Apple and Mercedes-Benz Announce New Dolby Atmos In-Car Experiences

Apple and Mercedes Benz announced that Apple Music’s Spatial Audio content with support for Dolby Atmos is now available as a native experience in Mercedes Benz vehicles for the first time. Apple Music with Spatial Audio comes fully integrated through the brand's MBUX infotainment system in the Mercedes Maybach S Class, the EQS and EQS SUV, as well as the EQE, EQE SUV and the S Class. These vehicles are all equipped with studio-quality sound, giving drivers a fully immersive listening experience.

Mercedes-Benz announced that it will be offering Dolby Atmos Music experiences in a range of its top car models, allowing drivers and passengers to connect with music to its fullest creative potential. Mercedes-Benz AG is partnering with Dolby Laboratories to "bring the studio right to the car," exploring the full potential of audio systems designed by Burmester Audiosysteme GmbH for immersive audio.

For the audioXpress 2021 Automotive Audio Solutions update, Roger Shively (JJR Acoustics and Co-Chair of the AES Automotive Audio Technical Committee) wrote an expanded overview of the many ways in which the audio industry is increasingly interacting with car manufacturers, particularly in the transition to fully-electric powered vehicles. This article was originally published in audioXpress, June 2021.

Valens, the semiconductor company that is pushing the boundaries of connectivity, announced that its VA6000 chipsets are integrated in the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, launched in September 2020. This marks the first multi-gigabit symmetric link in the world to be deployed in mass production, and the only multi-gigabit technology over unshielded wiring for in-vehicle connectivity.