Music streaming on Apple Music in 5.1 (Dolby Audio)

[J. PUPSTER]

ah.. there you go Mister P!

Simon!
*think “Newman!”

 

[Cheezmo]

I think the lack of fanfare is because these legacy surround sound mixes aren’t presented in a spatial audio format. Spatial audio is what Apple is promoting.

Spatial Audio is not a format. It is a blanket term that Apple uses for how they market/present Dolby Audio and Dolby Atmos material (and theoretically any other multichannel formats they may choose to support), really more applicable to when it goes through their headphone/2 speaker processing that is supposed to recreate that sound field. When Dolby Atmos or Dolby Audio is played back on an AppleTV, there is no "Apple Spatial Audio" processing going on at all.

If you notice, Dolby Audio tracks/albums are included in the "Spatial Audio" section on Music.

 

[Ephi82]

come on people now,
everybody get together!

https://music.apple.com/gb/album/the-best-of-the-youngbloods/299558073

Anyone think the vocals low in the mix on some of these? Get Together notable

 

[Ephi82]

the King! in Quad!

https://music.apple.com/gb/album/from-elvis-in-memphis/1138094621

Holy crap! This is fantastic! Interesting, quad mixes are quite different than modern surround. Very discrete, like drums pretty hard panned to right rear, bass left rear….it’s not subtle…

 

[J. PUPSTER]

Holy crap! This is fantastic! Interesting, quad mixes are quite different than modern surround. Very discrete, like drums pretty hard panned to right rear, bass left rear….it’s not subtle…

amen to that brother, amen! Screw subtlety!

 

[Q-Eight]

Elvis in Memphis has an incorrect channel placement. I've noticed this on a few RCA titles; always "early" titles as I don't think they'd nailed down a specific format for the master tapes that got sent to the duplicators. I've only ever found swapped channels on "PQ8" series tapes. I've yet to find a channel error on any "APT1" series tapes. By that point, some titles have maybe a bass guitar in FL and BR, but vocals are ONLY in front center. For mixes like that, the cross-channel bass is obviously intentional.

However, with Elvis in Memphis, if memory serves, you swap the left channel on 6 songs and the right channel on 4 and this'll place the bass front center and the drums back center. But this will also have the added effect of "pairing up" other instrument sections such as horns will then appear in the phantom center right channel or the organ in the phantom center left. Mixes with sparse instrumentation will mimic the stereo versions almost perfectly but the Quad versions will stretch them out to separate drums and bass. The more lavishly instrumented songs will feature items not only placed in the phantom left/right areas, but also in the individual corners as well. But, they will still try to mimic the stereo versions. It's a very groovy album once things are lined up.

It's just a shame Sony doesn't seem to be aware of this and these futzed-up mixes keep getting released.

But the big question is .... how do we get to hear these in a Quad situation? I've tried looking into it and this all seems to have something to do with an app on a cell phone and I'm flummoxed as to how a cell phone can create Quad sound.

 

[Franck]

Shameless Plug.

Quadraphonic Modular Synthesizer in Dolby Atmos (Dark Ambient) - Just released!
https://music.apple.com/us/album/passages/1604189304Dolby Atmos (Downtempo) - Cool for checking your height speakers!
https://music.apple.com/us/album/dystopia-single/1588725064
I noticed this in the last Monterey, I hope 12.3 released next week(?) will have Apple Music using this new speaker configuration
https://www.quadraphonicquad.com/forums/threads/dolby-atmos-on-macos.31880/
Check my site for more info about these releases.

 

[marcb]

in this instance they don't need licencing at all, Sony control them already. there are exceptions where artists have the final say but in the case of the old CBS Quads not as many as people think.

two of the Aerosmith Quads (Rocks & Get Your Wings) are available right now in 360RA on Tidal and Amazon Music Unlimited. hopefully they will be released in Dolby Audio on Apple Music before UMG take over the catalogue.

Chicago's in WEA's hands now, including all the CBS Quads, hence Rhino's Quadio box set, so i think we can forget about seeing any Chicago Quads on Apple Music or in 360RA form anywhere anytime soon.

