No spatial audio on the new Apple TV?

[JeffPerrin]

If it’s head tracking that makes the difference between Apples spatial audio and Dolby Atmos, you may be right. I’ve listened to Dolby Atmos supported games on my Series X and the effect doesn’t compare.

Head tracking is separate function from spatial audio and in itself does not affect the quality of spatial audio (HT can even be disabled in Settings).

Having produced Dolby Atmos and spatial audio for my iOS app, Vermont Sleep Sounds & Music, you can actually turn off "AirPods compatibility" within the app and compare Dolby Atmos' spatial audio with Apple's implementation and there is a difference. (Try it with the free ocean and wall A/C sounds. The music track is less obvious at the moment.) Clearly, Apple has it's own "secret sauce" in implementing spatial audio for it's products...

 

[maratus]

If it’s head tracking that makes the difference between Apples spatial audio and Dolby Atmos, you may be right. I’ve listened to Dolby Atmos supported games on my Series X and the effect doesn’t compare.

It’s just the effect itself at its most obvious, most notable when moving head 90 degrees left or right, strikes me as clever but a gimmick.

Surround virtualization differs a lot from one manufacturer's implementation to another's.

But Dolby Atmos is not a surround virtualization technology. It's an advanced format of surround sound encoding with lots of good stuff.

What audio setup did you use with Series X for atmos games? If you feed atmos signal to a headphone set that supports channel virtualization (Sony WH-L600, Astro A50, Steelseries Wireless Pro, JVC Exofield, etc) or use Atmos for Headphones, you'll get multi-channel audio stream mapped to stereo through digital filters that use head-related transfer function to create binaural audio instead of dumb stereo. However, it's the quality of this conversion that defines whether you hear the illusion of sounds coming from behind, from the top or from the sides and how good the separation is.

How much would you be moving your head when gaming on the ATV though? It makes sense for iPhone or iPad, as you're moving the device around. Your TV is stationary.

A few degrees a least, and in various directions, since it's impossible to keep your head perfectly still all the time. I think you missed "slight" in my reply.

Head tracking is separate function from spatial audio and in itself does not affect the quality of spatial audio (HT can even be disabled in Settings).

Having produced Dolby Atmos and spatial audio for my iOS app, Vermont Sleep Sounds & Music, you can actually turn off "AirPods compatibility" within the app and compare Dolby Atmos' spatial audio with Apple's implementation and there is a difference. (Try it with the free ocean and wall A/C sounds. The music track is less obvious at the moment.) Clearly, Apple has it's own "secret sauce" in implementing spatial audio for it's products...

Head tracking doesn't affect the virtualization quality itself (although it's debatable), but it changes the perception of it.

Apple's implementation is excellent. I don't know what information exactly is being used and how, but I wouldn't be surprised if internal microphones are used to calibrate default HRTF - those exact microphones that are used to determine good seal in Airpods Pro settings.

 

[JeffPerrin]

Head tracking doesn't affect the virtualization quality itself (although it's debatable), but it changes the perception of it.

Apple's implementation is excellent. I don't know what information exactly is being used and how, but I wouldn't be surprised if internal microphones are used to calibrate default HRTF - those exact microphones that are used to determine good seal in Airpods Pro settings.

I get what you're saying about head tracking adding a certain effect to the experience. But when we're talking about music, I don't believe the head tracking will play nearly as meaningful a role without an accompanying video image.

 

[yegon]

YES! It’s coming to tvOS ?????

 

[turbineseaplane]

The question is -- "how is it coming"

I'm fascinated to learn how they are determining where the "screen" is for something connected to an Apple TV.

The device itself could be literally anywhere in relation to it and perhaps even in another room in some setups.

It must all be on the headphones themselves

 

[Deliro]

The question is -- "how is it coming"

I'm fascinated to learn how they are determining where the "screen" is for something connected to an Apple TV.

The device itself could be literally anywhere in relation to it and perhaps even in another room in some setups.

