Spatial Audio<\/span> is a way of creating sound that can be experienced in 360 degrees instead of a simple stereo mix. Cinema goers have enjoyed the all-encompassing Dolby Atmos<\/a> <\/strong>experience for some time, but it\u2019s starting to catch on with music production too.<\/span><\/p>\n Audio engineers use special software to position performers and even the audience within a 360-degree spherical space. For the most realistic playback, you need a multi-speaker Dolby Atmos surround sound system. Many soundbars<\/a><\/strong>, all-in-one speakers and headphones are also compatible.<\/span><\/p>\n Apple is leading the industry with its Spatial Audio content, in which tracks are mixed in Dolby Atmos. At present, only a fraction of Apple Music<\/a><\/strong>\u2019s library is available, but it is improving. Amazon<\/a><\/strong> also offers Dolby Atmos Music via its premium subscription.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p><\/div> <\/section> The hefty \u2018cinched hourglass\u2019 design makes the most of spatial audio. Inside the Sonos Era 300 you\u2019ll find four tweeters \u2013 one forward-firing, one upward-firing and two side-firing \u2013 and two woofers, angled left and right, each with their own amplifier. <\/span><\/p>\n It works brilliantly. Close your eyes, spin around, and it\u2019s genuinely hard to pinpoint the speaker\u2019s location. Its power, projection and authority is exceptional, although for best results it needs to be at least 20cm away from a wall. Compatibility is comprehensive, and now Bluetooth is included, as is a line-in for connecting a player. sonos.com<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Sony\u2019s own 360 Reality Audio is available to premium Tidal and Amazon Music Unlimited subscribers \u2013 a smartphone and any headphones will suffice to sample. <\/span><\/p>\n Sony, though, offers a range of certified products, including these excellent and affordable true wireless earbuds. The small 5mm drivers are light and comfortable; the active noise cancellation is impressive too, and you can customise the function of the buttons on each ear. With 360 Reality Audio files from Tidal, a performance plays out beautifully across all corners of the soundstage.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n As a fan of the original HomePod, I was disappointed when it was discontinued, but over the past few weeks I have been delighted by its rebirth. It looks identical \u2013 albeit shorter \u2013 to the original, but has been completely overhauled with new Siri voice-controllable smart home features as well as support for spatial audio.<\/span><\/p>\n Inside, there are five tweeters and a four-inch woofer, and if you\u2019re wedded to the Apple ecosystem \u2013 especially Apple Music \u2013 the speaker works wonders with the available Dolby Atmos spatial audio tracks. Listening to Alice Sara Ott and the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Karina Canellakis, performing Beethoven\u2019s First Piano Concerto in Dolby Atmos from the recently launched Apple Music Classical app is quite the advert for the new service. <\/span><\/p>\n I tested two HomePods in my compact office, paired effortlessly in stereo, and if you have the budget, I implore you to spend big. The depth, dynamism and spaciousness is a joy to hear, with the position of the orchestra and genuine three-dimensional feel of the recording brilliantly realised. Yes, it lacks Bluetooth or any other inputs, and compatibility is restricted to AirPlay, but dedicated Apple users won\u2019t be disappointed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p><\/div> <\/section> <\/body><\/html>\n Chris explains all you need to know about spatial audio and recommends some products <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":29399,"template":"","categories":[1],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"3"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2023\/06\/spatial-audio-what-it-is-how-it-works-and-the-best-spatial-audio-products.jpg",1893,1241,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2023\/06\/spatial-audio-what-it-is-how-it-works-and-the-best-spatial-audio-products-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2023\/06\/spatial-audio-what-it-is-how-it-works-and-the-best-spatial-audio-products-300x197.jpg",300,197,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2023\/06\/spatial-audio-what-it-is-how-it-works-and-the-best-spatial-audio-products-768x503.jpg",768,503,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2023\/06\/spatial-audio-what-it-is-how-it-works-and-the-best-spatial-audio-products-1024x671.jpg",800,524,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2023\/06\/spatial-audio-what-it-is-how-it-works-and-the-best-spatial-audio-products-1536x1007.jpg",1536,1007,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2023\/06\/spatial-audio-what-it-is-how-it-works-and-the-best-spatial-audio-products.jpg",1893,1241,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Chris explains all you need to know about spatial audio and recommends some products","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/29398"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29399"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29398"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29398"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}How does spatial audio<\/span> work?<\/span><\/h2>\n
Who offers spatial audio music? <\/span><\/h2>\n
Best spatial audio products<\/span><\/h2>\n
Sonos Era 300\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n
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Sony WF-C700N\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n
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Apple HomePod\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n
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