A finished Atmos track leaves the studio as two files. One is the stereo master, 24-bit WAV at the sample rate it was mastered. The other is an ADM BWF: a Broadcast Wave file that carries the Audio Definition Model metadata Apple and Dolby both require for immersive ingest. Those two files are not the same recording. IFPI’s 2022 bulletin on immersive recordings treats the Atmos mix as a new recording, and Apple Music requires a unique secondary ISRC on every Atmos submission.
Hi-res is a different job sitting on the first file. A 24-bit master at 96 kHz or 192 kHz is still the stereo recording, still the original ISRC. Services that run a hi-res tier transcode down from that one file. Send 16-bit / 44.1 kHz and you have already capped every lossless ladder at CD quality.
What follows is the checklist a label actually runs before a distributor can send either file: the stereo master, the Atmos master and its identifiers, where each one plays, and the QC failures that bounce a delivery. Dolby Atmos and Hi-Res Audio is included on every LabelGrid distribution plan, with no per-track add-on.
Hi-Res Is the Same Recording, Atmos Is Not
IFPI’s rule for a new ISRC is creative identity. A different mix, a different edit, or a new surround mix built from stems all take a new code, and the 2022/01 bulletin applies that rule to immersive audio in so many words. The stereo master keeps the ISRC it already has. The Atmos mix gets another one. Apple’s provider docs call it a unique secondary ISRC and will not take the immersive file without it.
That split is why “upload the hi-res WAV and tick Atmos” is the wrong mental model. Hi-res is resolution on the stereo recording. Atmos is a second mix, authored in a Dolby renderer from the multitrack or from stems taken from that multitrack. Apple’s immersive profile is explicit: files generated from a mono or stereo mix are not allowed, and upmixing is not allowed. A stereo image parked in a 3D field with extra reverb is also out.
Leave the format names out of the titles. Apple’s Music Style Guide bars “Atmos”, “Dolby Atmos”, “spatial audio”, “lossless” and “24-bit” as title add-ons. Stores apply their own badges once the file qualifies. Putting the badge in the metadata is a QC fail, not a marketing line.
The Stereo Master DSPs Encode From
Send the native master. One file per track. The stores transcode; you should not.
- Bit depth as mastered. If the session came out at 24-bit, send 24-bit. Spotify’s artist file-format page says not to manufacture a 16-bit copy from a 24-bit master. Apple Digital Masters forbids upsampling or bit-padding a 16-bit / 44.1 kHz file to impersonate 24-bit.
- Sample rate as mastered. 44.1 kHz and 48 kHz are both normal. Spotify’s lossless ceiling is 24-bit / 44.1 kHz FLAC; anything above that is reduced internally.
- Stereo, lossless. Spotify prefers FLAC and converts WAV losslessly on ingest. On LabelGrid, send a 24-bit master as WAV; FLAC is accepted at 16-bit only. MP3 and AAC are rejected at upload because a lossy file has already thrown data away, and the DSP will encode it again.
- One stereo master, not a 16-bit version and a 24-bit version of the same recording. Spotify states that limit in one sentence: one high-quality stereo master per track.
- True-peak at or below -1 dB TP, measured to ITU-R BS.1770. Apple’s immersive profile uses the same ceiling on the Atmos file. That ceiling is headroom for the encode, not loudness. Playback level is normalized later.
DDEX carries those properties as AudioCodecType, BitsPerSample, SamplingRate and NumberOfChannels. LabelGrid emits them on ERN 3.8.2 and on 4.3.0, 4.3.1 and 4.3.2. You do not fill those fields by hand. You do have to give the pipeline a master that makes the declaration true.
The Atmos Master: ADM BWF, Loudness, Second ISRC
Dolby’s deliverable is an ADM BWF. Apple’s immersive profile asks for the same wrapper: Broadcast Wave Format Audio Definition Model, 24-bit LPCM, at 48 kHz or 96 kHz. LabelGrid’s Dolby tab expects 24-bit / 48 kHz. Dolby’s renderer can mix at 96 kHz for archive; distribution and encoding run at 48 kHz, so convert before you upload rather than sending the archive file.
Loudness is a hard ceiling, not a taste setting. Apple’s immersive profile sets integrated loudness not to exceed -18 LKFS and true-peak not to exceed -1 dB TP, both measured per ITU-R BS.1770-4. If your stereo chain is built around Spotify’s -14 LUFS playback target, do not copy that number onto the immersive file. It is a different meter path.
Sync the two versions. Apple requires the Atmos files to be conformed and synced to the stereo reference for the same project, and strongly suggests shipping both. On LabelGrid the Dolby tab is where the ADM BWF and its ISRC go, next to the stereo upload, and the duration of the two files has to match.
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See PlansWhere It Plays, and What Falls Back to Stereo
Immersive playback is a short list. Apple Music surfaces it as Spatial Audio. Amazon Music streams Dolby Atmos as Dolby Digital Plus Joint Object Coding at 16-bit / 48 kHz, 448 or 768 kbps: the ADM BWF you delivered is the source, the EC-3 stream is what the listener gets. TIDAL kept Atmos as its immersive format after 24 July 2024, when MQA and Sony 360 Reality Audio stopped playing on the service. Every other store on a standard delivery gets the stereo master and does not need a second file.
