Dolby Atmos

Dolby Atmos

Dolby Atmos is a new step in surround sound audio systems’ evolution created by Dolby Laboratories. Sounds are not connected to certain channels anymore, they have neither vertical, nor horizontal limitation. A listener can perceive sounds as three-dimensional objects.

TECHNOLOGY In Dolby Atmos each sound is interpreted as an object in a 3D space, that can have up to 128 audio tracks (10 of them are for ambient stems or center dialogue, the rest 118 are for sound objects). Each object consists of a sound itself and its metadata, which is responsible for all the information about the sound: position, movement, type, intensity, speed and volume. The Dolby Atmos sound system consists of a compatible speaker system, a TV or an A/V media player and an A/V receiver (or pre-processor), that has a Dolby Atmos object audio renderer. This is the intelligence that decides, how to use the system a listener has, to ensure the best sound placement. It processes the information about sound objects in real time and due to its ability to adapt to a given speaker setup, each sound is heard as if it came from its own set of coordinates in a 3D space. SPEAKER SYSTEM The speaker system in Dolby Atmos differs from 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound setup configurations by an additional number at the end, that represents the amount of overhead or Dolby Atmos enabled speakers. For instance, 5.1.2 system is a system with 5 standard speakers (left, right, center, left-surround and right-surround), 1 subwoofer and 2 height speakers (left and right) for adding a third overhead dimension. The simplest Dolby Atmos setup is 3.1.2, the most professional one is 24.1.10. HOME THEATRE You can turn your home theatre into Atmos enabled by adding more speakers to your 5.1 or 7.1 setup. You either install at least two ceiling speakers, or place at least two up-firing Dolby Atmos enabled speakers atop your front/rear speakers. Nowadays you can also buy an Atmos-enabled soundbar. Despite being placed just a bit higher than ear-level, Dolby Atmos enabled speakers can reproduce overhead sound with the help of up-firing elements. They send sound waves into the ceiling, which reflects the waves down towards the listener. It contributes to the immersion of a listener into believing the reality of what is happening. This technology works best in a room that is 7.5-12 feet (2.3-3.7 metres) high. There are two types of Dolby Atmos enabled speakers: 1. Integrated speakers are traditional front-firing speakers combined with Dolby Atmos enabled up-firing speakers in one speaker cabinet. 2. Add-on modules are Dolby Atmos enabled up-firing speakers placed into their own cabinet so that you simply add them on top or within 3 feet (0.9 meter) of your current speakers. You can also combine overhead speakers with Dolby Atmos enabled ones. However, adding any new speakers (except for subwoofer and the central ones) must go in pairs to guarantee a balanced soundstage. For best home performance Dolby recommends having 4 or more Dolby Atmos enabled speakers that are 5 feet (1.5 metres) away from the listener or using 4 or more overhead speakers with wide dispersion patterns (+-45 degrees). COMPATIBILITY Dolby Atmos is very flexible and can be played back on any speaker setup. At the same time Dolby Atmos enabled theatre will make the best out of channel-based content. A/V receiver adapts channel-based sound to your setup, using the whole system, including overhead speakers to make it sound as real as possible. HISTORY Dolby Atmos’ debut was in the El Capitan Theatre in Los Angeles at the premiere of the computer-animated film Brave in 2012. The first movie released on Blu-ray with Dolby Atmos was Transformers: Age of Extinction in 2014. The first Dolby Atmos enabled home theatre was demonstrated in 2014. The first TV show that featured Dolby Atmos was Game of Thrones (series 1, 2) in 2015. The first major music album featuring Dolby Atmos technology was R.E.M.’s 1992 Automatic for the People album’s reissue in 2017. The first car to support Dolby Atmos was Lucid Air in 2021. Nowadays Dolby Atmos is supported on certain projects on Netflix, Disney+, Apple TV+, Amazon Prime Video and some other streaming services. IMPLEMENTATION Many brands support Dolby Atmos technology. To include Dolby Atmos technology in your product, a brand needs to become a Dolby Licensee. Here is the list of all the Dolby Atmos Licensees: Licensed Manufactures - Dolby Professional. Dolby Atmos can even be used with your headphones. Dolby Atmos for Headphones transforms sound objects’ metadata into binaural audio. To enjoy Atmos, a listener does not need to have special headphones, if all the decoding is being made in a device that supports Dolby Atmos.

References

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