D90 mqa vs M400, which one should I use?

[richpjr]

So why did topping make a MQA dac?

Because there is a demand for it, despite how vocal a some people here are about it. I went for the non-MQA version myself as I have no need for it but they would not make it if people didn't want it.

 

[win]

Not to mention highly respected ppl in the industry like Hans Beekhuyzen who states he prefers dacs with mqa even when not using mqa because of the time domain enhancements inherent in the mqa filter

doesn't Hans advocate that there are sound differences between Ethernet cables and power cables?

Every sound engineer who I know that has done the listening tests agrees that MQA is something special.

the sound engineers I know don't like a codec that lowers the quality of their work being touted as an enhancement

 

[JohnYang1997]

So why did topping make a MQA dac?

First of all. I didn't make it. Second of all, people want it, so....

 

[Doodski]

I read somewhere that MQA might be on some sort of subscription service that costs the consumer more. How will that affect the average audiophile Joe?

 

[dmac6419]

First of all. I didn't make it. Second of all, people want it, so....

Now you know I didn't say you so...

 

[JohnYang1997]

Now you know I didn't say you so...

Then why did you ask me why topping makes mqa dacs?

 

[dmac6419]

Then why did you ask me why topping makes mqa dacs?

You know why,not trying to argue,l buy a lot of Topping gear, when you make a statement I want to know why.

 

[JohnYang1997]

You know why,not trying to argue,l buy a lot of Topping gear, when you make a statement I want to know why.

All good.

 

[ClicketEKlack]

MQA version results in worse than CD quality playback. I have tested but don't ask me for test results.

When you say 'version' do you mean the MQA track or the MQA DAC? I have a D90MQA. Other than me paying more, there isn't some sort of performance advantage to the non MQA D90, right? If I were to select a different output on Tidal or stream Qobuz, am I not getting the same performance as the regular D90?

 

[JohnYang1997]

When you say 'version' do you mean the MQA track or the MQA DAC? I have a D90MQA. Other than me paying more, there isn't some sort of performance advantage to the non MQA D90, right? If I were to select a different output on Tidal or stream Qobuz, am I not getting the same performance as the regular D90?

All the way through.
I recommend getting regular D90 if you want and playing CD quality (HIFI) on Tidal. It's better than MQA(master).

 

[ClicketEKlack]

All the way through.
I recommend getting regular D90 if you want and playing CD quality (HIFI) on Tidal. It's better than MQA(master).

Yeah, but I already bought the D90 MQA! Isn't it still the same performance if I select CD playback or is the D90 MQA DAC itself somehow inferior??

 

[JohnYang1997]

Yeah, but I already bought the D90 MQA! Isn't it still the same performance if I select CD playback or is the D90 MQA DAC itself somehow inferior??

You'll get the same sound quality.

 

[ClicketEKlack]

You'll get the same sound quality.

Whew! Thanks. Got worried for a sec.

 

[Veri]

Whew! Thanks. Got worried for a sec.

No worries.

 

[Charles0322]

Roon is pretty amazing, they are big advocates of MQA.. so many manufacturers and engineers signing on, the people that dont like it dont use it.. they talk a lot of crap about it but decided early on they would not support it based on licensing or other issues.. whatever floats your boat.. I won't debate further.. I'll keep enjoying the music. MQA is amazing for Tidal hifi, no need for lights or logos either, it's getting easier for me to notice. It's not on every recording either, but I listen to a wide range of music, techno, classical, ambient, house, hip-hop, pop.. across all genres there are real things happening.. It's popularity is growing.. MQA is here to stay.

 

[ClicketEKlack]

Roon is pretty amazing, they are big advocates of MQA.. so many manufacturers and engineers signing on, the people that dont like it dont use it.. they talk a lot of crap about it but decided early on they would not support it based on licensing or other issues.. whatever floats your boat.. I won't debate further.. I'll keep enjoying the music. MQA is amazing for Tidal hifi, no need for lights or logos either, it's getting easier for me to notice. It's not on every recording either, but I listen to a wide range of music, techno, classical, ambient, house, hip-hop, pop.. across all genres there are real things happening.. It's popularity is growing.. MQA is here to stay.

I hope so - I'm seeing quite a few cost-is-no-object bleeding-edge companies (dcs, msb, luxman) now offering MQA. I have a hard time believing these manufacturers would waste a minute or a cent on a doomed, fraudulent format that sounds worse than CD. Saying that the growing adoption is the result of them caving to market pressure doesn't fully explain it. Why would they risk forever damaging their reputations by selling an inferior product? Why wouldn't Chord or Denafrips be affected to the same extent by the same market pressure? It strikes me as much a tribal philosophical divide more than a SQ preference. Maybe it's lossy. I really don't care. When I listen to MQA on my D90, I think it sounds better than the other formats. To each his/her/their own.

 

[JohnYang1997]

I hope so - I'm seeing quite a few cost-is-no-object bleeding-edge companies (dcs, msb, luxman) now offering MQA. I have a hard time believing these manufacturers would waste a minute or a cent on a doomed, fraudulent format that sounds worse than CD. Saying that the growing adoption is the result of them caving to market pressure doesn't fully explain it. Why would they risk forever damaging their reputations by selling an inferior product? Why wouldn't Chord or Denafrips be affected to the same extent by the same market pressure? It strikes me as much a tribal philosophical divide more than a SQ preference. Maybe it's lossy. I really don't care. When I listen to MQA on my D90, I think it sounds better than the other formats. To each his/her/their own.

Before performing tests, I thought MQA was a bit better than CD technically. But the reality is that MQA also degrades/alters what's under 20khz due to the algorithm. So pursuing the stuff you can't hear and sacrificing what you can actually hear is not wise to me. If you are on Tidal, just use HIFI Mode and regular Premium to save a few bucks and have better sound quality.

 

[ClicketEKlack]

Before performing tests, I thought MQA was a bit better than CD technically. But the reality is that MQA also degrades/alters what's under 20khz due to the algorithm. So pursuing the stuff you can't hear and sacrificing what you can actually hear is not wise to me. If you are on Tidal, just use HIFI Mode and regular Premium to save a few bucks and have better sound quality.

Hey, I'll try it -- can't hurt!

 

[dmac6419]

I hope so - I'm seeing quite a few cost-is-no-object bleeding-edge companies (dcs, msb, luxman) now offering MQA. I have a hard time believing these manufacturers would waste a minute or a cent on a doomed, fraudulent format that sounds worse than CD. Saying that the growing adoption is the result of them caving to market pressure doesn't fully explain it. Why would they risk forever damaging their reputations by selling an inferior product? Why wouldn't Chord or Denafrips be affected to the same extent by the same market pressure? It strikes me as much a tribal philosophical divide more than a SQ preference. Maybe it's lossy. I really don't care. When I listen to MQA on my D90, I think it sounds better than the other formats. To each his/her/their own.

doesn't Hans advocate that there are sound differences between Ethernet cables and power cables?



the sound engineers I know don't like a codec that lowers the quality of their work being touted as an enhancement

The sound engineers that I know who have won Grammys have no problem with it.

 

[win]

The sound engineers that I know who have won Grammys have no problem with it.

the best-in-the-world sound engineers I know, who have won several Grammys each, disagree