# Hi-rez foolishness **URL:** \ **Category:** Qobuz\ **Created:** [October 27, 2020, 9:22pm UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782 "2020-10-27T21:22:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Chrislayeruk](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/chrislayeruk/32/47983_2.png) [@Chrislayeruk](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/Chrislayeruk)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2020, 5:26pm UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/63 "2020-11-04T17:26:34Z")
The placebo effect is very real and used in medicine also. If it works, it’s another tool in the box for sure. ---
**Author:** ![ipeverywhere](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/ipeverywhere/32/288113_2.png) [@ipeverywhere](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/ipeverywhere)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2020, 9:04pm UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/64 "2020-11-04T21:04:56Z")
Need more detail. My “digital streaming” set-up is far superior than my CD transport at this point (night and day difference as they say). Qobuz 16/44.1 sounds better than me putting the CD in the CD player. That isn’t a resolution thing; that’s a “different electronics” thing. When people compare one resolution to the other, from same master, _rarely_ are the electronics the same. However, if it was Qobuz 16/44.1 vs. Qobuz 24/96 with all other electronics the same then I will promptly apply palm to forehead for your friend 😛 ---
**Author:** ![ged\_hickman1](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/ged_hickman1/32/259791_2.png) [@ged\_hickman1](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/ged_hickman1)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2020, 10:56pm UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/65 "2020-11-04T22:56:30Z")
Expectations indeed. I was in my local hifi shop and the team I knew well invited me to listen to a very high end system they’d just demonstrated and sold to a new customer. They’d set it up and left him.to listen for a whole morning. He’d praised the wide soundstage etc etc. 30 seconds of listening and it was obvious to me it was out of phase, they hadn’t bothered listening to it after set up. Sure enough reversed leads to the speakers. Hmmm ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_F](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/jim_f/32/306918_2.png) [@Jim\_F](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/Jim_F)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2020, 11:01pm UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/66 "2020-11-04T23:01:01Z")
> [@HWZ](#): > > True story. My neighbour, who has a Qobuz subscription, was 100% convinced that Melody Gardot’s album “Sunset Blue” sounded “so much better” in HiRes (24/96) than in CD quality. He told me that he’d made multiple A/B comparisons between the two versions and that he’d definitely heard a “night-and-day difference”. The problem was the HiRes album was mislabelled on Qobuz and streamed only in 16/44.1. In other words, he was only listening to the CD version the whole time. You should’ve seen his face when I told him about this. 😂 So much for “golden ears”! 😉 > > BTW, Qobuz resolved the issue a few days later. [https://community.roonlabs.com/t/qobuz-96k-track-playing-as-44k/125333/2](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/qobuz-96k-track-playing-as-44k/125333/2) ---
**Author:** ![Ben\_Katz](https://community.roonlabs.com/letter_avatar/ben_katz/32/5_5575768a8748004e209b776fc1b2916d.png) [@Ben\_Katz](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/Ben_Katz)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 3:02am UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/67 "2020-11-05T03:02:37Z")
If you want understand the value of Hires digital music I recommend The Hanz Beekhuysen channel. The issues comes down to sample rates very compelling. ---
**Author:** ![HWZ](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/hwz/32/48425_2.png) [@HWZ](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/HWZ)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 5:22am UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/68 "2020-11-05T05:22:45Z")
> [@ipeverywhere](#): > > if it was Qobuz 16/44.1 vs. Qobuz 24/96 with all other electronics the same then I will promptly apply palm to forehead for your friend 😛 No, as I pointed out, **it was a Qobuz 16/44.1** (correctly labelled) vs **Qobuz 16/44.1** (mislabelled as 24/96) “comparison”. BTW, I didn’t post this to make fun of my neighbour. I like him very much. He is a very successful [concertmaster](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concertmaster) and has an excellent Hifi system. My example just illustrates how much our perceptions can be influenced by expectation/confirmation bias. **Nobody** is immune to it! ---
**Author:** ![RoonMate](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/roonmate/32/286050_2.png) [@RoonMate](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/RoonMate)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 6:05am UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/69 "2020-11-05T06:05:16Z")
> [@ipeverywhere](#): > > I will promptly apply palm to forehead The people who imagine such differences, although they aren’t really there, are neither deaf nor stupid. Something like that could happen to anyone. ---
**Author:** ![Alan](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/alan/32/82511_2.png) [@Alan](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/Alan)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 6:14am UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/70 "2020-11-05T06:14:00Z")
Yes, but not many people are honest enough to admit that - not even to themselves, let alone to others. ---
**Author:** ![RoonMate](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/roonmate/32/286050_2.png) [@RoonMate](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/RoonMate)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 6:21am UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/71 "2020-11-05T06:21:03Z")
> [@Ben\_Katz](#): > > If you want understand the value of Hires digital music I recommend The Hanz Beekhuysen channel. Are you being ironic? ---
