Bring Dolby Home FAQs

Soundbars with Dolby Atmos^® are everywhere. All major soundbar brands like LG, Samsung, Sony, Sonos, Toshiba, Philips, Loewe, Panasonic, and Sennheiser have Dolby Atmos in their products and major retailers carry plenty of options for you to choose from — as low as £180/€150/$199. Whether you decide to shop online or in person, just look for the Dolby Atmos badge on the retail packaging or product feature list.

There are two main options for connecting your Dolby Atmos-enabled soundbar to your TV.
The first, and simplest one, is to connect your TV and soundbar with a single ARC/eARC cable. Find the HDMI port labelled “ARC/eARC” on the back or side of your TV. Then connect one end of your HDMI cable to your TV and the other end to the port labeled “eARC/HDMI input” on your soundbar.

The second way is via HDMI passthrough. Locate the port labelled “HDMI output” on the back or side of your soundbar. Then connect one end of your HDMI cable from it to the “HDMI input” port located on the back or side of your TV.

If you want to add an additional device (for example a streaming device, Blu-ray player, or gaming console) just connect your device to the soundbar’s “HDMI input” port. That’s it!

For a deeper dive, read our article for connecting your Dolby Atmos-enabled soundbar to your TV. 

A soundbar with Dolby Atmos may contain a minimum of two Dolby Atmos-enabled speaker elements to generate height audio effects above you. This unique feature will create the feeling that sound is coming from overhead. To get the best experience from your soundbar, place it so nothing is between the Dolby Atmos-enabled speakers and the ceiling.

To deliver the best height effects, the soundbar should be placed just below your TV without obstructing the picture or any of the speakers on the soundbar (roughly chest height when seated is a good reference point).

Some Dolby Atmos soundbars may also contain side-firing elements to enhance the surround sound effects, creating a feeling of moving audio all around you. If it has side-firing speakers, make sure that the sound from the speakers is not immediately blocked by pictures, plants, books, or any other objects close to it.

Most soundbars enabled with Dolby Atmos have an indicator that lets you know when the device is receiving and playing content in Dolby Atmos. The indicator may show up on the display of the device, as an LED light, or could be on an app which runs on a mobile device (like a phone or a remote control). You’ll need to consult your product manual for details on how your device indicates Dolby Atmos.

Now that you’ve got your soundbar enabled with Dolby Atmos set up you will probably want to test its speakers. There is a wide range of entertainment you can choose from on popular streaming platforms such as Apple TV +, Netflix, HBO Max (US), Paramount + (US), Amazon Prime Video, and Disney +. As well as cable services such as Sky and BT Sport in the UK and Comcast in the US. Just look for the Dolby Atmos badge on the title pages of your favorite entertainment.

Many services will offer Dolby Atmos as part of their standard subscription. If not available, check with your service provider as you may need to upgrade to a different subscription plan.

It’s super easy to find a TV brand that supports Dolby Vision^®. Dolby Vision has gone mainstream and is supported by most major brands including

• Hisense
• LG
• Philips
• Sony
• TCL
• Toshiba
• Vizio
• and more…

Whether shopping online or in person just look for the Dolby Vision badge on the product packaging or feature list. Want to take your entertainment with you? In addition to TVs, there are plenty of laptops, tablets, and even a selection of mobile phones from major brands that also support Dolby Vision for an on-the-go experience.

Dolby Atmos has gone mainstream and is available on TVs at all price ranges making it super easy to enjoy Dolby Atmos straight out of the box using just the speakers in the TV.

• Hisense
• LG
• Philips
• Samsung
• Sony
• TCL
• Toshiba
• and more…

Whether shopping online or in person just look for the Dolby Atmos badge on the product packaging or feature list. Want to take your entertainment with you? In addition to TVs, there are plenty of laptops, tablets, and even a selection of mobile phones from major brands that also support Dolby Vision for an on-the-go experience.

