Mercedes EQ and S-Class Are First with Built-In Apple Spatial Audio

The first non-Apple products that will be able to play Apple Music with Spatial Audio will be select Mercedes-Benz models with the brand’s MBUX infotainment system.Spatial Audio offers the illusion that a sound is coming from a particular space, and it requires songs from Apple Music that have been remixed in this fashion to function.Sennheiser and Bang & Olufsen have introduced their versions of 3D audio systems for vehicles, opening a new front in the ongoing sound wars.

Apple is diving another level deeper when it comes to vehicle infotainment integration. Mercedes-Benz announced today that Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos is available in some of its vehicles for the first time. Until now, Apple’s version of spatial audio required Apple hardware, but the automaker’s vehicles have become the first ever non-Apple devices to natively feature Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos through the MBUX infotainment system.

The first Mercedes vehicles to be able to play Apple Spatial Audio are the EQS, EQS SUV, EQE, EQE SUV, the S-class, and the Mercedes-Maybach S-class. Board member Markus Schäfer said the audio system now “perfectly [integrates] hardware and software.”

Apple offers Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking for its AirPod and Beats headphone lines, which makes the music it plays sound like it’s coming from specific areas around the listener. Mercedes claims that Apple Spatial Audio provides “studio-quality sound better than in any concert hall” when listened to in a car. Listening to Apple Music with Spatial Audio in a compatible vehicle will require not just a subscription to that service, but also a personal Mercedes Me ID. Apple Music offers curated playlists that highlight songs from many genres that take advantage of the 3D listening experience, including one called Driving in Spatial Audio.
Mercedes-Maybach designed by Virgil Abloh

Mercedes has offered multidimensional sound systems in its vehicles before. The most extreme one in recent memory is the high-end, 1750-watt Burmester sound system in the limited-edition . That vehicle came with 31 speakers, including six 3D speakers in the ceiling and four speakers in each of the front seats. Mercedes said this advanced sound technology will come to other models soon.

Sennheiser introduced a 3D automotive audio system in 2019 as a partnership with Karma Automotive. The AMBEO immersive audio solution also uses the vehicle headrests as speakers and can direct audio anywhere in the cabin using a specially designed multi-channel loudspeaker and a subwoofer. The system was first installed in a 2020 Karma Revero GT. Audi partnered with Bang & Olufsen on a 3D advanced sound system that used up to 23 speakers and offers up to 1920 Watts of power.

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