Dolby Atmos/DTS-X/Auro 3D Discussion and Experiences

ajzepp · « **on:** 27 Apr 2019, 05:15 am »

I was looking through some of the older topics and posts, and there doesn't seem to be a lot of discussion on Atmos-type rigs and rooms. I recently decided to convert an extra room into a theater room. Then I completely lost my mind after I finished painting and decided to consider at Atmos configuration.

If anyone currently has, or has spent time in, an HT system using any of these three concepts, I'd really be interested to hear about it. Do you feel it's more trouble than it's worth? Is it the best thing since sliced bread or the pet rock? Do you find it gimmicky and overrated?

*Disclaimer* Im aware of the immersion thread, but Im more interested in experiences with these formats, primarily for movies...i.e. not so much for music listening.

TomS · « **Reply #1 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 10:01 am »

I just installed 5.1.4 (Atmos) in our living room with an Anthem MRX 720 and suite of GoldenEar in ceiling and in wall speakers. I don't own a BR disc player, so no discs to sample, just a Roku Ultra, Apple TV, Xfinity, and the native streaming apps for Netflix, Amazon Prime, Vudu on our LG OLED C8.

All I can say is it was incredibly frustrating to even get a valid Atmos source and content to test with. I couldn't even get Vudu to cough up the "The Dolby Atmos Experience" demo bundle, despite being able to see it in the Vudu app in a browser. It wouldn't let me save it to a wishlist. No idea why that is, but when I searched from within Vudu it didn't even show up. It's really a terrible app. I rented "Gravity" on Prime Video, which I thought was Atmos, but the Roku, ATV, and native Prime app on the LG all showed "Dolby Digital+ 3/2" on my Anthem display. Eventually the Netflix movie "Outlaw King" showed up as "Dolby Atmos" on the Anthem receiver. Ugh.

I don't want to make a "hobby" of making this work seamlessly, just watch some movies with decent sound. It really shouldn't be this hard

ajzepp · « **Reply #2 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 10:21 am »

Tom:

You just basically illustrated my biggest concern. I've never been one to buy a lot of movies. I'm mainly a renter, so part of the reason why I'm considering upgrading is because I saw that Netflix, Vudu and a few others had Atmos options. Then I saw that it was only on certain devices, so that became a bit more complex. Im with you 100% on not wanting the logistics of this thing to become more of a hobby (or maybe "anti-hobby" lol) than the enjoyment of it.

I have an Anthem 520 b/c I never expected to use Atmos in the room I had my gear in, so I'm envious that you have a 720. Im looking into a trade up option with my dealer because I love the 520 so much. Anthem receivers are fantastic!

Sam-fi · « **Reply #3 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 12:18 pm »

Thanks ajzeep I am looking into this subject for the first time as well. SO I'm just going to watch what sage advice floats in here,

Maybe we can summon Witchdoctor he's a huge fan of dolby atmos

I think it sounds worth a try, it's important to get the receivers that are "auro 3d sound" and "dolby upscale to atmos" capable you want the top end receivers that have those special chips, they are the bread and butter of this platform if I'm not mistaken.

https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=150038.0

a quick topic search found this great thread^

Big Red Machine · « **Reply #4 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 12:40 pm »

Kept it simple with the upfiring Elac speakers. I found the ceiling speakers were too close to your ears with no dispersion to give any effect.

5.1.2 right now and it's decent. I track my discs with which ones are Atmos and 4K in my Excel doc.

I'm using a very low end Yamaha receiver right now.

ajzepp · « **Reply #5 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 05:29 pm »

BRM: Beautiful!! You just can't beat the look of a clean theater room. Very nice indeed!

Sam-Fi: I had no idea there was a "dolby upscale to Atmos" option...thanks! That Auro 3D and the "voice of God channel" are quite intriguing for sure. I love that we have different codecs hitting the marketplace. Although I sometimes miss the good old fashioned simplicity of basic DD/DTS, it's exciting to see the new options being implemented. And thanks for the thread link...checking that out now

witchdoctor · « **Reply #6 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 06:33 pm »

Quote from: TomS on 27 Apr 2019, 10:01 am

I just installed 5.1.4 (Atmos) in our living room with an Anthem MRX 720 and suite of GoldenEar in ceiling and in wall speakers. I don't own a BR disc player, so no discs to sample, just a Roku Ultra, Apple TV, Xfinity, and the native streaming apps for Netflix, Amazon Prime, Vudu on our LG OLED C8.

