Immersive Audio for the At-Home Artist

Published by PERFORMER MAGAZINE FALL 2023 HOME RECORDING ISSUE

These days it’s hard to go anywhere in the music industry without hearing about Dolby Atmos—artists are recording it, producers are creating it and streaming platforms are promoting it. With as much as you may hear and know about what Dolby Atmos is, understanding this new audio format may not be completely clear yet. While it can seem out of reach for an independent artist, bedroom producer or DIY musician, immersive audio is just as beneficial to an upcoming artist as it is an established one.

For those who are looking to future-proof their music catalogue while opening a world of new possibilities, Dolby Atmos is the solution. Pulling from my background as an immersive mix engineer, I’ve broken down exactly why you should care about immersive mixing, and how to take your first steps towards working with the format.

What is Dolby Atmos?

Since Dolby Atmos is a new format for the music industry, it’s natural to be unfamiliar with what it actually encompasses. Unlike the usual 5.1 and 7.1 surround sound setups, Dolby Atmos introduces a third overhead dimension to create a fully encompassing immersive experience. When heard with a Dolby Atmos speaker setup, this format can more accurately reflect how we naturally experience sound.

To replicate this, Dolby Atmos has redesigned how you are able to configure audio objects. No longer are sounds limited to vertical or horizontal movement. Immersive mixers are now able to place audio anywhere along a plane, which in turn creates exciting new listening experiences.

Listeners can hear audio circle around their head, traveling from their right side, to the back and over to the left. A full orchestra can be heard not as a single layer of sound, but as a rich and developed track, with each instrument group spaced out as if in a live theatre. This high-quality experience is exactly why the demand for Dolby Atmos has skyrocketed in the past few years.

Why Dolby Atmos?

Although it began in the film industry, Dolby Atmos has taken the music industry by storm with no plans of slowing down. Many streaming services are not only offering but embracing the new format, so having Dolby-compatible recordings for all your tracks is one of the best ways to ensure your music will continue to find new ears.

More and more distribution platforms, such as BandCamp and DistroKid, are supporting Dolby Atmos as a file format, ensuring that independent artists can publish their music with applicable streaming services. Not only that, but Apple Music and Tidal already offer spatial audio listening (with murmurings of Spotify potentially doing the same), with Apple reporting that over 80% of Apple Music users are listening in spatial audio. If listeners are taking advantage of the format, then it’s only natural to follow suit as an artist.

Utilizing Dolby Atmos-compatible distribution platforms can also aid in your ability to get on spatial audio playlists. Playlisting is a sure-fire way to guarantee that your music is reaching your intended audience and being put in front of new listeners. With many platforms highlighting immersive-specific playlists, including ones for every genre and sub-genre imaginable, having your track published in Dolby Atmos will only help when playlist pitching, allowing you to ultimately reach an even wider audience.

Let’s Get Creative

Beyond increasing your tracks’ marketability, working in Dolby Atmos offers a whole new world of creative possibilities. Many artists are very particular about their tracks—and with good reason. As with any art form, you want your music’s end result to fully represent the vision that sparked its creation in the first place; and mixing in stereo can put you up against a number of limitations when trying to reach this end goal.

As discussed, Dolby Atmos allots a full 360 degrees of virtual space compared to stereo, which forces you to fit your entire production into the two stereo speakers and channels. How does this benefit you as an artist? With this almost unlimited space, you no longer have to compromise certain instruments to highlight others; vocals, percussion and synths can now be placed in the front, sides or back, creating a harmonious and immersive listening experience. This means the possibilities are virtually endless when it comes to audio placement, reducing the chance for instrument clashing and allowing artists to fully interpret the experience of their music.

Additionally, when working in stereo you’re often cutting out a lot of the low end on your mix to make room for things like vocals or synths. With a surround format, the low end becomes much more dynamic as you’re able to move instruments behind or around you, and can take full advantage of the proximity features that come with Dolby Atmos. This in turn cuts back on the amount of compromise you’re forced to make with sound frequencies, ensuring that the musical arrangement won’t get lost in a busy mix. With immersive mixing, it’s about preserving the integrity and quality of your work.

Beyond just profiting from the promotional and creative benefits of Dolby, jumping in on new rising technology is a surefire way to stay relevant in the industry. Once you understand Dolby Atmos, learning how to mix in the format promises a wealth of opportunity, especially as an independent mixer or producer. Gaining this new skill set will allow you to stand out from a crowd of producers, as you are able to offer up- and-coming talents that are critical in this fast- moving industry.

Knowing Your Options

If you’re convinced on publishing or mixing in Dolby Atmos, but aren’t sure how to start, there are a few options for you to explore. The cheaper option would be to outsource your music to a Dolby Atmos-certified engineer or mixer and rely on them to deliver the immersive track. This is a great route for upcoming artists who maybe aren’t well-versed in immersive mixing, but still want to reap the benefits of releasing in Dolby Atmos.

To get the most out of your project, it’s crucial to understand the value of working with an experienced engineer. We already know what immersive audio can do for us, but working with a Dolby Atmos-certified engineer who has the correct equipment and setup will ensure your money is well spent, and that you get the highest quality mix possible.

Another route is to complete the immersive mixing yourself. While this is a great long- term goal, it may not be as attainable for up- and-coming artists. Not only does this require specific gear (all of which must meet Dolby’s specification requirements), it also means you must have a designated studio space designed for Dolby Atmos mixing. These investments, while worthwhile, come at a cost that isn’t usually realistic for independent producers. That isn’t to say your own Dolby Atmos studio can’t be an end- goal, however.

Your Future with Dolby Atmos

There are multiple ways to fast-track immersive mixing yourself if that is your desired course. YouTube is a gold mine for tutorials explaining the basics of Dolby Atmos mixing. On my own channel, @AlexProMix, you can learn the ins and outs of immersive mixing, from production tips and mastering hacks to gear suggestions and step-by-step breakdowns on how to deliver your first Dolby Atmos mix.

Purchasing gear second hand is also an accessible and sustainable way to build your own Dolby Atmos setup. I bought my own studio monitors pre-owned from a local audiophile. If space is an issue for you however, there are numerous studio spaces out there that are Dolby Atmos-compatible. These will allow you to explore immersive mixing hands on, without having to fully invest in the format.

Ready to Dive in?

Knowing now how Dolby Atmos can propel your career, you may be ready to jump right in and get to work. If you’re still unsure, my best advice is to give some immersive tracks a listen, and let the music speak for itself. Find a spatial audio- focused playlist on the streaming service of your choice, or you can check out the AlexProMix playlist on Apple Music (@AlexProMix), which features all of the tracks I’ve worked on as an immersive specialist.

For those who are interested in learning how to mix immersive tracks themselves, please visit https://www.alexpromix.com/courses for comprehensive courses and masterclasses on all things Dolby Atmos mixing and producing.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

AlexProMix helps record labels and distributors to grow from the exposure provided by Dolby Atmos, generating more revenue from streaming. Company founder, Alex Solano, has worked in the music industry for nearly 20 years, the most recent of which was spent mixing, mastering and/or remastering more than 100 Dolby Atmos projects. In addition to producing tracks for hit artists across the globe, Solano also produces immersive audio tutorials on YouTube.

Today, Solano’s studio acts as a home base for both his professional and educational work. Solano is a certified mixer with Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group. AlexProMix has quickly become the go-to Atmos mixing company for various record labels, including Atlantic Records, Photo Finish, CINQ Music and M.A.D Solutions.