Q Active - Q. Will music streamed from Spotify Connect be converted to 24bit 96kHz by the Q Active hub?
Answer:
The link between the Q Active hub and loudspeakers is 24bit 96kHz, so when a turntable or other analogue device is connected to the hub, it goes into a 24bit ADC which then gets fed onto the loudspeaker at 24bit 96kHz.
HDMI and Optical go into a Sample Rate Convertor where the digital signal (whatever bit depth/rate it may) be is converted to 24bit 96kHz, and then is passed to loudspeakers 24bit 96kHz.
Spotify and other streamed connections will connect at their native resolution, so they are not converted as such, but are still wirelessly transmitted over a 24bit 96kHz link. So, in answer to the question, the hub won't convert the MP3 into high resolution, it's still an MP3 file, but it will be being sent over a 24bit 96kHz carrier.