RIP MQA codec? (Yeah. On Lenbrook Group's acquisition of bankrupt MQA Ltd., and SCL6.)

Hey folks, it looks like the saga around MQA never ends, but I think they're just scraping the bottom of the barrel with one last crank of the hype machine with hopes that this is somehow face-saving as well. :-|

So as of yesterday (September 19, 2023) it appears that Canadian brand Lenbrook Group of Companies - NAD, PSB, Bluesound - has acquired the intellectual property for MQA. Let's talk about this.

I see that Stereophile is right in there with the news release with quoted comments including the usual suspect like 2L's Morton Lindberg, Bob Stuart is mentioned, and a side comment about TIDAL switching to FLAC and their unclear "Max" designation. Wow, even "birth of a new world" John Atkinson made a comment about MQA! Notice that lossless "FLAC" was not mentioned in the article at all, but clearly implied. I found this line interesting:

The press release noted that record labels, artists, and producers continue to encode and upload new music in MQA to Tidal daily.

Really? Who's paying for this and why? They just felt like paying royalties to a failed company? I would love to see a graph showing the number of albums still freshly converted to MQA each week since the beginning of the year and through the administration/bankruptcy starting in April.

I think obviously this sale is about taking a chance to preserve the SCL6/"MQair" intellectual property. Just around 1 month prior to MQA declaring insolvency, Lenbrook / startup Sonical / MQA declared their partnership on upcoming headphones scheduled for early 2024 featuring SCL6 and Ultra-WideBand (UWB) transmission to take advantage of SCL6's scalable lossy encoding. To be fair, that could be cool so I'm not intending to be a downer on this collaboration. While I'm not bullish on the future of hi-res 2-channel audio (and personally don't care if SCL6 can handle 192kHz much less up to 384kHz), I recognize that maybe some people want this and a scalable codec that unobtrusively adapts to wireless conditions is cool.

I'll leave it to you, dear readers if you care, or if current Bluetooth codecs (some measured recently, and here) are good enough for your mobile needs. IMO, they're obviously not perfect but generally suit me well although I'd avoid AAC on Android unless shown to be improved from what I found.

Personally, if I care about optimal sound quality with UWB data rates that can reach up to 1Gbps, I don't see why I would not just reach for simple FLAC-encoded (or equivalent) lossless 16/44.1, 24/48, or 24/96. Heck, why not just have the mobile device connect at 24/96 and up/downsample everything to that hi-res setting rather than fool around with the unnecessarily complex scaling up and down? Sure, maybe a scaling codec is "cool", but as a consumer, I'm not sure I would want to pay more for that coolness factor.

Anyways, I suppose it's convenient that Lenbrook now owns SCL6, and the "origami" MQA codec comes as a bonus if they ever feel the need to use bits and pieces of the lossy sub-band encoding algorithm and can develop whatever headphones to their heart's content using these pieces. That is the "certainty for business and technical developments" they're talking about in the press release I suspect. Nobody else can now buy MQA Ltd.'s IP and potentially charge all kinds of licensing for those PSB headphones currently in development.

Between now and early 2024, it'll be interesting to see what products they come up with. Then we'll have to see whether the PSB product (they currently have 3 wireless headphones) is able to compete in the tight headphone space with much more popular brands. There's also the matter of how many mobile devices will incorporate the SCL6 codec. Will it be included "free" within the base Android AOSP like LDAC? And how will Apple incorporate SCL6 or would they ignore it like they did aptX? Furthermore, I suspect whatever they come out with in early 2024 will likely not be cheap and competing with other premium products. Let's see how this plays out!

Realize that all this SCL6 talk has nothing to do with the lossy MQA, pseudo-hi-res codec. IMO, I think Lenbrook should have just acquired the MQA IP and dropped any mention of the "MQA" acronym other than that they bought from MQA Ltd. given the negative connotations, moving along with just promoting SCL6 (helping audiophiles abandon the terrible "MQair" name) and the usual advertising hype around the latest and greatest technology next year with whatever they release. I think being associated with MQA-anything simply doesn't help at this point other than reminding us yet again of the scam tactics that the company engaged in as debated among audiophiles for years now.

