[Marcner]

Hi
I have a Mirus and thinking about upgrading, but hate to invest in a Dac that will not have MQA going forward. Does anybody know if the Resonessence Dacs are MQA capable and if Resonessence had plans to move in that direction(?software upgrade) in the near future?

 

[project86]

  Hi
I have a Mirus and thinking about upgrading, but hate to invest in a Dac that will not have MQA going forward. Does anybody know if the Resonessence Dacs are MQA capable and if Resonessence had plans to move in that direction(?software upgrade) in the near future?

 
I have been meaning to shoot an email to the Resonessence team asking about this very thing. I will do so and post here when I learn more.
 
From what I understand there is a licensing fee involved and it isn't tiny, so we'll see how many companies are willing to jump on board. DSD capability became a huge marketing draw but that was free from licensing, while MQA is not. Will be interesting to see where it goes.
 
There's also the software decoding option, which should theoretically enable the playback software to handle MQA decoding - thus achieving the same quality. I guess in that case it would be Tidal or whoever it is paying the licensing fee on our behalf? Certainly that will involve a price increase down the road.

 

[Marcner]

   
I have been meaning to shoot an email to the Resonessence team asking about this very thing. I will do so and post here when I learn more.
 
From what I understand there is a licensing fee involved and it isn't tiny, so we'll see how many companies are willing to jump on board. DSD capability became a huge marketing draw but that was free from licensing, while MQA is not. Will be interesting to see where it goes.
 
There's also the software decoding option, which should theoretically enable the playback software to handle MQA decoding - thus achieving the same quality. I guess in that case it would be Tidal or whoever it is paying the licensing fee on our behalf? Certainly that will involve a price increase down the road.

At the risk of veering off topic, in the last paragraph are you saying that Tidal (or Roon) could upgrade their software to decode MQA and negate the need to have a MQA capable DAC?

 

[bmichels]

At the risk of veering off topic, in the last paragraph are you saying that Tidal (or Roon) could upgrade their software to decode MQA and negate the need to have a MQA capable DAC?

Very good question. If this is the case then our existing DAC will avoid potential obsolescence ( in case MQA really take off). This will be a very good news....

 

[twsmith]

Whatever your take on MQA may be (I'm not taking sides here), it might be worth reading this comment from Benchmark  -- https://benchmarkmedia.com/blogs/application_notes/163302855-is-mqa-doa

 

[bmichels]

  Whatever your take on MQA may be (I'm not taking sides here), it might be worth reading this comment from Benchmark  -- https://benchmarkmedia.com/blogs/application_notes/163302855-is-mqa-doa

thanks.  interesting indeed

 

[project86]

  At the risk of veering off topic, in the last paragraph are you saying that Tidal (or Roon) could upgrade their software to decode MQA and negate the need to have a MQA capable DAC?

 
MQA is a quagmire right now. See THIS post where even the pro journalists and DAC designers seem confused about it.
 
My quick summary - Tidal can decode MQA for every DAC to reap at least some theoretical benefit. I'm seeing 96kHz from a Windows PC running Tidal paired with various non-MQA DACs. There's also another "layer" of optimization with the time-domain performance and that aspect requires an MQA-capable DAC in order to access. 
 
It's important to note the possible downsides of MQA though - DRM concerns (which some people are very vocal about), and the fact that the encoding scheme basically steals 3 of the least significant bits in a 16-bit file. Meaning 13-bit performance if you don't get the decoding squared away either via software or hardware. 
 
It will all shake out eventually, for now there's nothing to do but wait and keep enjoying the gear/music you have. The new Tidal MQA selections sound fine to me via my non-MQA DACs, possibly better than the standard Tidal material but I'm reserving judgement for now.

 

[Sonic77]

   
MQA is a quagmire right now. See THIS post where even the pro journalists and DAC designers seem confused about it.
 
My quick summary - Tidal can decode MQA for every DAC to reap at least some theoretical benefit. I'm seeing 96kHz from a Windows PC running Tidal paired with various non-MQA DACs. There's also another "layer" of optimization with the time-domain performance and that aspect requires an MQA-capable DAC in order to access. 
 
