At best, stereo sounds as if you were standing in front of the stage. If you listen to 3D sound, on the other hand, you have the feeling of being right in the middle. How does this work? How much does it cost? And is this technology actually worthwhile for music streaming?
The listening impression of live music can hardly be replaced. Or does it? At least that's what a technology called immersive audio streaming promises. 3D audio, spatial audio, Dolby Atmos or 360 Reality Audio are other terms for it. 3D sound is like surround sound's big brother. However, while surround systems such as 5.1 or 7.1 have the number of speakers in their name, 3D sound is not tied to a specific number of speakers.
Rather, it is about sound objects that are placed or moved freely in space, always adapted to the available loudspeakers. And although 3D sound was originally developed for film, the concept is said to work for music as well.
What does that bring? "More spatiality, more depth, you can perceive the instruments in a more differentiated way," says the Munich-based 3D audio producer Martin Rieger. "You get the feeling that the musicians are sitting around you." At home, this can already work with a single soundbar or a WLAN speaker, as long as they are 3D-compatible.
This also applies to headphones. You also have to pay attention to the 3D compatibility of the player. Older smartphones or tablets may not be able to handle 3D audio formats.
Two formats have prevailed for streaming 3D music: 360 Reality Audio and Dolby Atmos Music. "The former is based on a codec developed by the Fraunhofer Institute," explains Rieger. In addition, in combination with Sony's "Headphones Connect" app, it is possible to further increase the immersive listening experience through personalization. The individual ear shape is determined with the smartphone camera.
Dolby Atmos, on the other hand, comes from the cinema and home cinema sector. "It was probably only a matter of time before the music market was tackled," says Rieger. Sony and Dolby would work with various major labels to be able to offer new albums, but also older music for streaming in 3D format.
But not all music lovers are convinced of 3D audio. "This is just another attempt to sell something new to technology-loving people without a clear perspective," says Wolfgang Saul, owner of a hi-fi studio in Oberhausen. 3D audio is "a great thing in terms of the idea", but not necessary for the perfect sound. Saul is an advocate of two-channel music reproduction. His credo: "Stereophony shows us the three-dimensional world in a natural way."
Martin Rieger, who works intensively with this technology, also makes a reservation with regard to music: "There are many titles that sound better in stereo than in 3D." According to the expert, not every genre goes so well with 3D audio, such as jazz or classical music. However, various pop or electro exceptions confirmed the rule.
This probably also includes "Kraftwerk 3D", produced by Tom Ammermann, who is considered an immersive audio pioneer. "It was also my inspiration to produce the album in 3D, at first you only thought about 7.1", Ammermann in "Sound
Another trend in music streaming concerns quality. On the one hand it is about Hi-Res, an abbreviated notation for High Resolution, which describes high-resolution music data that should go beyond CD quality. On the other hand, it is important that this data is compressed and transmitted without loss.
If you also want to get 3D or Hi-Res from the music streaming services, you usually have to pay between 15 and 20 euros a month for a corresponding subscription instead of the usual around 10 euros. In return, the providers promise recordings up to studio quality.
However, lossless sound quality is not necessarily something for the general public, says Martin Rieger: "With a high MP3 quality, you're already very close to lossless audio. In a blind test, most people wouldn't even be able to tell the difference."
