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Contributor I
March 12, 2025

still waiting for Dolby atmos over airplay 2

https://professionalsupport.dolby.com/s/article/Dolby-Atmos-and-Dolby-Audio-over-AirPlay-Application-Developer-Guide?language=en_US
 

just went through this site with detailed guide on how developers can enable Dolby atmos via AirPlay on their devices with AirPlay 2 support

 

yet Sonos maintains the same response that Apple hasn’t allowed third party speakers to use AirPlay 2 for Dolby atmos streaming

 

what is going on? Need clarity as my Sonos era 300 system has been a pain to use via the Sonos app and if I just AirPlay then there’s no point of buying the era 300 as Dolby atmos doesnt work

 I could’ve just bought the era 100 which is way cheaper and still decent enough for a bedroom sound system

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19 replies

melvimbe
March 13, 2025

For reference  here’s a Sonos thread where a Sonos employee commented on atmos via airplay a couple months back.   I don’t see anything about Sonos promising that this feature was coming.

 

 

Danny
jgatie
March 13, 2025

“misleading them with lies”

Can I get a cite of exactly how Sonos is “misleading them with lies”, please?  A link to any statement and/or article will do.

Contributor I
March 14, 2025

“misleading them with lies”

Can I get a cite of exactly how Sonos is “misleading them with lies”, please?  A link to any statement and/or article will do.


 

 

 

“Apple has not extended that support to work with non-apple devices”

 

 this is clearly a lie as I’ve stated earlier too 

I’m not here to argue with Sonos employees

 my post is here for other users facing similar issues (there are plenty) to read and judge for themselves

 

 have a great day

 bye 🙏

melvimbe
March 14, 2025

“misleading them with lies”

Can I get a cite of exactly how Sonos is “misleading them with lies”, please?  A link to any statement and/or article will do.


 

 

 

“Apple has not extended that support to work with non-apple devices”

 

 this is clearly a lie as I’ve stated earlier too 

I’m not here to argue with Sonos employees

 my post is here for other users facing similar issues (there are plenty) to read and judge for themselves

 

 have a great day

 bye 🙏

 

You aren’t arguing with Sonos employees.  Sonos employees are clearly marked.

 

So you’re complaint isn’t about Sonos promising atmos airplay and not delivering...as that never happened.  Your issue is that a Sonos employee was incorrect about the availability of the feature to third party speakers.  Fair enough. I would agree that Sonos probably should just state that it’s not supportted on Sonos speakers, nor can they comment on when/if it ever will be.  That is the usual response, but I think employees try and give more information on the matter, sometimes incorrectly, when they can. I wouldn’t really call that misleading and lies though, as it’s just an incorrect assumption, the same way that you’re assuming certain posters are employees when they are not.  Call it what you want I guess.

I tried an internet search to see which non-Apple devices  support atmos over airplay.  I didn’t find anything.   Maybe they are out there, don’t know.   Apple does provide a list of 3rd party devices  that support airplay, and states that many support spatial audio, but does not designate which ones.  

 

Danny
jgatie
March 14, 2025

It wasn’t even an incorrect assumption.  It was actually Apple’s policy until recently.  The Sonos rep just didn’t have the latest information, and was posting what they knew in good faith, which I’d hardly call “misleading them with lies”.

 

ETA: Looking at that post by the Sonos mod, the actual date on the post is Oct. 18, 2024 (typical of Gainsight’s crappy software, October counts as “4 months ago”).  The articles I’ve found announcing Atmos Airplay on 3rd party speakers (including the one listed in the OP) are dated Dec. 23, 2024.  Anything before that says the feature is “coming” or “coming soon”.  So unless one can find an earlier announcement of this feature being released, the post from Sonos was not “misleading them with lies”. 

https://en.community.sonos.com/controllers%2Dand%2Dmusic%2Dservices%2D229131/dolby%2Datmos%2Dvia%2Dairplay%2D2%2D6905578?tid=6905578&fid=229131

 

Also ETA:  Matter of fact, later in that thread, a poster pointed out an article where the following was stated:

https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2024/06/updates-to-the-home-experience-elevate-entertainment-and-bring-more-convenience/

 

 

 

Additional features coming to the Home app and Apple TV include:

. . . 

  • AirPlay adds Spatial Audio so users can get an immersive audio experience, including support for Dolby Atmos, when using AirPlay to stream audio from iPhone and iPad to HomePod and compatible third-party audio equipment.

 

To which the Sonos rep replied:

That’s, um, interesting!

. . . 

As they only mention HomePods specifically, it might be worth asking them exactly which “third-party products” support it, as, as far as I am aware, we would be interested in doing so.

 

Leaving out this obvious acknowledgment of coming changes and only listing the first quote as proof of “misleading them with lies” is the only thing even close to a lie I have seen in this thread. 

Schlumpf
Virtuoso
April 2, 2025

I like to give this thread a push… not to stress any further discussions like before but just to share some facts I found out for myself. 
Since the end of 2024 I decided to wait and  see how the atmos via airplay topic will go on. Now after iOS 18 came to a stable status and Apple announced 3rd party support for atmos airplay, I did some testing yesterday. 
As I don’t use Apple Music but Amazon Music Unlimited I played some atmos tracks from within Amazon Music app on my iPhone (running latest iOS 18.4). 
I was able to switch between UHD and atmos music while playing the track. 
I switched audio output from iPhone to Airplay and selected my atmos ready Beam2 surround setup. 
Sonos app always just showed „Airplay“… 

But Amazon Music app during Airplay output still was able to switch between UHD stereo and atmos music. 
 

And for me the most important fact is, that I definitely heard a difference in sound immediately every time when switching the format. So I absolutely assume now there already is atmos music playing on Sonos via Airplay though Sonos app constantly just shows „Airplay“. 
If I‘m right the only thing still missing is an advanced format information within Sonos app what kind of format is playing on Sonos via Airplay at the moment. 
 

Any comments especially about your own testings and what you are thinking about that are welcome. 

Ralf
Schlumpf
Virtuoso
April 5, 2025

No one who can confirm what I assume regarding to Atmos music via Airplay? 

​@Corry P 

Any official news about that? 

Ralf
Corry P
Sonos Staff
April 7, 2025

Hi ​@Schlumpf 

No news, but I think it is incorrect to assume that because you can hear a difference when switching, that that means the Atmos stream is reaching the Sonos speaker - instead, it just means the different input to the AirPlay compressor means that it sounds slightly different when decompressed - I doubt you are actually getting Atmos. If Apple have recently changed something, perhaps I am wrong, but as I understand it, supporting Atmos over AirPlay would require work from us too (not that we are against doing so - I think we would be happy to support it).

I hope this helps.

 

"Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen." - Albert Einstein
Schlumpf
Virtuoso
April 7, 2025

Thank you ​@Corry P for the input. If Sonos will have to do something on their side too, the „switching signal“ I realized indeed might be the compression to stereo of the changing stream. I didn’t have time to listen to the track long enough on my ht setup to judge, if it’s stereo or multichannel.

So let’s wait and see what Apple exactly does mean by saying „3rd Party devices“. 

Ralf