All I can say is it was incredibly frustrating to even get a valid Atmos source and content to test with. I couldn't even get Vudu to cough up the "The Dolby Atmos Experience" demo bundle, despite being able to see it in the Vudu app in a browser. It wouldn't let me save it to a wishlist. No idea why that is, but when I searched from within Vudu it didn't even show up. It's really a terrible app. I rented "Gravity" on Prime Video, which I thought was Atmos, but the Roku, ATV, and native Prime app on the LG all showed "Dolby Digital+ 3/2" on my Anthem display. Eventually the Netflix movie "Outlaw King" showed up as "Dolby Atmos" on the Anthem receiver. Ugh.

I don't want to make a "hobby" of making this work seamlessly, just watch some movies with decent sound. It really shouldn't be this hard

I use a Sony UHPH1 in the HT and a Roku tv by TCL in the mancave. Both stream without a hitch. Is your display 4K capable? If it isn't try the latest Sony 4K BRD player.

witchdoctor · « **Reply #7 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 06:40 pm »

Quote from: Sam-fi on 27 Apr 2019, 12:18 pm

Thanks ajzeep I am looking into this subject for the first time as well. SO I'm just going to watch what sage advice floats in here,

Maybe we can summon Witchdoctor he's a huge fan of dolby atmos

I think it sounds worth a try, it's important to get the receivers that are "auro 3d sound" and "dolby upscale to atmos" capable you want the top end receivers that have those special chips, they are the bread and butter of this platform if I'm not mistaken.

https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=150038.0

a quick topic search found this great thread^

I think HDMI 2.2 can "see" if you have a 4K display. If you don't it doesn't serve up the 4k/atmos content. My 4K TCL/Roku display not only serves up the content, it displays icons next to the movies and identifies them as HDR,Dolby Vision or 4K. Nearly ALL of the 4K streaming content has an atmos stream.

What I find is that sometimes the atmos mixes are not to my taste. By flipping over to the auromatic upmixer you can dial in how much immersion effect you want. I like to dial it down a little for music and up a little for movies.

ajzepp · « **Reply #8 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 06:44 pm »

Whoa, Witchdoctor, are you saying that if I only have a 1080p projector, I won't be able to stream Atmos unless I upgrade to a 4k display? Or am I overtired and misreading what you wrote? I definitely am not ready to upgrade the projector yet. Is that a deal breaker? I didn't even figure the two would be intertwined.

witchdoctor · « **Reply #9 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 06:45 pm »

Quote from: Big Red Machine on 27 Apr 2019, 12:40 pm

Kept it simple with the upfiring Elac speakers. I found the ceiling speakers were too close to your ears with no dispersion to give any effect.

5.1.2 right now and it's decent. I track my discs with which ones are Atmos and 4K in my Excel doc.

I'm using a very low end Yamaha receiver right now.

Looks great, was it a chore moving in all the recliners?

witchdoctor · « **Reply #10 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 06:53 pm »

Quote from: ajzepp on 27 Apr 2019, 06:44 pm

Whoa, Witchdoctor, are you saying that if I only have a 1080p projector, I won't be able to stream Atmos unless I upgrade to a 4k display? Or am I overtired and misreading what you wrote? I definitely am not ready to upgrade the projector yet. Is that a deal breaker? I didn't even figure the two would be intertwined.

You need to hack it. In my experience the streaming services will serve up atmos and 4K as a bundle. Because of DRM the service can't "see" the 4K hdmi 2.2 on the other end it just hides that content most of the time.
My main HT uses a PJ that is 1080P. Open Netflix and you see nada atmos/4k content. My mancave has a 4K display. Open netflix and the 4K/DV/HDR content is easily identifiable.
In the main HT I rely primarily on my immersive upmixers. I have Auro,Dolby Surround, and DTS Neo-X.
In the man cave I generally just play the atmos mix. If I am playing a disc that has an atmos mix I can play it in either theater, NP.

ajzepp · « **Reply #11 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 07:03 pm »

Quote from: witchdoctor on 27 Apr 2019, 06:53 pm

You need to hack it. In my experience the streaming services will serve up atmos and 4K as a bundle. Because of DRM the service can't "see" the 4K hdmi 2.2 on the other end it just hides that content most of the time.
My main HT uses a PJ that is 1080P. Open Netflix and you see nada atmos/4k content. My mancave has a 4K display. Open netflix and the 4K/DV/HDR content is easily identifiable.
In the main HT I rely primarily on my immersive upmixers. I have Auro,Dolby Surround, and DTS Neo-X.
In the man cave I generally just play the atmos mix. If I am playing a disc that has an atmos mix I can play it in either theater, NP.

