“My editor has insisted that I can’t refer to Atmos in a car as “Catmos.” So anyway, Catmos is the latest implementation of Dolby’s object-based surround technology. We’ve discussed in the past how effectively it can add height to movie sound in theaters, how most mid- and high-end soundbars incorporate some Atmos functionality, and even how some headphones come with it built in. But in a car? Yes, actually. Nowadays, cars are where most people listen to music the most. In some ways, it’s an ideal place to create surround audio convincingly, since the listening positions are fixed, and the system is designed to incorporate and compensate for the speaker locations. These are things that are not possible at home, and even in a theater, it’s not as focused. One of the main challenges with car audio fidelity is ambient noise. One way to significantly reduce this issue is by eliminating the engine altogether. An upscale electric vehicle provides an optimal scenario for a mobile surround sound system. I had the opportunity to experience Rivian and Dolby’s nearly 1,000-watt, 18-driver Atmos-enabled system in the R1S SUV at an event in Venice, California, conveniently located 15 miles from my home. It took me nearly 2 hours to reach the event due to the LA traffic. Atmos technology allows sound designers to pinpoint the exact location in a theater where they want a sound to “appear.” This includes overhead or virtually any place in the cinema space. Atmos is a revolutionary technology that provides a different way to mix movies and music by treating sounds or instruments as “objects.” The traditional audio mixing method involved assigning sounds or instruments to specific channels, but Atmos changes this by allowing sound designers to move objects anywhere during the mixing process. The Rivian R1S boasted a Dolby Atmos system with 18 drivers powered by 960 watts of amplification. The speakers were strategically placed throughout the vehicle, including tweeters at the roofline to provide height sound. The car’s in-car entertainment system integrated Apple Music, Tidal, Amazon Music, and Audible to provide a real Atmos experience. The mix in the R1S is geared toward the driver and front passenger, with rear listeners receiving a lesser extent of the effect. Overall, the surround aspect of the Rivian’s system was more pronounced and natural-sounding than anything I’ve heard before. Other car manufacturers, such as Cadillac, Lotus, Lucid, and Chinese automaker Li, are also including or planning to include Dolby Atmos systems in their vehicles. The Rivian R1S, being a premium SUV, can cost over $100,000 and requires a subscription to streaming services and Rivian Connect Plus for the full experience.”
