Audirvana 3+ (MQA decoding added). Is it worth the upgrade?

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by ishmaelk, Apr 10, 2018.

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  1. ishmaelk

    ishmaelk Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Madrid
    Hi everyone.
    I've been a user of Audirvana 2 and, although I'm not a huge fan of the software, I was thinking of upgrading to 3+ just because I use Tidal masters every now and then.
    Has anyone upgraded?
    What's your opinion? Is it worth it?
    Adding the 39$ of the upgrade to the 74$ I already paid for it in the first place makes me wonder if I'm just wasting my time.
    Thanks.
     
  2. Hudo

    Hudo Forum Resident

    Location:
    Dublin, Ireland
    You know MQA is lossy format?

    I never listen master (mqa) format on tidal since it degrades sound quality.
     
  3. Brother_Rael

    Brother_Rael Senior Member

  4. Shiver

    Shiver Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    (Basil Fawlty voice... 'Don't mention MQA')
     
  5. ishmaelk

    ishmaelk Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Madrid
    I've read a few articles on the subject, and followed some of the threads here, but then, I've also found some master versions of certain albums (Elvis Costello, for example) to sound better than the standard hifi ones. It's a hit and miss thing, really, and I wouldn't say it keeps me awake at night.
    So thanks for the input but I'd like to know the experience of people who have used Audirvana versions 2 and 3 and that could comment on that experience.
     
  6. JMCIII

    JMCIII Music lover first, audiophile second.

    Given that your other choice is Roon at $499 per life, yeah, I'd say it's worth it. I use it to stream Tidal MQA and think it's great.
     
  7. allegro

    allegro Well-Known Member

    Location:
    USA
    I subscribe to both Tidal and Quobuz and have been using the free trial of Audirvana+ for two days now on Windows 10 Pro. I use a Yggy so no MQA decoding but Audirvana+ does do the first unfold so I do get 24/96 confirmed on the Yggy. While 44 or 48 sounds great on the Yggy I almost always notice a clearer high end when streaming 96 depending on the master. Cymbals are clearer, more realistic for example. The desktop player for Quobuz is buggy and often hangs up on me, sounds become distorted and I have to exit and restart the player. Audirvana+ just works fine with Quobuz and sound quality is also improved. I am getting a blacker background with better imaging. I need to play with Audirvana+ for a week or so but will probably buy the license.
     
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