On Pg 18 of user manual. Does this refer to Volume Passthrough Mode setting? Does it need to be set to max to support MQA? MQA streams and CDs seem to display properly and sound fine when using internal (digital?) volume control (e.g. -10 dB). I'd like to be able to output directly to power amp without using a separate pre-amp for volume control.
Hi there are two method for MQA support. 1, Digital output (such as: USB DAC, SPDIF output) , it must set to Volume Passthrough if you want to support MQA, it means it must bit perfect. 2, Analog output (such as: XLR output), it no need to set MAX volume, you can adjust the volume.
Yeah I think it needs an update of the manual as the message is confusing. Asked myself the same question when reading it.
Thanks for clarification. Makes sense now. New firmware updates akready...must be difficult to keep user documentation up-to-date. Hopefully updates will reduce amount of tech support. Bluesound use to do automatic firmware updates every few months. So many great reviews of DMP A6 mighr make this the Bluesound Node "killer". Hope you can keep up with worldwide demand. Congrats!
When using a External dac (e.g via USB) it's always best to 'maximize' digital output Does Volume Passthrough setting does this ?, is there a way to 'lock' digital output level to max?
That's what the Volume Passthrough setting does, ie. 0 dB max level. A digital volume control works by dropping the least significant bits in the 16 or 24 bit word structure so it will modify the data stream going to the digital outputs. That's my understanding but I'm not an expert.
Yes, you are absolutely right. The volume control in the digital domain (i.e. BEFORE the D->A conversion) modifies the stream, so that it's not bit-perfect any more. Not that you'll hear huge degradation, but in terms of the "MQA thing" it results in a non-original stream, for what it's worth, anyway, as MQA is on the verge of disappearing...
