MQA AND TIDAL MASTERS SUPPORT FOR PIONEER COMPONENTS
Pioneer has announced that its range of network-enabled stereo hi-fi components will be able to support both MQA and TIDAL Masters audio files from 18 December by way of a firmware update.
Owners of the N-30AE network audio player or SX-N30AE network stereo receiver will be able to benefit from both native MQA support, as well as TIDAL Masters support, meaning MQA files can be listened to from TIDAL and other sources.
The N-70AE, N-50AE and NC-50DAB components meanwhile receive just TIDAL Masters support. The firmware update can be installed by heading into the system setup menu on the player or receiver.
MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) is a technology originally developed by British audio manufacturer Meridian. It allows high-resolution audio tracks (24-bit/192kHz) to be compressed to a size that can easily be streamed or downloaded and then decompressed (or 'unfolded') at the end of the chain without losing any of the original sound quality. Effectively, it lets listeners hear the music exactly how it was recorded in the studio.
TIDAL Masters is the result of a partnership between MQA and TIDAL, that lets subscribers listen to thousands of albums and tracks in MQA format.
You will need to make sure you have a TIDAL subscription to listen to them of course.
Pioneer has been on an update spree lately, adding HDR10+ support to its UDP-LX800 and UDP-LX500 Universal Disc Players.
For more information visit Pioneer.
Marc Rushton
StereoNET’s Founder and Publisher was born in England and raised on British Hi-Fi before moving to Australia. He developed an early love of music and playing bass guitar before discovering the studio and the other side of the mixing desk. After writing for print magazines, Marc saw the future in digital publishing and founded the first version of StereoNET in 1999.
Posted in: Hi-Fi
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