[lantian]

Why on earth would people wish to have no Bluetooth or WiFi? They unquestionably sound as good as wired connections and are astoundingly convenient. The days of poor quality Bluetooth are long in the rearview mirror. There isn't a snowballs chance in h*ll that anybody listening to music for hours on end would ever hear a difference when I stream from my phone via Bluetooth to my Gustard X16 or connect via USB. I have very nice speakers, a nice room, great high quality music, a very clean amplifier and I have totally passed up using wired connection because it offers absolutely zero advantages, actually it is a detriment as it is so inconvenient.

Speak for yourself here, you are one of few that believe that Bluetooth sounds good. I'll take cables every single day and moment. Would never ever want those features. For me those are just extra costs for features that can not hope to compete with cabled connection. A good sounds better on everything. Just cause you have your biases doesn't mean others perceive it the same way.

 

[Another Audiophile]

shame they dropped MQA.... those that have Tidal will not be able to listen to MQA files now.... what a shame...

You can by buying the MQA version which is basically without the "n". That's the price you have to pay for MQA royalties. This is actually a unit without MQA for those who don't want to pay for something they are not using.

 

[tlite]

Any thoughts on this SMSL unit vs. the monolith thx AAA DAC/Amp (which I just bought for the same price and am now second guessing)?

 

[Uebelkraehe]

Bob and his cronies are probably already trying to spin a story how giving consumers the possibility to choose to save ~15% by leaving out a pointless feature is bad for them. Maybe Stereophile could do a nice editorial in this vein...

 

[Dixter]

Why on earth would people wish to have no Bluetooth or WiFi?

Its the cancel culture... ha ha ha....

 

[Sonic Defender]

Its the cancel culture... ha ha ha....

So funny. Good one.

 

[Sonic Defender]

Speak for yourself here, you are one of few that believe that Bluetooth sounds good. I'll take cables every single day and moment. Would never ever want those features. For me those are just extra costs for features that can not hope to compete with cabled connection. A good sounds better on everything. Just cause you have your biases doesn't mean others perceive it the same way.

Sorry, I know of many, many others who also find Bluetooth way more than adequate. I would happily save the cost of USB connectors by that logic, but I do like to have an alternative connection available in case the Bluetooth or WiFi failed. To each their own they say.

 

[Dixter]

According to Qualcom they have a new chip out.... will be nice when we have nice wireless headphones that sound as good on bluetooth as they do wired... wont' be long now

What is Qualcomm Snapdragon sound?

Qualcomm adds Bluetooth Lossless Audio Technology to Snapdragon Sound. ... aptX Lossless is a new capability of the proven aptX Adaptive technology and a new feature of Snapdragon Sound™ Technology that is designed to deliver CD quality 16-bit 44.1kHz lossless audio quality over Bluetooth® wireless technology.

 

[sbogdanovs]

Interesting product indeed

 

[OldRoadToad]

Sorry, I know of many, many others who also find Bluetooth way more than adequate. I would happily save the cost of USB connectors by that logic, but I do like to have an alternative connection available in case the Bluetooth or WiFi failed. To each their own they say.

Speak for yourself here, you are one of few that believe that Bluetooth sounds good. I'll take cables every single day and moment. Would never ever want those features. For me those are just extra costs for features that can not hope to compete with cabled connection. A good sounds better on everything. Just cause you have your biases doesn't mean others perceive it the same way.

Gentlemen - I find that both methods of listening have merit. I for one do NOT mind being "tethered" to quality, i.e., hardwired to a quality amp but neither do I despise listening to music via my wireless 'phones. Listening to music is a large part of my life and for me, ever since Blootoof 4.0 hit it has gotten to the point that I can be hard put to tell much if any of a difference. But there is. Hard wired, the signal never varies. It never disappears, never falters nor weakens. The quality is consistently there and I find comfort in the tradition of being "forced" to sit still and just LISTEN. It is the same with vinyl for me. But with wireless 'phones (I have several Blootoofh pairs and one set of Sennheiser RS195s) I am, as they say on aeroplanes, "free to move about the cabin".

