[tinyman392]

I think they mentioned on the keynote it’s only valid for the newest Apple TV and only for M1 Macs. I need to emphasize here that I was referring to spatial audio for movies. The spatial audio feature for Apple Music will be valid for all headphones with the Settings-Music-Audio-Spatial Audio toggle to always on.

From my understanding, Dolby Atmos audio will support all headphones and surround sound systems as it doesn't require any of the head tracking stuff while Spatial Audio will not since it does require said head tracking tech (APP or APM). I'd have to go through the keynote again, but I don't remember them mentioning what will support it and what won't (with respect to Apple TV and Mac; it was a software keynote after all).

____

One other thing is that I don't remember seeing them mention in the keynote that Spatial Audio will be released today. Most posts about it tend to link to a source where they post a shot of the keynote showing that Spatial Audio and Dolby Atmos being features in iOS. Nothing about release today... Maybe I missed it while it was being shown live.

Edit: I probably missed it. They quote the speaker saying it’ll be available today.

 

[SparkOnShore]

Little bit out of topic; those MacRumors forums are getting funnier as time goes by! People there are complaining like crazy now why Apple has not announced new hardware! It’s really funny, the way they are expressing themselves is just ridiculous! I mean, like Apple has promised them new chip every 6 months or something! Apple has just announced new iMac with the M1 chip, as well as the already existing M1 line, and they were expecting to get new computers with M2 chip!! I really can’t understand what they do on a computer that can’t be done with the M1 hardware! Is it just a consuming group madness or something??

 

[tinyman392]

Little bit out of topic; those MacRumors forums are getting funnier as time goes by! People there are complaining like crazy now why Apple has not announced new hardware! It’s really funny, the way they are expressing themselves is just ridiculous! I mean, like Apple has promised them new chip every 6 months or something! Apple has just announced new iMac with the M1 chip, as well as the already existing M1 line, and they were expecting to get new computers with M2 chip!! I really can’t understand what they do on a computer that can’t be done with the M1 hardware! Is it just a consuming group madness or something??

Most users want more than 2 USB-C ports or a bigger form factor for the MacBook. Some may actually be asking for a faster processor though. Others want support for more than 1 external monitor (which is the current limit for the M1 unless you get a Mac Mini that supports two through HDMI and Thunderbolt 3).

That said, everyone will always complain because X wasn’t announced.

 

[SparkOnShore]

From my understanding, Dolby Atmos audio will support all headphones and surround sound systems as it doesn't require any of the head tracking stuff while Spatial Audio will not since it does require said head tracking tech (APP or APM). I'd have to go through the keynote again, but I don't remember them mentioning what will support it and what won't (with respect to Apple TV and Mac; it was a software keynote after all).

____

One other thing is that I don't remember seeing them mention in the keynote that Spatial Audio will be released today. Most posts about it tend to link to a source where they post a shot of the keynote showing that Spatial Audio and Dolby Atmos being features in iOS. Nothing about release today... Maybe I missed it while it was being shown live.

Edit: I probably missed it. They quote the speaker saying it’ll be available today.

I will try to find the part of the keynote where I heard that spatial audio will be valid only for M1 Macs and the newest Apple TV and post it here.

 

[MayaTlab]

From my understanding, Dolby Atmos audio will support all headphones and surround sound systems as it doesn't require any of the head tracking stuff while Spatial Audio will not since it does require said head tracking tech (APP or APM). I'd have to go through the keynote again, but I don't remember them mentioning what will support it and what won't (with respect to Apple TV and Mac; it was a software keynote after all).

Indeed :

https://www.apple.com/apple-music/

But it may not be quite as convincing on some headphones as on others because of their FR.

 

[SparkOnShore]

Most users want more than 2 USB-C ports or a bigger form factor for the MacBook. Some may actually be asking for a faster processor though. Others want support for more than 1 external monitor (which is the current limit for the M1 unless you get a Mac Mini that supports two through HDMI and Thunderbolt 3).

