Inside the Canadian lab building Dolby Atmos spatial audio into GM vehicles

Growing up close to Oshawa, Ont., GM Canada surrounded everything that I did. My brother worked overnights there; the house of the founder, Robert Samuel McLaughlin (shoutout to Billy Madison) is here; there are murals everywhere, and, honestly, much more that I am probably forgetting.

However, despite all of these connections, I have never actually toured a GM facility before — so when I was offered the chance to take a peek inside GM’s Canadian Technical Centre (CTC) in Markham to get a full behind-the-scenes experience of the Dolby Atmos sound system standard in Cadillacs, I made my way there as soon as I could.

What the CTC does

Image credit: GM

Before we dig into Atmos, let’s talk about what GM’s Canadian Technical Centre (CTC) actually does. Unfortunately, we weren’t allowed to take pictures while touring the facility (GM is working on confidential future tech there), but the company did provide some images of the technical centre for us to include throughout this piece.

Opened in 2018 and currently employing 1,100 engineers, the CTC is a major technology and software development centre focused on vehicle software and electronics, autonomous driving, active safety, and the digital vehicle experience (infotainment).

One cool little tidbit GM execs shared with the group of us who were there for the Dolby Atmos test is that both the Dolby Atmos sound system (the version made for GM vehicles) and SuperCruise (GM’s autonomous driving system) were developed at this technical facility.

But why do you need a technical facility like this for Dolby Atmos? Well, to get the sound right, it requires specialized software and coding to harmonize with the vehicle’s dimensions, infotainment structure, and hardware — all while using a variety of different systems and different manufacturers that have to communicate with each other effectively.

Getting the Dolby Atmos sound just right

An engineer pointing to an infotainnment screen in the General Motors Markham Elevation Centre. | Image Credit: GM

Dolby Atmos is a 3D surround sound system that precisely places audio within an environment using a 7.1.4-channel layout, which is the channel layout most professional sound studios use. Essentially, it serves as a surround-sound system for your car and emulates the experience of hearing the song being recorded right in front of you.

This system also can’t simply be installed in the vehicle. It has to be precisely located and fine-tuned for the system to work as intended. In some cases, GM reworked the interiors of vehicles — including changes to the body structure — to ensure they were exactly as the automotive giant wanted.

GM even borrowed Brian Pennington, a sound engineer at Dolby and the person responsible for the broader rollout of Atmos, to help fine-tune the sound system for Cadillac vehicles at the Markham testing facility.

Image credit: GM

Now, as explained to me, you also need the right hardware to ensure that all these lines of code actually sound good in the cabin. With that in mind, GM uses Bosch computers and an AKG sound system (a sister company of Harman/Kardon) to ensure perfect sound and to integrate chimes from both the navigation system and other safety systems in modern vehicles.

I got to see them testing this exact hardware setup in a lab during the tour. Essentially, this testing setup allowed the engineers to make sure the system works properly, address any bugs or issues, and even test the different streaming software that is compatible with Dolby Atmos (Apple Music, Amazon Music, and Tidal support it, though only at certain subscription tiers).

If you’re worried about the compatibility of Dolby Atmos and how many songs will use it, GM representatives told me that 93 of the Billboard 100 had Dolby Atmos versions, with most modern remasters of albums supporting it.

Never listen the same way again

Image credit: GM

At the end of our tour of the facility, I got to sit in Cadillac vehicles equipped with Atmos and really listen to songs like I never have before.

Honestly, as a musichead and drummer myself, I can only really summarize it like this: life-changing.

The song initially picked to test the system was Rocketman by Elton John, and it was the perfect song to experience Atmos at its best.

Sitting in the driver’s side rear passenger seat of a Cadillac Escalade, I could hear every little element of the song. The texture of the ride cymbal, the full sound of the piano, the a cappella backing Elton’s voice, and much more. It was beautiful.

After testing other genres of music, like pop and rap, to really get a feel for how Atmos affects songs in those styles, I listened to Pink Floyd’s Time (if you know, you know). Although I can’t quite put into words how weird it is, I can describe it as feeling like you are sitting in a room surrounded by grandfather clocks.

Atmos really does feel like you are in the room as artists record and create music. It is one thing to experience a band live, but to hear the studio recording of the song as if you are in the studio with them is an unbelievable experience.

To hear all the textures, sounds, mistakes, slip-ups, hidden details, and other little bits of each song honestly takes a while to comprehend. Especially when putting on music afterwards in my own vehicle and missing the extra oomph that I had experienced only half an hour before.

To be frank, I love what Cadillac, a brand that GM said “lost its wing” for a time, did with the inclusion of Dolby Atmos. As someone who loves music, I cannot wait to experience Atmos in a Cadillac again.