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What Is Dolby Atmos Music?

Friday January 21, 2022. 09:43 PM , from Sweetwater inSync
Dolby Atmos is an immersive, object-based audio format that expands typical 5.1 and 7.1 surround setups and enables them to reproduce a fully three-dimensional soundfield by including height information. Unlike past surround formats, Dolby Atmos isn’t dependent on a set number or configuration of speakers for accurate playback. Thus, a full spectrum of playback devices, from home theaters and soundbars to game consoles, smartphones, and automobiles, can support the format. Beyond that, in contrast to past surround formats, Dolby Atmos is being wholeheartedly embraced by the music industry, including many major music-streaming services. And, with more and more Dolby Atmos content being created each day, you may find yourself needing to upgrade your rig to remain relevant in this brave new world. Not sure where to begin? Read on.

Ultimately, Dolby Atmos is a tool that enables music content creators to expand and share their musical vision in three dimensions.

Anatomy of a Dolby Atmos System

Dolby Atmos augments traditional Dolby 5.1 and 7.1 surround configurations with a vertical or height dimension. This enables it to transcend the limitations of 2-, 6-, or 8-channel arrangements, expanding your sonic palette with an immersive, three-dimensional spatial field that mimics how we perceive sound in the real world. Playback systems include up to 64 channels, which create an aural hemisphere that adds a lifelike dimension to the sound. The Dolby Atmos naming convention consists of [Standard Channels].[LFE Channels].[Overhead Channels]. Hence, a 7.1.4 Dolby Atmos system includes seven standard channels (left front, center, right front, left side surround [Lss], right side surround [Rss], left rear surround [Lrs], and right rear surround [Rrs]), one LFE channel, and four overhead channels.

Find out more about Dolby Atmos panning in their Deep Dive: Using the Pro Tools | Ultimate Panner for Dolby Atmos Music mixing article.

Audio Objects: Free Your Audio from Channel Constraints

The defining feature of Dolby Atmos is the concept of audio objects. Rather than routing sounds to specific speakers, as with a traditional, channel-based system, Dolby Atmos treats sounds as individual objects that can be placed anywhere — with pinpoint precision — in a virtual three-dimensional aural field. You’re not limited to horizontal (X), lateral (Y), or vertical axes (Z). Just like sounds in the real world, your audio objects can be positioned anywhere along any plane.

In Dolby Atmos, every specific sound defined as an audio object contains dedicated metadata. This information tells playback systems how to process location and pan automation data, facilitating proper sonic reproduction on every Dolby Atmos–compatible setup across a wide range of devices from mobile phones to home theaters.

How Dolby Atmos Works

When you produce projects in Dolby Atmos, your foundational sound bed — ambience stems, center dialog, and other static elements — is still mixed by using the same familiar, channel-based approach as traditional surround-sound formats. Ten channels are reserved for this base layer (9.1) with an additional 118 reserved for audio objects. This gives you a total of 128 tracks to work with.

Dolby Atmos permits you to place audio objects on top of your bed channels with laser-like precision. What’s more, you can automate each object’s location, yielding an incredibly dynamic sound experience. You’re in absolute command with Dolby Atmos, which allows you to place the listener smack-dab in the middle of a musical performance.

Put the drum kit and lead vocalist in front of the listener. Pan the guitars to the left and right but slightly above the listener’s head. Place background vocals slightly behind the listener. And, instead of automating that synth sweep to pan from left to right, make it move from next to the listener’s left ear, over their head, then next to their right ear. What’s more, you can scatter reverbs and delays all over the three-dimensional soundfield to completely transform the size and shape of any listening space.

Image courtesy of Dolby.

Scalable Across Systems of All Shapes and Sizes

One of the coolest things about Dolby Atmos is the way that its object-based audio translates across various playback and monitoring systems. Like we noted previously, Dolby Atmos supports up to 64 channels. That said, you don’t need a 64-speaker setup to listen to, or to work with, Dolby Atmos content. Thanks to the way the Dolby Atmos engine interprets audio-object metadata, a 64-channel cinema, an 8-speaker home theater, and a Dolby Atmos–equipped soundbar will all reproduce all 128 objects in your mix with reliable precision.

Dolby Atmos is also supported on a range of mobile devices, including tablets and smartphones, along with a host of gaming consoles, consumer playback systems, and automobile sound systems. Headphones (including standard earbuds) can deliver an astonishingly accurate facsimile of a multi-speaker system — complete with real-time tracking of audio objects — by converting the Dolby Atmos content’s channels into a virtual binaural, 360-degree soundfield.

