Dolby Atmos may have been around for a decade and Atmos for Music for several years, but Apple’s announcement of Spatial Audio support and the subsequent integration of Dolby Atmos into Logic Pro has brought Dolby Atmos for music to the front of many people’s minds for whom it previously wasn’t an issue.
For music mixers, the jump from stereo to Atmos is huge so good places to get orientated might be our Atmos for Music podcast with Edgar Rothermich and Emre Ramazanoglu and if you are a Logic user check out Edgar’s comprehensive explainer of Spatial Audio in Logic Pro.
If however you just need to know what this Atmos business is all about then for the best explanation I’ve yet seen watch the intro to PureMix’s recent Atmos Panel. Don’t be put off by the fact that it’s an extremely long video. Just watch the intro and see how you go. It’s well worth it just for Andrew Scheps’ explanation about what happens when you disconnect the centre speaker in a 5.1 system compared to an Atmos system. The most concise illustration of the difference between channel and object based systems I’ve heard!
If you stay with it, you’ll find some of the most experienced professionals working in this, relatively new, format fielding questions from the community. It’s long, but its fun and engaging and top quality info. If you’re taking a long journey anywhere over the holiday this is an excellent way to fill a few hours.
The Panel
The panel is made up of working professionals and some of the people who developed the techniques which are becoming standard practice when mixing music for Atmos.
Greg Penny (k.d. lang, Giorgio Moroder....)
Steve Genewick (Elvis Costello, Toto...)
Dave Way (Spice Girls, Christina Aguilera...)
Fab Dupont (Shakira, David Crosby...)
Andrew Scheps (Iggy Pop, Jay-Z, Metallica)
How Do I Watch More From PureMix?
Pro PureMix members can access a huge library of top quality video tutorials from some of the biggest names in the industry by signing up to a PureMix subscription for as little as $25 a month.
Sign up to get advanced audio tutorials where Grammy-winning engineers teach you mixing concepts by showing you their techniques and tricks while mixing song by Pharrell, Imagine Dragons, Ziggy Marley and more.
If you would like to watch more free tutorials you can sign up for free at pureMix or browse the entire pureMix tutorial video library and choose the individual videos that appeal to you.