Dolby Atmos music, music in spatial audio, immersive music, surround sound music, and 3D music are all different terms used to describe the experience of listening to music in a three-dimensional, surround sound environment.

I’m listening to Atmos through an entry-level Denon X1700H receiver in a 7.1 setup. I was blown away when I first heard Dolby Atmos music (even with just an entry-level unit). 

I’ve been a fan of 5.1 and 7.1 setups since the early 2000s. I used to think that music couldn’t be properly played on a multi-channel system, but that was back when 5.1 and 7.1 were just upmixing and sounded terrible.

I am also a fan of going to the movies and watching movies with a good sound system. I am a big fan of DTS and SDDS sound system, and I have always wondered why movies with music playing through so many speakers can sound so good.

What I experienced back then was not available to us cheaply, and most importantly, there was no company pushing for a multichannel music standard that we could enjoy affordably and comfortably at home. I’m so glad that in 2023, we don’t need expensive equipment to make it work as consumers.

Personally, I hope that musicians and studios will continue moving toward this path. Stereo Hi-Fi with a good soundstage is hard to achieve, and the equipment is very expensive. AV receivers, on the other hand, have built-in room correction software, plenty of affordable speakers to choose from, and in 2023, systems like Denon, Marantz, and others can play audiophile-grade stereo music just fine. However, Dolby Atmos is what we really want.

Maybe in the future, we will have a music receiver that is specialized for multichannel music, just for the audiophile. I will definitely get in line to buy it! 😂