Apple Music Spatial Audio Explained: Immerse Yourself in Sound

Apple Music is revolutionizing the way we experience music with Spatial Audio, powered by Dolby Atmos. This innovative technology creates an immersive, three-dimensional sound experience that transcends traditional stereo recordings. Here's everything you need to know about Apple Music Spatial Audio, from how it works to how you can customize it for your listening pleasure.

What is Spatial Audio?

Spatial Audio changes the relationship between recordings and space. It transcends the limits of two-channel stereo recordings to add an entirely new dimension to how your fans hear songs on Apple Music. With help from dynamic head tracking, it gives listeners the sensation of being immersed in sounds that feel native to their environment. The roar of a jet engine as a plane screams across the sky. A clock ticking away the seconds right behind your head. The reverberations of a guitar bouncing off the walls and ceilings of a concert venue. Capturing the “where” of sound is exactly what Spatial Audio is all about.

The Spatial Audio experience on Apple Music is powered by Dolby Atmos, the groundbreaking multichannel audio technology that maps sounds to specific locations around the listener’s headspace. If you subscribe to Apple Music, you can play available tracks in Dolby Atmos, which creates an immersive, three-dimensional (spatial) audio experience on stereo headphones and speakers or receivers compatible with Dolby Atmos. Albums and songs available in Dolby Atmos have the Dolby icon next to them. If a track is playing in Dolby Atmos, the icon also appears on the Now Playing screen.

Note: Apple Music and Dolby Atmos aren’t available in all countries or regions. See the Apple Support article Availability of Apple Media Services.

How Spatial Audio Works

When you watch or play a supported show, movie, song, or game, or make a FaceTime call on your device, AirPods 3, AirPods 4, AirPods Pro, and AirPods Max use Spatial Audio and head tracking to create an immersive theater-like environment with sound that surrounds you. You can also experience immersive sound in apps supported by iOS, iPadOS, tvOS, and macOS. For example, in FaceTime on your Mac, Spatial Audio spreads out voices so they sound as if they’re coming from where your friends are positioned in the FaceTime window.

Your Mac with Apple silicon supports Spatial Audio, a technology that brings theater-like sound from the movie or video you’re watching, or the Dolby Atmos song you’re listening to. With Spatial Audio, while you wear supported headphones, the sound seems to come from all around you. Optional dynamic head tracking keeps the audio fixed as you move-so if there’s a track playing on your right and you move around, you can hear it on your left.

Using Personalized Spatial Audio

You can use your iPhone X or later to create a representation of your ear and head shape for Personalized Spatial Audio. Your Spatial Audio profile customizes audio to better match how you hear sound, and syncs across your Apple devices with iOS 16, iPadOS 16.1, macOS 13, tvOS 16, or later, where you’re signed in to the same Apple Account.

To set up Personalized Spatial Audio:

Do one of the following:
- Open the case lid with your AirPods inside, hold the case close to your iPhone, then follow the onscreen instructions.
- Wear your AirPods, and make sure they’re connected to your device. On your iPhone, go to the Settings app , then tap the name of your AirPods near the top of the screen. Tap Personalized Spatial Audio, then tap Personalize Spatial Audio.
To learn more about how to set up Personalized Spatial Audio, see the Apple Support article Listen with Personalized Spatial Audio for AirPods and Beats.

To stop using Personalized Spatial Audio:

Wear your AirPods, and make sure they’re connected to your device.
Do one of the following:
- iPhone or iPad: Go to the Settings app , then tap the name of your AirPods near the top of the screen. Tap Personalized Spatial Audio, then tap Stop Using Personalized Spatial Audio.
- Mac: Go to the System Settings app , click the name of your AirPods in the sidebar (you may need to scroll down), then click Stop Using Personalized Spatial Audio.
To use Personalized Spatial Audio again, you can set it up on your iPhone.

Controlling Spatial Audio and Head Tracking

You can control Spatial Audio and head tracking for each supported app in Control Center.

On iPhone or iPad

Wear your AirPods, and make sure they’re connected to your device.
Open Control Center, touch and hold the volume control, then tap Spatial Audio at the lower right.
Tap one of the following:
- Off: Turns off both Spatial Audio and head tracking.
- Fixed: Turns on Spatial Audio without head tracking.
- Head Tracked: Turns on both Spatial Audio and head tracking. The audio you’re listening to will sound like it’s coming from your iPhone or Mac.