Find out more about Dolby Atmos for Content Creators.

Dolby Atmos Is Garnering Widespread Support

While there have certainly been some amazing-sounding albums mixed in multichannel formats (such as Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon in quad), surround sound for music has always been a niche product. Because of too many competing format standards and playback requirements (such as a quad-decoder for vinyl or four-track tape playback system), it has never been adopted as an industry-wide standard, and there have been few incentives for most engineers to equip their facilities for surround mixing. So, how will Dolby Atmos be any different?

For starters, it’s gaining wide support. Recent releases from Billie Eilish, the Weeknd, Justin Bieber, Olivia Rodrigo, Ariana Grande, and J Balvin were mixed specifically for Dolby Atmos. Many hundreds of classic songs, including chart-busting releases from Marvin Gaye, Elton John, Aretha Franklin, and the Beatles, have also been remixed for the format, and they’ve received enthusiastic acclaim from even the stingiest of old-school music aficionados.

Tidal and Amazon Music added Dolby Atmos support to their streaming services in 2019. Apple has been a huge advocate for Dolby Atmos, adding — and prioritizing — spatial audio on their Apple Music streaming service in June 2021 with support for Dolby Atmos and lossless audio.

At this rate, it’s plausible that most major-label releases will be mixed for Dolby Atmos going forward. And, given that all music consumers need to listen to Dolby Atmos–mixed content is their smartphone and a set of earbuds, the stage has already been set. Thus, studios will likely be required — and in the very near future — to upgrade their rigs to a Dolby Atmos–equipped setup to remain competitive.

What You’ll Need to Equip Your Studio for Dolby Atmos

Room size

Outfitting your music studio for Dolby Atmos isn’t complicated, but it takes a bit of foresight. To start with, you’ll need a properly sized room. Dolby recommends the following:

Minimum layout height: 8 feetMinimum layout width: 10 feetMinimum layout length: 11.5 feetRecommended layout height: 10 feetRecommended layout width: 18 feetRecommended layout length: 21 feet

Studio monitors

A 7.1.4 speaker configuration is the minimum recommended by Dolby for Dolby Atmos music production. That said, the company recommends a 9.1.4 or a 9.1.6 layout for optimal results. This means that you’ll need a minimum of 11 studio monitors plus an LFE speaker to get up and running. Ideally, all speakers should be the same brand and model; although, your overheads can be a smaller version of the same brand and series.

Software

For Dolby Atmos music production, you’ll need a Dolby Atmos–compatible DAW. Avid Pro Tools Ultimate and Steinberg Nuendo each include a built-in Dolby Atmos panner. Users of other supported DAWs will need to download the free Dolby Atmos Music Panner plug-in.

You’ll also need the Dolby Atmos Mastering Suite, which is a set of software tools designed to allow production facilities to create, edit, mix, and master Dolby Atmos content. The Dolby Atmos Production Suite, which comes with Mastering Suite (or is available separately), can also be used to create Dolby Atmos music to be mastered in the studio.

Learn more in Dolby’s What is the Dolby Atmos Mastering Suite article.

Computers

For commercial-level Dolby Atmos music production, you’ll need two computer workstations: one to run your source DAW and a dedicated second to run the Dolby Atmos Renderer software included with the Dolby Atmos Mastering Suite.

Home and project studios might be able to squeak by running the Dolby Atmos Renderer on the same workstation as their DAW. But be warned, doing this will eat lots of CPU!

Hardware

As for hardware, you’ll need an audio interface with enough I/O to route 128 channels from your source DAW to the rendering workstation. You’ll also need a bidirectional, 128-channel MADI or Dante interface.

Last, you’ll need a monitor management system that can accommodate your full rig. Some audio interfaces, such as the Avid MTRX Studio, include built-in monitor management (up to 7.1.4 in this case). For larger systems, the JBL Intonato 24, Yamaha MMP1, Focusrite RedNet R1, or Grace Design m908 are great standalone monitor management options.

Find out more about Getting Started with Dolby Atmos Music.

Conclusion

Dolby Atmos is a huge leap forward for audio, and it’s here to stay. Is your studio ready? If not, then we have Sweetwater Sales Engineers who are experts in this cutting-edge audio format and who will be happy to provide you with expert advice. So, give your Sweetwater Sales Engineer a call today at (800) 222-4700 and jump onboard. These are exciting times!

The post What Is Dolby Atmos Music? appeared first on inSync.
https://www.sweetwater.com/insync/what-is-dolby-atmos-music/
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