Sony control the Santana catalogue, they just don't want to give it away, various labels have tried licencing certain titles over the years, other than MFSL, pretty much to no avail.

i don't know which 'bigger dogs' you're alluding to? even in the case of an artist such as Paul Simon, who anecdotally refused to countenance his CBS Quads being reissued (including S&G's Bridge Over Troubled Water, where the Sony Japan Quad SACD got cancelled, we don't actually know how true any of that speculation ever was but still..) well, even some of his Quads are now available in 360RA on Tidal and Amazon Music Unlimited and it feels like Apple Music Dolby Audio offerings of S&G and his solo work can't be far behind.

i think Sony are as committed as we could hope for at this stage, between the Sony Japan 7" SACDs, Dutton Vocalion's SACDs of CBS & RCA Quads and the latest streaming Dolby Audio & 360RA push, Sony have been involved in the reissue of more of their old Quads in the last 5 years than at any time in the previous 40 years.

Your first paragraph pretty kinda sums up what I said, no?

I’m not saying Apple‘s presence in the game isn’t a factor. But the main force in the release of these titles is clearly Sony. If Apple was the main force, wouldn’t we be seeing, say, Universal titles too?

So far it’s been fairly low hanging fruit. We’re almost exclusively seeing titles by artists who have had surround titles released, i.e. the rights issues are already resolved or to easy clear - and 3rd tier artists who are probably glad to get the extra revenue in 2022. When we start seeing a slew of titles from artists on Apple Music who likely have stronger contractual control over their catalog, then we’ll know the dam has really broken.

I’m not rooting against it. I’m just not yet convinced all parties are all in yet, so the woo-hoos for Apple seem a little premature.

 

[quicksrt]

Are these "rarer" CBS/Sony quad mixes that have appeared on Tidal, continuing to appear on Apple now? Or is there some kind of cruel delay going on?

 

[Audiowannabee]

Anyone think the vocals low in the mix on some of these? Get Together notable

Cant complain about lack of bass here

 

[channelar]

https://music.apple.com/us/album/eli-and-the-thirteenth-confession/251016022One of my favorite all time albums, the Quad version of Laura Nyro’s ‘Eli And The Thirteenth Confession’ in Dolby Audio. Pretty sure it’s the same as the version released on Audio Fidelity SACD a few years ago. It’s been available on Tidal in 360 for a while.

 

[Mooserfan]

Do you all think the Paul Simon quads will arrive on Apple? I don’t want to add Tidal to the ever growing list of subscription services that are bleeding me dry.

 

[fredblue]

Do you all think the Paul Simon quads will arrive on Apple? I don’t want to add Tidal to the ever growing list of subscription services that are bleeding me dry.

i can't see why not
as it is they're in 360RA only on Tidal, so unless you can decode that you won't hear the Quads in discrete Surround

 

[quicksrt]

Do you all think the Paul Simon quads will arrive on Apple? I don’t want to add Tidal to the ever growing list of subscription services that are bleeding me dry.

It is concerning that some of them would appear in a screwy format, and on an odd platform. But at least they have appeared and are in fact the quad master tapes used. I'm not out of hope yet. And I have not yet bought an Apple TV either.

 

[J. PUPSTER]

i can't see why not
as it is they're in 360RA only on Tidal, so unless you can decode that you won't hear the Quads in discrete Surround

Ohhhh so the Simon Quads have appeared!

 

[fredblue]

Ohhhh so the Simon Quads have appeared!

yes Pup, afaik two of the three so far
(S/T & There Goes Rhymin' Simon)
are in 360RA on Tidal and Amazon Music Unlimited.

edit: also, the Bridge Over Troubled Water Quad's there in 360RA too

 

[J. PUPSTER]

yes Pup, afaik two of the three so far
(S/T & There Goes Rhymin' Simon)
are in 360RA on Tidal and Amazon Music Unlimited.

edit: also, the Bridge Over Troubled Water Quad's there in 360RA too

So either Rhymin' Simon has softened up or Sony does have control?

 

[fredblue]

So either Rhymin' Simon has softened up or Sony does have control?

maybe, i really don't know
what one could deduce is if there ever was a barrier to his Quads being reissued then maybe it isn't a factor right now?

 

[J. PUPSTER]

maybe, i really don't know
what one could deduce is if there ever was a barrier to his Quads being reissued then maybe it isn't a factor right now?

They would make some lovely little 7-incher’s

 

[marcb]

maybe, i really don't know
what one could deduce is if there ever was a barrier to his Quads being reissued then maybe it isn't a factor right now?

The answer probably involves what it always involves - lawyers and money.