What is the point in creating content in Dolby Atmos if consumers do not have the equipment to take advantage of the immersive object-based format? In this article, we will investigate the take-up and benefits of delivering content to the consumer in Dolby Atmos.

In the comments section of our article Is It Worth Investing In Dolby Atmos? Audio Professionals Give Their Verdict community member Walter Riggi asked this question…

“How does the consumer digest Atmos? I've never seen any commoner homes have 5.1 speakers properly positioned in their listening environment. I highly doubt they'll have any clue OR space to properly position Atmos. Our facility is moving to Atmos rapidly and this article is encouraging, but the question still is a hot point when speaking with my colleagues. Anyone shed some light? Please and thanks.”

It’s a good question, as what is the point in creating great content in Dolby Atmos if we cannot get it in front of consumers.

But before we get to that, there are a few things about Dolby Atmos we need to clear up.

One Media File For All

Dolby Atmos isn’t just about upgrading your home cinema rooms to the latest tech. The great thing about Dolby Atmos is that you deliver the same content to all platforms and then the consumer’s equipment outputs a version specifically for whatever the consumer’s equipment attached to the device is. So for people using mobile devices that will be a binaural version, suitable for listening on headphones or earbuds. Alternatively using the same media file, for someone with stereo speakers, it will be a stereo version, and again, for someone with a 5.1 home cinema system, it will output a 5.1 version from the same media file and so on. There is no need to produce a whole load of deliverables for each outlet.

You Don’t Need A Room Full Of Speakers To Enjoy Dolby Atmos

For people you don’t want all the extra speakers and stuff cluttering up their living room, there are Dolby Atmos soundbars and for those who don’t want to attach speakers to the ceiling for the height channels, there are upward-firing speakers. These are special ear-level speakers that are angled specifically to beam sound up to bounce the sound off the consumer’s ceiling and so simulate the effect of sound coming from above. Up-firing drivers can be built into bookshelf speakers, floor-standing speakers, or soundbars. They can also be purchased as separate units that you can place on top of existing speakers to add height support.

All of this means that there less technically challenging solutions right down to a binaural output for earbuds on a smartphone for consumers to choose from. You don’t need a dedicated home cinema room to enjoy Dolby atmos content.

What About Dolby Atmos Atmos Capable Consumer Equipment?

Dolby has told us that there are…

• Over 55 hardware manufacturers including brands like Amazon, Apple, LG, Microsoft, Samsung, Sonos, Sony, and Vizio are shipping products that support Dolby Atmos.

• 9 out of 10 of the top soundbar manufacturers have launched products that support Dolby Atmos, which includes over 50 different soundbar models available at all price points.

• Consumers can find Dolby Atmos devices at prices as low as $199 (like Amazon’s Echo Studio smart speaker).

• There are 15 different TV manufacturers that support Dolby Atmos natively, which includes the latest TVs from LG, Sony, Panasonic, TCL, and Philips.

• All three major smartphone manufacturers – Apple, Samsung, and Huawei – support Dolby Atmos on their latest devices.

• Apple supports Dolby Atmos throughout its ecosystem including the latest iPhones, iPad Pros, MacBooks, Apple TV 4K, and Air Pods Pro.

• Any consumer with a Windows 10 PC can unlock Dolby Atmos by downloading the Dolby Access app and upgrading to Dolby Atmos for Headphones. Dolby Atmos is also natively available on PCs from the likes of Lenovo, Acer and Asus.

• Dolby Atmos is supported on Xbox One X and One S and will be supported on the new Series X consoles. The Xbox Series X and Series S will be the first consoles ever to enable gaming in both Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos with support for Dolby Atmos games at launch.

All in all, there are already hundreds of millions of Dolby Atmos enabled consumer devices out there available at all price points and across all product categories.

What About Dolby Atmos Compatible Delivery Channels?

That’s the hardware side of the equation at the consumer’s end and as we have been explaining in our articles covering Dolby Atmos music production and Dolby Atmos for home entertainment, we can now create Dolby Atmos content, but the key is how we can deliver the content to the consumer.

• Dolby Atmos is supported and is an in-demand deliverable by many of the world’s top streaming providers including Netflix, Disney+, Apple TV+, and Prime Video.

• Dolby Atmos Music is supported on Amazon Music HD as well as TIDAL HiFi.

• AvidPlay enables publishers to be able to deliver Dolby Atmos content to Amazon Music HD and TIDAL HiFi.

In order for consumers to hear artist’s and label’s music in Dolby Atmos over a streaming service, currently, they need to subscribe to TIDAL HiFi or Amazon Music HD Unlimited. These platforms can serve up the correct formatted stream optimised to suit the consumer’s hardware. So in the case of Amazon, if the consumer is using an Echo Studio then Amazon will stream the Dolby Atmos version, if not they will deliver the most appropriate stereo version for the consumer’s setup and internet connection.

To take advantage of Dolby Atmos Music on Tidal you’ll need a HiFi level membership which normally costs $20 per month and a compatible device. Currently, the list of devices is limited to specific Android smartphones and tablets that TIDAL has authorised to receive Dolby Atmos:

• Samsung including the Galaxy S20, S10, S10+, Galaxy Note10, Galaxy Fold, Tab S5e

• Huawei including the Mate 20 x, Mate 20 Pro

• Amazon Fire HD 10

• Lenovo Yoga Smart Tab

• Oppo including the Reno ACE

• RAZER Phone 2

• Sony Xperia 1 and 5

If you have one of these devices, you will be able to hear Dolby Atmos Music through the built-in speakers, or a set of connected headphones.

More recently, TIDAL Hifi announced an extension to the devices that they support for Dolby Atmos playback including the Apple TV 4K, Fire TV Stick 4K, Fire TV Cube, Fire TV Stick (second-gen), Fire TV (third-gen), or the 2019 models of the Nvidia Shield TV or Shield TV Pro. Sony and Philips smart TVs that support Atmos and run Android TV will also work without the need for a set-top box like the Sony Bravia Z9G and A9G TVs.

You can learn more about Dolby Atmos support for TIDAL in our article TIDAL Announce Dolby Atmos Support On Their Platform On Android Devices.

To deliver your Dolby Atmos content to Amazon HD and TIDAL HiFi, you can use AvidPlay as Avid’s music distribution service, AvidPlay, which is the first platform to enable you to distribute your music in Dolby Atmos to compatible streaming services such as Amazon Music HD and TIDAL HiFi. You can read more about this in our article AvidPlay Now With Dolby Atmos - First Platform To Support Dolby Format

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