MQA Ecosystem Set to Expand After Spate of Munich High-End Introductions This Week

Following Master Quality Authenticated's Monday announcement it added Rhapsody’s Napster service to its partner list (see 1905060019), MQA said Wednesday Harman’s luxury audio group is adding more MQA-ready products. Harman brands Arcam and Lexicon will integrate MQA into future product ranges, joining the company’s Mark Levinson No. 519 audio player. Astell&Kern is launching the flagship MQA-enabled SP2000 at Munich High End this week, Onkyo will bow its TX-8390 stereo receiver, due to release this month, and Pioneer’s PD-50AE music player will be the first MQA-equipped CD player when it ships, said MQA. Lenbrook has integrated live concert recordings company nugs.net on its BluOS music management platform, said the company. Elsewhere in Munich, Brinkmann will launch its MQA-enabled Voltaire integrated sound system amplifier; Esoteric will demonstrate the Grandioso D1X digital-to-audio converter with the P1X transport and N-03T network audio transport; Hegel will showcase the new H390 integrated amplifier; and EMM Labs plans to unveil the NS1 Streamer, due out later this year, MQA said. Cocktail Audio will show the X50Pro, a reference music server with MQA along with the HA500H hybrid headphone amplifier and DAC. Matrix Audio is announcing its Element series, due to ship in several months, Pro-Ject will display the Pre Box RS2 DAC with MQA and Wadax is announcing new Atlantis Reference and Arcadia DACs, it said.