It's important to note the possible downsides of MQA though - DRM concerns (which some people are very vocal about), and the fact that the encoding scheme basically steals 3 of the least significant bits in a 16-bit file. Meaning 13-bit performance if you don't get the decoding squared away either via software or hardware. 
 
It will all shake out eventually, for now there's nothing to do but wait and keep enjoying the gear/music you have. The new Tidal MQA selections sound fine to me via my non-MQA DACs, possibly better than the standard Tidal material but I'm reserving judgement for now.

​Another point  I would like to make is that, I'm sure the record companies would love for you to buy or should I say rebuy your music collection again in the MQA format, I for one am going to pass on that, I already have bought records,  cassette tapes, cd's and now downloads , now you want me to rebuy my collection in the MQA format? I say-get lost. Not to mention a new compatible MQA dac.
Streaming is ok if you like that or already have a subscription.

 

[project86]

That's a great point - I see MQA as primarily a streaming "format" as that's the only use I'll have for it. Obviously they have bigger goals in mind than just streaming, but I, like you, am not interested in that. I'd like to see a ton of MQA support which might entice more users to Tidal (or any other service that pops up with lossless streaming) but for purchases I think it is very limited in scope. 

 

[Marcner]

A number of engineering first company including PS Audio, Schitt, and apparently Benchmark also are voicing skepticism about the value of MQA. It does seem to put smaller DAC designers at a disadvantage. It remains to be seem how how music will be released, but Tidal has moved it beyond vaporware. The files SEEM to sound a little better to me even without a supporting DAC. I am willing to entertain that it may be suggestion. Tidal is an important enough part of my listening that I would really like to know that I can get the most out of MQA with an DAC I invest in going forward including the InVicta.

 

[Marcner]

I talked with Mark at Resonessence today and asked if they have any plans to include MQA.They don't plan on including MQA in the foreseeable future, but did not absolutely rule it out. It seems it is doable but would involve expense that they don't feel is justified. They feel sure that streaming software will incorporate MQA and that will be adequate and the most cost efficient way to go. I decided to upgrade to the Pro regardless.

 

[Hifi Boy]

Hi everyone.
 
Sorry if this has already been discussed, but I’d like to hear anyone’s opinion on how the Mirus compares to Chord Dave.
 
I’ve never heard Mirus but I’ve heard Dave, at least with its built-in headphone output.
Seeing as how I’m considering ordering Mirus Pro, I’d like to know how it compares to the best DAC I’ve heard so far.
 
Not considering buying Dave because of the price.

 
Any input will be much appreciated!

 

[Sonic77]

  Hi everyone.
 
Sorry if this has already been discussed, but I’d like to hear anyone’s opinion on how the Mirus compares to Chord Dave.
 
I’ve never heard Mirus but I’ve heard Dave, at least with its built-in headphone output.
Seeing as how I’m considering ordering Mirus Pro, I’d like to know how it compares to the best DAC I’ve heard so far.
 
Not considering buying Dave because of the price.

 
Any input will be much appreciated!

​Hello,
I own the Chord Dave dac and the Mirus Pro dac. IMHO the Dave dac is the best dac in the world, period, but in having said that you would not be disappointed with the Mirus dac. I would describe the Mirus sound as a full, detailed sound, very nice. Always, always make sure your source is excellent, a lot of times we may question our dacs or our equipment when the blame is the source. I have been using my Mac mini with the new version of Audirvana and it has taken my system to a whole new level.  Another dac I would recommend you check out is the Chord Hugo 2 dac, some have called it a mobile Dave dac, but it can be hooked up to your home stereo, I used to use my Hugo 1 in this manner and was very impressed with the sound. Good luck with your search.

 

[Hifi Boy]

Hey Sonic, thanks for the input.

So, from what you're saying it seems like there shouldn't be much difference between these two. Certainly, Dave would be better, but it looks like Mirus should be coming close to it enough so that you probably don't care too much about the difference.

This is actually amazing when you take into account that Dave is almost 2.5 times more expensive. What I'd like is to get a DAC which will be my end game DAC, at least for a couple of years and that I won't feel like I need an upgrade.

Currently, the only piece of gear that I own which makes me feel that way are my HE-1000. Hope Mirus does the job as well.

 

[Sonic77]

​No problem Hifi Boy, enjoy.