The settings you choose are saved and applied automatically the next time you use that app. For example, if you tap Fixed while listening to a song in the Music app , the Fixed setting is automatically used the next time you play a song in that app.

Note: To disable head tracking for all apps on your iPhone or iPad, go to the Settings app , then tap Accessibility. Tap AirPods, tap the name of your AirPods, then turn off Follow [device].

On Mac

You can use Spatial Audio and head tracking to make supported shows, movies, and music sound like they’re coming from all around you (on Mac computers with Apple silicon and macOS 12.3 or later). You can turn Spatial Audio and head tracking on or off for each supported app.

Note: Spatial Audio isn’t available for all apps or content.

Wear your AirPods, and make sure they’re connected to your Mac.
Click the AirPods icon in the menu bar.

If the AirPods icon isn’t in the menu bar, go to the System Settings app , then click Menu Bar in the sidebar. Below Menu Bar Controls, select Sound . (You may need to scroll down.)

Choose one of the following below Spatial Audio:
- Off: Turns off both Spatial Audio and head tracking.
- Fixed: Turns on Spatial Audio without head tracking.
- Head Tracked: Turns on both Spatial Audio and head tracking. This allows the sound to follow the movement of your head.

On Apple TV 4K

You can customize the Spatial Audio settings for each supported app using Control Center on Apple TV 4K. You can also turn head tracking on or off for all apps. (tvOS 15.1 or later required.)

Note: Spatial Audio isn’t available for all apps or content.

Wear your AirPods, and make sure they’re connected to your Apple TV 4K.
While watching a movie or TV show or listening to music, open Control Center, then navigate to the AirPods icon at the top of the screen (next to the time display).
Navigate to Spatial Audio, then select an option.

The settings you choose are saved and applied automatically the next time you use that app. For example, if you turn on Spatial Audio while using the Apple TV app with your AirPods, Spatial Audio automatically turns on the next time you use the app with your AirPods.

Note: To disable dynamic head tracking for all apps on Apple TV 4K, double-click on the Siri Remote, then go to the Settings app .

Turning on Dolby Atmos

To experience Dolby Atmos on Apple Music, follow these steps:

Go to Settings > Apps > Music.
Tap Dolby Atmos, then choose Automatic or Always On.
- Automatic: Plays Dolby Atmos whenever iPhone is connected to compatible headphones such as AirPods 3, AirPods Pro, or AirPods Max, or to speakers or receivers compatible with Dolby Atmos.
- Always On: Plays Dolby Atmos on any headphones or speakers. The Music app will attempt to play Dolby Atmos tracks on any headphones or speakers connected to iPhone.

Dolby Atmos will play on any headphones, but not all speakers will play Dolby Atmos as intended.

Dolby Atmos for Music Creators

Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos is an advanced sound technology that creates immersive, three-dimensional audio experiences. Dolby Atmos is a surround-sound format that has been around for over a decade. It is known as an object-based format rather than a channel-based format. Shaping your sound with immersive audio can help take your music journey to new heights and attract new listeners. Expand your creative expression. Engage your audience. Grow your reach across platforms. Spatial Audio experiences are available in more places than ever.

Creating music in Spatial Audio takes a high caliber of dedication, and Apple Music acknowledges these efforts. We believe artists should be compensated for the time and investment they put into mixing in Spatial Audio. Artists from all genres, both seasoned and emerging, have already begun creating and expanding their catalogs with Spatial Audio.

FINNEAS used Dolby Atmos to help make the single “What Was I Made For?” By making the vocals the focal point of the Barbie soundtrack, the song becomes even more evocative and immersive with the added dimensions. Nile Rodgers, renowned artist and producer has a tenured history of taking his music one step further with the latest technology. He was able to see early on how Spatial Audio was paving the future for music, which is why he used it to remix his entire catalog.

To stay up to date on the latest features and releases, check out the Apple Music Spatial Audio category page. There you’ll find Spatial Audio new releases, featured artists, playlists by genre, and more.

When creating content to deliver in Spatial Audio, it can be helpful to map out your process from concept to execution. Start at the conceptual stage. Think in 3D. Use Dolby Atmos-enabled software like Logic Pro.

