effect.
A few music-centric speakers support Dolby Atmos, including Amazon’s $200 Echo Studio, Apple’s $299 HomePod and Sonos’ $449 Era 300. This is a newer category of speakers, and they also can play regular stereo music. Expect more speakers like this to come out soon.
If you really want to get the full spatial audio experience, you’ll want a system that has multiple speakers —?the more the better. That could be a soundbar with separate rear speakers, such as the $1,400 Samsung HW-Q990B, or a home theater audio system with a receiver and center, left and right front, left and right surround, four overhead speakers and a subwoofer —?to start.
That may seem like a lot of speakers and money, but you need them to experience the full dimensions of spatial audio. Without speakers behind you, you miss out on being fully encompassed in sound; similarly, you need height speakers to get the vertical effect.
Spatial audio devices we recommend
Our pick for the best over-ear headphones also works great for spatial audio. With excellent overall sound quality and a comfortable fit, you’ll enjoy hearing sound swirl around your head.
The Beats Fit Pro sound as good as AirPod Pros, but they’re more comfortable — and work well for Android users too. Beats also support Apple’s spatial audio, so you can engage head tracking.
The Arc handles Atmos content well for a single speaker, with good bass and a wide sound. It includes upfiring speakers, and you can trick out your system by adding two Era 300s as rear speakers for an amazing spatial audio experience.
The music-focused Era 300 makes it easy to bask in audio — with its wide sound, it feels like you’re listening to more than one speaker. Designed specifically for spatial audio, the Era 300 has set the bar for listening to immersive music.
The HW-Q990B delivers an incredible 11.1.4 channels of sound through only four units. It includes wireless surround speakers, both of which include upfiring drivers. It’s expensive, but there’s no easier way to get the full spatial audio experience.
Bottom line
Spatial audio makes listening more fun —?whether you’re enjoying a movie, a game or music. Being surrounded by sound is more engaging and helps you get deeper into the experience. You can get started with headphones or single speakers, but the more speakers you have, the better the effect.
Spatial audio in movies and video games is well established by now. The question is whether it will take off for music. There have been other attempts at surround sound in music —?quadraphonic sound in the 1970s, DVD-Audio in the 2000s —?that didn’t last. But the latest attempt uses technology that many people already have, and that may make the difference. Try it out and decide for yourself!