Hi-res is the stereo file again, sliced by each service’s ceiling.
Amazon Music HD is 16-bit / 44.1 kHz FLAC, about 800 kbps. Ultra HD is 24-bit FLAC at 48 kHz, with 96 kHz and 192 kHz optional. Qobuz calls CD quality 16-bit / 44.1 kHz FLAC and Hi-Res 24-bit from 44.1 kHz through 192 kHz. TIDAL’s HiRes FLAC is any FLAC above 16-bit / 44.1 kHz, up to 24-bit / 192 kHz; Max quality walks HiRes FLAC, then FLAC, then AAC, so a missing hi-res source silently drops the listener a rung. Spotify lossless is up to 24-bit / 44.1 kHz FLAC. Deezer HiFi is 16-bit / 44.1 kHz FLAC, which is CD quality, not hi-res.
Apple Music’s lossless path uses ALAC. Sample rates above 48 kHz typically need an external DAC; the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro can play natively up to 96 kHz. Bluetooth is not lossless, so a wireless hop will never prove the master you sent. That is a playback constraint, not a reason to downsample the delivery.
The Rejections You Can Stop at Upload
Five mistakes bounce a delivery. None of them require a DSP ticket to diagnose.
Upmix. If the immersive file was built from the stereo master, Apple will not take it. Neither will a distributor that validates against that profile. Source-separation “stems” pulled out of a stereo bounce sit in the same bucket. Start from the session.
Missing secondary ISRC. Apple’s provider page is not optional language. No second code, no Atmos ingest. Reusing the stereo ISRC on the ADM BWF is the same failure.
Drift. If the Atmos file is a different length, or the downbeat does not land on the stereo downbeat, sync has failed. Trim to the stereo reference.
Title badges. “Dolby Atmos” in the track title, “Hi-Res” on the cover, “Spatial Audio” in the version field. Apple’s style guide already forbids it. The store will badge a qualifying file on its own.
Lossy stereo. An MP3 bounced to WAV is still a lossy master. Hi-res tiers cannot invent the data that encode already discarded, and a second lossy encode on the DSP side makes it worse. Send the 24-bit WAV the mastering house signed off.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a separate ISRC for a Dolby Atmos mix?
Yes. IFPI treats an immersive mix as a different recording from the stereo mix, so it gets its own ISRC. Apple requires a unique secondary ISRC on every Atmos submission. The stereo master keeps the original code. On LabelGrid you enter the Atmos ISRC on the track editor’s Dolby tab when you upload the ADM BWF.
What file format does Dolby Atmos music delivery need?
An ADM BWF file: Broadcast Wave Format carrying Audio Definition Model metadata. Apple’s immersive profile requires 24-bit LPCM at 48 kHz or 96 kHz. LabelGrid’s Dolby tab expects 24-bit / 48 kHz, which is also the rate Dolby uses for encoding and distribution. The mix has to be created from multitracks or stems. Upmixing from stereo is not allowed.
Which streaming platforms support Dolby Atmos?
Apple Music (as Spatial Audio), Amazon Music, and TIDAL. Listeners on stores that do not support Atmos hear the stereo master instead. Amazon streams the immersive mix as Dolby Digital Plus Joint Object Coding; you still deliver the ADM BWF, and the service encodes it.
What counts as hi-res audio for DSPs?
Above CD quality. CD quality is 16-bit / 44.1 kHz lossless. Qobuz defines Hi-Res as 24-bit at 44.1 kHz through 192 kHz. TIDAL’s HiRes FLAC is any FLAC above 16-bit / 44.1 kHz, up to 24-bit / 192 kHz. Amazon Music Ultra HD is 24-bit FLAC at 48 kHz, with 96 kHz and 192 kHz optional. Spotify’s lossless tier tops out at 24-bit / 44.1 kHz FLAC. Deezer HiFi is 16-bit / 44.1 kHz FLAC, which is CD quality, not hi-res.
Can I upmix a stereo master to Dolby Atmos?
No. Apple’s immersive profile forbids Atmos files generated from mono or stereo mixes, forbids upmixing, and requires the Atmos track to be created from multitracks or from stems made from those multitracks. A stereo mix placed in the sound field with added ambience is also rejected. Build the immersive mix from the session, then deliver it next to the stereo master.
Getting Started
On LabelGrid the stereo file goes on the track as usual. The Atmos file goes on the Dolby tab, with its own ISRC in that same tab. The upload checks that the ADM BWF is valid and that duration matches the stereo master. Immersive audio goes to the stores that accept it. Stereo goes everywhere else.
Start a release at app.labelgrid.com. The upload path and file specs are in the Dolby Atmos help article. Distribution for labels covers the rest of the catalogue workflow, and plans show Atmos and hi-res included on every distribution plan rather than as an add-on.
