Ability to opt out of MQA

No turn signals or side mirrors - I guess you’re looking at a BMW for your next car… :wink:

There are plenty of ways of opting out of MQA, so I can’t see any need to have this as an additional feature in Roon. I personally find most MQA albums that I have in Tidal to sound excellent - clearly, based on others’ experience, it is quite system dependent.

For those who say “use Qobuz” or “plenty of bandwith”, please remember that that does not apply to everyone. Qobuz is not available in Canada, and we live rural and our internet is delivered over the cell phone network, with a maximum download speed of approx. 20Mbps (average is more like 10, but often it is 5 or worse). Tidal occasionally gives up the ghost, so it might prove challenging for streaming native high res files from Qobuz, even if the service were available.

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I like MQA and wouldn’t opt out if we could. That said, I may drop Tidal if they don’t match the Qobuz annual price.

Lol. I live in Brasil, where many drivers don’t use either side mirrors or turn indicators. Believe it or not, a politician here once promoted legislation to get rid of mirrors “because nobody uses them.” As for that BMW…way too expensive here.

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Nice stated.

I think one of the reasons that this thread has stirred so much interest is that I seemed to have taken on one of the sacred cows of high end audio (MQA - worshiped, loved and heavily defended by the audio press - talk about free advertising) in a forum filled with audiophiles. My bad :upside_down_face:

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Redress the balance, I am happy with MQA and wish Roon stays ahead of the curve with it.
I have no need for room treatment EQ etc, so think Roon have done enough here and not waste anymore resources on it.

Slightly flippant above, but Roon is for all of us and has to spread its resources proportionally

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When I started my Tidal subscription they had no MQA offerings and it was $20 per month. When Tidal began to offer MQA the price was still $20 per month. MQA is Only a container From what I understand. I would rather stream and listen to the actual untouched high resolution file. Qobuz looks like the better choice but their biggest set back depending on your music preference, is lack of a complete library of music offerings that Tidal has. Amazon looks great as well but I will wait for Roon support.

Yeah, from my point of view they wasted a year with the useless MQA implementation. Waste of resources.

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Perhaps a re read of my quote there is required.

I wouldn’t call MQA “useless” so much as a good idea that current technology, i.e. availability of high bandwidth and cheap digital storage, has left behind.

So let’s do a quick comparison:

MQA encoded flac files - up to 192kHz available with the proper software and a fully MQA compatible DAC, requires Tidal or MQA encoded CDs or files

flac files - 192kHz and beyond (for those with pet bats) and usable with most commonly available software and most newish DACs. Available from Qobuz and many web sites selling high resolution digital audio files.

So if one has an MQA compatible DAC and a Tidal Hi-Fi subscription and, most importantly, if one really enjoys seeing all the lights and colors displayed on the MQA compatible DAC when MQA is playing then MQA is a winner!!

For me I’d rather fold than unfold :laughing:

They are both good. Use the one or ones that work for you and your equipment. Has Roon said they need to raise prices because of MQA?

To paraphrase an old expression:

If you have to ask how much it costs then you are not an audiophile.

I’m not asking. I’m questioning those who are complaining that Roon does not allow them to opt out of MQA. They think they are paying more as a result.

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19 posts were merged into an existing topic: MQA disappointing

I have heard this topic over and over and over. Not sure why though. I was at an audio store and this topic came up. It was almost funny how worked up this guy got over this topic. After a 20 mins “conversation” on why he didn’t like or want MQA I suggested he select non MQA format in Roon and/or just turn off MQA rendering on his PSA Bridge.

I thought that would solve his problem but to him that wasn’t good enough. I believe the guy was just looking for someone to agree with him.

The great thing about Roon is I have total control on what material I listen too. I have yet to find a stream that was only in MQA format. I’m sure there are some but I haven’t come across any. If I don’t want MQA I just select a track/album that isn’t MQA.

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Or you could opt out of Roon

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I purchased a lifetime Roon service because it suits my needs. I subscribe to Tidal and Qobuz and don’t have a real preference between the two. Qobuz has a better library of Jazz and Classical music.
If my lifetime subscription for Roon includes a cost factor for MQA that’s ok with me. Bit like buying a car, I don’t use all the gadgets in my car but they came standard with the make and model I purchased.
I must admit I don’t concentrate on the variants between MQA and non MQA music. I listen to music I like at the best quality available, if it be CD then that’s ok.

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Setting all arguments about MQA quality aside, from a practical standpoint you opt out of using MQA files by not using MQA files/streams.

I’m not really sure what the point of this argument is, I confess; is the question really “Why can’t I get a MQA-free version of Roon that costs me marginally less per year because it no longer includes an MQA decoding license?” If so, the answer is probably “because the per-unit licensing fee isn’t high enough to make it worth the engineering time.”

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High res isnt snake oil.

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Look, the OP’s idea of opting out of a feature he does not like is ludicrous and I have no idea why this conversation even needs to be continued. Whether a feature has licensing fees associated with it or not, you can’t and will not be able to “opt out” and pay less for the annual license. It’s just not happening. So just move on…

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