To enjoy Dolby Vision on your TV you’ll need to check just three things to make sure you are set up to watch in the mesmerising picture quality of Dolby Vision.

1) Make sure your TV supports Dolby Vision by looking for the badge at point of purchase or asking a sales assistant. Dolby Vision can be bought from such leading brands as: Hisense, LG, Philips, Sony, TCL, Toshiba, Vizio, and more.

2) Choose a streaming service and subscription that supports Dolby Vision. Don’t worry most of the major ones do: Apple TV+, Netflix, Max, Paramount+, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+ and more! You can also enjoy gaming and live sport in Dolby Vision so there is a ton of great entertainment to enjoy.

3) Be sure that your subscription plan supports Dolby Vision. Once you’ve done that just look for the Dolby Vision badge on the title page of your chosen entertainment.

That’s it! Your TV should do the rest by automatically detecting and setting everything just right for a premium experience.

To enjoy Dolby Atmos on your TV is pretty simple really. You'll need to check just three things to make sure you are set up to experience the lifelike spatial audio of Dolby Atmos.

1) Make sure your soundbar, TV, or AVR support Dolby Atmos by looking for the badge at point of purchase or asking a sales assistant. TVs, soundbars, and AVRs with Dolby Atmos can be bought from most leading brands including Hisense, LG, Philips, Samsung, Sennheiser, Sonos, Sony, TCL, Toshiba, Vizio, and more.

2) Check to make sure that your streaming service and subscription both support Dolby Atmos and that you meet all device requirements, which you can often find on the platform’s help page. You can’t go wrong here with streaming platforms such as Apple TV+, Netflix, Disney+, Max, Paramount+, and Amazon Prime Video.

3) Be sure that your subscription plan supports Dolby Atmos. Once you’ve done that just look for the Dolby Atmos badge on the title page of your chosen entertainment.

That's it! No extra steps needed, your setup should automatically detect and set everything just right for you to enjoy sound that moves you.

Choosing the right size TV for your space is key. You wouldn’t want to get too much TV for your space — it would be overwhelming. By the same token, you wouldn’t want to get a TV that would be too small for your space as that would be, well, underwhelming.

First, let’s take a look at the different size rooms we may be dealing with.

If you have a small room (one that fits 2–4 people comfortably — roughly 12 x 18 feet or 3.7 x 5.5 meters) a TV between 40 and 55 inches should be a good fit and you should sit about 5 to 8 feet (1.5 to 2.5 meters) away for the best results.

If you have a medium-sized room (one that fits 4–8 people comfortably — roughly 16 x 20 ft or 4.9 x 6.0 meters) a TV between 55 and 75 inches is a good choice and you should sit about 9 to 12 feet (2.7 to 3.6 meters) away for the best view.

If you have a large-sized room (one that fits 9 or more people comfortably — roughly 22 x 28 feet or 6.7 x 8.5 meters) a TV of 75 inches or more would do nicely and you should sit roughly 13 feet (4 meters) away for the best experience.

No matter what size room you are working with there is a Dolby-enabled TV and soundbar that will fit your needs.

To check if the devices you already own support ARC or eARC just look for the label on your device's HDMI ports. (That’s the flat plug socket on the back of your device.)

ARC (Audio Return Channel) allows you to send audio from your TV to your Dolby Atmos-enabled soundbar or AVR using a single HDMI cable.

eARC (Enhanced Audio Return Channel) supports a wider range of formats as well as expanded features and requires an HDMI 2.1 to be supported by both your TV and soundbar, as well as requiring a high-speed cable.

To make sure you get the most out of your entertainment setup, we recommend pairing TV and soundbar devices that support eARC. This will give you the broadest format support so that all your favorite Dolby Atmos content will play back like it should.

But don't worry, if your TV supports eARC but your soundbar or AVR only supports ARC you will still be able to enjoy spectacular audio, however due to bandwidth limitations playback format support may be reduced.

