MQA is fine as a niche thing if people want it. Had it become dominant it could have negatively affected the industry - end to end systems always have issues (HDCP!) - but so what if it exists at the fringes.
I think if there is going to be another streaming service it's going to need to be different. Having the same catalog alone doesn't make sense.
A streaming service that had the whole catalog and then exclusive content like white glove high quality remixes you cannot get elsewhere...that would be cool.
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Personally, not a lot. Cassettes probably hold a place of nostalgia for a lot of folks, me included, and bringing them back probably won't involve one company attempting to create an unnecessary, proprietary tech/means of playing them, and licensing that proprietary tech to any manufacturer who wishes to produce cassette players.
I used to love my Nakamichi player back in the 90's; would I revisit cassettes now? Probably not. Not because I don't think they're a viable way of listening anymore; id just rather spend any spare money on my existing system. I've gone all in on streaming, and my system continues to evolve, plus I'm late 50's now and lazy. The convenience of streaming suits me down to the ground 😄
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I wonder what audiophiles will say about the cassette tape format that is coming back. I am sure the talk will focus on how badly it sounds.
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Friendly reminder facts
1. The native sample and bit rate of the mastering session is the best quality that any product could ever be
2. MQA is sonically distorted and lossy. Might be subjectively preferable distortion or might not, but it's definitely distorted.
3. MQA is not master quality. (See 1.) MQA is not authenticated. It's almost always bulk processed.
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I thought every audiophile owned a BlueSound product. 🤪
only a very small portion of my playlists are MQA. I might go through and note which are MQA. So I either find it in a different format or on Qobuz or I just won’t listen. I’m wondering if MQA was so hot because it gave us the abuility to listen to very High Rez on a lower bandwidth. Now internet services are so fast at home and on my portable products it really doesn’t matter. Also, Maybe this is why Tidal lowered their prices so they don’t lose every single customer. I man all of them.
Im sure we will all survive.
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Is anyone actually cross shopping a Lenbrook product with a non-Lenbrook product now filled with anxiety for FOMO if they choose a different product? For most who frequent this forum, I would sibmit this isn’t a thing. For those who wish to remain true to the source, that ship sailed when the wax cylinder was introduced, never to return. Recorded sound is a facsimile, one we all enjoy to varying degrees, but a facsimile nonetheless. Enjoy the music in whatever way pleases you.
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@mahler123 it's difficult not to be cynical about all of this, for the reasons you've alluded to. It seemed to me a cynical attempt, as you say, to "headlock" hardware manufacturers by puffing up the need/creating a market for a product that was not really solving a problem they claimed, as it didn't exist. Whether MQA sounded better or not is neither here nor there
Another issue I found difficult to swallow the first time around was the claim that MQA files were lifted from original masters, which I found difficult to comprehend/believe (Neil Young certainly wasn't buying it).
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I wonder about the economics here. Lenbrook had gone all in on MQA in all of their streamers. Have they perceived that this gave them a competitive advantage in the market place? Or did they invest financially in MQA and now that they own it are trying to protect their investment?
I personally didn’t perceive a consistent sonic advantage to MQA but that isn’t relevant here. What upset many was their arrogance…we have found the real truth, and will share that with you if you let us have an exclusive headlock on every manufacturer…. And then there was the shameless shilling by the likes of Robert Harley and Steven Stone. I would love to know if they had a financial stake in MQA
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...or you could do both; the 2 things are not mutually exclusive, providing you have a streamer/DAC which can perform all unfolding stages of an MQA file 👍
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I'd rather spend $10-$20/mth for chance at better music experience vs $1000 for 3ft power cable
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David Chesky is a cleaver fellow.
If the new streaming service will give one the choice between hi res and MQA it will be innovative and fun. To have the chance to compare will be different and fun.
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The same criticism you see for turntables are seen for MQA. Have you not seen how much money is being invested in bringing turntables and record albums back? That’s invested money. I don’t really think you can make turntables sound better…. the technology was kinda maxed out. Digital has and can be made better…. But I don’t bash anyone using record albums. If it’s what you like, go for it. I guess I fail to see why so many people hate MQA, other than it’s fun to bitch about it. If one does not like MQA they are not forced to listen to it, just like nobody is forced to listen to albums. I say, the more formats, the better.
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MQA sounds very much like the turntable debate.
I don’t get this analogy at all — Venus and Mars to me.
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MQA sounds very much like the turntable debate. Digital music keeps improving and streaming and DACs improve. Turntable and analog is not needed, old technology. So many people buying expensive record players and record albums. It’s a gimmick to make money. Only…. Many people say analog sounds better on a turntable. To me it’s all stupid and silly. Buy what you like, listen to what you like…regardless of the format. The MQA bashing is just tiresome…
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What, Tidal is now post-MQA? Long overdue. Not that I'm going near its originators any time soon.
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Backed by David Chesky who says you can choose your format-FLAC or MQA. I’m open minded and will give it a try. Why say no until you hear it?
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TICAT Good point! I can't wait to try ...
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I want my rig to sound true to the music and MQA is not that.
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I have No Dog in this Fight as streaming is only for background music for me But…
Don’t sell Lenbrook Industries short. They have been around far longer than most in Audio, represent distribution on a worldwide scale, own large manufacturing interests (NAD, PSB, Bluesound) and are accumulating a diverse and experienced software brain trust.
Who knows what Good may come of this? There is Always Room for Improvement.
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Doesn't the new service also propose an enhanced bluetooth sound?
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@wolf_garcia 😂 no, definitely don’t want your head to explode. Plus, think of the mess someone would have to clean-up
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If my system gets any better my head will explode from the extreme wonderfulness of it. Nobody needs that.
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If it actually does sound better, without having to invest in new equipment, I’m all for it. But we shall see if it lives up to the promises…
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I tend to agree re: MQA being solution to a problem that doesn't really exist (any longer). If this new venture is built around MQA I think it may fail, dismally. If MQA is their only USP......well we've been here before; I'm not sure what the logic is, unless they're going to offer something significantly different to the current major streaming marker leaders. Catalogue-wise, all bases are already covered. (I don't listen to much Classical, but I'm aware that there are specialist streaming services already)
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They paid very little to acquire MQA.
Some things are cheap for a reason — it’s an answer to a question nobody asked. I don’t wanna listen to what some obscure algorithm thinks a song should sound like, but to each his own. I wouldn’t be betting my $$$ on this succeeding.
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MQA is a solution to a 1980's problem. What might have been useful then is snake-oil now.
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Well, all the money is in steaming. If Lensbrook is able to position MQA in a way to attract perhaps 10% of the business away from competitors, then perhaps it is worth it. They paid very little to acquire MQA.
Whether MQA has any merit is a different kettle of fish
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