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MQA actually tested

I got a Tidal subscription a few months ago with the hope of streaming hi res music rather than continuing to buy WAAYY overpriced files from HD tracks and the like....and while the Tidal catalogue is great, some of the Master files just seemed a bit, well, not so masterful. So I decided to listen to Master files in Tidal (full unfold) and compare them to 24/96 min FLAC that I already own, and there wasn’t a single file I owned that did not sound better in clarity and extension than the “Master” file I was comparing it to on Tidal.

I had heard a lot of thoughts from different manufacturers about MQA and just put them down as interesting but not proven since none of them offered anything but their opinion...no testing etc.

then I came across this vid (. https://youtu.be/pRjsu9-Vznc ) last night from a guy who managed to actually test MQA on Tidal using files he created and had loaded onto Tidal. VERY interesting results. First real tests I have seen of MQA and I can now see why my FLAC sounds better to me.
Might have to check out alternatives.

ukthunderace
ukthunderace OP
24 posts
 
I agree that the Tidal catalogue is really good and I really haven't looked into Qobuz, so I am not sure what they offer.  Is Qobuz Hi-Res 24/96 and above?  

The cost for Tidal MQA is $20 a month--is Qobuz Hi-Res cheaper?  I guess that's where it makes a difference. If Qobuz is serving lossless hi-res files for less than Tidal, then if catalogues were equal, I would go with Qobuz.  When that starts to reach parity, I will switch.
lalitk's avatar
lalitk
5,606 posts
 
^^^^Only you can decide if Qobuz catalog is better than Tidal based on your listening preferences. And yes, Qobuz offers content upto 24bit/192khz resolution for $12.49/month. Sign up for free trial and check out the catalog. 
surfmuz
404 posts
 
The cost for Tidal MQA is $20 a month
Tidal has promo events pretty often... you can get HiFi subscription (the one with MQA) through vendors websites as low as $9.99 per month. I’ve got one through BestBuy.com for $9.99. Also, if you have a student in the family Tidal has constant student discount $9.99 for HiFi subscription. 
gerryah930's avatar
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gerryah930
144 posts
 
I have the Esoteric K-01XD SACD player with MQA and the few UHQ-MQA CDs that I have sound incredibly good. But so do the XRCDs, HDCDs, SACDs, and CDs, etcetera.

I do not stream because I live in rural Michigan and pay for data from satellite internet. However, just received word that Musk’s STARLINK that we signed up for is about to launch early here (we signed up about a year ago). It is not data limited, but costs $$.
p05129
516 posts
 
Why is it that the group of naysayers (cable, mqa, they all sound the same on these threads) have unfounded biases that they try to prove by finding somebody in their little world that agrees with them so they can broadcast it out. It’s hilarious to read threads done by so-called experts that cables/mqa sound the same or is inferior or they are snake oil gimmicks. The joke is on you!
You read threads that want measurements to prove your point, why? Don’t you listen with your ears? You probably listen to your charts/specs. Have you done studies to prove your point that you like red better than blue? If you can’t hear a difference between the different formats or different cables, good for you, I’m not going to try to convince you otherwise. But I will say this, you naysayers probably were the same people that hated SACD because you had to buy a new format, new player, etc.. but it crushed redbook back then and the hires formats we have today crush redbook. I won’t be trying to find people to support my statements, I’ll just use my ears to judge for myself
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