Using streaming as a main source ---DSD, FLAC, MQA Streamers and DACS

I sometimes watch music videos on YouTube with one of my systems using headphones. One truly enjoyable pastime is watching the music video; while the same track (be it a recording or live performance) is playing on another system.

I’m not a fan of streaming devices or streaming in general.

Regarding the following:

--MQA--

--> I think CD quality .wav files ripped with bit-perfect software and played on jriver or any decent music playback software is better than MQA. There are plenty of other settings on software that can greatly influence playback quality.

-- DSD --

--> In theory, what DSD does is similar to some vintage audio components like 1 bit DLCs, which can be very resolving because they still resolve 16 bits with the faultless compromise of introducing noise in to inaudible frequency bands, while using noise shaping to achieve PCM that is satisfatory or even very good.

-- FLAC --

--> Like .mp3s .flacs are compressed files that need to be "unpacked" before being played. But unlike .mp3s, they are lossless rather than lossy. .wav files on the other hand are truly lossless and native to the Microsoft operating system. Therefore on the lowest level, (kernel) which is equal to the datalink layer on the OSI model (computer networking) the slightly longer signal path and small amounts of mainboard noise from computers are effectively eliminated. This is why sometimes .flac files can sound a bit warmer - it's the CPU/mainboard doing a bit more work.

Streaming need be no more difficult than the rest of your system. You simply need the highest quality streamer and DAC you can afford. Do your research about the quality and sound characteristics of each. The value of each should be about the same as your preamp, or amp.

First on format. The most important thing about the sound quality from your system is your equipment. Period. 99+% of the sound quality is determined by your equipment not the format. once you get really high quality sound you can join in the fray about how x sounds like Sh!t and Y sounds fantastic… which probably is going to be splitting hairs if you have good equipment.

Most high quality streamers will support them all or all minus one. Your source will determine what formats are available. Qobuz is most widely regarded as the highest sound quality. They have high a million high resolution albums and a couple million more at red book CD resolution. Forget ripping, file storage unles you like fiddling around. That is so ten years ago. I have a bunch of stored files only because I have stayed on the leading edge of digital since it’s inception.

MQA is not trash, on a good system it sounds great… I used to listen to Tidal (they have MQA)… but Qobuz is better (by a small but noticeable margin) and they have lots of higher resolution albums.

Get a dedicated streamer… not a PC. Typically even a budget Bluesound streamer sounds much much better. The PC route is all sorts of work and hassle and unless you want to make playing around with PCs and routers your hobby… don’t do it.

If you don’t have a Ethernet connection near you, don’t worry. Get a cheap wifi extender for $59, plug it in next to your system and an Ethernet cable into that, and done. I have and know of many $150K systems running this way.

For a streamer, unless your budget will not permit it, look at Aurender… this is all they do and produce some of the best on the market… I have two. My systems are shown under my ID.

If you need a budget DAC… look at Schiit Yggdrasil… outstanding performance for a low cost.

read what @ghdprentice wrote above. All true, IMO. +1

To what he wrote I would add:

Tidal, has a wider music selection than Quboz. MQA is a bit of marketeering nonsense (it IS lossy, and MQA is a solution to a problem better solved by bandwidth), but it’s not trash.

Aurender makes great gear, but it doesn’t support Roon (if you care, some day); you’re locked into their software. I’d suggest Lumin as a possible alternative.

Is MQA important to you? Myself and many others have rejected this Lossy format for many reasons but I prefer lossless playback because I can hear the difference on my system. Is ROON important to you? Many of us use that for varying reasons. I am a big fan. The purchase process should not be a nightmare for you and the best advice I read in this thread is find a dealer who communicates with you satisfactorily and that’s the way to go through a dealer purchase.

When I had hardware capable of MQA decoding (hardware which went belly up a mere couple days after the warranty expired🤣), I had already decided that I enjoyed the fidelity I got from non-MQA capable Qobuz more than I got from the MQA capable Tidal. In other words, sure MQA was okay, but it didn't make enough of a difference to keep me wedded to the format.