Find out more about ARC/eARC with our in-depth article.

HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) is a technology used to pass high-definition video and audio between multimedia devices (like a TV and a soundbar).

HDMI 2.1 is a real game-changer that can transmit up to 48 Gigabytes per second. This increase in bandwidth capacity makes some pretty amazing things possible in the world of audiovisual technologies.

For many users, gamers in particular, the jump from HDMI 2.0 to HDMI 2.1 brings with it some highly anticipated features. Where HDMI 2.0 was limited to 4K resolution at 60 frames per second, HDMI 2.1 increases that anywhere from 4K at 120 frames per second, or 8K at 60 frames per second, or all the way up to 10K resolution at lower frame rates.

The increased bandwidth also brings with it support for the new eARC standard, affording you greater audio format compatibility. Just make sure all your devices support HDMI 2.1 and that you're using a HDMI 2.1 “ultra-high-speed” cable to take full advantage of all these great features. 

Find out more about HDMI 2.1 with our in-depth article.

Picture quality is more than just resolution, it’s also about color, contrast, and detail. Finding the right combination of features is key. Generally, these key features can be broken down into three general categories of resolution.

First is resolution, sometimes referred to as “spatial resolution”, which defines the number of pixels a TV or other display has available to reproduce an image. The higher the resolution the sharper the image may appear.

Next is color resolution, which defines the range of colors and contrast a TV or other device is capable of displaying to reproduce an image.

Last is temporal resolution, which is the number of frames per second (fps) that a TV or other device is capable of displaying to recreate an image.

Read our dedicated article for more information on TV resolution terminology.

Most of the new movies and shows you love are available in Dolby Vision, including House of the Dragon, Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, Ted Lasso, She Hulk: Attorney for Hire, Lightyear, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, The Sandman, and Stanger Things — to name just a few. You can find something just right for any mood: from comedy and horror to documentaries and action films. Look for the Dolby Vision badge on the title pages of your favorite movies and TV shows or streaming service to enjoy picture that pulls you in.

The Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S are the first consoles to enable gaming in both Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos. More and more titles are available in Dolby Vision, including award-winning hits like Halo Infinite, Forza Horizon 5, and Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy along with other stellar titles like Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, Psychonauts 2, Naraka: Bladepoint, and Resident Evil Village. Look for the Dolby badge to game in the stunning, lifelike visuals of Dolby Vision.

Dolby Vision is widely available across a range of major streaming services including 

• Apple TV+
• Disney+
• HBO Max (US)
• Netflix
• Paramount+ (US)
• Amazon Prime Video
• Vudu (US)

with more services in the works.

Apple TV+ features many series and films in Dolby Vision. You can find them on the Apple TV app, which is available on Apple devices, select smart TVs, gaming consoles, and streaming sticks. Choose from a number of hit Apple Original series and films including For All Mankind, Foundation, Prehistoric Planet, SEE, Severance, Ted Lasso, CODA, and Finch. Just look for the Dolby Vision badge on the title pages to experience picture that pulls you in.

Amazon Prime Video has plenty of movies and TV shows in Dolby Vision for you to enjoy. To access entertainment in Dolby, you just need an Amazon Prime Video subscription and a device that supports Dolby Vision. Choose from a number of popular titles including Jack Ryan, Wheel of Time, Top Gun: Maverick, Uncharted, and Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power and more! Just look for the Dolby Vision badge on the title pages of your favorite entertainment for picture that pulls you in.

Most of the new movies and shows you love are available in Dolby Atmos including House of the Dragon, Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, Ted Lasso, She Hulk: Attorney for Hire, Lightyear, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and Stanger Things — to name just a few. You can find something just right for any mood: from comedy and horror to documentaries and action films.

And if it’s music you are looking for you can find Dolby Atmos Music on Apple Music, Amazon Music Unlimited, and Tidal HiFi. Look for the Dolby Atmos badge on the title pages of your content or your service to enjoy entertainment you can feel.

