Does Spatial Audio on Apple Music Sound Better or Worse?

You may have noticed that some songs on Apple Music are mastered for “spatial audio”, which sure does make the music sound different. But, does it actually sound good? I spent a few hours listening to spatial audio tracks, and the answer isn’t as simple as “yes” or “no.”

What Does Spatial Audio Do to Music?

Only a small subset of the music on Apple Music is available as spatial audio. Music has to be specifically mixed and mastered for spatial audio. In the case of Apple Music, the spatial audio system is powered by Dolby Atmos.

Dolby Atmos allows sound engineers to place audio tracks precisely within 3D space around the listener. Most of the time, this is really only useful for things like movies, but with music, the spatial audio feature expands the stereo soundstage into a full 3D one. This means that you can hear the different tracks that make up the song positioned all around you, according to the design of the audio engineer.

You need a compatible set of headphones, such as AirPods 3, AirPods Pro, AirPods Pro 2, or, in my case, AirPods Max. While playing a spatial audio song, you can clearly hear some parts of the music stay in place as you turn your head.

Finding Spatial Audio Music

Apple hasn’t made it that easy to find spatial audio on its service, but if you simply search for “spatial audio” in the app you’ll find playlists and albums that have been mastered in this format.

I’ve also had playlists recommended to me on the home page of my Apple Music app, such as “Metal Mixed for Spatial Audio” and other similar suggested lists.

The Results Vary Wildly by Song and Genre

When done right, the spatial audio feature can add an amazing level of dimensionality to a song, but as with any mixing and mastering process, the results can vary quite a lot. Some producers seem to have a better handle on how to do spatial audio the right way and others don’t have the knack, or the hang of it.

Also, the studio versions of some songs are iconic, so listening to something like Sleep Now in the Fire by Rage Against the Machine just sounds strange. Almost like a bootleg live recording. Classical music, on the other hand, sounds amazing and a full orchestra is exactly the sort of musical performance that lends itself to this sort of technology.

It’s Best To Do Some Side-by-Side Testing

While I really like spatial audio as a concept, and when done right it’s definitely worth it, it needs to be tackled on a song-by-song basis. For one thing, I don’t like mixing in spatial audio songs and traditional stereo mix songs in the same playlist. Switching between the two constantly is tiring, since your ear has to grow used to spatial audio in my experience. Which is why I keep spatial audio music in separate playlists.

You’ll also have to decide whether a spatial audio mix of a song you like is really better than the original mix. Load up both versions and listen to them back-to-back, and base your decision on that. Again, personally, I’ve found time and time again that the original stereo mix simply sounds better, and has a more coherent vision for its audioscape.

That makes sense, since music producers have decades of stereo-mixing expertise to rely on, while spatial audio is still pretty niche and rare for music in particular. I enjoy spatial audio, and I will keep using it on occasion, but I already happen to own the right gear for it. It’s certainly not good enough that I’d buy the hardware just for this one feature!

Spatial audio is much more compelling for movies and TV shows, particularly for me, since I only have a 2.1 soundbar system. For music, it certainly has potential, but it’s not a must-have experience yet.