For anyone working with spatial audio in Logic Pro, it's crucial to understand the difference between the Dolby Renderer and the Apple Renderer. While both are used to preview a Dolby Atmos mix using headphones, one of them will be more useful for sending your spatial mixes out into the world. Let's unpack that.

Spatial Mixing Native to Logic Pro

In October 2021, Apple released Logic Pro 10.7, making spatial mixing native to the digital audio workstation. The Dolby Atmos plugin was introduced, which allows you to render spatial mixes without the physical hardware requirements; eight or more speakers in a surround format. Instead, you can create and listen to spatial mixes simply using a pair of headphones.

Spatial mixing sounds immersive because of the ability to pan audio tracks 360 degrees around the listener. Additionally, you can place sounds vertically, resulting in a 3-dimensional listening experience. To hear it for yourself, you can enable Dolby Atmos for Apple Music and see how it compares to stereo tracks.

These changes to Logic Pro allow you to export your spatial mixes in the Dolby Atmos format required for distribution on supporting streaming services like Apple Music, Amazon Music, and Tidal.

Why Did Logic Release an Apple Renderer?

A screenshot of the Dolby Atmos plugin in Logic Pro

In March 2022, Logic Pro introduced the Apple Renderer in its 10.7.3 update. For bedroom producers and professionals alike, this update was huge. Alongside the original Dolby Atmos Renderer, the Apple Renderer now lets you preview your Dolby Atmos tracks as they would be heard on the Apple Music streaming service.

This includes a renderer for Apple's Head Tracking feature, and for playback through Apple's in-built speakers on Apple Silicon Macs.

Before now, creating and exporting a Dolby Atmos track in Logic Pro didn't guarantee that your music would be heard exactly the same way on the Apple Music platform, due to Apple's choice of a unique encoding and rendering process. As a solution to this issue, you can now use the Apple Renderer instead of the Dolby Atmos Renderer to preview your music as it would sound on Apple Music.

Dolby Atmos vs. Apple Renderer

Screenshot of the Dolby Atmos plugin in Logic Pro with blue orbs positioned around a virtual head indicating sound placement

Now that there are three additional Apple renderers you can use to preview spatial music on Logic Pro, it's essential to know when and why you would choose a particular format. Except for the In-Built format, it's important to note that each renderer is intended for binaural listening on headphones.

The Dolby and Apple renderers can be changed by opening the Dolby Atmos plugin on the Master channel and selecting the renderer from the monitoring format list. The option you choose will depend on a few things, so take a look at the following differences between each renderer.

Dolby Renderer

If you intend to distribute your spatial music tracks on Amazon Music or Tidal streaming services, then the Dolby Renderer will be your go-to monitoring format. In short, both streaming services will encode your Dolby Atmos track (ADM BWF file) using the codec DD+JOC for speaker playback, or AC4-IMS for headphone playback.

Most importantly, both services will retain the Binaural Render Mode settings you used in the original Dolby Atmos Mix. Practically, this means you can listen to a Dolby Atmos track on one of these platforms and use it as an accurate reference to compare your own mix to in Logic Pro.

Apple Renderer

If you intend to distribute your music on Apple Music, the encoding process differs. Most importantly, Apple Music has chosen not to use the AC4-IMS codec that will retain the Binaural Render Mode settings from your Dolby Atmos mix. Instead, Apple has opted to use its own "Spatial Audio" renderer that essentially interprets a Dolby Atmos mix in its own special way.

You can account for this in Logic Pro by setting your monitoring format to Apple Renderer. This way you can hear what your mix will sound like when played back on Apple Music using headphones.

Apple Renderer (Head Tracking)

You may have heard of Apple's Head Tracking feature which is available exclusively on Apple AirPods Pro, AirPods Max, and Beats Fit Pro when used alongside an Apple device that supports spatial music. It's an interesting listening format that anchors the audio image in front of you so that even if you move your head left and right, the music continues to come from the same position.

One way you can think of it is to imagine someone playing guitar in a room. Even if you walk around the room listening to the sound from different positions, the music will remain in the same place. If you want to create audio for this format, there is no other way to preview how it will sound on Apple devices besides using Apple Renderer (Head Tracking).

In-Built Speakers

The final option is for those who have an Apple Silicon Mac with macOS Monterey. The in-built speakers on these Macs will support spatial listening, giving you a useful option to listen to your mix out loud instead of on headphones.

To enable this monitoring format, you will need to set your preferences to In-Built Speakers in the Audio Options menu. If you're in the market for a Mac computer with Apple Silicon, check out our list of the best Apple M1 Devices. Other Silicon Macs include the Mac Studio (2022) and the MacBook Pro (2021).

Picking the Right Renderer

Screenshot from the Apple website showing an illustration of an iMac and speaker radius

While the spatial mixing workflow isn't exactly straightforward, knowing the difference between these renderers will get you on the right track.

If you're making music specifically for Apple Music, then it's essential to listen to your mix with the Apple Renderer to get an accurate idea of how it will sound on the platform. However, Dolby Atmos has been around for a long time, and using the Dolby Renderer will work just fine if you want to preview your mixes for distribution on other streaming services like Amazon or Tidal.

The reality of mixing spatial music is that there isn't a one-size-fits-all solution at the moment. Instead of listening to your track in just one monitoring format, you will likely end up trying it out on multiple renderers when possible to get the best idea of how your mix will sound to listeners.

If you have the ability to test your mix on in-built Mac speakers, for example, then it's worth doing so alongside checking how it sounds on headphones.

Dolby Atmos vs. Apple Renderer: Which Will You Choose?

While spatial music isn't new, Logic Pro is making the format more accessible to music artists and engineers everywhere. The addition of the Apple Renderer now completes the cycle of creation and distribution to Apple Music streaming, further reinforcing the Apple ecosystem.

Despite this, you have the option of mixing spatial music for more than just Apple Music by knowing which renderer to use.