Meitner MA-3 DAC

[audio.bill]

Biggest plus: Best DSD I've had in my system(s)

Not surprising... Meitner DACs are optimized for DSD decoding similar to Playback Designs. How do you find its performance on PCM relative to other DACs you've had? TIA

 

[DynaudioFan]

Currently using simaudio moon 390 for all in one roon digital solution. Looking to upgrade. Bartok is out of my reach. Is the MA3 definite upgrade in terms of sound quality? Inside of the unit looks pretty flimsy which erks me little.

 

[ayang90]

Hi all,

I just upgraded from a PS Audio DirectStream to the MA3 and I couldn’t be happier. This DAC is so natural sounding, the music just flows.

For the other MA3 owners there has been a firmware upgrade so the latest version as of December 9, 2022 is

1.20-132:006

1.20 primarily adds a “bypass” function allowing the volume control to be fixed for use with an analog preamp.

Now back to listening.

 

[u-sound]

very cool, glad you like it.

how do you install the firmware upgrade?

 

[ayang90]

how do you install the firmware upgrade?

Well this is where they are a bit behind. You need a Windows PC/laptop and a USB to serial cable. There is an upgrade program that you have to get either from your dealer or Meitner support directly. The upgrade program will be packaged with the upgraded firmware.

You put the MA3 in to firmware upgrade mode by rebooting and then pressing the bottom light while it is flashing. Then run the program on the laptop, it will detect the MA3 and then start the upgrade. Full instructions come with the upgrade package.

I use a preamp so I upgraded for the volume bypass feature. There were no audio quality changes that I could notice. Support said they will be changing over to USB sticks in the future.

 

[ayang90]

Recent MA3 review from December 2022. Audioshark won’t let me post links yet so here is the URL

//https://twitteringmachines.com/review-meitner-audio-ma3-integrated-d-a-converter//

 

[u-sound]

Review: Meitner Audio MA3 Integrated D/A Converter - Twittering Machines

yes, good short review, says all about. it is a nice smooth sounding dac

 

[Jerome W]

Hello folks,

A friend brought me a MA-3 to try at home.
I just never heard digital sounding so good.
Absolutely stunning natural sound, with lifelike dynamics and image and absolutely zero digital artefacts / aggressive sounds.

Magical.

Envoyé de mon iPhone en utilisant Tapatalk

 

[Ritmo]

Glad you liked it Jerome. Its a nice DAC.

 

[Phishphan]

New review. I have about 400 hours on mine and it's fantastic. Not as good as my NS1/DA2/PRE stack, but I don't have the space for that anymore.

Meitner MA3 DAC Reviewed - Future Audiophile Magazine


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[ayang90]

Hi all, for the Meitner MA3 owners there is a Conversdigital network card firmware update available. The latest version is now emmlabs_1cup_Bdmrsv v3.9.31. The prior version was 3.9.28.

You can apply this update using the mconnectControl HD app.

This is not the same as the DAC firmware which you can get to from the menus on the DAC. It’s only for the 3rd party network interface which is made by Conversdigital.

According to Meitner support this upgrade addresses Tidal and Qobuz api changes. No changes related to sound quality.

 

[Phishphan]

My app shows the firmware server isn’t available. Any ideas or other ways to update


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[ayang90]

I’m not aware of any other way. Maybe make sure you have the latest mControlHD app. My icon looks like this. Lastly, perhaps try again at a later time. Perhaps their server is down.

 

[Phishphan]

I came home from a work trip a few weeks ago and my MA3 wasn't on, couldn't figure out the problem so I sent it up to Canada to get looked at. Decided to do the upgrade while they had it. The MA3 is great, the MA3i is OUTSTANDING. Worth every penny for the upgrade.

 

[ayang90]

I came home from a work trip a few weeks ago and my MA3 wasn't on, couldn't figure out the problem so I sent it up to Canada to get looked at. Decided to do the upgrade while they had it. The MA3 is great, the MA3i is OUTSTANDING. Worth every penny for the upgrade.

I went for the upgrade as well and totally agree. Still very musical but layers are more defined and the realisim is now off the charts. Very happy that I upgraded to the MA3i.

 

[Ritmo]

Congrats guys!

 

[u-sound]

question:
ma3 vs ma3 i,
did the dac got better or the streamer?
I have a ma3 and use it as a dac only, so i wonder woth or not

 

[ayang90]

question:
ma3 vs ma3 i,
did the dac got better or the streamer?
I have a ma3 and use it as a dac only, so i wonder woth or not

My understanding is most of the improvements are with the analog stage and no material changes with the DAC. I use the MA3i as a DAC only with Roon pass through.