MQA is Vaporware

[garrardguy60]

21 hours ago, KeenObserver said:

Amongst other things, this whole debacle has shown us the value of those publications.

 

A case in point is this comment from one of their main equipment reviewers:

 

[garrardguy60]

More nonsense from Jim Austin in his latest "As We See It" essay, posted today:

 

"Tidal is starting to do standard hi-rez PCM FLAC to complement their MQA offerings, which, though many prefer them, may be going away."

[garrardguy60]

3 hours ago, Kal Rubinson said:

The gullibility is a consequence of not wanting to understand or accept the "reliable sources of scientific information."  It is a choice.

 

Is it a always a case of consciously not wanting to understand, or is it an inability to understand?

 

Consider this question by looking at an example from the sell side of MQA; namely, the staffers and contributors to the pub for which you write.

 

Three with scientific educations -- Jim Austin, John Atkinson, and you -- all clearly understand what the deal is. (Well, you've shown that you clearly understand via what you've written publicly, on forums, etc.. Austin pretends he doesn't understand, but clearly with his doctorate in physics he must. He's just (rationally) choosing to elevate economic incentives over the more ethereal benefits of "the truth." And Atkinson has taken the tortuous approach, trying to have it both ways and/or splitting the difference, by trafficking in statements that attempt to be nominally truthful while still supporting the company line.)

 

On the other side of the fence, two non-scientifically educated Stereophile contributors -- Jason Victor Serinus and former staffer Mikey Fremer -- have, in their cheerleading, never evinced any understanding of MQA. Indeed, neither of them appear to know anything about electronics beyond what they're gleaned from using the equipment. I.e., they are to electronics as most drivers are to cars. Their perspectives come solely from engagement with the user interface. The black box that's in charge is so opaque to them they may as well not be aware that it's there.

 

I would argue that the non-science educations of both make it impossible for them to engage with the subject matter. They look at things through a qualitative lens and lack the ability to engage quantitatively. In Rumsfeldian terms, they don't know what they don't know.

 

I would further speculate that attachment theory may have as much to say about what sources people rely on for their "truths" as does the type of education one has had. But I would be talking out of my hat, since you are the neuroscientist, not I.

 

 

[garrardguy60]

Why are we indulging Lee Scoggins' little brother, who is annoying but not quite yet as annoying as Lee?

[garrardguy60]

STOP THE PRESSES!

 

JA1 has weighed in and <i>apparently</i> MQA is "not necessarily lossy."

 

Mr Atkinson writes (in a comment on the Stereophile news story "Lenbrook Aquires MQA":

 

"While it is true that the bits in an MQA-encoded file are not the same as those in the original hi-rez file, this does not necessarily mean that the format is "lossy" in the manner that MP3, AAC, etc are lossy.

 

MQA takes advantage of the fact that all recorded music has a random noisefloor that is higher in amplitude than the LSBs. This allows a technique called "steganography" to be used to create a buried data channel - see www.researchgate.net/publication/45949372_Steganography-The_Art_of_Hiding_Data ."

 

John Atkinson
Technical Editor, Stereophile

 

(END of quoted section)

[garrardguy60]

6 hours ago, Fx Studio said:

 

The info from the press release indicates that they believe in MQA and fully back it as a format.

Of course there may be secondary reasons that we can guess at, but this is the primary reason given at this stage.

 

"Lenbrook said its primary objective in this acquisition was to provide certainty for business and technical developments that were underway prior to MQA’s administration."

 

"We are excited to have the opportunity to clarify the narrative and build on the technology in ways that can better demonstrate [MQA's] true value"

 

Anybody who (pretends to) believe press releases is either being willfully Scoggins, or you just don't understand how business works.  

[garrardguy60]

17 hours ago, John_Atkinson said:

 

And as I wrote,  regardless of your statements I didn't say MQA was lossless.

 

John Atkinson

Technical Editor, Stereophile

 

You can be a respected authority or you can be a bullspitter. Most people choose one or the other. You, however, appear to want to be both. At the same time. 

 

 

[garrardguy60]

22 minutes ago, John_Atkinson said:

 

I was responding to the incorrect assertions made on this forum that I wrote that MQA was "lossless." I didn't and wouldn't.

 

John Atkinson

Technical Editor, Stereophile

 

At least Jim Austin had the good taste to pick one side and stick with it. 

[garrardguy60]

2 hours ago, JoeWhip said:

I am waiting for the announcement that Peter Veth and Lee Scoggins have joined the team too.

 

Lee apparently has a new gig, at something called Sypnios Growth Capital. I'll be darned if I can figure out what they do from their b-school bs description, but it appears to be a much smaller version of McKinsey, so business consulting.

 

Here is Lee's bio from Sypnios's team member page:. Apparently Lee was more successful at TAS than we realized!

 

Lee Scoggins

Before joining Sypnios Growth Capital, Lee was CEO of Nextscreen, LLC, a media company in the automotive and audio sectors, where he tripled readership and doubled net earnings, including launching a successful YouTube channel. Previously, as an Associate Partner at McKinsey Analytics, Lee served numerous clients and won the Marvin Award for problem-solving in 2015. He also founded two analytics firms applying machine learning to banking and insurance risk management. Lee holds an honors degree in Finance and Management Information Systems from the University of Virginia.