[Luke Thomas]

Sorry didn’t know What subject this should be in is MQA still popular and gaining respect

 

[SiliconTi]

Not sure MQA was ever "popular". It is still out there and many new products are offering support for it.

I do find it to be better than standard "Hi-Res" files, but not worth the monthly expense for the higher tier subscriptions.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Depends where you live. Tidal Hifi Plus is cheaper here than Deezer, and Quboz is not available at all. For 11,50 euros a month, Tidal's a keeper.

 

[dirtrat]

Many audiophiles are bitter and think MQA isn't good. This has been discussed to death! I for one like MQA and stream from Tidal and have previously streamed from Qobuz. I'm impressed with the sound quality regardless of what the haters claim.

 

[Luke Thomas]

All I know is with tidal and blue sound mode. A pioneer reciever and quality speakers. Mqa is much better. I thought maybe it would have taken off more so. I luv it

 

[Audiophiliac]

Qobuz came to Canada today. First song in Audirvana sounds like higher res than what I wasn't getting from Tidal. I don't need to argue about people re-buying next year's model of 10k dacs with a cheap chip first. 70% of the price of TIdal higher res, too.

 

[xeizo]

MQA has filed for bankruptcy AFAIK so no it's not something to invest in

 

[gimmeheadroom]

MQA has filed for bankruptcy AFAIK so no it's not something to invest in

Consumers don't invest in MQA so not sure who your post is addressed to.

And plenty of companies have reorganized and been perfectly fine after bankruptcy.

<YAWN>

 

[Audiophiliac]

Consumers are supposed to buy new models of their gear with mqa chips in them to hear higher res on Tidal for twice as much money. I'm listening to unaltered 192 on Qobuz right now, without needing gear with the chip. It automatically sounds better than Tidal would, even if it wasn't a scam in the first place.
If you want to hear the Original Higher Res Master Files (OHRMF), Qobuz does it without needing an extra chip you hope you won't hear. For less money, too! Oh, and the default player sounds better than Tidal's, too, which is a more important factor than higher res in sound quality. Both work in Audirvana, my personal best sounding player so far.
While Tidal is busy with MQA chips, everyone else just sticks to OHRMF.

 

[bassdad8]

As far as the administration/bankruptcy/chapter 11 goes - In the end, this might be good for everyone. I think the main problem with MQA is accessibility. I mean, a 100% mark up over HiFi on Tidal is just too much for many (myself included) to stomach. I have 2 MQA ready DACs, however, so I’m going to try it for a month to see if I can tell the difference on my B&W px7 s2 cans. In theory, there should be a fairly significant upgrade in quality and clarity. But after those 30 days are gone, so goes my MQA access. I’m not paying $26/month unless it’s the equivalent to standing on Rick’s “perfectly level” square of floor in his garage. Anyway, for what it’s worth, I do believe this will end up benefiting the consumer. If MQA wants to live, it must drop the elitist attitude and be willing to embrace the masses. I believe this will eventually happen.

 

[bagwell359]

TIDAL announced like 6 weeks ago that it will offer Hi-Res (192/24 I believe at a max) that is not MQA. They didn't say what would happen with MQA, but they have obviously seen the counter attacks on MQA. I thought it was good when I had it with a single unfold. But I'd rather go Hi-Res sans MQA in the future.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

As far as the administration/bankruptcy/chapter 11 goes - In the end, this might be good for everyone. I think the main problem with MQA is accessibility. I mean, a 100% mark up over HiFi on Tidal is just too much for many (myself included) to stomach. I have 2 MQA ready DACs, however, so I’m going to try it for a month to see if I can tell the difference on my B&W px7 s2 cans. In theory, there should be a fairly significant upgrade in quality and clarity. But after those 30 days are gone, so goes my MQA access. I’m not paying $26/month unless it’s the equivalent to standing on Rick’s “perfectly level” square of floor in his garage. Anyway, for what it’s worth, I do believe this will end up benefiting the consumer. If MQA wants to live, it must drop the elitist attitude and be willing to embrace the masses. I believe this will eventually happen.

The pricing is all over the map, literally. Here I'm paying around 11 euros a month for the top tier. That's cheaper than Deezer hifi. And Qobuz is not offered here but if I go by the UK prices (which are admittedly high) than Qobuz would be 2 times the price of Tidal Hifi Plus if it ever comes to my country.

I enjoy MQA, Tidal has a lot of music I want, my streamers support it...I have no complaints and think it's a great value.