Tidal has announced that its partnership with Dolby Atmos has expanded to included home cinema setups, meaning you can now stream your music in glorious spatial audio through your Atmos-enabled set-top box, TV, or speaker system.
You'll need to have a $19.99 / £19.99 / AU$23.99 per month Tidal HiFi account to take advantage of this new feature, as well as the right kit to properly experience the Dolby Atmos effect.
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Compatible devices include Apple TV 4K (running tvOS 13 or later), and Amazon's Fire TV devices, including the Fire TV Stick 4K, Fire TV Stick, and the first and second-gen Fire TV Cubes.
It will also run on the Nvidia Shield TV and Shield TV Pro as well as through the Tidal app on Dolby Atmos-enabled Android TVs from Sony and Philips.
Of course, to experience true Atmos sound, you'll need a Dolby Atmos speaker setup, whether that's a soundbar, a full Hi-Fi system, or a standalone smart speaker like the Amazon Echo Studio.
Compatible tracks will have the tag 'Available in Dolby Atmos', and Tidal is offering an extended 60-day free trial for anyone who wants to try before they buy.
Revealing what was lost
It's not the first time that Dolby Atmos has come to Tidal – in fact, the immersive audio format has been available on some Android phones and tablets since December.
However, that required users to listen through headphones, which only delivers an approximation of Dolby Atmos sound. For true Dolby Atmos, you need upfiring speakers that can bounce sound off of your ceilings and back down to your ears, creating the illusion of sound coming at you from all angles.
This can be extremely effective in cinema when combined with visuals that are equally immersive, making you feel like you're really in the action of the film. When Dolby Atmos is applied to pure audio, however, the effect will be a little different.
Tidal says that "Dolby Atmos Music allows people to connect with their favorite music in a whole new way, pulling them into a song and revealing what was lost with stereo recordings."
The company also claims that "listeners can discover hidden details and subtleties with unparalleled clarity", as "Dolby Atmos gives music more space and the freedom to unleash every detail and emotion as the artist intended."
The availability of Dolby Atmos tracks is yet another way Tidal is able to differentiate itself from its biggest competitor, Spotify. At present, Spotify doesn't even offer lossless or Hi-Res Audio – though its easy-to-use interface and free (albeit ad-driven) streaming tier means that it's still the most popular music streaming platform today.
Need to refine your setup? Check out the best Dolby Atmos speaker deals we've found today?
Via The Verge
