If you’ve ever been to a theater with surround sound system, you know that it adds to the overall experience. It can even make you feel like you’re in the middle of whatever movie or show is playing.

Most new movies and TV shows have audio channels encoded into them for surround sound. Knowing what those channels do can help you decide what kind of system to get for your home.

The Basics

A surround sound system is a great way to become more immersed in your favorite movies and video games. It can also be used to listen to music in a more spatial setting. This can be a great experience for anyone who appreciates visual entertainment as a form of escapism from the stress of everyday life.

Typically, a surround sound system is composed of a subwoofer, front left and right speakers, center speaker, and rear left and rear right speakers. The rear speakers are important for adding a sense of direction to your listening experience. The bass, or low frequencies, are handled by the subwoofer, which delivers powerful vibrations that you feel as well as hear.

The signal for a surround channel is recorded on stream A and stream B, but the identical signals are shifted in time with one another so that they play in opposite directions. The result is that the information in stream A tells the speaker cone to move out, while the information in stream B tells the speaker cone to move in.

5.1

Whether you’re watching movies, playing video games, or enjoying your favorite music, surround sound transforms the audio of your entertainment into an immersive and captivating experience. With five speakers and a subwoofer, surround sound systems create an audio cocoon that envelopes you in rich, high-fidelity audio.

Surround sound systems offer better audio separation than stereo systems, allowing you to hear sounds from different directions. For example, crisp dialogue might come from the center speaker in front of you while the rustling of leaves might be heard from the rear speakers.

Additionally, surround sound systems can be used to reproduce the subtle nuances of music and ambient noises. Using a home theater audio calibration tool or hiring an expert, you can ensure that your surround system is set up properly and delivers improvements you didn’t think were possible. The more speakers you have in your surround setup, the higher quality your audio will be. For the ultimate in sonic immersion, opt for a 5.1 surround sound system.

7.1

A 5.1 surround sound system has five speakers and two subwoofers to deliver quality cinematic audio. However, you can go beyond that and create immersive experiences using seven speakers, or even higher with Dolby Atmos systems that use height speakers in your home.

A receiver acts as the central hub of a multichannel speaker system, directing audio signals to the appropriate speakers. The front left and right speakers handle dialogue and primary vocals, while surround speakers positioned on the sides and rear of your listening area envelop you with sounds and effects, and a subwoofer delivers low-frequency sound, including the physical impact of cinematic explosions and rumbling bass tones.

Regardless of the number of speakers you have, you must take time to optimize your speaker placement. Read your system’s manual for specific instructions on the best way to set up your speakers in your room, as each setup is slightly different and requires adjustments to get the most out of your system.

Dolby Atmos

Dolby Atmos is the current “name brand” spatial audio format that you’ll see in movie theaters, home entertainment systems and even some headphones. It offers a more convincing surround experience than previous Dolby codecs by adding vertical sound channels, specifically overhead speakers (also called ceiling mounted or upward-firing).

Unlike conventional multichannel technology that confines sounds to specific channels in post production, Dolby Atmos allows content creators to treat sound effects as objects that can move and fly around you in three-dimensional space. Helicopters sound like they’re flying over you and raindrops sound as if they’re falling from the sky.

To get the best Dolby Atmos experience, you’ll need a surround sound system that supports it. Typically, that’s at least a 5.1.2 setup (five main “traditional” surround speakers and two overhead channels). It also helps to have a high-quality speaker set. Getting the most out of Dolby Atmos requires a system that can automatically adapt to the room and speaker configuration.