It must all be on the headphones themselves

Right. There could be a configuration/setup mode that you could give indication of the AppleTV is in relation to the TV screen?

 

[yegon]

Right. There could be a configuration/setup mode that you could give indication of the AppleTV is in relation to the TV screen?

“Which is really annoying as I’m always moving my ATV box about, both before and during playback.”

/someone somewhere probably, never underestimate the internet’s ability to find weird, inexplicable use cases

 

[maratus]

The question is -- "how is it coming"

I'm fascinated to learn how they are determining where the "screen" is for something connected to an Apple TV.

The device itself could be literally anywhere in relation to it and perhaps even in another room in some setups.

It must all be on the headphones themselves

This has already been explained in this thread. Orientation is reset when you pause. Same as on iPhone 7. Device position isn't tracked and doesn't matter.

 

[ignatius345]

The question is -- "how is it coming"

I'm fascinated to learn how they are determining where the "screen" is for something connected to an Apple TV.

The device itself could be literally anywhere in relation to it and perhaps even in another room in some setups.

It must all be on the headphones themselves

My speculation is that if you have an iPhone, the Apple TV is going to have you put your iPhone up near the ATV box (or maybe the screen?) for orientation once, and then the headphones are going to use that as the anchor point.

And there's a recent precedent for piggybacking off the iPhone to calibrate the ATV: the color calibration feature they rolled out recently.

 

[benjamiah]

My speculation is that if you have an iPhone, the Apple TV is going to have you put your iPhone up near the ATV box (or maybe the screen?) for orientation once, and then the headphones are going to use that as the anchor point.

And there's a recent precedent for piggybacking off the iPhone to calibrate the ATV: the color calibration feature they rolled out recently.

Its available, go settings, apps, app settiings, music

 

[Julien]

YES! It’s coming to tvOS ?????

Which AppleTV devices is is coming to? Will it only be the new AppleTV 4K or will the past generation 4K also get it? How about the HD versions? Did Apple list the devices?

 

[yegon]

Which AppleTV devices is is coming to? Will it only be the new AppleTV 4K or will the past generation 4K also get it? How about the HD versions? Did Apple list the devices?

They didn't say in the keynote, merely said "coming to tvOS". It may have been revealed since, don't know.

I've an ATV4K version 1 with the new remote. If it transpires it's only on v2, I'll upgrade.

Listened to some spatial audio Music with my AirPods Max. Not impressed surprisingly, nothing like the increased sound stage that I was expecting, sounded mostly like badly mixed audio with a strange EQ.

I think it's great for video, hence my enthusiasm for it in this thread and my huge disappointment when it seemed like it wasn't coming to any tvOS devices. Content like Servant and Mandalorian sounded awesome with spatial audio, it just frustrated me that I had to choose between better audio versus big OLED (although a couple of times I did play simultaneous video between iPad and tv. Took trial and error though, and you REALLY didn't want to pause ).

 

[Pug72]

Music in Dolby Atmos sounds great on an AVR with Atmos speaker setup.
Different story with headphones (APM), prefer stereo.

 

[Julien]

They didn't say in the keynote, merely said "coming to tvOS". It may have been revealed since, don't know.

I've an ATV4K version 1 with the new remote. If it transpires it's only on v2, I'll upgrade.....

Yea, my LG has AppleTV App and would like to just buy a cheaper original 4K AppleTV used. Will wait and see.

 

[fncd]

Which AppleTV devices is is coming to? Will it only be the new AppleTV 4K or will the past generation 4K also get it? How about the HD versions? Did Apple list the devices?

Spatial Audio is working on my first gen 4K running the beta with my AirPods Pro - tested specifically with Greyhound.

 

[Julien]

Spatial Audio is working on my first gen 4K running the beta with my AirPods Pro - tested specifically with Greyhound.

So you already have the developer tvOS15 beta and it is enabled? Great to hear (figurative now and literally soon).

EDIT: Any indication on how the AppleTV is handling head tracking or is it fixed when you turn your head?