So Auro 3D is an upmixer then? Compatible with what, just surround mixes? Or also stereo?

I know what you mean about the atmos and HDR lighting up. I have a 4k tv in the living room and I see the labels all the time. I figured I could just rent, as an example, the UHD version of a rental from VUDU, and it would just display in 1080p but still stream the atmos audio codec. Now Im thinking my whole plan may be fubar.

ajzepp · « **Reply #12 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 07:13 pm »

Well, VUDU just confirmed it...you're exactly right, Witchdoctor. Wow. I'm shocked by this. I had no idea. I'm really glad you chimed in. You saved me a lot of money lol. I guess I'll just wait until I can upgrade to a 4k projector before I invest in atmos.

Sam-fi · « **Reply #13 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 07:34 pm »

I didn't realize this either. Weird. Maybe one-day but I'm currently happy with my tv even though it's 1080p it has good color and I just don't feel the need to upgrade yet. Honestly one-day I dream of upgrading to a 5k oled, etc.

I have always prioritized a 2 channel for music systems anyways. I'm still a believer in vinyl.

ajzepp · « **Reply #14 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 07:42 pm »

Im with you, Sam-Fi...I love my projector, and it's only three years old, so just cant see myself dropping several grand on a 4k projector when this one works great with a beautiful image.

Sooo...how bout that NFL draft, guys?

TomS · « **Reply #15 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 09:35 pm »

My TV is latest LG OLEDC8 so it's 4k and handles Atmos, DTS, etc. just fine. So is that related to why I can't see, for example, "The Dolby Atmos Experience" bundle in Vudu when I search on the Roku? I don't think it worked on the native Vudu app on the display either though. What I ended up doing is running Netflix on the TV instead of Roku, which is fed to the Anthem, then out to the TV. With the native app on the TV, Anthem and LG TV seem to chat through the HDMI ARC and CEC.

Tyson · « **Reply #16 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 11:37 pm »

I'm putting together a system for my dad in his new home. I'm thinking of giving him my old Crown K2 amp to drive 2 subs. But my amp has no way to adjust phase on the subs. Is that something that can be done on these new Atmos receivers? I know I can do crossover and level from the receiver but I'm not sure about phase.

TomS · « **Reply #17 on:** 27 Apr 2019, 11:48 pm »

Quote from: Tyson on 27 Apr 2019, 11:37 pm

I'm putting together a system for my dad in his new home. I'm thinking of giving him my old Crown K2 amp to drive 2 subs. But my amp has no way to adjust phase on the subs. Is that something that can be done on these new Atmos receivers? I know I can do crossover and level from the receiver but I'm not sure about phase.

Can't speak for other Atmos receivers, but the Anthem "Genesis" version of ARC claims to do so, of course, at a very high price.
https://hometheaterreview.com/anthem-announces-the-next-generation-of-room-correction-arc-genesis/

witchdoctor · « **Reply #18 on:** 28 Apr 2019, 03:40 am »

Their are a couple of workarounds for streaming atmos content. One is to get an HD Fury:

https://hdfury.com/product/integral-2/

the other is to get a Sony 4K Blueray player. The Sony player hasseparate HDMI ports out, one for video and one for audio:

https://www.crutchfield.com/S-E1h1LnKfleG/shopsearch/sony_4k_blu_ray_player.html?XVINQ=BI3&XVVER=VQ2&awcr=76759703418311&awdv=c&awkw=sony%204k%20blue%20ray&awmt=e&awnw=s&awat=&awug=65739

My PJ is 1080P and I mostly use the upscalers in lieu of native atmos. I can play atmos content with blue ray discs but some of the atmos mixes are lacking compared to the upmixes with auromatic.

witchdoctor · « **Reply #19 on:** 28 Apr 2019, 03:41 am »

Quote from: ajzepp on 27 Apr 2019, 07:13 pm

Well, VUDU just confirmed it...you're exactly right, Witchdoctor. Wow. I'm shocked by this. I had no idea. I'm really glad you chimed in. You saved me a lot of money lol. I guess I'll just wait until I can upgrade to a 4k projector before I invest in atmos.

I think the upmixers sound MUCH better than 5.1 or 7.1, no need to wait for a new PJ. If you want native atmos streams you can checkout the workarounds I posted.