I see speculation from various places like this about Lenbrook maybe running their own MQA streaming service based on some dramatic desire for "end-to-end" sound quality!? Totally ridiculous IMO because that whole "end-to-end" and grandiose proclamation that "MQA is the only technology that considers the entire audio signal chain, from studio to listening room, to assure consistent quality of reproduction" has always been a fantasy. Anyone who has a peek at how MQA files are made will know that this is pure hype. It boggles my mind that any serious audio journalist can even consider that statement to be true! As for Lenbrook starting a streaming service in say 2024 based on this kind of rationale, that would be a sure way for the company to lose money. I doubt Lenbrook has deep enough pockets to invest in a competitive streaming service for the few customers who desire MQA when there are excellent options out there already offering better fidelity.

Let's end off. Before any major changes to the MQA website happens due to the acquisition, let me point you to this beautiful "Q. Is MQA lossless?" page demonstrating what marketing speak looks like. Hopefully as audiophiles we can hold companies that market to us to a higher standard of transparency and honesty.

For posterity, here's a "one sheet" snapshot with mandatory corrections - let's just be honest with each other and expect companies (including the captured audiophile press - I see you woke up Stereophile to this news, TAS has said nothing so far which is good) call it as it is without all the obvious fluff and sleight of hand:

I took the liberty to sign this on behalf of myself and the participants of the massive Audiophile Style "MQA is Vaporware thread" who have added all kinds of insights into the MQA codec over the years.

Seriously guys & gals, I hope this is the last time we need to talk about the MQA encoder/codec. Let it die. Let TIDAL transition over to lossless and superior FLAC which is better for the company (no proprietary software to maintain or licensing fees), and users for compatibility with standard playback. Audiophile magazines like Stereophile and TAS and outspoken proponents need to figure out a better way to let this pass even though the Internet will not forget what was said in text or on YouTube.

If SCL6 is to be a great and valued codec, I'm all for it, but allow Lenbrook / PSB to show us its value in 2024 with real products first.

[PS: As a fellow Canadian, I hold no animosity towards Lenbrook or PSB. In fact, I would love to see Canadian products succeed. Just do it honestly which is doing it right.]

Addendum - September 23, 2023:

A final note to MQA shills, trolls, and audiophile magazine writers/editors (first posted here with slight edits):

I think it is fascinating watching how individuals like <<name of troll here>> operate on the message boards. It speaks about the lack of insight and also intellect, witnessed in the way the thoughts come out (or simply do not come out).

The almost cult-like hanging on to the words of others; faith that the Lenbrook engineers (it used to be the almighty BS - Bob Stuart) will come and "put to rest" supposed false claims of those who feel MQA has no value. It's a lot like how Peter Veth (PV, a well known shill found here over the years) operates where there is no critical thinking about the obvious fallacies of what MQA and their backers want us to believe (I'm not even sure they believe what they claim!).

The only thing worse IMO are those who lack the courage to just admit that they're wrong, and have been wrong since 2014. When as we can all see plainly that their euphoric attitudes, declarations of a new world streaming order, WTF moments are but fantasies and their words are meaningless for consumers; at best fodder for ongoing arguments like what we're witnessing here and the entertainment of passionate hobbyists.

After 9 years, MQA has not gained traction in the streaming world, or physical world of the very sad "MQA-CD". The parent MQA Ltd. has gone bankrupt. TIDAL is phasing it out and themselves struggling for market share and profits. The reputation of writers in the audiophile magazines have IMO not improved in any way (that might be a gross understatement given what they've written like this!). And all we're seeing in the last few days is IMO one last kick at the MQA codec hype to save face, for MQA Ltd. to claim something positive (yippie, they sold the IP!) despite basically losing the money of their investors (in the millions) and probably got "pennies on the dollar" from Lenbrook. This is the wreckage they leave behind for those who believed, defended, and invested in mere hype.

MQA fans like <<troll>>, PV and magazine writers... Go ahead and enjoy the news! Collect whatever few MQA files you might have and enjoy them forever. I think educated consumers who have spent even a few moments to read what's going on will realize that the MQA codec was always going to be a nothing in the face of technological progress (whether SCL6 ends up being a something remains to be seen in the hands of Lenbrook). The history of failures, and disappointments have proven that to be the case.

As I've said before, I think this is a very interesting chapter in the history of audiophilia - our tiny part in the universe of hobbies and other passions... In the life and evolution of this hobby, I think it will prove to be a good example of audiophiles independently finding truth and expressing honesty especially when it comes to the claims of the "High End" and faith in the audiophile writers and outlets that serve them.