Apple Spatial Audio reviews here

[RadDad]

Gen 1 R1S (non-Meridian) owner here. While the sound quality is different on the Apple spatial, I don't feel like it's necessarily "better" than Spotify. Not sure this will be worth the extra Apple subscription cost at this point. Maybe my equalizer settings need adjusting?

I have tried flat and "V" equalizer settings.

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[kapsjt]

Yes, I agree. After reading some early reviews I was very excited for the update.

I am on Gen 2 with premium sound. It still sounds very muddy. I spent some time with it today. I read about people losing left speaker channels after the update and I thought that was my problem. However, I did the Dolby Atmos speaker test and there was sound on all channels.

I have done at least 5 software resets in the past 48 hours hoping something would change. I also played around with the equalizer to no avail.

Some songs in Atmos sound pretty good. Other songs are extremely muddy to the point where I obviously think something is wrong. I played "Welcome to the Jungle" because I've heard it a million times and it sounded like the lead guitar was almost completely removed. The vocals are clear but the instruments and overall sound is very muddy.

The songs I listen to on Apple music that are not in Atmos sound better to me. I also switched back and forth to Spotify and Spotify sounded better which is very surprising. I know that Atmos is supposed to isolate instruments and sounds to certain channels for an immersive experience, but it sure sounds like something is missing.

 

[Electrified Outdoors]

Gen 1 R1S owner here. While the sound quality is different on the Apple spatial, I don't feel like it's necessarily "better" than Spotify. Not sure this will be worth the extra Apple subscription cost at this point. Maybe my equalizer settings need adjusting?

I have tried flat and "V" equalizer settings.

I know some folks feel like it's a lot better and I think that's fine. But I personally don't notice much difference from Tidal. It actually sounds less loud and has less bass. I listen to mostly country and classic rock.

The audio system overall seems to have improved a little bit since the last update.

 

[COdogman]

I have a T, but the EQ settings in this thread are worth trying:

https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/...anges-equipment-measured-tests-results.24034/

 

[MWB]

Gen 1 R1S owner here. While the sound quality is different on the Apple spatial, I don't feel like it's necessarily "better" than Spotify. Not sure this will be worth the extra Apple subscription cost at this point. Maybe my equalizer settings need adjusting?

I have tried flat and "V" equalizer settings.

I agree, I’m having difficulty hearing a consistent improvement in sound over Spotify. Some songs seem to do better on Apple, and others are better on Spotify. But I’ve only listened to about 30 songs. Spotify seems to have improved significantly from the update, unless it’s my imagination.

 

[MWB]

Yes, I agree. After reading some early reviews I was very excited for the update.

I am on Gen 2 with premium sound. It still sounds very muddy. I spent some time with it today. I read about people losing left speaker channels after the update and I thought that was my problem. However, I did the Dolby Atmos speaker test and there was sound on all channels.

I have done at least 5 software resets in the past 48 hours hoping something would change. I also played around with the equalizer to no avail.

Some songs in Atmos sound pretty good. Other songs are extremely muddy to the point where I obviously think something is wrong. I played "Welcome to the Jungle" because I've heard it a million times and it sounded like the lead guitar was almost completely removed. The vocals are clear but the instruments and overall sound is very muddy.

The songs I listen to on Apple music that are not in Atmos sound better to me. I also switched back and forth to Spotify and Spotify sounded better which is very surprising. I know that Atmos is supposed to isolate instruments and sounds to certain channels for an immersive experience, but it sure sounds like something is missing.

What is the Dolby Atmos speaker test? Is that through the Apple app?

I noticed that on a couple of Apple songs that had the Atmos symbol, I couldn’t hear any sound from either of the ceiling tweeter speakers. R1S with Elevation speakers.

 

[kapsjt]

What is the Dolby Atmos speaker test? Is that through the Apple app?