 

[fncd]

So you already have the developer tvOS15 beta and it is enabled? Great to hear (figurative now and literally soon).

Seems to have worked on its own. There’s a toggle to ”connect to nearby AirPods”. Not sure it that is new or not, but when I woke up my Apple TV, it prompted me, I pressed the tv button, and played Greyhound. Sounds exactly the same as it does on my iPad Air.

Also - I noticed there was a bit of audio delay, but that could be because of my new TV / Sonos Beam. I used the calibrate wireless audio function, and when that was finished, the AirPods were sync’d just fine with the video. Works really well!

One thing I haven’t tested yet, and am not sure if it exists, would be for simultaneous streams (I.e two people, two sets of AirPods). But I’m not sure that Apple has / hasn’t mentioned that for AppleTV. The iPhone / iPad can.

 

[Defender2010]

Spatial Audio for Apple TV works on tvOs 15 with AirPods Pro. New icon in Apple TV control centre.

 

[RachelleK]

The spatial audio demos sound great on AppleTV 4K ver 1 with a 7.1 AVR. it Uses all channels so not just 5.1. Running TVOS 14.7.

 

[armandxp]

So you already have the developer tvOS15 beta and it is enabled? Great to hear (figurative now and literally soon).

EDIT: Any indication on how the AppleTV is handling head tracking or is it fixed when you turn your head?

I’ve tested on a few movies and head tracking is definitely working with content that is Atmos and 5.1 encoded. Someone suggested that if you pause a movie and reposition your head, the tracking may reset, if it seems off, but it is def working.

Trying to get spatial audio to work in the Music app, and can’t get it to work there, for me. Using AirPods Pro and new 4K ATV. Atmos and spatial audio works fine on iOS and iPadOS when in the music app.

 

[armandxp]

They didn't say in the keynote, merely said "coming to tvOS". It may have been revealed since, don't know.

I've an ATV4K version 1 with the new remote. If it transpires it's only on v2, I'll upgrade.

Listened to some spatial audio Music with my AirPods Max. Not impressed surprisingly, nothing like the increased sound stage that I was expecting, sounded mostly like badly mixed audio with a strange EQ.

I think it's great for video, hence my enthusiasm for it in this thread and my huge disappointment when it seemed like it wasn't coming to any tvOS devices. Content like Servant and Mandalorian sounded awesome with spatial audio, it just frustrated me that I had to choose between better audio versus big OLED (although a couple of times I did play simultaneous video between iPad and tv. Took trial and error though, and you REALLY didn't want to pause ).

When you were using the music app, did you check to see if it was indeed sending you Atmos and spatial audio was working? Mine keeps saying that spatial audio is not available, when I long press the tv button and go to the headphones icon to check for spatial audio.
It works fine when watching any kind of video. I just haven’t gotten it to work on AirPods Pro in the music app, though.

 

[yegon]

When you were using the music app, did you check to see if it was indeed sending you Atmos and spatial audio was working? Mine keeps saying that spatial audio is not available, when I long press the tv button and go to the headphones icon to check for spatial audio.
It works fine when watching any kind of video. I just haven’t gotten it to work on AirPods Pro in the music app, though.

I haven’t tried it on Apple TV. I’ve only played Music via my phone.

 

[Julien]

Spatial Audio is working on my first gen 4K running the beta with my AirPods Pro - tested specifically with Greyhound.

Is Atmos/Spatial Audio working with Disney Plus also? About to buy a new ATV 4K (got my Beta invitation today) but want to be sure it will play ATV Plus and Disney Plus over my Max's.

 

[macjunk(ie)]

...WiFi 6 is pointless when my setup uses Ethernet. ...

Well...don't think you can Airplay content to the Apple TV when it is connected via Ethernet

 

[RachelleK]

Well...don't think you can Airplay content to the Apple TV when it is connected via Ethernet

Mine seems to work fine with Airplay 2 when connected over Ethernet. Same with Roku over Ethernet.