I installed the new panner and have been playing with a few mixes to see how it works. So far, so good! To encode, you still have to have an RMU or be able to send it to a place with an RMU. Dolby, at NAB, did say they where creating a software based RMU that will work on Mac, but when I looked at it, it was still heavily integrated with PT. The next step will be to link up Nuendo to the upcoming software RMU.
You can still export a mix if you print discrete channels and play them back channel mapped. That will not be true atmos, but will be a great 3d sound. Mind your bass management if you playback in a different environment. In surround, like atmos, channel mapping does not equal proper bass management.
A big thank you to Steinberg for making this a reality.
Cheers,
jeremiah