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What is Dolby Atmos? The 3D sound tech for TV and headphones explained

Anyone
searching
for
the

best
TVs
and

best
soundbars
has
likely
come
across
rave
comments
on
Dolby
Atmos,
a
technology
that
has
the
potential
to
make
movies,
TV,
and
music
more
immersive
than
conventional
surround
sound.

Created
in
2012
by
Dolby
Labs,
Dolby
Atmos
takes
audio
beyond
the
standard
of
positioning
speakers
in
front
of
and
behind
the
viewer

the
core
concept
behind
a
5.1-
or
7.1-channel
surround
sound
setup

by
also
rendering
sound
above.
The
first
movie
to
use
the
technology
was
Disney-Pixar’s

Brave,
to
much
acclaim. 

To
achieve
this
effect,
Dolby
Atmos
breaks
down
sound
into
individual
elements,
known
as
“objects”,
as
opposed
to
channels,
as
would
happen
with
stereo
(two
channels)
and
5.1
surround
(five
channels)
mixes.
This
enables
an
unlimited
3D
soundscape,
into
which
sound
mixers
and
engineers
can
then
build
their
movies.

It’s
sort
of
hard
to
describe
the
effect
of
Dolby
Atmos
without
experiencing
it,
and
there
are
an
increasing
number
of
theaters
screening
movies
in
the
format,
and
even
venues
that
provide

live
Atmos
sound
mixes
for
music
performances.

After
its
initial
success
in
cinemas,
Dolby
Atmos
has
exploded
as
an
audio
technology
and
is
now
regularly
available
in
everything
from
TVs
to
soundbars
and
the
best
wireless
speakers,
along
with

Apple
earbuds
and
headphones
like
the

AirPods
Pro
2
and

AirPods
Max. 

The
Sonos
Arc
Dolby
Atmos
soundbar
and
wireless
Sonos
Sub

(Image
credit:
Sonos)

Where
is
Dolby
Atmos
available
at
home? 

We’ve
just
talked
a
lot
about
the
technology
that
makes
Dolby
Atmos
possible,
but
how
can
you
experience
it
in
your
own
home? 

The
answer,
in
2024
at
least,
is
a
lot
of
ways,
most
notably
via
Blu-ray
discs,
which
have
been
one
of
the
fastest
adopters
of
the
technology
as
they
seek
to
blend
incredible
visuals
with
equally
incredible
sound.
The

best
4K
Blu-ray
players
support
Dolby
Atmos
out
of
the
box. 

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deals,
and
more.

On
top
of
Blu-rays,
the

best
streaming
services
have
rushed
to
build
Dolby
Atmos
into
their
offers,
although
it
is
usually
only
available
on
the
more
expensive
plans.
Netflix,
for
example,
offers

Dolby
Atmos
support
on
its
Ultra
HD
plans,
while
Disney+
supports
it
on
its

Disney+
Premium
plan. 

Music
streaming
services
have
also
got
in
on
Dolby
Atmos.

Apple
Music
is
the
most
notable
example,
having
built
Dolby
Atmos
into
the
core
of
the
experience
for
content
that
supports
it.

Tidal
and

Amazon
Music
also
support
the
tech.
Sadly,
Spotify,
the
biggest
service,
is
yet
to
add
Dolby
Atmos
support,
but
there
are
rumours
of
a
Premium+
tier
that
might. 

Some
gaming
consoles,
like
the

Xbox
Series
X,
have
added
Dolby
Atmos
support
for
games,
which
brings
a
new
dimension
to
the
audio
experience
for
some
AAA
titles. 

One
of
several
Dolby
Atmos
soundtrack
mixing
rooms
at
Sony
Pictures
Studios
in
Los
Angeles

(Image
credit:
Sony
Pictures
Studios)

Lossy
Dolby
Atmos
vs
lossless
Dolby
Atmos

Things
are
about
to
get
a
bit
technical,
so
hold
on
to
your
hat. 

Dolby
Atmos
comes
in
two
varieties:
lossy
and
lossless.
The
former
is
used
by
streaming
platforms
to
compress
the
audio
for
lower
bandwidth
transmission
over
home
networks
and
offers
the
same
spatial
setup
but
at
a
reduced
audio
quality
overall.
For
an
average
home
cinema
system,
this
probably
won’t
make
too
much
difference. 

Lossless,
as
the
name
sort
of
implies,
is
the
high-def
version
of
Dolby
Atmos
found
in
Blu-ray
discs
and
systems
such
as
the

Kaleidescape
Movie
Player
that
are
not
constrained
by
bandwidth
or
storage
capacity.
Higher
audio
fidelity
takes
up
more
space. 

The
flip
side
is
that
getting
the
most
out
of
a
lossless
setup
requires
a

top-end
AV
receiver
and
a
speaker
system
capable
of
reproducing
the
height
effects
in
Atmos
soundtracks,
all
of
which
can
be
quite
pricey
when
added
together. 

There
are
pros
and
cons
to
each,
of
course,
and
even
the
more
low-end
lossy
version
still
sounds
incredible
in
most
home
theatres,
given
that
the
alternative
is
either
stereo
or
5.1
(or
7.1)
surround
sound,
which
doesn’t
carry
the
Atmos
height
effects
for
enhanced
immersion. 

An
AV
receiver-based
Atmos
sound
system

(Image
credit:
Klipsch)

How
to
experience
Dolby
Atmos
at
home

If
you’ve
got
your
streaming
service
of
choice
loaded,
the
next
step
for
getting
to
a
basic
Dolby
Atmos
setup
is
to
choose
a

compatible
soundbar. 

In
our
extensive
testing,
we’ve
found
that
the

Samsung
HW-Q800C
is
the
best
option
for
most,
featuring
phenomenal
power
and
projection,
the
ability
to
upgrade
to
full
surround,
and
aggressive
pricing
for
what
it
offers. 

For
anyone
looking
to
not
break
the
bank,
the

Sony
HT-S2000
does
the
job
well,
including
extremely
effective
dialogue
clarity
and
many
other
features.
There’s
also
the

Bose
Smart
Soundbar
600,
which
has
up-firing
speakers
for
height
effects
and
adds
Wi-Fi
and
AirPlay
support. 

On
top
of
soundbars,
there
are
other
audio
options,
namely
regular

speakers
and
AV
receiver
systems
that
support
the
standard. 

Something
like
the

Sony
STR-AN1000
supports
Dolby
Atmos
and,
as
an
AV
receiver,
can
bring
it
to
your
satellite
speaker
setup.
Meanwhile,
the
Definitive
Technology
BP9080x
stereo
speakers,
while
expensive,
support
Dolby
Atmos,
and
the
results
in
our
testing
were
superb.

Finally,
headphones.
We
recently
reviewed
the
new

Sonos
Ace
headphones
and
found
them
to
be
amazing
for
watching
movies
with
Dolby
Atmos,
alongside
the
ability
to
sync
with
your

Sonos
Arc
or

Sonos
Beam
soundbar,
and
other
products. 

For
anyone
who
prefers
earbuds,
Apple’s

AirPods
Pro
2
supports
the
audio
standard,
and
as
we
mentioned
above,
there
is
a
lot
of
Dolby
Atmos-capable
music
on
Apple
Music,
alongside
the
usual
TV
shows
and
movies. 

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