That said, everyone will always complain because X wasn’t announced.

True, but what I hear mostly is the larger screen complain. If they need 16 inch so badly, they can connect the current 13 inch laptop to a larger screen and work this way. Meanwhile 13 inch is more portable and they can still use a bigger screen when at the office or home. The 2 screens is valid for sure, but Apple didn’t say they will never announce new hardware, just it’s obviously too soon right now! They all seem to be always rather impatient!!

 

[tkddans]

Little bit out of topic; those MacRumors forums are getting funnier as time goes by! People there are complaining like crazy now why Apple has not announced new hardware! It’s really funny, the way they are expressing themselves is just ridiculous! I mean, like Apple has promised them new chip every 6 months or something! Apple has just announced new iMac with the M1 chip, as well as the already existing M1 line, and they were expecting to get new computers with M2 chip!! I really can’t understand what they do on a computer that can’t be done with the M1 hardware! Is it just a consuming group madness or something??

The complaints about WWDC lacking hardware announcements is always misguided by people who don’t quite fully appreciate the history of the conference. WWDC is meant mainly for developers. In other words, software is the focus, not new Macs, iPhones, etc.

That isn’t to say we haven’t seen hardware announced at WWDC, but Apple has more and more shifted weight recently into a new rhythm:
1) release hardware on its own event
2) release software at WWDC

Complaints about hardware not appearing at WWDC is strange indeed. Kind of oblivious to the larger intentions of the conference and trends on when products are released at Apple.

 

[Author]

I see the Digital Masters stamp on certain albums. Will there be any visible indicator for Atmos and/or spatial audio support?

 

[tinyman392]

I see the Digital Masters stamp on certain albums. Will there be any visible indicator for Atmos and/or spatial audio support?

Yes, there are stamps for Apple Digital Masters, Dolby Atmos, and Lossless. Do note that just because something is a Dolby Atmos doesn’t mean that it’s an Apple Digital Master (Warner Bros put up a classical Spatial Audio playlist and some of those aren’t Apple Digital Masters). Also note that Dolby Atmos/Spatial Audio isn’t out yet, we’re still waiting on it.

As an addendum to what I said a few posts up, it looks like head tracking Spatial Audio for Apple Music is an iOS 15 feature, so at this point, I’m not sure what’s different between Spatial Audio and Dolby Atmos for Apple Music. But the effect will work with any headphone. It may be possible that Apple will optimize the DSP/frequency response on their AirPods to be different with Dolby Atmos vs just a normal headphone.

Edit: to see the stamps for the Digital Masters, Dolby Atmos, and Lossless, look at Apple’s press release top image. Granted stamps may be subject to change.

 

[Author]

Yes, there are stamps for Apple Digital Masters, Dolby Atmos, and Lossless. Do note that just because something is a Dolby Atmos doesn’t mean that it’s an Apple Digital Master (Warner Bros put up a classical Spatial Audio playlist and some of those aren’t Apple Digital Masters). Also note that Dolby Atmos/Spatial Audio isn’t out yet, we’re still waiting on it.

As an addendum to what I said a few posts up, it looks like head tracking Spatial Audio for Apple Music is an iOS 15 feature, so at this point, I’m not sure what’s different between Spatial Audio and Dolby Atmos for Apple Music. But the effect will work with any headphone. It may be possible that Apple will optimize the DSP/frequency response on their AirPods to be different with Dolby Atmos vs just a normal headphone.

Edit: to see the stamps for the Digital Masters, Dolby Atmos, and Lossless, look at Apple’s press release top image. Granted stamps may be subject to change.

My understanding is that every listener gets Atmos regardless of headphone/earbud. (Although whether they can hear it would depend on the quality of the phone/bud.) Spatial Audio depends on the chip and listening device (specific iMac, iPad, etc.).... ? It’s all relatively confusing. Correct me where I’m wrong.

