Surround

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“Art is not about the shock of something new.
It’s about arranging the old in such a way that you see it afresh.”

Sarah Kane

WOW. This is the most visited pages on my weblog. I love that: obviously there are many people enjoying (or interested in) surround ambient. Good thing!
I’d love to read your comment: did you enjoy the mixes? Or perhaps not? If not, why?
Please use the comment section below to let me know if making the surround versions of the mixes is worth the effort.

Most music is created and optimized for stereo listening pleasure, and often does not sound really well in surround unless it was specifically created for that purpose.
But immersive music like ambient soundscapes can benefit greatly when it can be enjoyed in full surround.

In recent years I have re-edited most of the Ambientblog Mixes to full DTS 5.1  surround versions for my own enjoyment (I’m a true sucker for surround ambient!!). So why not share them with you to enjoy them too? (*)

These surround mixes are not ‘discrete’ 5.1 channel mixes: I’d have to have access to the master tapes for that. I left each tracks stereo mix untouched but placed it somewhere in the front/back (or both) sound field to create a nice immersive effect. Your own acoustic environment will definitely add its personal touch!

All files are DTS.WAV format – please read the note below before downloading and playing them!
(Some archives also contain a WMA-surround version)

Click image for playlist details. Click the title to download the file.

If you experience (network) errors downloading these files, it often helps to try again a few moments later. Please contact me at info [at] ambientblog [dot] net if that doesn’t work: I’ll be happy to send the files to you  in a different way


Winter Solstice 5WINTER SOLSTICE 5 (December 2023)
(1.1GB)
The original mix is split into 2 parts so they can be burned to CD-R when needed (check notes)


In Praise of the Saddest ChordIN PRAISE OF THE SADDEST CHORD (May 2023)
(902Mb)


Winter Solstice 4WINTER SOLSTICE 4 (December 2022)
(1.7GB)
The original mix is split into 2 parts so they can be burned to CD-R when needed (check notes)


CloudwatchingCLOUDWATCHING (October 2022)
(1.7GB)
The original mix is split into 2 parts so they can be burned to CD-R when needed (check notes)


Time To ListenTIME TO LISTEN (July 2022)
(871Mb)


Winter Solstice 3WINTER SOLSTICE 3 (December 2021)
(1.1GB)
The original mix is split into 2 parts so they can be burned to CD-R when needed (check notes)


Ambient DaydreamAMBIENT DAYDREAM (September 2021)
(744Mb)


SoundWaveSOUNDWAVE (April 2021)
(715Mb)


Winter SolsticeWINTER SOLSTICE 2: Music for long winter nights (December 2020)
(1.31GB)
The original mix is split into 2 parts so they can be burned to CD-R when needed (check notes)


Upon DepartureUPON DEPARTURE (October 2020)
(865Mb)


LockdownLOCKDOWN (April 2020)
(867Mb)


Winter SolsticeWINTER SOLSTICE: Music for the end of the longest night (December 2019)
(1.6GB)
The original mix is split into 2 parts so they can be burned to CD-R when needed (check notes)


Radical CandorRADICAL CANDOR (July 2019)
(852Mb)


Delusional

DELUSIONAL (January 2019)
(877Mb)


No Stars

NO STARS (March 2018)
(716Mb)


Mind Awake, Body Asleep

MIND AWAKE, BODY ASLEEP (May 2017)
(580Mb)


Perception Management

PERCEPTION MANAGEMENT (December 2016)
(563MB)


Solace

SOLACE (July 2016)
(576MB)


Secret 41

SECRET 41 (April 2016)
(580MB)


Rope To The Sky

ROPE TO THE SKY (Anniversary Mix) (October 2015)
(1.3GB)
The original mix is split into 3 parts so they can be burned to CD-R when needed (check notes)


Entropic

ENTROPIC (July 2015)
(534MB)


Sounds of a Tired City #32

GHOST ROAD STROLL (April 2015)
(532MB)


Jam Karet (Elastic Time)

JAM KARET (ELASTIC TIME) (February 2015)
(591MB)


Siren Song

SIREN SONG (December 2014)
(552MB)


Synaptic Research

SYNAPTIC RESEARCH (April 2014)
(552MB)


Incidental Memories

INCIDENTAL MEMORIES (January 2014)
(554MB)


