Is 'Spatial' audio a good thing or just a passing fad?

IMO spatial audio won’t be just a passing fad. The effect sounds very good on my AirPods.
 

Considering how far back (1960s or a bit earlier) multi-channel sound goes, and how many people were willing to pay for it, I’d say not passing. The problem back then was complexity, competing systems, and bang for the buck, the last was the worst issue.

In the late 60s I had a four-channel reel to reel deck and four channels of amplification and speakers, a cobbled together mess of stereo components but when tweaked properly is taw awesome. Almost nothing available and the tapes didn’t last long. After they became available I had several of the early vinyl based Quad systems, CD-4, SQ and QS. While more material was available it was a tiny fraction of the current releases.  So many formats and so few universal decoders that folks couldn’t see what to buy and didn’t. Jumped on SACDs and bought every one I found listenable. Again, only a tiny fraction of what was being released was in the format.

The 5.1 revolution is the first one to gain a solid footing and have enough material in the format to sell to a wider audience. Spatial, particularly Atmos is expanding on that and provides an experience that is good enough to get folks to pay the small premium to upgrade to it.

Talking about music I think the difference is big, and I love listening music in Dolby Atmos. You feel instruments coming from different directions in different heights and I think it improves a lot the experience.

About films, I don’t think the difference is so wide, because a 5.1 is already quite good, but perhaps I have not I listen enough films. Watching “Last of us” I switched 5.1 and Atmos and I couldn’t find a big difference. 

Hard to tell. It might be like 3D video…

Considering that every movie theater has Dolby Atmos sound as well as premium movie streaming services  I’d say Spatial Audio is here to stay. As far as music is concerned it really depends on two things:

1. Quality of the recording as with stereo there are good and not so good
2. Do you prefer traditional 2-channel audio (stereo) coming from the front or enjoy instruments seemly positioned front, rear, left, right and overhead.

As far as Sonos is concerned they still offer tradiotnal stereo speakers like the Five and Era 100 or you can opt for Era 300’s which produce Spatial Audio as well as tradiotnal stereo.

For movies Sonos offers the Arc Ultra and Beam2 for Dolby Atmos (Spatial Audio) as well as Stereo reproduction. Although I’d never purchase the aforementioned for traditional stereo listening because IMO they add additional color that wasn’t in the original stereo recording. JMO.

Thinking how the competitive music market may be driven to add spatial content as a more premium product. Looked over Amazon and Apple’s libraries of current 3D content. Not many albums or playlists are to be had today. But they both tout and advertise more 3D goodness is coming. I think having the capability of 3D will be the seller. They encode 7.1 as the standard offering options to listen on the user end. 

Purists or 2-channel fans will retain stereo when downmixed. The spatial crowd can unleash the ‘dome of sound’ doing nothing on their theater system.  7.1, 5.1, 2.0 all  available on ‘the wire’. That may be cool but it’s kinda tricky when all content is slapped, dashed, and remastered to become spacy. Good point that with any mass remixing, we hope they go for tasty quality not spacy fakery.

Spatial headphones evolved from 7.1 gaming world. Definitely groovy for Atmos movies, but think of remastered music becoming popular due to these tech toys. They will get cheaper and cheaper. Pretty sure 3D headphones and EarPods are the trigger that will make it happen. Youth influencers, marketing, and demand will drive the bus here.

Did a couple Spatial demos for my Wife and a few friends. They were impressed mentioning it’s similar to movie soundtracks they’re used to in a 5.1 setup. They don’t really miss the ‘stage’ effect from 2.0. They actually preferred the more open room thing. I’m now in agreement that depending on the music, mix, and compression, yeah, Atmos music is here to stay. 

Disclaimer: I am an unqualified (read ninny) poster so please don’t invest in a vast 3D collection from said predictions. :)

@No_Distortion4Me

Really interesting take! Spatial audio definitely has that “wow” factor, but I agree — it can feel a bit strange when older tracks are retro-fitted into 7.1 mixes that were never designed for that kind of space. Sometimes the remix adds a new dimension, and sometimes it pulls you out of the music because you start hearing placement rather than the performance.

Movies benefit from immersive sound because they’re built for environments and movement, but music is so much more intimate and intentional. When it’s originally mixed for spatial formats, it can be incredible — like you mentioned with newer releases and Pink Floyd. But when it’s forced onto classics, it can feel more like a novelty than a true upgrade.

I’m curious too whether we’ll see a big shift in the industry, or if spatial audio will stay as an optional “fun mode.” Either way, it’s cool to hear how different setups like your Sonos 5.1 bring out these nuances.

​@No_Distortion4Me That’s such a fun breakdown! Spatial audio can be a wild ride — sometimes it feels like you’re sitting inside the music, other times it’s like the mix is doing laps around your head for no reason 😂.

Totally agree that some classic tracks just weren’t meant to be stretched into a 7.1 universe. It can be cool, but also kinda distracting when you start noticing the “effect” more than the song.

But when a track is actually mastered for spatial from the start? Whole different story. Pink Floyd in 7.1 absolutely checks out! Dolly and Johnny though… yeah, some legends belong in good old 2D stereo.

"If however you are listening to music makes you happy, you are listening to it perfectly."

A quote from the below, worth a listen to:

Thanks for sharing! It’s really interesting, even if it makes you regret investing so much money 😅

Many of the things he says are absolutely true; in the end, you have to keep adding devices (Your TV or Arc alone are not able to deliver), increasing your budget, changing service providers (Spotify is no longer enough), or upgrading your subscription to “Premium” because Atmos isn't included in your plan… and, after doing all that things, the helicopter is still not exactly over your head 🤣

On the other hand, I do enjoy some songs remastered in Atmos, some of them because they sound better to me (Englishman in New York, i.e.) or because it’s fun to hear voices singing behind you and instruments close to the ceiling (No diggity) or because I think it fits with the song (Donna Summers’ Hot Stuff). I’m not a music expert, that’s for sure, but I’m happy, and the difference, liked or not, is noticeable. 

About films, I think it isn’t. The difference with a good 5.1 is hard to find. At least for me till now.