TIDAL – MQA And Sony Audio Formats Gone
Image Credit: TIDAL & MQA Labs
According to TIDAL, starting July 24th 2024, there will be no further access to either MQA and 360 Reality streams from their hi-res streaming service. They have officially confirmed that they will have replaced all or most of their MQA streams with FLAC versions. They have also indicated that 360 Reality Audio tracks are heading for the same departure as they opt to focus on Dolby Atmos as its immersive audio format of choice.
Here in part is TIDAL’s announcement:
WILL I STILL BE ABLE TO ACCESS MUSIC IN MQA AND 360 REALITY AUDIO ON TIDAL?
No. Starting July 24, 2024, you will no longer be able to access music in the MQA or 360 Reality Audio formats via any TIDAL application or integration.
For stereo sound, FLAC was chosen as the format we’ll support going forward because it is open source—meaning any artist can deliver their music in high quality directly to TIDAL without the involvement of a third party. This makes it easier for their fans to experience music in the highest possible sound quality on all their devices.
For immersive sound, Dolby Atmos was chosen as the format we will support going forward due to the number of compatible devices, catalog availability, and artist adoption of the format. Through our continued partnership with Dolby, we’ve given artists the opportunity to expand on their sonic vision, allowing their fans to experience their music like never before.
This all comes at a time when Lenbrook International, owners of MQA Labs, have just announced a new high-res music service in conjunction with HDtracks that offers both the MQA Labs audio processing AIRIA codec and LPCM/FLAC. They have also developed additional audio processing tools to include; FOQUS, which “represents an innovative approach for analogue to digital conversion,” and, QRONO that “brings a variety of audio processing enhancements within playback devices.” No mention where and when these audio tools will be deployed.
The above TIDAL announcement goes on to say that; “We are working hard to ensure all existing MQA tracks will be replaced with a FLAC version in a timely manner,” and that they currently have at least 16-bit/44.1kbps FLAC versions for nearly all MQA tracks today but may not have a replacement for every single one when MQA does disappear.
As for Sony’s 360 Reality Audio format, TIDAL, in that same document have confirmed that, Dolby Atmos will be the only immersive format it supports “due to the number of compatible devices, catalog availability, and artist adoption of the format”. When the changes occur in July, you will see the track or album greyed out and unavailable for streaming.
For those of you with MQA tracks, playlists, or albums for offline access you will need to update your TIDAL app to the latest version on July 24th and redownload the tracks in FLAC.
Read the full TIDAL audio file format update here.
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