Tristesse D'Automne

TRISTESSE D’AUTOMNE (October 2013)
(542MB)


Parallax

PARALLAX (June 2013)
(544MB)


Rust

RUST (March 2013)
(555MB)


Broken Lines

BROKEN LINES (January 2013)
(547MB)


Gathering Clouds

GATHERING CLOUDS (September 2012)
(541MB)


Flowers and Bones

FLOWERS AND BONES (June 2012)
(524MB)


Solaris Mindset

SOLARIS MINDSET (March 2012)
(546MB)


Stillness

STILLNESS (January 2012)
(535MB)


November Thoughts

NOVEMBER THOUGHTS (November 2011)
(553MB)


Teloorgang

TELOORGANG (DECAY AND LOSS) (September 2011)
(553MB)


Discouraging Intruders

DISCOURAGING INTRUDERS (June 2011)
(529MB)


Amnesia

AMNESIA (April 2011)
(529MB)


Fovea Hex

FOVEA HEX: NEITHER SPEAK NOR REMAIN SILENT (January 2011)
(549MB)


Dawn Secrets

DAWN SECRETS (January 2011)
(540MB)


Secret Chords & Apparitions

SECRET CHORDS & APPARITIONS (December 2010)
(546MB)


Invisible Ink

INVISIBLE INK (September 2010)
(552MB)


Recyclopedia Remix

FRANS FRIEDERICH: [R]ECYCLOPEDIA [R]EMIX (March 2010)
(537MB)


Miserere

MISERERE (January 2010)
(556MB)


Utsura Uutsura

UTSURA UTSURA (December 2009)
(501MB)


The Hum in the Room

THE HUM IN THE ROOM (October 2009)
(545MB)


Acoustical Illusions

ACOUSTICAL ILLUSIONS (September 2009)
(536MB)


Mantra of Walls and Wiring

MANTRA OF WALLS AND WIRING (July 2009)
(548MB)


Important note on using these files:
All these surround files are DTS.WAVs. You need a surround sound decoder (multichannel setup) to play them. If you play them on a regular (stereo) system you may only hear a loud (and I mean LOUD) noise that might damage your speakers.

Most home cinema sets include DVD-players capable of playing DTS surround sound files directly from CD/DVD. This means the easiest way of using these files is:

  • download the file and unzip it
  • Burn the extracted WAV file to disc, exactly the same way you burn any audio disc.
    Note: this does not need to be a DVD: audio CD will do fine.
    Depending on your system, it’s advisable to use the lowest burning speed to prevent writing errors
  • Play the CD on your home cinema/surround sound system. Most systems will automatically recognise the signal and switch to DTS surround settings.
    Make sure the sound level is low when starting the CD: if you hear a loud white noise the system does not recognise the DTS signal. 
  • If you hear the mix as expected, turn up the output level for the maximum result!
  • Enjoy (and please leave a comment below)

Converting to 5.1. WAV:
If you prefer to use 5.1 WAV-files instead of the DTS-format, you can use Foobar2000 to convert these DTS files into surround WAVs. The WAV will increase the file size significantly (almost triple in some cases), which is why I don’t offer these as a download. But converting them is quick and easy!
(Thanks to J.Pupster for the suggestion)

Software Media Players:
VLC Media Player can decode and play DTS-surround files on your computer. Of course, you also need a surround (5.1) speaker system to enjoy the full surround sound.
If you play a surround mix on a set with 2 channels, the sound of the back speakers may disappear and so the mix is unbalanced. So if you’re listening with a two-speaker setup, simply listen to the stereo version!

Streaming directly:
Some streaming devices may also be capable of streaming the DTS-WAV’s directly and delivering the signal to your audio system (that does the final decoding to surround). If you’re lucky enough to have one of these, you don’t need to burn the CD, you can simply stream the WAV file to the surround receiver.
I assume that any streaming device that can stream uncompressed WAV and is connected using a digital link might be capable of streaming these DTS files, but I’d like to know about your experiences.
It may be of interest to other visitors too – so please leave a comment below. (Any info on SONOS perhaps?)


(*)
Well, to be honest: one of the reasons I hesitated to put them online was the amount of disk space it takes: to be able to store all surround versions I have made, I had to double the webspace – and so double the cost of hosting.
This website is (and remains) ad-free and generates no money… So unnecessary to say that any donation to help pay for the web hosting is greatly appreciated!