**Author:** ![herdel](https://community.roonlabs.com/letter_avatar/herdel/32/5_5575768a8748004e209b776fc1b2916d.png) [@herdel](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/herdel)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 6:55am UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/72 "2020-11-05T06:55:13Z")
Confirmation bias is part of how our brain works. Everyone experiences it every day in their life. Like any bias, it is an unconscious mechanism that has nothing to do with intelligence. ---
**Author:** ![HWZ](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/hwz/32/48425_2.png) [@HWZ](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/HWZ)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 9:12am UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/73 "2020-11-05T09:12:21Z")
> [@herdel](#): > > it is an unconscious mechanism that has nothing to do with intelligence. That isn’t entirely correct. Expectation/confirmation bias **requires** intelligence. The former can’t exist without the latter. ---
**Author:** ![NipperDog](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/nipperdog/32/125829_2.png) [@NipperDog](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/NipperDog)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 3:59pm UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/74 "2020-11-05T15:59:15Z")
I have to admit that I do feel a certain _psychological_ satisfaction when I see 24/192 displayed on my DAC. ---
**Author:** ![Sgt\_Pepper](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/sgt_pepper/32/120184_2.png) [@Sgt\_Pepper](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/Sgt_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 4:33pm UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/75 "2020-11-05T16:33:43Z")
Even though I know that the vast majority of people cannot tell the difference between a Red Hook CD and Hi Res, I too find some satisfaction in seeing my DAC displaying 44/96 or above. But it all means nothing. The music industry is pushing Hi Res so hard due to the steeply declining sales of albums and CD’s. So that factors into the entire subject. And then there’s MQA! ---
**Author:** ![Chrislayeruk](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/chrislayeruk/32/47983_2.png) [@Chrislayeruk](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/Chrislayeruk)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 4:51pm UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/76 "2020-11-05T16:51:28Z")
It’s to do with removing artefacts in the digital transmission not hearing higher frequencies. MQA does this supremely well in my listening experience. Some may call it placebo but I don’t care… I like what I am hearing ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_F](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/jim_f/32/306918_2.png) [@Jim\_F](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/Jim_F)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 4:56pm UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/77 "2020-11-05T16:56:14Z")
I don’t really care if it’s hi-rez foollishness or not. To me, hi-rez and MQA sound better most of the time. If I switch to my Apple TV 4K, the SQ is definitely inferior to anything streaming through Roon. ---
**Author:** ![Geoff\_Coupe](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/geoff_coupe/32/47986_2.png) [@Geoff\_Coupe](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/Geoff_Coupe)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 4:59pm UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/78 "2020-11-05T16:59:25Z")
Reminds me of the time when Watson, when a puppy, chewed through the speaker leads to one of my Quad ESLs. I repaired it and thought no more about it. Until the time when someone came to buy some equipment I’d posted for sale on Marktplaats (the Dutch version of Ebay). I demoed the Quads to him, and he said: “er, are they out of phase?” Yup. they were, and I hadn’t clocked it. Oh, dearie me… ---
**Author:** ![Sgt\_Pepper](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/sgt_pepper/32/120184_2.png) [@Sgt\_Pepper](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/Sgt_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 5:08pm UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/79 "2020-11-05T17:08:34Z")
What sounds best to you is the key. I like MQA as well. One thing MQA does as soon as playback starts, is increase the gain. Instantly your speakers and music sound better. ---
**Author:** ![Chrislayeruk](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/chrislayeruk/32/47983_2.png) [@Chrislayeruk](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/Chrislayeruk)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 5:25pm UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/80 "2020-11-05T17:25:34Z")
I expect there is more to it than that. I use a Meridian 518 for my TV sound and raise the gain 12 db (along with noise shaping etc) to bring it in line and get what I would consider and optimal sound. For DAB radio I find 3 db works very well. ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_F](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/jim_f/32/306918_2.png) [@Jim\_F](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/Jim_F)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 5:33pm UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/81 "2020-11-05T17:33:09Z")
Is gain the same thing as simply turning up the volume, or is there more to it than that? ---
**Author:** ![Chrislayeruk](https://community.roonlabs.com/user_avatar/community.roonlabs.com/chrislayeruk/32/47983_2.png) [@Chrislayeruk](https://community.roonlabs.com/u/Chrislayeruk)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 5:37pm UTC](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782/82 "2020-11-05T17:37:58Z")
The gain brings up the level as I understand it, think of the image in the progress bar being made bigger. There is only so far you can go though before you are compressing the signal. (The loudness wars) [Previous page](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782.md?page=3) [Next page](https://community.roonlabs.com/t/hi-rez-foolishness/125782.md?page=5)