MQA is Vaporware

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37 minutes ago, Andyman said:

For fuck’s sake Chris. Please rid us of this arsehole!!!

Is it possible to add a +1,000,000?

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13 minutes ago, abrxx said:

So Brian Lucey is against MQA. Good to know. Although anybody who hangs around Gearslutz would have guessed this already.

 

Bob Ludwig is for it.

 

Bob Katz is supposedly on the fence (neither for or against at the moment).

 

Seems like the jury is still out.

 

As for "fixing the masters", this seems to make more sense for back catalog recordings from the early days of digital. I can understand why it can be deemed offensive to be done on a modern recording.

 

Bob Ludwig is being compensated. He was "for" every format..DSD, Multi Channel, 24 bit PCM,, the Plangent Process, and even making promo videos for "Mastered for iTunes". He will be "for" what ever brings in more income.

He goes which way the wind blows. He sold all his vinyl mastering gear in the 2000s then bought it all right back

for the "vinyl resurgence".

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20 minutes ago, firedog said:

Bob Ludwig’s DSD masters of the Stones on ABKCO sound fantastic. If you find better sounding versions, let us know. 

FYI. He did not do the DSD transfers. He did the mastering only.

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17 hours ago, firedog said:

I’m wondering why you are correcting a claim I didn’t make.

In any case, do you think the mastering has nothing to do with the sound of the result?

Sorry to confuse. Yes the mastering has a lot to do with the end result, but I also fee the quality of the original

digital transfer of the analog tapes is a massive factor.  Compare these Stones SACDs to the Queen remasters

Ludwig did. I find those to be very difficult to listen to.

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4 minutes ago, labjr said:

I don't quite understand what Bob Ludwig did with the Stones SACD re-mastering. If he received digital files that were already converted to DSD. Did he convert to analog and back to digital?

 

When he re-mastered Queen for SACD did he work with the analog tapes?

 

Ludwig had two options. Convert to analog and recapture to DSD. Or use something like Sonoma/Pyramix to convert to DXD for edits and EQ then back to DSD.

 

Ludwig did not do the Queen SACDs. Only the CDs, 24/48 Orb USB files, and the 24/96 downloads.

 

The Queen SACDS were done in Japan unfortunately using 24/96 files.  Not the analog tapes.

Just like the Yes Higher Vibration SACD box.

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11 minutes ago, Brian Lucey said:

I have done the comparison, it's not lossless.

 

They also have failed to even offer files up for comparison to AIX Records Mark Waldrep who supplied TRUE hi res, 100% hi res files.  3 years later .... still nothing.

 

In FACT...two people on the planet have had their 'master files" encoded by Stuart...

 

Peter McGrath of Wilson Audio, and John Atkinson of Streophile.

 

Funny, that.

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17 minutes ago, Mordikai said:

Good point. In an ordinary healthy discussion there would be opposing viewpoints within the TAS staff and they could debate it in print, which could make for interesting reading. But no

 

REALLY simple. Create demand, manufacturers scurry to make their hardware buzzword compliant (in this case, MQA), more ad revenue will ensue, and Harley gets to pay is mortgage. Economics, plain and simple.

 

Serving the consumer and critical reporting are last on the list.

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1 hour ago, mcgillroy said:

Stereophile‘s Products of the year list is another MQA PR-Stunt. MQA gets mentioned at least once on every page and about 9x in total.

 

On top of it they keep pushing their narrative that DACs with 

out MQA are incomplete: „Bryston BDA-3 D/A processor ($3495)
While it was frustrating not to be able to decode MQA files...“

 

Etc, etc. 

 

https://www.stereophile.com/content/stereophiles-products-2017

This, in particular, I find sickening. The notion that if a great digital product does not have an MQA Ready logo on the front, it

is somehow not competitive. Sickening.

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19 minutes ago, Rt66indierock said:

 

Thanks Archimago,

 

Journalism died in the United States with the Duke Lacrosse Case in 2006. There are only people expressing their point of view left now so I have no expectations of anything but a marketing piece for MQA. After all Jim Austin wants to keep writing for Stereophile and that requires supporting MQA.

 

Take care,

 

Stephen

Somebody had to say it....

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I smell a shilly shill shill....

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39 minutes ago, Lee Scoggins said:

 

Brian,

 

I think you have to evaluate the sonic merits and business elements separately.  It is possible that MQA sounds better and the business elements are not good in terms of licensing, etc.  It is possible the sonic merits are good and there are benefits to the business aspects.  It is possible that none of it is good.  There is, unfortunately no objective way to score the business pluses and minuses.  Everyone will have an opinion.

 

From a business standpoint, it might even be a trade-off.  For instance, MQA may need licensing fees to enforce standards but those standards may be beneficial.  Or it could be an evil DRM scheme too.  I don't have enough data to have an informed opinion yet.

 

 

You really need to take off the Rose Coloured Glasses. Seriously.

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26 minutes ago, Lee Scoggins said:

 

The sources for the LA Show were 24/88 and 24/96 files of some (mostly 2/4-track) recordings Peter McGrath did of various classical orchestras and ensembles.  I confirmed with Wilson Audio (was just there for a factory tour) where Peter works that the files played were the raw hirez files and the MQA-encoded files.  Volume was level matched at the demo.  Equipment was a T+A integrated amplifier driving Wilson Audio Alexx speakers.  MQA source was the top of the line Meridian Audio cd player and dac.  Equipment was set up by Sunil Merchant, a friend of mine, who has a popular dealership in Covina.  "Sunny" also confirmed to me there was no "monkey business" done on the demo.

So everyone at the demo had a financial stake in a positive outcome, and that does not give you pause?

It is really hard to take you seriously at this point. 

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2 minutes ago, synn said:

On topic, I still don’t understand what problem MQA is trying to solve. 

