Since we launched our survey inviting the Production Expert community working in post and music to share information on their current practice, and their intentions for the future we have had nearly 1000 responses and the results have proved interesting. Here is a breakdown of the responses and some comment from both a post and a music mixer who currently work in Dolby Atmos.

Our survey sought to identify the number of people who have introduced Dolby Atmos workflows to their studios and currently offer Atmos mixing as a service. We wanted to differentiate between those who might be interested in, or were considering a move to Atmos, from those who have actually done so. In our follow up questions for each group we sought to identify the key benefits if they are working in Atmos or the principal barriers to working in Atmos if they were not.

Here is a breakdown of the results.

Do You Currently work in Dolby Atmos? - 67% no, 33% yes

There is a clear majority of respondents who aren’t working in Atmos. A possible further area for research would be to differentiate between those who are interested in Atmos but not enough to progress to action from those who have no current intention of investigating Atmos.

However the fact that our respondents show 1 in 3 are currently working in Atmos is strikingly high. There will be a certain amount of bias towards people who work in Atmos participating in a survey like this, the sample is after all self-selecting, but even so it is a high number for people who are actually doing work in Atmos as opposed to just considering it.

Looking at how Dolby Atmos work divides between post and music mixers, predictably enough we find opposite trends with the majority of post production respondents identifying as working in Atmos and the opposite being true of music mixers. The music and post respondents reflect this data in that the majority say they do only some Atmos.

When it comes to the questions which rank statements which might influence a respondent’s decision to work in Dolby Atmos we find that the principal reasons are business related rather than technical (options are listed from most to least important).

Rank which statements are most significant to your choice not to work in Dolby Atmos

1. I don't see demand for Dolby Atmos from my clients

2. The costs associated with Dolby Atmos are prohibitive

3. My clients don't budget extra for Dolby Atmos

4. The workflow and/or setup are too complex

Rank in order of importance the benefits you feel you have gained from working in Dolby Atmos

1. Offering Dolby Atmos has opened up better business opportunities for me

2. Offering Dolby Atmos will place my business better for future business opportunities

3. Offering Dolby Atmos has benefitted the way I'm perceived by my clients

4. Becoming a skilled Atmos mixer has benefitted me outside of Atmos workflows

A Music Mixer’s Perspective

Before we get into the details, let's appreciate the stunning top-line result here: in a few short years we went from zero Atmos mixers to roughly one-third of mixers working in Atmos. Looking at the big picture, that's an incredibly quick adoption rate. And yes, I'll be the first to admit that the forces that brought Atmos adoption to this level are not just creative intent, but a mixture of creative, business, and marketing goals. The survey results mostly show what I expected, which is that the majority of audio professionals in post and/or music are not mixing in Atmos. Even though I am an outspoken advocate for the format, this is not at all disappointing. 

And the survey shows that for those not working in Atmos, the top reason is a lack of demand. Ironically, I am encouraged by this data point. It would be a shame if cost and complexity were the primary reason. Many clients (artists, composers, directors, etc.) haven't experienced the format. In my experience, creative people are surprised when they do hear a good demo of the format. And that leads to them digging up the extra resources necessary to commission Atmos mixes.

In my limited experience, clients are willing to pay extra for an Atmos music mix on top of the usual stereo deliverables. There is some industry confusion about whether this is a mixing or mastering service (or both). As an avid music-listener, I can tell pretty quickly when an album was mixed in Atmos vs. albums that quickly had an Atmos version made from a few stereo stems.

At this moment in early 2023, the headphone experience is imperfect, but according to BingGPT’s scrape of Statista.com, 61% of American households use headphones with a smartphone at least once a week, and of that group the huge majority use the headphones for music. Soundbar adoption is at 20% of American households, and home theater systems are at 41%. So consumers are aware of Atmos/immersive/Spatial Audio, and have the gear to hear it. My hope is that they will continue to demand it. Last week, I spent some time in the famous Atmos-equipped Tesla Model X. That was easily the best car audio system I've ever heard. As that technology finds its way into the rest of the car manufacturers, the difference between stereo and immersive will become even more obvious to the average listener.

A Post Professional’s Perspective

Looking at these numbers, I am sure that they are close to when 5.1 came out, but not as alarming as the numbers would have been for quad. Of course, the post industry leapfrogs ahead for new technology, they have better budgets, and greater expectations. Understandably, the film industry must knock it out of the park on every production to steer the public into the movie theatres for an experience they cannot get at home. Although that line has been crossed.

In further analyzing the survey, I understand why there’s less demand for Atmos. Producers think it’s expensive, and in their perspective, it’s so much easier to consume stereo products. Put on a set of headphones or buds, and you’re in! Try to listen to a streaming Atmos mix in your studio! You will run into so many dead ends.

On the bright side, a third of the respondents are confident in this format. They are the dreamers, the builders, and makers. I know I am.

The results of this survey are interesting and form a baseline for us to measure against in the future, it will be interesting to see if the results next time we run a survey like this show growth in the user base and if so whether that will be in post, music or both?