Look for the Dolby Atmos badge on the title pages of your content or your streaming service to enjoy entertainment you can feel.

The Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S are the first consoles to enable gaming in both Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos. More than 100 titles support Dolby Atmos, including award-winning hits like Halo Infinite, Forza Horizon 5 and Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy along with other stellar titles like Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, Psychonauts 2, Naraka: Bladepoint, & Resident Evil Village. Look for the Dolby badge to game in the immersive, realistic sound of Dolby Atmos.

Apple TV+ features many series and films in Dolby Atmos. You can find them on the Apple TV app, which is available on Apple devices, select smart TVs, gaming consoles, and streaming sticks. Choose from a number of hit Apple Original series and films including For All Mankind, Foundation, Prehistoric Planet, SEE, Severance, Ted Lasso, CODA, and Finch. Just look for the Dolby Atmos badge on the title pages to experience sound that moves you.

Amazon Prime Video has a bunch of movies and TV shows in Dolby Atmos for you to enjoy. To access entertainment in Dolby, you just need an Amazon Prime Video subscription and a device that supports Dolby Atmos. Choose from a number of popular titles including Top Gun: Maverick, Jack Ryan, Minions: The Rise of Gru, Uncharted, The Rings of Power, and more!

Disney+ supports Dolby Atmos with more new content being added regularly. To access entertainment in Dolby, you just need a Disney+ subscription and a device that supports Dolby Atmos. Catch all kinds of films and shows in Dolby Atmos including Raya and the Last Dragon, Toy Story 4, Turning Red, Lightyear, Cruella, and more! Just look for the Dolby Atmos badge on the title pages of your favorite entertainment for sound that moves you.

Dolby Atmos goes beyond the ordinary listening experience, fully immersing you so that every detail of the music is revealed with unparalleled clarity and depth. Best of all, it is available on a wide range of devices from home cinema and TVs to soundbars and phones. To get the best possible listening experience you’ll need three things: a device, steaming service, and music – all enabled with Dolby Atmos.

Sound difficult? It’s not really. There is a good chance your device has Dolby Atmos. Just look for the Dolby badge in the settings and turn it on. Likewise, keep an eye out for the Dolby badge on the music you want to stream.

Stream music in Dolby Atmos on Apple Music, Amazon Music Unlimited, or TIDAL HiFi for a truly spatial listening experience.

If you have a Sonos soundbar enabled with Dolby Atmos or Echo Studio, you are all set for a shared listening experience at home.

You can also listen to music in Dolby Atmos on Android or iOS devices with any pair of headphones.

You need the Amazon Music App with an Amazon Music Unlimited subscription. If you don't have it, click here for a free trial.

Be sure to turn on Dolby Atmos in your settings by following the steps below:

• In the Home screen of the Amazon Music app
• Click on the Settings icon (top right)
• Set Dolby Atmos to On

We also recommend setting Loudness Normalisation to On

If you have an Apple TV 4K connect it to a TV, soundbar, or AVR enabled with Dolby Atmos. You can also listen to music in Dolby Atmos on many Apple devices.

You need Apple Music. If you don't have it, click here for a free trial.

Choose how to listen to Dolby Atmos on your iPhone or iPad

1. Update your iPhone or iPad to the latest version of iOS or iPadOS.
2. Go to Settings.
3. Tap Music.
4. Under Audio, tap Dolby Atmos. 
5. Choose Automatic, Always On, or Off.

We also recommend setting Sound Check to On.