(Donations are handled securely by PayPal)



Thanks!

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22 Comments

    1. Thank you VERY much for mentioning this to me! It is fixed now.

      The button on this Surround page wasn’t working correctly, while the button in the right-hand column worked OK. Don’t know why they became different, but they are now both fine now.
      Thanks again!
      Peter

  1. Gordon

    Hi, just wanted to let you know that this 24 year old in AZ has been dutifully downloading and listening to all these mixes for the past couple of days. I super appreciate what you have done here, all the while providing the downloads free of charge. Thanks a lot!

    1. BTW – The mixes are of course offered free of charge because none of it contains my music. It is all created from music by other artists. I hope the mixes (and the recommendations) help others to further check out the music that appeals to them.

  2. J. Pupster

    Peter, just discovered your blog page through Quadraphonicquad.com. I believe I see where you posted there a few times, but it shows you haven’t been there in over a year (hope you are doing well.) I’m just now checking out some of these and believe they are very well done for sure. Usually what I do with dts.wav files is open it in Fooobar2000 and convert to wav 5.1 and then save it to an USB SSD to be played on my system through an oppo Universal player.

    Will be checking in often – Much Thanks!

    1. Thanks for your suggestion about converting DTS to WAV 5.1 using Foobar2000. May be of use to other listeners – and myself too. I will definitely check it out myself (and possibly consider putting the WAV 5.1 in the download package along with the DTS).

      Thanks also for your kind words about the mixes. I do not visit quadraphonicquad.com myself often, simply because ambientblog.net takes a lot of my time. Maybe I should be visiting the site more often! In the meantime, I hope that regular readers like yourself help promote these surround mixes to a new audience that might also enjoy them.
      Thanks for listening!
      Peter

  3. What a remarkable job you’ve done. I’ve remixed some of your dts files into QS so I can play them in the car or on a portable device with headphones. The nice thing with QS is the phase shifting that system uses tricks the brain into thinking sounds are coming from 360 degrees.
    wish your Winter Solstice was available for Christmas – what a welcome way to escape from the madness of the day that would be.
    what is the legality of broadcasting your mixes (clearances, rights, etc)
    also – i’d be happy to host some of your mixes on my sites if that helps in anyway.
    all the best
    Bill

    1. Hi Bill.
      I am not familiar with the QS format and would like to know more about that. I’ll email you about this (would take too much words here). Keep an eye on this page in the days before Christmas: Winter Solstice is the last part of an 8-hour ambient radio broadcast on Concertzender Nederland on December 21-22 (23:00 – 07:00), and it will be published here after the radio show – so it will probably be available on Christmas.

  4. Brian

    Ambient Blog is literally one of the best Surround Sound communities around. I visit it everyday and I am grateful to have found surroundsoundreviewers.com. They helped me find a great system for my home and I really hope this helps others. Information is power LOL.

    1. Thanks for your nice words. But I don’t think that Ambientblog is a ‘surround sound community’, it just hosts a bunch of surround sound ambient mixes. Maybe it isn’t even an ambient community since there is hardly any discussion or reaction for that matter. It’s just an ambient blog that (quote Brian Eno) ‘is as ignoring as it is interesting’ 😉

  5. Sonny

    Thank you so much for this… Please can anyone point me in the right direction for simple ambient surround sound mixes of real world things like… a Clockshop or just Forest Sounds?

  6. Chris

    These are great, thank you!

    I found your collection after much googling to explain this very concept to my fiancee.

    I can play these directly on my PC by renaming them from .wav to .dts and my media player knows then to send it through the LAV splitter/decoder.

  7. Scott M2

    Agree strongly with Stephen and look forward to exploring these mixes Peter. My favourite pleasure is immersing myself in good surround music. In the ambient vein, after Peter Namlook, Diatonis has the deepest ambient catalog mixed for surround. Both are highly recommended.

    Advance notice Stephen that Jamie (from dreamSTATE) is currently remixing his URM albums in surround for release in the near future.

  8. Stephen Philips

    Very nice mixes. It’s a shame we don’t see more 5.1 mixes in the ambient world. I really believe that 5.1 surround was created just so ambient music could be presented properly. We live in a surround sound world, why aren’t more people making surround mixes? Get on it people 🙂