I noticed that on a couple of Apple songs that had the Atmos symbol, I couldn’t hear any sound from either of the ceiling tweeter speakers. R1S with Elevation speakers.

Yes on Apple Music. I just searched "Dolby test" and there was a test track. I do not have any sound coming from the ceiling tweeters on Atmos songs either. I put my ear right up to both of them and nothing was coming out.

 

[lslick23]

Yeah at first I was excited with the Apple sound quality but the more test of songs I do I’ve come to the realization that Spotify is just as good.

 

[bhlackey]

For certain, turn off Spacial Audio. It’s a parlor trick that doesn’t have any real merit it my mind. I’ve tried in home systems head phones etc. it’s not good for music. It is useful for two channel movie watching with headphones.

In my T with Meridian and Spacial off, I’ve been finding that Apple beats Spotify in the clarity of voices and higher frequencies. This is generally what happens with more bitrate or better codecs. I have not tested against Tidal.

Both Apple and Spotify received the “louder” level and adjusted EQ compared to the last update. I have been pretty happy with Flat EQ with the new update. I was running an adjusted EQ curve based on using a measurement microphone and some tuning software which I liked a lot. Those settings don’t work with the update. I will be doing the measurement again. Maybe this week.

 

[DrBluey]

Ok, I’m really not happy with the sound. It’s cooler, sounds coming from everywhere. I even sat in the back seats and it was cool to be almost in a theater. However, the sound is harsh. The Atmos sound is much quieter than non-atmos songs and you have to constantly turn down and up the sound. I did a lot of back and forth between Spotify and Apple Music. The Spotify sounds somewhat better, but that‘s not saying much. I think the issue is the Amp they have in the car. Not sure there is much they can do with it. I have been using the EQ settings as @superfluid worked so hard on. I’m wondering if I need to go back to flat or rock or something. I am hopeful Rivian will finally get it right or will hire a sound engineer to get the sound the car deserves. I love my R1S and think the sound system is its only downfall.

 

[ryunited]

I must be the only one who likes it - I think on the Dolby coded tracks I can tease apart the sound more and it's a better listening experience. Everything is more clear.

That said since the update Alexa refuses to control my Spotify or Apple music (despite linking them in the Alexa app) so that's been a bummer.

(Gen 1 24 RIS)

 

[Spamthechan]

On hour two sitting in the dark garage in the R1S switching between Apple Dolby Atmos and Spotify and all I can say is- some songs sound way better on Apple, and some songs sound way better on Spotify. Definitely not the sea change that early reviews had me expecting.

I’ve actually got Spotify sounding more consistently good.

 

[kapsjt]

On hour two sitting in the dark garage in the R1S switching between Apple Dolby Atmos and Spotify and all I can say is- some songs sound way better on Apple, and some songs sound way better on Spotify. Definitely not the sea change that early reviews had me expecting.

I’ve actually got Spotify sounding more consistently good.

Did you change EQ settings or what did you do to make Spotify sound better? As many have said, I think Spotify sounds better post update. If you made any other adjustments that helped please share. Thank you.

 

[Spamthechan]

Did you change EQ settings or what did you do to make Spotify sound better? As many have said, I think Spotify sounds better post update. If you made any other adjustments that helped please share. Thank you.

I lowered the hell out of the 3rd and 4th slider (250 and 500) and that in particular seemed to get rid of the “muddy” sound

 

[MWB]

Yes on Apple Music. I just searched "Dolby test" and there was a test track. I do not have any sound coming from the ceiling tweeters on Atmos songs either. I put my ear right up to both of them and nothing was coming out.

Okay, I did the test, and my speakers failed miserably. So I did a soft/infotainment reset, and that fixed the speaker issue, and consequently made a big difference in a couple of the songs I had tried out, but didn't really make a difference in a couple of the other songs when comparing Spotify and Apple. Will need to test more. I do really think Spotify song quality improved with this update. (I have Spotify sound quality on highest setting).

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