 

[tinyman392]

My understanding is that every listener gets Atmos regardless of headphone/earbud. (Although whether they can hear it would depend on the quality of the phone/bud.) Spatial Audio depends on the chip and listening device (specific iMac, iPad, etc.).... ? It’s all relatively confusing. Correct me where I’m wrong.

So the Atmos will work regardless of what headphone you have as all that happens is that the 3D audio is translated using a head-related transfer function then that audio is sent to the headphones. The SQ of the headphones can alter how well this trick works, but so do other things like how how far the drivers are from your ears. Basically Apple is taking a 5.1 surround sound input and turning it binaural using the HRTF rather than using a dual-microphone setup to do a true binaural recording to trick your brain into thinking it's 3D (a true binaural recording would be more "accurate," but the 5.1+HRTF should be more than enough to do the illusion too).

The only special thing with the AirPods Pro, AirPods Max, and supported sources (iPhones, iPads, Macs, Apple TV, etc.) is that they can do head and distance tracking to get the 3D effect to have a fixed (in space) focal point rather than a moving one which would be fixed to the speakers. Generally in a sound system, the speakers don't move, however, with headphones they do, hence the need for head tracking and a lot of DSP to trick the brain into a certain type of sound. Additionally, if Apple knows the headphone in question, they could also adjust the HRTF to account for the frequency response of the headphones as well as the distance the drivers are from your ears to fine tune the effect. Hence more special stuff for the AirPods.

Note, this is based on my understanding on how the tech works. There is obviously a lot of projection and hypothesis going on about how everything works internally.

 

[CharlesL]

The complaints about WWDC lacking hardware announcements is always misguided by people who don’t quite fully appreciate the history of the conference. WWDC is meant mainly for developers. In other words, software is the focus, not new Macs, iPhones, etc.

That isn’t to say we haven’t seen hardware announced at WWDC, but Apple has more and more shifted weight recently into a new rhythm:
1) release hardware on its own event
2) release software at WWDC

Complaints about hardware not appearing at WWDC is strange indeed. Kind of oblivious to the larger intentions of the conference and trends on when products are released at Apple.

There were so many new things covered in this keynote and even more that wasn't, I don't think they had time to dedicate to announce new hardware. I wouldn't be surprised if something is announced this week or shortly after WWDC. A developer oriented laptop would work well in this timeframe. Back when the iPods Max was released it seemed like Apple had an annoucement every week, to kind of keep them in the news. Maybe we'll see something in a week or two. They might not have a big event for it. If it's basically more cores of what's in the M1 there probably isn't a lot more cover. I don't think the performance numbers are going to be as impressive of an improvement as their were in the Macbook compared to other similar class notebooks. It's still going to be amazing, I'm sure, just not this huge improvement in performance we saw at that level.

We know it's coming, just a matter of time.

 

[Author]

I was listening to the latest from Wolf Alice and it sounds really good, but I think it’s just the power of placebo at work.

 

[tinyman392]

Finally have access to Atmos. Can confirm that on iOS 14.6, there is no head tracking with the APM. So nothing really special with the APM at the moment as all headphones will technically work with it.

The Atmos tracks are definitely recorded quieter with a bit more dynamic range than the original, which may create major volume spikes if you go from a track with Atmos to one that doesn’t. I’m kind of forced to turn on sound check to deal with that (I listen with my iPhone on shuffle). That said, if you downloaded music for offline use, you need to redownload it since your device will automatically play the downloaded version. It would be very nice to have an auto-redownload functionality built in.

Lossless is also out right now. I haven’t tested that though.

Last note for those with Apple Music, the rollout is coming out slowly and gradually, you may not have access to it yet, so just wait patiently and it’ll eventually get to you.

 

[justanut]

Dolby Atmos is amazing with the APM.. while the resolution isn’t great, the experience is unique. Really feels like you’re there live with the performer in front of you. Damn.