Fast company logo
|
advertisement

TECH

Sony’s 360 “spatial” audio will stream soon on Amazon, Tidal, and Deezer

More than 1,000 songs from the likes of Pharrell Williams and Bob Dylan will stream in the new format, which rethinks the left-right audio paradigm.

[Photo: CarlosDavid.org/iStock; video: Videvo]

BY Mark Sullivan1 minute read

Sony says the new “360 Reality Audio” audio format it announced at CES in January will become available to consumers yet this fall on Amazon HD, Tidal, Deezer, and nugs.net.

The new technology lets music producers situate sounds all around a spherical audio space, so you can hear voices, instruments, and other sounds coming from behind, beside, and in front of you. Sony says the effect works on regular headphones. The company also has an app that uses pictures of your ear to tailor fit your audio experience.

Amazon announced last month that its new Echo Studio home speaker will play 360 Reality Audio content from the Amazon HD streaming service.

To start, approximately 1,000 360RA songs will be made available from Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, and Warner Music Group, with more songs to be added after launch. The music will come from current stars like Pharrell Williams and classic artists like Bob Dylan. The price of the new 360 Reality Audio streams would be available at launch from its streaming partners.

advertisement

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVKytmqrN9w

“Personally I am a huge music fan and when I first heard a song by my favorite artist, Billy Joel, via the 360 Reality Audio I felt like I was right on stage sitting somewhere between the vocals and drums,” said Sony Electronics North America president and COO president Mike Fasulo in an email to Fast Company.

Sony is also working with Live Nation to capture live performances and reproduce the audio in the 360RA format.

Recognize your company's culture of innovation by applying to this year's Best Workplaces for Innovators Awards before the final deadline, April 5.

PluggedIn Newsletter logo
Sign up for our weekly tech digest.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Privacy Policy

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mark Sullivan is a senior writer at Fast Company, covering emerging tech, AI, and tech policy. Before coming to Fast Company in January 2016, Sullivan wrote for VentureBeat, Light Reading, CNET, Wired, and PCWorld More


Explore Topics