The choice is up to each of us. As I said, I like the tradition, the looks, the quality of the associated equipment and of course the superb delivery of the music. With Blootoof, I enjoy all the same merits save perhaps the of tradition. Right now I am listening to my "Steely Dan" Station on Pandora via my Skullcandy Crusher ANC headphones and more often than not I can be found listening to music via my Bose Soundwear Companions. I have two pairs of those and have given several pairs to friends and relatives as gifts. I have also given a few pair of Sennheiser HD450BT in black, white and the so-called "Special Edition" black/red pair to family and several pair of Hifi Man variants, again to family. Why? Because no matter if I give them wired or wireless, I like to think I am giving them the chance to listen to the music, either up front and in a more serious manner (wired) or as background to their daily life (wireless).

As for MQA? I refuse to pay for the "right" to be FORCED into paying for a FARCE. It is the ENC Factor. The Emperor's New Clothes. Never forget lads, we have more in common with this hobby we call listening to music and having something in common allows us to listen not only to the music but to one another. Free of charge too. Unlike "Stuarts Folly" which would exact a toll upon each of us regardless of whether or not our equipment can unfoldifvy and decodilize his BS.

ORT

 

[Dixter]

Isn't the missing MQA about the same as going to purchase a nice car and telling the sales guy to pull out the rear seat because you don't know anyone that will be riding in the back seat... and the sales guys says... OK... but it will affect the resale value down the road when you trade it in...

 

[OldRoadToad]

Isn't the missing MQA about the same as going to purchase a nice car and telling the sales guy to pull out the rear seat because you don't know anyone that will be riding in the back seat... and the sales guys says... OK... but it will affect the resale value down the road when you trade it in...

Ummmmm...Nope! Not unless the seat costs a lot for something that adds nothing to your experience, claims to increase the performance of your vehicle, costs you your money every time you fill up and is so much vaporware that you are surprised it does not come out of an "I Dream of Jeannie" bottle. ENC describes MQA to a "T". It is backed by the same morons that told us that taking a green felt tip marker and running it around the edge of our CDs made the music soooo much better because "transient" ("hobo"/homeless) light was escaping out the side of the discs and confounding the DACs od the time.

FYI - A friend of mine said you can buy a Shelby Mustang sans the back seat because it is not needed in that particular model. Hmmmm...

ORT

 

[Dixter]

There were people who said the same thing about going from AM to FM radio at one time... they used to put only one speaker in cars... in the middle of the dash...
people complained that they would have to spend extra money on another speaker to get stereo music...

had girlfriend once that had a mustang... that back seat was terrible.....

 

[OldRoadToad]

There were people who said the same thing about going from AM to FM radio at one time... they used to put only one speaker in cars... in the middle of the dash...
people complained that they would have to spend extra money on another speaker to get stereo music...

had girlfriend once that had a mustang... that back seat was terrible.....

I know of no one that thought that and I was alive back then. Yup. I am a very old toad. And for FM to be accepted it was required that AM be able to modulatifizationalize the stereo signal so that those with Mono could actually listen to the program without missing anything from the stereo mix. MQA does not do a single thing. I've listened and it was a waste of my time and once I've wasted time I no longer want to waste my money because, by the way, takes time to earn.

You want it? You can have it and shall be eternally slap-happy for you and the 13.5 other folks that enjoying paying to be lied to. I get lied to enough by a certain "political party" and they just take my money so why would I want to give Bob "Scrotym" Stuart money voluntarily? If someone tells you YOUR music NEEEEEEEEEDs their magic and the ONLY way to get it to continuously rub their lamp?

I would rather continue to do the "Schiit ReachAround". Copyright, ORT.

ORT

 

[Lohb]

Will it have the sabre glare or quite neutral...also that hump that needs dealt with..something to do with coupling it to component x...forgot..been a while since testing out 9038 chips which are a real step up with right implementation.