Sony is basically trying to recreate the experience of listening to live music with 360 Reality Audio. Think of it like a step beyond stereo, you'd ideally be able to pick out where an instrument is being played on a sound field that completely surrounds you. We were impressed by the technology at CES, but had our reservations about Sony's ability to deliver on an entirely new audio format (especially since high resolution has been languishing for years). And while Sony says the format supports high res audio, it'll initially roll out with streaming-level quality (we couldn't get them to list any specific numbers).

Even though Sony is going through the motions of officially launching 360 Reality Audio, it's still far from a sure bet. The initial lineup of around 1,000 songs seems laughably low, though the company says more are coming from Sony's music label (naturally), Warner and Universal. Sony also teamed up with LiveNation to deliver 100 concert recordings from the likes of CHARLI XCX and Kodaline.

Sony says you'll be able to listen to 360 Reality Audio tracks on any headphones and the participating streaming apps on Android and iOS. Tidal reps tell us its app will get 360 Reality support on October 28th. You'll also get a customized experience with Sony's headphones, as its mobile app will be able to tune itself to your ears. You just have to take a picture of your ears, and Sony's cloud-based algorithms will send you a unique hearing pathway in under a minute. As for speakers, you'll need a system with multiple units and Sony's custom decoder.