DTS:X is a pretty exciting "concept" at this point. Nobody has actually heard it in a home theater (well, maybe some lucky millionaire somewhere), but it is object based immersive audio like Atmos. I've heard a lot of Atmos setups, and they are quite impressive. DTS:X promises to be their version of Dolby Atmos, but with less strict speaker placement "rules."
However, if you don't plan on ceiling speakers or upfiring speakers, then those two formats shouldn't be on your list. (Trust me though, once you hear a good object based audio system, you WILL want it.)
Here is the other issue with Atmos (and the pending DTS:X)... To get that immersive experience you need a lot of power. If you have, say, a 7.1 setup now, you need a receiver with at least 9.1 hookups, and possibly 11.1, but getting that many speakers powered by the receiver isn't cheap. I am still waiting for an 11.1 receiver with all 11 speakers (no longer calling them channels with object based audio) powered from the receiver without external amps. Well, at least without spending a small fortune, which is of course relative. To put it in perspective, my current Onkyo does, in my opinion, a really great job with my 7.2 setup. It ran about $1000 4.5 years ago. With advancing technology, you would think that for a little more than that, I should be able to have at least the same tech options (like Audyssey XT32), the new Dolby and DTS formats, and a couple of additional speakers internally amplified... At least 9.1, but no. It seems like you need a $2000 receiver, plus an additional external amp on top of that. No sense in going cheap on the amp since the biggest bang for the buck would usually be to power the front right and left channels, but I guess that the external amp could be used for the "overhead" sound, or at least 2 speakers of it. Still, looking at 2.5x the price for a 9.2 setup. I know the benefits of adding 4 (or more) overhead speakers, so that means at least $3000 or more to get the new Dolby and DTS options (which aren't terribly pricey since there are some cheaper $500ish USD receivers that will do Atmos and DTS:X), new HDMI and HDCP, and the critical extra amplification. I know that it isn't as scalable in price that a 5.1 receiver for $500 would mean "$100 per 'channel' and I know that it doesn't scale up to mean that an 11.1 receiver would be $1100 (at $100 per 'channel') just for amplification, but dang, it doesn't seem like it should be $3000 or more.
Anyway, enough of that rant.
I am not up on current models exactly as I know that I am at least another year out from immersive sound. Swapped out my QS8s for M3 on-walls as step 1 in the proccess, maybe this year (if Axiom does another black Friday sale) I will get 4 speakers for overhead duty, then next year get the receiver to drive it all.
