Another point is that the AL’s status LED turns orange if MQA detected, green if it is not detected.
Wonder why the AL does this detection if it does not unfold file?!?
Unless status LED is used ONLY to ensure that MQA has been received and a full-unfolding DAC can expect to be receiving something to unfold.
However, the MK2 has no unfolding capabilities so status light of no use to those owners.
THanks, Dave
Hi Dave,
I would set Roon Core as the decoder and AL as the renderer!
From what I have tried, and this seems to jibe with what @vkennedy61 has stated, you can only get ONE unfold from a Roon-AL-MK2 combination.
Therefore, it appears that 96 kHz is the best MQA unfolding that the MK2 can expect to receive (and this is from 96 kHz and 192 kHz MQA files).
Thanks all, Dave
That was my expectation too…
@Serhan - I gave the setting of Roon as decoder and AirLens as renderer a go, no dice, it remains capped at 96k when the MQA file can go to 352k. Every last option tried, now just to listen to the music 
I wonder if MQA will be a thing in a few years time?
Im the end can anyone actually hear a SQ Difference?
Is it a thing now?
I have ceased using Tidal / MQA for almost a year (in favour of Qobuz). However, when I had Tidal, I often used it with Matrix DAC and an outboard headphones amp. The combination of Roon Nucleus & Matrix unfolded MQA up to 300+k. From memory, Patricia Barber’s Clique was done in in such resolution! Qobuz took one worry off the list!
I bought two things that do all the unfolds. I still don’t hear what the fuss is about. I don’t have the receptors.
Our (diverse) tastes, moods, and choices make this world more attractive and less boring!
ELCassette could have been a thing. I was sad how quickly it failed.
IMO, it depends on the recording.
On occasion, an MQA file is the best version of the files available to me between streaming services and my own files.
I don’t know whether to attribute the better sound to MQA’s “attributes”, encoding, etc., or the quality of the original recording, but I have heard a “difference” from time to time.
That said, MQA files do not always sound “better”.
FWIW.
Back to the above setup (Roon->AL->MK2) one big problem that I never foresaw was the volume control. With the suggested DIP 7 setting on the AL (fixed volume), volume control now passes farther down the chain to the pre-amp. This works but I need to be in the listening room to control volume.
So sitting in another room, dinner table, deck, etc. requires going to pre-amp to change volume.
Enabling DIP 7 allows Roon control but then not a bit perfect signal.
First-world problem but…
Thanks, Dave
Yes. Jriver does the Same. Also DSD files won’t play properly.
Is it live or is it Memorex? I can still smell the odor of the cassette tape when you peeled them out of the wrapper.