 

As a streaming services user, I can count on my two hands the number of times I was actually continuously streaming something on the go. I almost always download what I want to listen to offline and take it with me to go. There are no bandwidth savings I can think of for my uses.

 

if we are talking offline file size savings, the DAP I just ordered lets me take 464GB on the go. That’s more than my entire music library! Storage is only getting cheaper, so I see no benefits there either.

 

as for the sound quality argument, I am on the fence about that and will make a decision once I compare the 2L files back to back on the Onkyo.

 

The only problem I see MQA actually solve is helping some executives figure out how to afford their next yacht or Porsche.

What problem is MQA trying to solve? That is easy..to keep Meridian from going into receivership. They have bled out roughly 30+ million pounds since 1977.  Last ditch, desperate effort to keep the doors open.

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3 minutes ago, Shadders said:

Hi,

I do not want to see any manufacturer go into receivership, as the jobs lost will be predominantly those people not in control.

Meridian equipment is of high quality - but some design decisions do seem odd - i have read that they used tantalum capacitors on the output stage path in one product.

MQA represents a pure greed approach to a new technological development and deployment. The less than "accurate" statements regarding the technology details, have not helped.

Regards,

Shadders.

Bob Stuart is a disaster as businessman. His decisions over the past 40 years would have bankrupted any company numerous times.

 

IN FACT, with out the safety net of his wife's family fortune..they pumped millions into Meridian to keep it afloat, he would have been out of business.

 

The gear had to many quirks and they went against the grain at every turn.

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4 minutes ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

That's an interesting spin on it. MQA ltd has all the intellectual property rather than Meridian.

 

Are you saying the money is being funneled back to the major shareholder of MQA and Meridian to keep Meridian alive, rather than just letting Meridian die and keep MQA profits in the long run?

Who founded MQA? Who is on the board? Who are the shareholders?

 

I am not making any claims about where cash is going or not.

 

What I AM saying is that MQA is/was a last desperate attempt to keep a failed business alive.

 

 

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3 minutes ago, FredericV said:

Members of the secret MQA group appear to take all the MQA marketing for granted, without any critical thinking.

It's like talking to flat earthers. Today I encountered one:



So every fact that we discovered by reverse engineering and researching MQA, are half truths according to these shills.

A total lack of critical thinking? Oh you mean like Stereophile and TAS?

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Just now, Lee Scoggins said:

 

Again with the personal attacks like you did on Hoffman which got the thread locked.  Can you please drop those simply because we have different opinions?

 

At an audio show, the financial stake is to sell gear.  Peter and Sunny are selling Wilson speakers and ARC/T+A gear.  They don't have a stake in selling MQA.  Peter is world famous in many circles for the quality of his recordings.  Wilson Alexx speakers are known for their resolution and overall quality.  Bob probably figured this would make for some good demo sound.  

 

You seem to want to read a conspiracy into everything...

Ridiculous reply ."They don't have a stake in selling MQA."  This really strips you of any credibility.

 

A Meridian dealer, who sells MQA compatible gear has no stake? Getting Wilson speakers heard in a public setting..no benefit there?  Ok.  Do you believe in the tooth fairy too?

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1 minute ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

I'd buy into your view if Meridian would have kept the MQA intellectual property. But, with another entity owning the IP, it doesn't make much sense to funnel money back into a different failing business. 

 I did not say anything about money being funneled..yet.

 

Since MQA is burning through their cash with essentially no revenue...there is nothing to funnel.

 

This was a huge bet. If not for the community rising up...it very well could have happened..Stuart could

have raked it in...had everything batch converted to MQA, got every DAC manufacturer on board, and then martinis in the South of France.

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4 minutes ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

No need to get personal. Disagreeing with the message is fine.

I agree, but when someone is playing dumb, it is disingenuous. But i get your point.

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Just now, Lee Scoggins said:

 

MQA won't sell Wilson speakers.  MQA could I guess some more Meridian players.  But lacking any evidence of foul play, you seem to be assuming the worst of the participants with no evidence to back it up.

Find a post where I said there was foul play.

 

It is all about MOTIVES, and who gains from what.  I know for a FACT that MQA has recruited dealers to shill for MQA.

 

 

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Just now, Lee Scoggins said:

 

Can you share what evidence you have when you say "I know for a FACT that MQA has recruited dealers to shill for MQA."?

I know an MSB dealer who showed me emails from MQA strongly encouraging them and all their employees, even family members to go online, and post as consumers, as to the wonderful "benefits" of MQA. 

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2 minutes ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

 

 

Just trying to follow the logic. If MQA was created to solve the issue of Meridian going into receivership (as you said above), then it follows that money must be funneled to Meridian from MQA ltd. 

 

Maybe I'm looking at this differently. 

 

I just don't see Reinet pumping money into Meridian if it's dying and MQA is making money. All speculation at this point because neither is making money.

I am not sure why you don't understand why MQA could have been formed to keep Meridian and Stuart afloat.  We will leave it at that.

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Just now, davide256 said:

The recording industry has to sell recordings to make money. The easiest way to make money is to advertise a new "better" media type where they can get you to buy again the newer tech recording of what you already own. As long as they put both MQA and non MQA versions on the same disc, the market can sort it out in the long run. If they try to force MQA only, I'll have an issue.

that is their ultimate goal.

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7 minutes ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

Now that email would be very interesting to see. Not a smoking gun because nobody has been shot, but very interesting with respect to honesty and what most people feel is within/outside of the boundaries of good taste. 

Why would anyone be surprised? MQA launched with a laundry list of lies...

 

When trying to sell vaporware, no tactic is off the table.

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3 minutes ago, Lee Scoggins said:

 

Plus, didn't Stuart formally leave Meridian?

No, he resigned from the board.