Hi @bradf
Why thank you kindly, good sir!
Hi @ohlala
Interesting. However, I’m afraid my experiences correlate exactly with Paul McGowan at PS Audio as well as most members of the SFAS who went to the local demo. Again, if we have to carefully look for "improvements" it’s not worth buying. If this were a Dolby B or dbx demo in the time of magnetic tape it would have been no contest. We would all be wowed. MQA? Meh, and double meh!
Just to add, since my system uses custom speakers and amps, I used AKG K712 headphones for critical listening with MQA sources. I compared native 24/96 to MQA. I didn’t care to evalutate an MQA file with/without MQA decoding, that comparison doesn’t mean anything to me.
Hi @tomcy6 What may not be clear is that the minimum phase filter IS selectable without MQA. Let me try to summarize the behavior (which jives with the text of the review):
- With MQA detection set OFF you have 3 filters to choose from, including minimum phase (MPH). The other two are conventional Fast Rolloff (FR) and Slow Rolloff (SR)
- With MQA detection set ON the Brooklyn forces the filter to be minimum phase, whether or not the input is MQA encoded.
There’s a little bit about that behavior in the body of the review, and I’m glad I read it because I was going nuts trying to get to the filter selection menu. :)
My only point is that the specific digital filter in the Brooklyn is independent of MQA. Personally my hierarchy (though speakers) is:
FR > MPH > SR
I find FR and MPH very close, with FR having more clearly delineated attacks. SR is just too funky to listen to. Maybe it’s because my tweeters go to 30kHz or 40kHz and I’m getting more effects in the audible range. Don’t know, but don’t like it, I can’t quite explain the weird discomfort.
In any event, I encourage everyone to trust your ears and buy only those things that are worth it for you. :)
Best,
Erik
Why thank you kindly, good sir!
Hi @ohlala
Interesting. However, I’m afraid my experiences correlate exactly with Paul McGowan at PS Audio as well as most members of the SFAS who went to the local demo. Again, if we have to carefully look for "improvements" it’s not worth buying. If this were a Dolby B or dbx demo in the time of magnetic tape it would have been no contest. We would all be wowed. MQA? Meh, and double meh!
Just to add, since my system uses custom speakers and amps, I used AKG K712 headphones for critical listening with MQA sources. I compared native 24/96 to MQA. I didn’t care to evalutate an MQA file with/without MQA decoding, that comparison doesn’t mean anything to me.
Hi @tomcy6 What may not be clear is that the minimum phase filter IS selectable without MQA. Let me try to summarize the behavior (which jives with the text of the review):
- With MQA detection set OFF you have 3 filters to choose from, including minimum phase (MPH). The other two are conventional Fast Rolloff (FR) and Slow Rolloff (SR)
- With MQA detection set ON the Brooklyn forces the filter to be minimum phase, whether or not the input is MQA encoded.
There’s a little bit about that behavior in the body of the review, and I’m glad I read it because I was going nuts trying to get to the filter selection menu. :)
My only point is that the specific digital filter in the Brooklyn is independent of MQA. Personally my hierarchy (though speakers) is:
FR > MPH > SR
I find FR and MPH very close, with FR having more clearly delineated attacks. SR is just too funky to listen to. Maybe it’s because my tweeters go to 30kHz or 40kHz and I’m getting more effects in the audible range. Don’t know, but don’t like it, I can’t quite explain the weird discomfort.
In any event, I encourage everyone to trust your ears and buy only those things that are worth it for you. :)
Best,
Erik