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WiiM Amp Streaming Amplifier Review

Rate this streaming amplifier:

  • 1. Poor (headless panther)

    Votes: 15 3.2%
  • 2. Not terrible (postman panther)

    Votes: 50 10.6%
  • 3. Fine (happy panther)

    Votes: 246 52.2%
  • 4. Great (golfing panther)

    Votes: 160 34.0%

  • Total voters
    471
Came to say the same thing.. at that price it's a steal even though I don't need one..
I did need one, and it arrived same day. Seeing as the Pro was full price, this was a no-brainer at 2/3 the price. To PFFB, I say pfft. My speakers don’t have any wild impedance swings anyways. It sounds neither too fat nor too thin. Its aura is lavender gossamer.

Like everyone I’m quite impressed with the app. Very good user interface, and lots of flexibility to boot. Good job, Wiim software team!
 
Are there still latency issues? I would like to combine it together with different amps.
 
I cannot remember any general latency issues, just concerning certain inputs.

How would you combine it?
 
4.0 setup with Topping PA 5 II for the other two channels.
There must be an additional AV processor to decode and distribute the multi-channel content, right?

The WiiM Amp works fine e.g. with HDMI ARC but the analog input is digitized and there will be some latency due to processing. If this cannot be compensated for in the other devices, the Amp might not be the ideal choice. I cannot tell for sure, sorry.
 
Thanks. Looks like your advice saves me some unconveniences. I would mainly use the analogue inputs. I use a preamp with two outputs that allows a double stereo signal. EQ and HDMI would have been a nice benefit though.
 
Thanks. Looks like your advice saves me some unconveniences. I would mainly use the analogue inputs. I use a preamp with two outputs that allows a double stereo signal. EQ and HDMI would have been a nice benefit though.
Are you not playing any real multi-channel content then?

For a dual stereo setup the WiiM Amp (combined with anything else but a second WiiM Amp) might not be the ideal pick, indeed. True, it's EQ is much more flexible and powerful that what you usually get at this price point and HDMI ARC is also handy. But both features would be limited to one pair of speakers, anyway. It's designed to be an integrated amplifier, not a power amp with some added features.

Two WiiM Amps could be connected to a common WiiM group, similar to Google Cast groups. WiiM is currently working on making these groups persistent. The main use case of that is considered to be multi-room audio, though.
 
Apologies if this was already covered in the past 50 page.

New to this whole thing, I recently purchased a Fluance RT-85, Fosi Preamp, the Wiim Amp, a pair of KEF Q350s, and a RSL Speedwoofer 10e.

Was reading online that I should get a class A or AB amp specifically for the turntable, as it would make it sound "fuller". But from what I understand the Wiim Amp is meant to transparent, so it doesn't alter the sound coming from the phono preamp.

My living room is fairly small and it sounds good to me, but I don't have any real frame of reference on knowing whether there's something "off" with the sound. Would a different AMP even make a big difference? Or would upgrading something else in the signal chain (Phono Preamp, DAC) be better to look at?

Any of the recommendations for amps are easily 2-3x the price, so I'm just unsure whether I should bite the bullet on a Yamaha and return the Wiim Amp as I still have two weeks to do it.
 
Apologies if this was already covered in the past 50 page.

New to this whole thing, I recently purchased a Fluance RT-85, Fosi Preamp, the Wiim Amp, a pair of KEF Q350s, and a RSL Speedwoofer 10e.

Was reading online that I should get a class A or AB amp specifically for the turntable, as it would make it sound "fuller". But from what I understand the Wiim Amp is meant to transparent, so it doesn't alter the sound coming from the phono preamp.

My living room is fairly small and it sounds good to me, but I don't have any real frame of reference on knowing whether there's something "off" with the sound. Would a different AMP even make a big difference? Or would upgrading something else in the signal chain (Phono Preamp, DAC) be better to look at?

Any of the recommendations for amps are easily 2-3x the price, so I'm just unsure whether I should bite the bullet on a Yamaha and return the Wiim Amp as I still have two weeks to do it.
Hi,
That's nonsense advice, that a different amplifier (whatever class) will make a difference in sound like that. Just don't worry about it.

Think it through; "fuller" most likely means a boost in some audio frequencies ... but any well designed amp is flat across the whole frequency range. By definition, changing an amplifier cannot affect that. A different Amp will give different features and probably more power - but your WiiM Amp sounds good to you , so you don't need that.
Do not upgrade your Amp, it's wasted money for now.

The DAC in your WiiM is as good as it gets - you won't get anything audibly better, although something may measure better - not worth thinking about.
Your Fosi Preamp is probably fine. One day you might look at a Schiit Mani 2 or something, but that's not urgent.

What cartridge do you have on the TT? An upgrade from a basic model can actually be worthwhile - but it still won't sound as good as digital streaming. Worth considering.

If you want to improve your sound, then look at your Speakers and the interaction of your Speakers with your Room. Those Kefs are good - you will need to spend a lot to get an improvement so perhaps wait for a while.
The WiiM offers 'room correction' and it would be well worth reading up about that - that's the place to look for changes.
The WiiM also offers some subwoofer integration - are you using that?

Nice system, the Amp measures very well and has great features. The Speakers are very good too, which is the important part. Enjoy the music
 
Hi,
That's nonsense advice, that a different amplifier (whatever class) will make a difference in sound like that. Just don't worry about it.

