Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion MQA - Related technology, products and music MQA solution into my DSP speakers?

Appreciate the clarity Rick,

Some of those boxes are very expensive it seems for marginal gains (on the MQA side I mean) without the move to SE speakers.

This is a little disappointing for me, albeit I accept that this technology is a step forward and steps forward do require investment. Had I had an analogue back end setup, which incidentally I did prior to moving to the DSP5200's last year, I could benefit from full fat MQA with the introduction of a 218 at sub £1000. The way things look I have no option but shell out £4k plus on SE upgrades plus the 218 as a minimum to achieve the same end result.

I really don't want to limit MQA to headphone only listening as that creates a 2 tier set up which is not desirable, but looks like that is the only way to get fully involved in this new world in a Meridian ecosystem without spending big bucks.

Explorer2 and new cans it is then...

Lee

Has anyone on here with an 808v6 or 818v3 tried MQA into non-SE DSP speakers? It would be interesting to know your thoughts.

VirusKiller has: google the forum and you'll find it. (818v3 into 6ks)

Thanks just reading it now.
As an MS600 and 5k owner I've not been keeping up with MQA developments

I'm doing that very thing now, 818v3 into 6Ks. The results are mixed when I duplicate a MQA from Tidal with an album I have in my library. Mixed I say because it's never worse and more often than not better, some by a wide margin. I've compared seven albums so far. Now I'm listening for a difference between the decoding being done by Tidal vs the 818.

Ken

Hi folks,

I discussed MQA with Rick today to determine how to get the best from my system - as you will see from my signature I only have 24/96 capable M6 (fed via MS200) in one room, and a 7.1 cinema with Smiley face DSP5000 fronts (fed via ID40) in another. Through these I listen to Tidal and my ripped CD's from an MC200 and controlMac. I have played MQA files from Tidal in both rooms, and now want to get the maximum benefit from these 24/96 speakers at a reasonable cost. I will try to summarise what I learned in case it is of any use. Please appreciate I do not technically understand all the nuances of MQA.

- at the moment I can listen to the MQA files (without the MQA unfolding) and they may sound marginally better than the equivalent red book CD file, because of the process by which they were prepared.
- by replacing my MS200 with a 218 I can 'unpack' the MQA goodness into my M6 and enjoy it up to 24/96. Any MQA data above 24/96 is somehow boiled into the 24/96 audible file and may offer a marginal improvement. The real joy will come from the unpacked MQA up to 24/96.
- MQA is not multichannel and so can only be enjoyed through the front two channels of my 7.1 setup. Rick could see a way to incorporate a 218 into my 7.1 setup such that I could select a button on the Meridian remote when I was listening to MQA. He thought it may turn out to be better to listen to non-MQA Tidal/CD files through the ID40 but wants to try the comparison himself. Regardless the unpacked MQA goodness will be enjoyed 2 channel in my 7.1.
- On this basis I ordered two 218 to be fitted as soon as they are available; £750 each seems like a damn reasonable price to pay to max out my current system until I buy an 818 and some 7200SE or 8000SE speakers when I retire!

We all like Rick and I trust him on this one (bought my M6 and 861v4/LPS/ID40 from him), so wish me luck and I'll report back when installation is complete.

Mat

p.s. we agreed it probably wasn't worth replacing the MS200 feeding my F80 with a 218.

This 861v8 L/R SL output -> 818v3 is a novel idea but for the High-End Meridian Trifield systems it just doesn't cut it when you are used to listening to music in Full 7ch Trifield.

We are still waiting for the MQA capable 861v9 or whatever the Immersive Audio platform will be coming from Meridian in the future.

Did he give you other options?

The recent announcement by Roon about enabling software decoding of MQA streams within the Roon software is significant in this regard. It should allow anyone with an MS200 or MS600 to enjoy the benefits of MQA at least up to 24/96.

This is apparently already possible within the TIDAL app itself (at no extra cost) if I have read it correctly - has anyone tried this option and listened to the decoded MQA stream via the TIDAL app?

One question is how close will MQA decoding in Roon into MS200 into legacy DSPs get to MQA decoding in a 218 into legacy DSPs?

Neither will go higher than 24/96 presumably.

Agree that is the question.

My guess is that the real limitation will be 24/96 rather than how the software decoding is implemented within Roon. There may of course be some improvement in SQ from using a 218 rather than an MS200 but again the limiting factor will likely be the DACs (and amps) in the 24/96 DSPs. I'm guessing it will still sound very good via either route.

I think the difference will be minimal, whereas the cost difference is a factor of more than 2...

What no Meridian dealer will tell you is that Roon software decoding will unlock everyone's legacy Meridian gear (including multiple systems in one house) for far less cost than a single 218. (I'm still interested in getting a 218 myself, for some of its other features.)