If you choose Automatic, here’s what you need

Supported songs automatically play in Dolby Atmos when you're listening with:

• AirPods Pro, AirPods Max, AirPods (3rd generation), or Beats Fit Pro with Spatial Audio turned on
• AirPods (1st or 2nd generation)
• BeatsX, Beats Solo3 Wireless, Beats Studio3, Powerbeats3 Wireless, Beats Flex, Powerbeats Pro, Beats Solo Pro, or Beats Studio Buds
• Any Bluetooth headphones that you categorize as headphones on your iPhone or iPad
• The built-in speakers on an iPhone XS or later (except iPhone SE), iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd generation or later), iPad Pro 11-inch, or iPad Air (4th generation or later)

If you choose Always On, here’s what you need

If you want to use wired headphones, choose Always On.

For more info on how to enjoy Dolby Atmos from Apple Music on iPad, HomePod, Mac, or Android Dolby Atmos-enabled devices, visit Apple Support here.

Tidal

If you have a Sony or Philips Android TV enabled with Dolby Atmos, or an LG TV enabled with Dolby Atmos, you’re all set for a shared Dolby Atmos listening experience at home.

If you have a TV, soundbar or AVR enabled with Dolby Atmos, you can also use a compatible TV-connected device. These include Apple TV 4K (running tvOS 13 or later), Fire TV (Fire TV Stick 4K, Fire TV Gen 3 2017, Fire TV Cube 1st Gen or 2nd Gen), Nvidia Shield TV and Shield TV Pro (2019 and newer models). 

You can also listen to music in Dolby Atmos on recent Android and iOS devices with Dolby Atmos. If you have a Sennheiser soundbar enabled with Dolby Atmos, you can use Tidal Connect from the Tidal mobile app to playback Dolby Atmos on your soundbar from you mobile device.

For more info on how to listen to Dolby Atmos on Tidal on enabled smartphones, tablets and wireless and wired headphones, visit Tidal Support here.

You need the Tidal (Hifi Plus) App - If you don't have it, click here for a free trial.

For the best listening experience, please ensure that “Loudness Normalisation” is turned on in the TIDAL app.

Dolby Vision empowers visual creatives to add greater depth, incredible contrast, and more colours than you dreamed possible to the movies, TV shows, and games you love. It unlocks the full potential of HDR technology by dynamically optimising the image quality based on your service, device, and platform to deliver mesmerising visuals every time. But don't take our word for it, hear what the creatives behind your favourite entertainment have to say about it.

To enable Dolby Vision on your device you'll need to check just three things to make sure you are set up to watch in the mesmerising picture of Dolby Vision.

1) Make sure your device is enabled with Dolby Vision by looking for the badge at point of purchase or just ask a sales assistant.

2) Check to make sure that your streaming service and subscription both support Dolby Vision. You can’t go wrong here with platforms such as Apple TV+, Netflix, Max, Paramount+, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+ or a cable service like Comcast.

3) Be sure that your subscription plan supports Dolby Vision. Once you’ve done that just look for the Dolby Vision badge on the title page of your chosen entertainment.

That’s it! Your TV should do the rest by automatically detecting and setting everything just right for a premium experience.

Dolby Atmos is a pioneering spatial audio experience that allows creators to place individual sounds in three-dimensional space so you’re inside the soundscape. The result is clarity, depth, and details like never before. Whether you’re gaming, watching your favorite movies or shows or listening to that new track on repeat, Dolby Atmos transports you into a spatial sound experience that draws you in deeper, so you hear more and feel more. 

To enable Dolby Atmos on your device is pretty simple really. You’ll need to check just three things to make sure you are set up to experience the lifelike spatial audio of Dolby Atmos.

1) Make sure your device supports Dolby Atmos by looking for the badge at point of purchase or just ask a sales assistant.

2) Check to make sure that your streaming service and subscription both support Dolby Atmos and that you meet all device requirements. You can’t go wrong here with platforms such as Apple TV+, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Netflix, Max, Paramount+, Vudu, and more!

3) Be sure that your subscription plan supports Dolby Atmos. Once you’ve done that just look for the Dolby Atmos badge on the title page of your chosen entertainment.

That's it! No extra steps needed, your setup should automatically detect and set everything just right for you to enjoy sound that moves you.