# SpatialAudioComponent A component that configures how sounds emit from an entity into a person’s environment. ``` struct SpatialAudioComponent ``` ## Overview The audio system continuously updates the position and orientation of spatial audio sources automatically, so sounds come from an entity wherever it goes and wherever it points. Spatial audio sources incorporate a person’s environment acoustics so that they blend in naturally with the surrounding area. The system distance-attenuates the spatial audio sources so they become quieter the farther away they are from the person. > Note: Spatial audio sources emit only a single channel (that is, mono). > The engine mixes any stereo or multichannel audio resources down to a single channel before spatialization. > To avoid any unwanted mixdown artifacts, use mono source material where possible. RealityKit audio playback is spatial by default, so no additional configuration is necessary to opt into sophisticated spatial rendering. ```swift let entity = Entity() let resource = try AudioFileResource.load(named: "MyAudioFile") entity.playAudio(resource) // Audio file is played spatially from entity ``` `SpatialAudioComponent` allows you to further customize the playback characteristics of spatial audio sources. The [`gain`](/documentation/RealityKit/SpatialAudioComponent/gain), [`directLevel`](/documentation/RealityKit/SpatialAudioComponent/directLevel), and [`reverbLevel`](/documentation/RealityKit/SpatialAudioComponent/reverbLevel) properties are in relative decibels, in the range `[-Decibel.infinity, Decibel.zero]`, where `-Decibel.infinity` is silent and `Decibel.zero` is nominal. For example, you can adjust the overall level of all sounds the entity plays with the [`gain`](/documentation/RealityKit/SpatialAudioComponent/gain) property. ```swift entity.spatialAudio = SpatialAudioComponent(gain: -10) ``` You can reduce the amount of reverb you apply to all sounds the entity plays with the [`reverbLevel`](/documentation/RealityKit/SpatialAudioComponent/reverbLevel) property. Reduce this value to make the sounds less reverberant and more intimate. Set [`reverbLevel`](/documentation/RealityKit/SpatialAudioComponent/reverbLevel) to `-Decibel.infinity` to cause the sounds to collapse into the head of the listener. ```swift entity.spatialAudio?.reverbLevel = -6 ``` You can update [`gain`](/documentation/RealityKit/SpatialAudioComponent/gain), [`directLevel`](/documentation/RealityKit/SpatialAudioComponent/directLevel), and [`reverbLevel`](/documentation/RealityKit/SpatialAudioComponent/reverbLevel) properties dynamically. For example, you can update them when your app’s state changes, or in the context of a custom RealityKit system. The [`directivity`](/documentation/RealityKit/SpatialAudioComponent/directivity) property allows you to configure the radiation pattern for sound that an entity emits. ```swift entity.spatialAudio?.directivity = .beam(focus: 0.5) ``` Spatial audio sources project sounds along their negative z-axis. If you colocate and co-orient a spatial audio source using visual content that you author with a positive z-forward coordinate convention, you need to rotate your spatial audio source 180º about the y-axis. ```swift let parent = Entity() // Add a model entity. let model = try ModelEntity.load(named: "PositiveZForward") parent.addChild(model) // Add an audio source entity. let audioSource = Entity() parent.addChild(audioSource) // Orient the audio source toward +Z. audioSource.orientation = .init(angle: .pi, axis: [0, 1, 0]) ``` This is only a consideration if you explicitly set a [`directivity`](/documentation/RealityKit/SpatialAudioComponent/directivity) other than the default `.beam(focus: .zero)`, which projects sound evenly for all frequencies in all directions. The [`distanceAttenuation`](/documentation/RealityKit/SpatialAudioComponent/distanceAttenuation) property allows you to configure the way that a sound level decreases as the distance between the listener and the sound source increases. ```swift entity.spatialAudio?.distanceAttenuation = .rolloff(factor: 2) ``` --- Copyright © 2026 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. | [Terms of Use](https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/terms/site.html) | [Privacy Policy](https://www.apple.com/privacy/privacy-policy)