Ready to start mixing your next tracks in Dolby Atmos? Working with an experienced Dolby Atmos mix engineer is a great first step and can provide high-quality results. Following our guidelines for delivering Dolby Atmos to Apple Music can help ensure your content is accepted and available on Apple Music.

When delivering Spatial Audio to your label or distributor, keep in mind that Dolby Atmos audio files generated from stereo mixes are not allowed. We strongly suggest delivering releases with both stereo and Dolby Atmos. If you want to deliver Dolby Atmos audio, you’ll need to work with a distributor or encoding house approved to deliver Dolby Atmos to Apple Music.

Music successfully delivered with Dolby Atmos capabilities will be reflected in Apple Music with Dolby Atmos badging. Albums delivered with all tracks containing Dolby Atmos will have a badge displayed on Apple Music. Badging at the album level will be visible if all tracks have Dolby Atmos audio delivered and all respective Spatial Audio start dates have passed.

With Logic Pro, everything you need to place “objects” (song elements such as drums, bass, and other instruments) onto the Dolby Atmos three-dimensional plane is natively integrated into your workflow. Whether you’re in a professional studio working with an engineer or you’re a DIY bedroom producer, the Dolby Atmos Production Suite fits seamlessly into the mixing process without interrupting your creative process.

Spatial Audio is all about empowering artists and producers to deploy techniques that create ear-catching first impressions. Whereas every track of a song once had to fit into the left or right channel, working in a three-dimensional field is like putting your music on a bigger stage. Within Dolby Atmos, there are innovative ways for musical objects to move around this bigger stage beyond traditional left-right panning. You also have the power to change not just how your song is heard, but the story it tells.

Thanks to precise control over the position of sounds around a listener’s headspace, artists can insert scene-setting narrative touches that are heard just as they would be in real life. Taking advantage of Spatial Audio doesn’t require starting from scratch, either - it opens up a world of possibilities for artists looking to remaster their catalog.

“It’s a very, very unique way to experience music. When you are younger, and you are dissecting music, and hearing the nuances and the subtleties, and the things that you might have missed before, Spatial Audio just makes it so much easier to catch those things. You’re walking down the street, you turn left, you’re going to catch something you didn’t catch before. It really makes the music be experienced through life.

Troubleshooting

Here are some steps to troubleshoot if you are having issues with Spatial Audio:

Update your Mac to the latest version of macOS.
Open the Apple Music app.
In the menu bar, choose Music > Settings (or Preferences).
Click the Playback tab.
Update your Apple TV 4K to the latest version of tvOS.
You need an Android device that supports Dolby Atmos. Check with your PC manufacturer to be sure you have the right hardware to play music in a Dolby Atmos audio format. You may need the Dolby Access app for Dolby Atmos playback on your device. Yes. You can listen to Dolby Atmos music in Spatial Audio on Apple Vision Pro.
Turn on Sound Check.
- On your iPhone or iPad, go to Settings > Apps > Music, then turn on Sound Check.
- On your Mac, open the Apple Music app. From the menu bar, choose Music > Settings (or Preferences).
Play the song, then check for the Dolby Atmos badge in Now Playing. If every song on an album is available in Dolby Atmos, you’ll see the Dolby Atmos badge on the album’s detail page.
Delete the song. Follow the steps below to turn on Download in Dolby Atmos for your device.
- On your iPhone or iPad, go to Settings > Apps > Music, then turn on Download in Dolby Atmos.
- On your Mac, open the Apple Music app. In the menu bar, choose Music > Preferences. Click the General tab, then select Download in Dolby Atmos.
- On your Apple Vision Pro, go to Settings > Apps > Music, then turn on Download in Dolby Atmos.
- On your Android device, open the Apple Music app. Tap the More button, tap Settings, then turn on Download Dolby Atmos.
- On a Windows device, open the Apple Music app. When you download a Dolby Atmos version of a song, a stereo version of the song is downloaded too.

Device	How to Enable Dolby Atmos Download
iPhone/iPad	Settings > Apps > Music > Download in Dolby Atmos
Mac	Apple Music > Preferences > General > Download in Dolby Atmos
Apple Vision Pro	Settings > Apps > Music > Download in Dolby Atmos
Android	Apple Music App > Settings > Download Dolby Atmos
Windows	Apple Music App (stereo version is also downloaded)

How to Produce Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos in Logic Pro