Mercedes Finally Gives Customers What They've Been Begging For: A Mobile Sound Studio

Let's say that again, just so everyone is clear. Mercedes turned the Maybach S-Class into a mobile sound studio. 

Basically, if you plug in a laptop with audio production software loaded, it works with the Maybach's screens and sound comes out of the bangin' audio system – allegedly with performance equal to a professional production studio. "The system allows for individual control of the car’s advanced speaker setup, enabling precise audio engineering on the go," Mercedes explains. Finally, our mobile music mixing prayers are answered.

The concept was unveiled at Interscope Studio in Los Angeles with a couple of celebrated music producers in attendance, including Finneas Baird O'Connell and Aron Forbes. O'Connell is better known as FINNEAS and for his work with his sister, Billie Eilish, along with a slew of major artists. Aron Forbes has also worked with Eilish and his list of credits includes Halsey, Banks, and Olivia Rodrigo.

The project is a collaboration between Mercedes-Benz, Universal Music Group, and Dolby, leaning into the quality of the Dolby Atmos system. Of course, a Mercedes-Maybach is going to be a comfortable place to post up with a laptop and work on a mix, but we're not so sure it would be ideal while moving. While a Mercedes-Maybach is exceptionally quiet inside for a car, it's not remotely quiet for a studio and doesn't block outside noise completely.

Of course, what this is really about is branding the Maybach as having studio-quality sound, which is no mean feat. Studio-quality sound usually means a sound-treated room designed to spec. A car is just about the hardest place to aim for a great level of sound quality, let alone studio quality. The ideal shape for a studio is square or oblong, and without windows to bounce around from. Not only is a car full of odd angles for sound to bounce off, but glass is a major feature, as well as soft materials like seats sticking up and blocking sound waves.

To get great sound quality in cars, it's much more than the input signal quality, digital to audio converter (DAC), amplifiers, and speakers. It's the speaker placement and tuning. Speaker placement and tuning is as much about where the speaker is placed as it is what materials surround it, and to get quality sound, the engineering needs to be built into the car's overall design. We can only imagine the sound engineers trying to mesh with structural designers and interior developers to find a happy middle-ground.

What Is Dolby Atmos Anyway?
Dolby Atmos is a form of surround sound technology from Dobly Technologies. It differs from typical surround systems by adding height channels and the ability to render three-dimensional sound using a total of 128 separate audio tracks. It has been around since 2012, reaching consumer electronics around 2016. It has struggled for mass adoption, as Dolby recommends a minimum of 10 speakers, including four overhead speakers – meaning mounted in the ceiling.

The cost, the numbers of speakers, and the complexity of placing them, have caused adoption to be slow. At this point, it's unlikely to see regular use in home systems. There are smaller setups that reflect sound from ceilings, but the quality is affected drastically by the room they are in and is rarely satisfactory compared to proper installation.

Not So Far-Fetched After All?
Interestingly, the number of speakers and placement makes Atmos reasonably suited for cars, although it is expensive. Speaking with major producer Elliot Scheiner at an event with Acura a few years ago, we learned that musicians do, in fact, use Atmos in cars to give a thumbs up or down on an Atmos mix. The telling thing there is that they don't use their sound system at home, because it's not that widely adopted. Which leads to the next issue.

Many upmarket automakers are pushing advanced sound systems in their cars, including spatial audio systems. However, as mixing for Atmos is expensive and time-consuming for a technology not widely adopted, there isn't a huge catalog of music available in the format. And some of it, frankly, is not well mixed.

With properly recorded and mixed music, Dolby Atmos, 3D, or spatial audio surround sound in general are incredibly immersive formats in a car, but before splashing out on that feature, we recommend checking that there's enough music you like available in the format before spending. Right now, Spotify doesn't have any official Dolby Atmos support, but Apple Music, Amazon, and Tidal do work with Dolby. Big artists are more likely to have their back catalog remixed, but if you like older music, that's going to be the most limited.

But, if you're a music producer who's constantly on the go, perhaps one day you can dial in that perfect mix while sitting in LA's infamous traffic. That way, when you get to the actual studio, there's more time for hobnobbing with the performers and margaritas by the pool.