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I donât have an MQA DAC (AQ Dragonfly Red, so coming soon!) but was very impressed with the sound quality last night, via Roon and SOtM SMS-200. Will have to compare later to direct from MacBook Pro with the unfolded 96k and 88.2k.
This whole thing is my first decent Christmas present in about 20 years!
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Sound Quality is very good on the MQA Master Files in Tidal.
I compared Dvorak: Violinconcerto, Barenboim, Perlman from Warner Classics to my 24bit/96kHz local flac version.
I admit i couldnt hear a difference between the local file, Softwaredecoding or Hardwaredecoding MQA with a Meridian Explorer 2 Dac. The MQA Streaming was done with the Tidal app. Playback of the local file with Roon, using that same DAC.
Sounds very promising!
Same is true for: Doors: The Doors.
Looks like MQA means a huge step in Streaming HiRes Music.
When Roon 1.3 with MQA Decoding is out, I would like to compare MQA Streaming with upsampled (DSD 512) HQ Player results.
I missed that announcement, was it in one of the other MQA threads?
Found it:
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I wonder what i could do with my setup with MQA decoding.
Now I use roon+tidal with HQPlayer upsampling to DSD128.I donât have a MQA-capable DAC.
When roon software decoding will work which flow will go to HQP, the folded (24-44/48) or unfolded one (24 >44/48)?
Also if I wanted to play my physical library files with HQP upsampled to DSD and tidal stream without HQP and send the decoded stream as it is to my DAC it would possible?
If not it would be nice to have an auto switch for MQA content and/or a dedicated audio setup for MQA and non MQA content (file or stream).
It would be useful also for systems with MQA capable+DSD DACs (mytek brooklyn for example) that ,I think/guess, we will see coming out the years to come if MQA will become the streaming standard.
Playback in Roon at 24/48 (with or without HQPlayer) sounds much better than the MQA software decoder in the Tidal desktop app. In fact the difference between the 16/44.1 and 24/48 on Roon is much smaller than between Roon (even at 16/44.1) and the Tidal desktop app playing Master files. When Roon adds a software decoder we may realize the full potential of this. Unless I am doing something wrongâŚ
I am new to this forum and hope this is the place to ask this question. I am computer challenged but get by ok. I have been using Tidal and Roon for a year on my home system with never an issue. I have a Windows 10 based computer I use solely for music. I use the Room app allowing me to use my iPad as a remote to my computer. I also have Logmein on my iPad to view my computer as I do not use a monitor.
I want to play these new MQA Masters files, but cannot see them in Roon. Has anyone here been able to accomplish this? I am not sure how Roon and Tidal work together behind the scene. I can download the desktop app and see the Masters, but this is not connected to Roon
To see the files you need th Tidal Desktop app. As you have an account, download it to your PC.
The log in, go to Whatâs New, scroll down to Albums, look across to Masters
There is a long list to get you going. Add albums to your favourite and they will show up in Roon.
You will need an MQA DAC to enjoy the at full resolution but they should sound better than CD as Is.
Tidal will decode them from the Desktop App at 96/24 max.
Enjoy.
Seeing odd behavior here with Tidal Master albums that only have some tracks marked as favorites in Tidal, with the whole album unmarked as a favorite.
Roon is displaying both the standard 16/44.1 track and the MQA track in the albumâs track list:
This is my exact experience as well.
I love all the discovery functionality with roon and Tidal and my library. Honestly, you have recreated the missing link of the audiophile experience. Browsing the record reviews and influences gets me down the rabbit hole every time. I didnt know I was missing it until I found it again in Roon.
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Well Roon only plays up,to 48k and the desktop app plays up to 96k and sounds better. Also, they donât show up in favorites in Roon for me, rather they show up under most recently added. Also, only some of the ones I added showed up, many did not. Not happy with the sound quality of these Masters through Roon, much better on the desktop application alone.
This is because at the moment only Tidal desktop app supports software decoding of MQA files (up to 96Khz)
So now when you play MQA files from Roon you d0nât hear the real MQA stream but the sound of the undecoded/unfolded package (you see in Roon as flac 24-44,1/48KHz but itâs not a standard 24bit flac, I heard calling the âorigami filesâ)
It has already been announced tha Roon will support MQA software decoding in 1.3 (itâs uncertain if it will be from the first or following release); only after this release you could tell how MQA files sound in Roon
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Perfect. Great information here. Thank you and Chris for your help!
Or you could just buy an MQA decoding DAC to listen with.
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It seems like most of the people who are using the Meridian Explorer DACâs are getting MQA in full. I have been getting 48k/24bit on my DCS Rossini DAC and it does sound marginally better - A touch more dimensionality and space around instruments. A bit smoother overall.
In the recent past I have heard MQA files through QNAP to the new Meridian Ultra DAC in my home system and they were pretty fantastic. Most noticeable on the David Brubeck recordings I heard. I am really looking forward to MQA once it gets settled in ROON and with DCS.
But quiet from Roon last couple of days must be busy or itâs the weekend:0)