MQA Labshas launched Qrono dsd and Qrono d2a , a set of technologies that the grouping claim will improve the audio output of anydigital - to - analog converter(DAC ) . They ’re the first new product produce by the MQA team since itwas acquired by Lenbrook in 2023 .
While both Qrono dsd and d2a are signal processors , they serve different function . Qrono dsd win over DSD audio into a pulse - computer code pitch contour ( PCM ) signaling — a critical step when you need to recreate DSD tracks via a DAC that is n’t capable of decoding DSD natively . “ DSD spiritual rebirth is deal with the unclouded possible pinch to preserve all the essential meter details in the recording , ” said Al Wood , MQA Labs ’ music director of engineering .
Meanwhile , Qrono d2a is an seek to improve the direction DACs perform the task of turning digital audio into the parallel audio that at last gets feed to our speakers or headphones . It does this by compensate for the blurring of the time demesne , something that MQA Labs says is implicit in in the way all DACs work .
If this sound intimate , it ’s because deblurring of the clock time domain was one of the key technical promise of the originalMQA formatdeveloped by Bob Stuart .
MQA Labs says that new inquiry into how humans get wind point to the importance of compensate error in the timing of sound . “ One of the most surprising recent discovery in neuroscience has been the precision of our hearing when discriminating sounds with fine metre detail , ” according to an MQA Labswhite paper on Qrono d2a . “ We can comprehend discrete auditory signals as tight together as 7 microsecond . ”
The blank paper die into greater point , with chart that purport to show the differences between DAC - process signal and those that have been adjusted by Qrono d2a .
When Qrono d2a is used to process ahi - res , 24 - bit/192kHz filing cabinet , MQA Labs enjoin it can exceed the time execution of the best analog system . “ The hearable improvement , while subtle , is immediate . Removing the meter smear reveals textures previously bedim . Micro kinetics are improve , and instruments are clearly delineated , enhancing the stereophony soundstage and prototype . Music flows course , adding pragmatism and reducing attender fatigue . ”
Both Qrono d2a and dsd will make their debut this year in Bluesound ’s new flagshipnetwork music streamer , theNode Icon . Qrono dsd will complain in any clip a substance abuser begin playback of a DSD source , while Qrono d2a will be used on all digital audio frequency .
alas , there ’s no direction to toggle switch d2a on and off to hear the difference . According to a spokesperson , “ extensive listening trial were performed before the determination was taken to implement QRONO d2a as a received appendage for the Node Icon . ”
When the MQA format first appeared on the panorama , it was criticized by many in the audiophile community . Observers felt that MQA did n’t deliver on its hope of being both hi - res andlossless , and there was concern around the licensing model ; euphony labels were to be paid to encode using MQA , streaming services were to be paid to distribute MQA , and listener had to grease one’s palms limited MQA - capable hardware if they want to hear the data formatting at its highest horizontal surface of calibre .
Qrono dsd and d2a might be in for a similarly bumpy ride . Still , Wood is sounding a confirming tone , saying : “ We are enthralled by the audio results from the Qrono integration in Bluesound ’s Node Icon and believe owners of the Icon will find the audio performance to be next level . ”
