Ever since its genesis, there has been a lot of talk about spatial audio. From its inclusion in Apple Music to the now half-dozen variations that appear in headphones from Bose to Sony, the format looks to be here to stay.
But which headphones should you be considering when it comes to the format? I’ve come up with a list of headphones that do it better than the rest.
These headphones all support spatial audio in a range of different streaming platforms, and they’ll all track your head so that the sound flows around you. They’re not cheap — spatial audio never is — but they’ll give you the best possible music and movie performance out of a pair of the best headphones.
The best: Sonos Ace
Sonos put all of its experience making soundbars and speakers into action with the Sonos Ace. They’re the brand’s first headphones, and while there are a couple of weak points (expensive, little Sonos integration) they’re some of the best cans around if you want to enjoy some spatial audio.
Thanks to some very clever tuning from the Sonos audio wizards, the headphones work with Apple Music’s spatial audio as well as Amazon Music Unlimited. They’ll also work with spatial formats on video streaming services, so you can get more immersive movies on the go. That’s pretty cool.
You can even connect them to a Sonos Arc Ultra, and watch your movies and TV in spatial audio that’s been tuned according to the acoustics of your room. It’s one of my favorite features in the headphones.
While some headphones end up thinning out the sound to make it sound larger and more spacious, the Sonos Ace use actual spatial mixes. That means music that’s recorded and mixed for spatial audio, with instruments deliberately placed around a 360-degree soundscape. There’s nothing better for spatial audio than the Sonos Ace.
Best Apple: AirPods Max USB-C
The AirPods Max top Apple’s headphone family tree, and as such, they’re a great way to enjoy the Spatial Audio tracks that you’ll find on Apple Music. They feature head-tracked Spatial Audio, although I find it can get too distracting from the music at hand. I like it in its standard mode.
Like the Sonos Ace above, they use spatial mixes as opposed to the strange approximations that you’ll find in other headphones, like the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones. That means that instruments are better placed, and the music is more full-sounding. There’s no stretching of a stereo mix here, which is always a big bonus. You can even connect them to an Apple TV, so that you can watch movies with full Dolby Atmos sound without the need for a large soundbar.
The Spatial Audio performance is excellent, although Android and Amazon Music Unlimited users aren’t going to get to experience it. If you’re an Apple user looking for some Spatial Audio, however, then the AirPods Max are the way to go.
The runner up: Sony WH-1000XM6
The WH-1000XM6 aren’t necessarily the first headphones that come to mind when you think spatial audio, but they’re one of the few that offer true Dolby Atmos support. You initialize it in the app, which is a bit of a pain, but then it works with spatial mixes that you find on Amazon Music Unlimited.
They’re not the best when it comes to spatial audio — the two options above are better — but it’s still better than headphones that use their own version of the format. It certainly makes the sound bigger, and the instruments are placed well when you listen.
It doesn’t work with Apple Music, unfortunately, so Apple users are better served with the AirPods or the Sonos Ace. If you’re always forgetting to charge your headphones, however, you’ll get more battery and superior ANC with the XM6.
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