Spatial audio: Surround sound system in your headphones

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  Quantumrun Foresight
• November 16, 2022

Insight summary

Spatial audio transforms listening into a multi-dimensional experience, creating a cinema-like surround sound through headphones. This technology is expanding beyond movies and music to include podcasts and audiobooks, offering a more immersive storytelling experience. With spatial audio's rise, new devices and production techniques are evolving, influencing how artists create and consumers enjoy audio content.

Spatial audio context

Spatial audio allows sound engineers to manipulate sounds and give listeners an enveloping experience. This development suggests people can experience a surround sound system similar to cinemas via headphones. Audiobooks and podcasts will be able to incorporate immersive background music and effects that take storytelling to an elevated level.

Spatial audio gives sounds directionality or a sense of height and depth. Previously, listening to music was generally one-dimensional; sounds can come from different angles, but it was still locked in one plane. With spatial audio, there’s a hint of expansiveness. Several formats fall under the spatial audio category; Dolby Atmos or DTS:X, codecs (systems that compress or decompress media files) are the most common. However, to experience spatial audio, it’s not enough to have movies or songs with these codecs. Users also need the appropriate hardware and software.

Dolby Labs first introduced spatial audio in movie theaters with surround-sound Atmos technology in 2012. Atmos allowed sounds to flow independently between speakers placed in front of, beside, behind, or above the listener. Dolby Atmos became a household name when consumers used it in home theaters, then expanded to music with Dolby Atmos Music. It can be found in movies, TV shows, music, and even live DJ performances in clubs. Additionally, many devices can support spatial audio, such as ambisonic (multi-directional) microphones and portable field sound recorders with software plug-ins.

Disruptive impact

In 2021, Apple made headlines by announcing that its iOS (operating system) 11 would come with spatial audio. While the company didn’t invent spatial audio, it developed its speakers to take advantage of this feature’s color and depth. Thus, when Apple mentions spatial audio is available on iPhones and iPads, it refers to the software installed into these devices so that users can listen to spatial audio formats with the proper hardware (headphones).

Apple has integrated gyroscopes and accelerometers into the AirPods 3, AirPods Pro, and AirPods Max. When connected to an iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV 4K, these headphones can correctly orient film and television audio so that when the user turns their head away from the screen, the sound appears to be originating from the screen’s location. 

In 2021, Apple also partnered with Dolby Labs to bring Dolby Atmos Music to Apple’s music streaming platform. As of 2023, Dolby Atmos is the only spatial audio codec on Apple Music, but there are other similar codecs. Sony 360 Reality Audio is an example and can be found on streaming platforms Tidal and Amazon Music HD (which can also play the Dolby Atmos codec). Samsung devices also use the 360 codec. 

For musicians and sound engineers, spatial audio creates vast opportunities. Instruments can be “placed” around the listener, simulating a live concert or music festival experience. However, producers and sound mixers warn that spatial audio is not just about delivering an immersive experience. The technology has to make sense with the music or the audio production (e.g., atmospheric and moody). Otherwise, the effect can be off-putting or disorienting.

Implications of spatial audio

Wider implications of spatial audio may include: 

• Musicians using spatial audio to enhance acoustics; for instance, instrumentalists manipulate the sounds of instruments to intersect in different directions around the listener. 


• Audiobook production using directionality to draw listeners to the action (e.g., realistic-sounding battles or nature sounds).


• Tech manufacturing firms partnering with spatial audio codec companies to enhance smartphones’ speaker systems.


• More devices being made to support the production and consumption of spatial audio, including microphones and headsets. However, these devices might initially be costly.


• Brands using spatial audio in advertisements and marketing campaigns.


• Audio engineers specializing in spatial audio, leading to a new niche in the music industry with specific skill sets and training programs.


• Streaming services modifying algorithms to prioritize spatial audio content, influencing artists' production choices and listener preferences.


• Governments revising audio broadcasting standards and regulations to include spatial audio, ensuring accessibility and quality control in public broadcasts.

Questions to consider

• If you’ve listened to music using spatial audio, how did you enjoy the experience?


• How else can spatial audio change the way people consume content?