Apple Music relaunches One Mix DJ series in spatial audio

By Simon Cohen Published April 20, 2022

Fans of DJ mixes now have a new reason to consider switching to Apple Music. The streaming music service has relaunched its One Mix collection of DJ mixes with the addition of Dolby Atmos Music-powered spatial audio tracks.

To kick off the new feature, Apple Music has partnered with Detroit techno pioneer, DJ, and producer Jeff Mills. His Outer to Inner Atmosphere: The Escape Velocity Mix is an Apple Music exclusive, and the first of many DJ mixes to get the Dolby Atmos treatment.

Apple Music One Mix DJ series in spatial audio. — Apple

“The response to Spatial Audio from both subscribers and creators has been incredible, and we’re thrilled to expand this innovation in sound,” said Stephen Campbell, Apple Music’s global head of dance and electronic music, in an emailed press release. “It’s an honor to have Jeff Mills create our first One Mix in Spatial Audio. He is a generational icon and a true techno pioneer that has taken the concept to a dimension further than we could have dreamt with Outer to Inner Atmosphere: The Escape Velocity Mix.”

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Apple has been making big investments in new audio formats on Apple Music, including a select library of Dolby Atmos Music tracks, and making its entire collection of music available in lossless audio for those who can listen via wired headphones.

You’ll be able to hear the DJ mixes in Dolby Atmos using any set of stereo headphones, but if you own a set of Apple’s AirPods Pro, AirPods 3rd gen, or AirPods Max wireless headphones, you’ll also get to hear these DJ mixes using head-tracking with spatial audio.

This feature adds a further dimension to the immersive Dolby Atmos Music experience by simulating what it would be like to listen using surround sound set of speakers. As you move your head, certain elements of each song stay in their relative positions in space, creating the a sense that you’re sitting in the same room as the artists themselves. It’s kind of the perfect companion to EDM, techno, and other club-inspired DJ genres.

Along with the relauched One Mix sessions, Apple Music has added spatial audio to 15 Boiler Room sessions, all of which were recorded live at nightclubs, festivals, and raves from around the world, including:

Bambii in London, October 16, 2021
Fiyahdred in London, October 16, 2021
HAAi at Sugar Mountain, Melbourne, Australia — February 26, 2022
C.FRIM at Sugar Mountain, Melbourne — February 26, 2022
Analog Soul in New York City
Ash Lauryn in New York City
India Jordan in London, September 4, 2021
Lady Shaka in London, October 16, 2021
Boys Noize in Los Angeles, September 25, 2021
Carista at AVA, Belfast, Ireland — September 25, 2021
FJAAK at AVA, Belfast, September 24, 2021
object blue at AVA, Belfast, Sep 24, 2021
Swoose at AVA, Belfast, September 25, 2021
Benji B in London, September 4, 2021
The Blessed Madonna in London, September 4, 2021

Contributing Editor, A/V

Simon Cohen is a contributing editor to Digital Trends' Audio/Video section, where he obsesses over the latest wireless…

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If you’re a classical music lover, there’s excellent news. You no longer need an app to listen to Apple Music Classical. The service is now also available directly through the web, making it available wherever you have a browser.

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Dolby Atmos is a pretty remarkable experience when heard within a properly tuned car cabin setup, as implemented by Rivian R1S and the Cadillac Optiq, in particular. Now, Dolby and Cadillac have announced that Atmos will be support across the entire line of Cadillac EVs -- which includes the Escalade IQL, Escalade IQ, Lyriq-V, Optiq (as we heard at CES), and Vistiq. Support will also extend into select 2025 models with an over-the-air update, although which are not a part of this announcement.

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An iPhone 15 Max displaying the Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show with Apple AirPods Pro 2 next to it on a wooden table.

One of the coolest technological advancements that happened for Super Bowl LIX, was the broadcast being available with both Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos. After 4K and HDR was added in recent years to improve the visual presentation and take advantage of newer TV technology (even if it is, in reality, a 1080p signal being upscaled with professional-grade equipment), the inclusion of spatial audio steps up the auditory immersiveness for those with a Dolby soundbar or discrete Dolby-capable speaker setup. Hopefully this signals a future where more live TV includes spatial audio presentations.

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