Why is everyone so down on MQA?

You guys crack me up!

So the theory proves it must sound dreadful.

The truth is it's both good and bad. Extremely bad in the recording studio, and particularly good for the end listener. Perhaps with one caveat; only for those that don't bother with hi-res files or streaming and prefer CDs. In that regard, it edges out SACD by a small margin.

MQA files are an absurd proposition, and the only reason for MQA to exist is for MQA-CDs. The number of MQA-CD releases is disappointing (about 700). MQA comes into it's own with classical music, so it's understandable that style occupies most releases.

Radio Paradise had two channels. One plays 16/44 and the other plays MQA and for the life of me, I can’t hear the difference. 

I can, but then my Bluesound has been fitted with a DC power card and I have an overkill external power supply (5 amp instead of the recommended 3A) so there's no chance of the slightest voltage drop or ripple. A shielded power cable connects the two. I also have a top notch interconnect to my amplifier. Without these, I agree they sound very similar.

It's all about achieving the best you can with the equipment you have before looking to go down replacement rabbit hole.

Perhaps we should be asking the doomsdayers what did you use to decode MQA that led you to your conclusion, or are you merely guilty jumping on the derogative bandwagon because you're a theorist and that's all theorists are capable of doing?

I'm not so sure about that. A good example is the video tape format war. Betamax was the vastly superior format yet it lost of the inferior VHS. WFT? Maybe it was only superior with the PAL system and there was very little benefit with NTSC. Years ago I was informed it really stood for Never The Same Colour twice. LOL. NTSC was forced upon you and there was never an option of going with PAL.

 

LOL Human perception is easily fooled.

Ya lost me there.

Surely perception has a lot to do with they way we hear, and if it's configured to help provide the best listening experience, then that's perfectly fine by me. Only a theorist would dare disagree.

Sounds like something a technophile might say and use as a reason to pick fault.

 

Someone who knows live music and loves MQA for what it is and ignores the theory.

Brilliant and thank you!

Well said zombiedad

Perhaps the definitive answer is that purists hate the theory behind MQA, while those with more open minds are willing to listen and decide for themselves.

The proposition that some information can be discarded without down grading the listening experience is considered a disgrace. Hence the purists hate MQA.

To others it is a reasonable proposition that at the very least could have merit and therefore worthy of a comparative listen.

In the end, it might or might not be possible to pick what is missing. Even if it is possible, the benefits are so amazing, the missing information becomes irrelevant.

Why is everyone so down on MQA?

There's no definitive answer. You might as well ask why do people claim technology they don't prefer is DOA?

Just because it doesn't meet their levels of popularity is no excuse. They might emphatically claim that SACD is DOA, but if it's true, why then is Mofi still releasing them? Same thing with other statements in this thread. If it's still being manufactured, it's not DOA. No matter how much they insist.

The only sane thing to do is ignore their biased ramblings and unjustifiable statements. Try not to let them frustrate you or influence you. Sometimes they are so cunning it's hard to know what to believe, especially when they are technophiles rather than audiophiles.
 

Well Dolby is licenced and complex. Who in their right mind would ... 

Forget it, this is getting silly.

Is MQA still a thing? 

Absolutely.

MQA-CDs are still being released and Radio Paradise has MQA, so I'm not at all sure where that statement came from or if it is something that should even be taken seriously.

The beauty is any CD player will do and all you need is a DAC that does MQA.

 

I don't know about Tidal. When I'm not listening to my own sources, I listen to MQA Radio Paradise with a Bluesound NODE N130 and a Topping D90SE DAC. The Bluesound has a DC power card so that there's no AC interference, and the combo sounds terrific.

It's probably the purists who detest MQA, as the idea of removing superfluous information is considered sacrosanct, even if listening proves otherwise.
 

ebm

What the hell are you referring to? I can't even begin to imagine!

Wait a minute, do you mean the method MQA uses to squeeze its information on to a standard CD. Its proprietary compression method that everyone detests.

 

Ditto

Also

Is there any difference between an MQA CD and MQA streaming?