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Apple Spacial Audio

José Herring

Lost in Cyberspace
Found this great article explaining it all. With Logic getting Spacial Audio capabilities first then I feel other DAWS will soon follow. I'm sure that this is going to be the new "stereo" format for most of us and at least 7.1.4 Atmos will be the minimum standard for Film and perhaps 5.1.2 or Apple Spacial Audio for TV.

I think it's exiting. After listening to just a few demos it makes stereo feel like mono to me now. I also realize it's what I've been trying to do with orchestra and hybrid music mix wise and not fully know what it was I was going for. But now with the new immersive audio we'll actually be able to use those multi mic libraries and ambisonic sound design and put the stuff in its proper position behind, below and above the mix position as well as the traditional center, L/R.

It's exciting really.

 
Found this great article explaining it all. With Logic getting Spacial Audio capabilities first then I feel other DAWS will soon follow. I'm sure that this is going to be the new "stereo" format for most of us and at least 7.1.4 Atmos will be the minimum standard for Film and perhaps 5.1.2 or Apple Spacial Audio for TV.

I think it's exiting. After listening to just a few demos it makes stereo feel like mono to me now. I also realize it's what I've been trying to do with orchestra and hybrid music mix wise and not fully know what it was I was going for. But now with the new immersive audio we'll actually be able to use those multi mic libraries and ambisonic sound design and put the stuff in its proper position behind, below and above the mix position as well as the traditional center, L/R.

It's exciting really.

Haven’t explored too much but really excited about this. Here is a guide from Dolby for logic but if you look for links at end of article you will see tips for setting up pro tools and ableton.

https://professionalsupport.dolby.com/s/article/Dolby-Atmos-Music-Getting-Started-with-Logic-Pro?language=en_US
Plug-in Alliance DearVR Plugin’s also support Dolby Atmos mixing/effects.
 
Haven’t explored too much but really excited about this. Here is a guide from Dolby for logic but if you look for links at end of article you will see tips for setting up pro tools and ableton.

https://professionalsupport.dolby.com/s/article/Dolby-Atmos-Music-Getting-Started-with-Logic-Pro?language=en_US
Plug-in Alliance DearVR Plugin’s also support Dolby Atmos mixing/effects.
I have DearVR as part of my PA bundle. I'll check it out. Thx.
 
When does the run on Cinematic Rooms Pro and Surround 3D Exponential Audio Reverbs begin?

Just want to have a good seat to watch the rush.
 
Found this great article explaining it all.

It is exciting. It's not at all clear that the author of that article has ever mixed anything in Dolby Atmos, alas... and certainly the plugins they're shilling aren't compatible with the format.

Protools Expert have some good articles, although a bit fragmented:


This, from Sreejesh Nair, is probably the best list of actual tips and tricks for Dolby Atmos for music mixing that I've read:


The best thing though is to download the Atmos renderer software and have a play - there are lots of practical considerations to overcome that articles can't really cover.
 
It is exciting. It's not at all clear that the author of that article has ever mixed anything in Dolby Atmos, alas... and certainly the plugins they're shilling aren't compatible with the format.

Protools Expert have some good articles, although a bit fragmented:


This, from Sreejesh Nair, is probably the best list of actual tips and tricks for Dolby Atmos for music mixing that I've read:


The best thing though is to download the Atmos renderer software and have a play - there are lots of practical considerations to overcome that articles can't really cover.
Man! Thanks. I will download the software and start using it along with reading any manuals. I think it's so new I'll have to manual dive for a while as the more tech minded people catch up and start posting tips and tricks. :)
 
Unfortunately the Apple Spatial Audio sounds horrendous and is giving Atmos a bad rap. It's nothing like a proper Atmos setup. Binaural can work well but part of the technology hasn't been properly implemented yet and Apple is applying their own processing which makes the releases even worse.

I've been in Atmos land for around 5 years now. I'm happy to chat about it if anyone has any questions and there's also a blog post on my website discussing some of the problems. I also have an extra unregistered production suite license I'm selling for $250 if anyone is interested.
 
Unfortunately the Apple Spatial Audio sounds horrendous and is giving Atmos a bad rap. It's nothing like a proper Atmos setup.
Yeah, there are so many people who can listen to their music on a proper Atmos setup. So, why so negative? It’s still better than stereo. And a lot more fun.
 
Yeah, there are so many people who can listen to their music on a proper Atmos setup. So, why so negative? It’s still better than stereo. And a lot more fun.
The spatial audio stuff on Apple is much worse than stereo. Every engineer I've talked to has said the same thing. Once Apple gets rid of whatever processing they're doing and HRTFs are integrated then it'll be fine just like the binaural systems that already do that and have existed for decades.

Atmos is nothing new in a sonic sense. It's just a format that conveniently translates into the different listening scenarios. How long has 22.2 been around? How long has stereo been around? How long has binaural been around? The problem in the past is that if you wanted to release something in binaural in order to have a surround headphone mix you had to release a separate version of your album and have it labelled as for headphone use only. No one did that because it was clunky. Atmos hides all of that from the end user. That's the only reason it's convenient and catching on. The end results is the same.

I go into great lengths on all of this on my blog post.
 
Kind of makes all those debates about the importance of lots of mic positions moot. 😎
Do you mean that spacial positioning supersedes them?

My sense is that this is a headphone sales format. I'm highly skeptical that very many people are going to buy 12 speakers.

And I'd be worried that if they do, they'll have 12 shitty speakers instead of two decent ones. But maybe that's just cynicism.
 
Oh just making the point that a sample library with close/mid/tree positions is going to be a bit limited compared to a sample library with close/mid/back/tree/high/surround/etc because each position can be sent to one of the 7+ channels for the bed, or individual objects.

Funny enough, I know 4 people with home theaters/living rooms now outfitted for Dolby ATMOS... ceiling, two subs, the works.... granted, 2 are doctors, one is a dentist, and the other a lawyer, but correct me if I'm wrong, those were generally the first professions to get CD players in the 80s. I haven't sat and listened to any of them yet though.
Not a doctor or lawyer, but do have a 7.1.4 home theater setup. It’s nice.
 
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