NO. PLEASE? 
If FLAC compression altered the file, MQA would not authenticate, but it does. So the file, like it or not, is untouched by the FLAC process
Chris you must have an alert configured every time MQA appears in the forum!
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Are we there yet? FLAC gets my vote
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When I do online banking, I use WAV for my balance and FLAC for the bills. Doesnāt help.
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I always use SKAT for deposits.
Can you really juggle steak knives? Colour me impressed. The post was spot on alsoā¦
Use AIFF best sound over all. Also wav
Donāt use flac even if you shut off compression
I use FLAC mostly also some Wav. I can never hear any difference
Old Wives tailsā¦
FLAC, compressed or not, sounds just as good as AIFF or WAV.
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No need to tell people your āfactsā, just because you donāt share their experience. You dont hear a difference, fine. Let other people decide for themselves whether they do.
No need to tell me what I can or cannot write.
Agreed, I like to hear if people can or cannot tell the difference. If a lot of people swear they can or cannot, it points one to investigate further. People should share their views and āfactsā.
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Why do some call others fools of the claim something in audio. Iām 62 years old , I donāt claim to have hearing like a bat
I too felt it was a waist of time in the past
What I found is itās true and yes you need a system of certain threshold to hear it.
But having said this I only pass on my experience for others to try
An advantage of FLAC over ALAC or WAV that I often see overlooked is that FLAC is the only codec that automatically stores the fileās CRC and MD5. For example, I can run a test conversion as a batch on my 112,000+ set of files and the program will extract the audio temporarily, compare the CRC to the embedded CRC (created when the FLAC file was initially created) and make sure they match. I use [TEST CONVERSION] within dbpoweramp program, but there are plenty of tools that will do the same thing.
First, after I create a completely new archive backup on a new external drive, I run this check to make sure there has been no corruption in these files. Second, Iāve seen situations where this has been very helpful in the case of a harddrive going bad. The users had perhaps a few dozen or a few hundred files become corrupted, but they had no easy way of determining which and how any of their files were bad without listening to every track (hard to do if one has 50,000+ files, or even 10,000!). But if these were FLAC files, one can point and click at the parent directory, let the program run overnight, and come back in the morning with a list, with path information, of any corrupted files.
So for me, thatās the key reason I use FLAC. The space savings is not relevant to me. But the standard tagging is also important.
Great reply now help understand this
If I take a simple red book cd I own and rip
Using j river or dB power amp to flac
Using comparison turned off not just none
And convert to AIFF The effect is as when I rip to AIFF directly. Now why I have no idea and this matter if Iām playing tidal as well.
The tracks most are flac but when I do find the few in AIFF itās better
Better defined by
Better low level details ambience
Better special info
Better micro dynamics over all.
I have been looking for a reason but cannot find one
This occurs on many dacs I own or have tried
I have been told itās the dac but canāt see how when many are Sabre or other various chips
Even ladder a few one being MSB
As I build my own servers this occurs on many types and OS used linux to various windows
Server , CORP , enterprise and 2019 2016 2012 and win 10 as all above its there and blindfolded I can pic it out almost flawless
I get bashed for it but only from those who donāt hear it.
Many hi end makers do hear this as well.
Absolutely Chris, but thereās is a major difference in saying āThere is no differenceā and āI donāt experience any differenceā.
Much as I like and use and own many Apple products, I would not want to be tied to their file formats or services. Therefore FLAC without any technical consideration whatsoever.
I choose AIFF because I still operate in the Apple ecosystem and AIFF seems the be universally compatible with Apple products and the DACs I own or are under consideration.
My main concern was disc space since AIFF isnt a compressed format. However, my library size at under 1 TB isnt growing at the same rate it used to - thanks to streaming.
The AIFF files are organized into iTunes for quick -or, at least, simple loading onto my iOS devices. Roon reads my iTunes library without a glitch.
ITunes - in the current version - is still a darn good tag editor. Buts thats my limited opinion. I value simplicity most.
Huh?
Never saw specs for a DAC that cared about the file format.
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