Think it through; "fuller" most likely means a boost in some audio frequencies ... but any well designed amp is flat across the whole frequency range. By definition, changing an amplifier cannot affect that. A different Amp will give different features and probably more power - but your WiiM Amp sounds good to you , so you don't need that.
Do not upgrade your Amp, it's wasted money for now.

The DAC in your WiiM is as good as it gets - you won't get anything audibly better, although something may measure better - not worth thinking about.
Your Fosi Preamp is probably fine. One day you might look at a Schiit Mani 2 or something, but that's not urgent.

What cartridge do you have on the TT? An upgrade from a basic model can actually be worthwhile - but it still won't sound as good as digital streaming. Worth considering.

If you want to improve your sound, then look at your Speakers and the interaction of your Speakers with your Room. Those Kefs are good - you will need to spend a lot to get an improvement so perhaps wait for a while.
The WiiM offers 'room correction' and it would be well worth reading up about that - that's the place to look for changes.
The WiiM also offers some subwoofer integration - are you using that?

Nice system, the Amp measures very well and has great features. The Speakers are very good too, which is the important part. Enjoy the music
Thanks so much for your detailed response - that's very helpful. I'm quite happy with it, and feel like there isn't anything "major" in need of change for quite a while, especially coming from much much cheaper powered speakers.

Since I have a subwoofer, I may change my speakers out for a pair of Wharfedale Diamond 12.1's that I purchased over a month ago (shipping is taking ages) that might fit my space a bit better.

I'll try them out next week and make a decision on which I like more, as I was able to get the Diamonds for $250 cheaper on sale. If they turn out to be just as good or better, I'll take the savings and do some room treatment on the wall behind the speakers.

The Fluance currently has an Ortofon 2M Blue, which sounds great to me and is well reviewed in general.

I've considered a new pre-amp as the one I have was purchased quite a while ago to improve my older TT, but I think I'd likely have to go into another price point (which I don't mind) to actually get a noticeable difference from the Fosi. In Canada the Schiit Mani is significantly more expensive for some reason, so options vary. A friend of mine has a great audio set up, so I'll see if I can borrow his pre amp and do a an A/B test for myself.

Currently the subwoofer is set at an 80hz crossover and that's definitely working well. The sub was probably the biggest upgrade I've had in audio, it makes such a significant difference in ambiance and atmosphere - I totally get why people would have more than one.

My sub placement definitely isn't ideal, but in my space there's really only one spot for it under my Turntable. The sub is isolated from the floor using an isolation stand so it's not affecting the TT from a vibration standpoint.

Room correction was going to be my next move, I tried the one built-in to the Wiim app but it didn't do a great job. I have some high quality microphones that I use for work, so I'll see if using a laptop with those will help.
 
Thanks so much for your detailed response - that's very helpful. I'm quite happy with it, and feel like there isn't anything "major" in need of change for quite a while, especially coming from much much cheaper powered speakers.

Since I have a subwoofer, I may change my speakers out for a pair of Wharfedale Diamond 12.1's that I purchased over a month ago (shipping is taking ages) that might fit my space a bit better.

I'll try them out next week and make a decision on which I like more, as I was able to get the Diamonds for $250 cheaper on sale. If they turn out to be just as good or better, I'll take the savings and do some room treatment on the wall behind the speakers.

The Fluance currently has an Ortofon 2M Blue, which sounds great to me and is well reviewed in general.

I've considered a new pre-amp as the one I have was purchased quite a while ago to improve my older TT, but I think I'd likely have to go into another price point (which I don't mind) to actually get a noticeable difference from the Fosi. In Canada the Schiit Mani is significantly more expensive for some reason, so options vary. A friend of mine has a great audio set up, so I'll see if I can borrow his pre amp and do a an A/B test for myself.

Currently the subwoofer is set at an 80hz crossover and that's definitely working well. The sub was probably the biggest upgrade I've had in audio, it makes such a significant difference in ambiance and atmosphere - I totally get why people would have more than one.

My sub placement definitely isn't ideal, but in my space there's really only one spot for it under my Turntable. The sub is isolated from the floor using an isolation stand so it's not affecting the TT from a vibration standpoint.

Room correction was going to be my next move, I tried the one built-in to the Wiim app but it didn't do a great job. I have some high quality microphones that I use for work, so I'll see if using a laptop with those will help.
Sounds like you are sorted :)
Definitely no need to upgrade an Ortofon Blue, that's very decent.

All sounds good.
I haven't tried the WiiM room correction myself, but I have read that it can need manual tweaking - as you say. Are your microphones for recording, or for measuring? If you post the models here then others with more experience can let you know if they are suitable
 
Anyone else experiencing problems with volume "crashing" with Optical or HDMI input from television?

Watching my Samsung TV, sometimes the volume on the WiiM Amp suddenly drops -- I'd say it's like it suddenly loses 75% of the volume. It's like it semi-crashes. Nothing changes on the volume indicator; it remains where I had it set. But volume suddenly goes quiet. Not muted 100%, just significant loss of volume.

I'm getting this whether I try Optical or HDMI from my Samsung to the WiiM. It's not all the time. But it's often enough that it's becoming a real nuisance. Rebooting the WiiM doesn't fix it. Switching between HDMI and Optical and vice versa doesn't fix it. I have the latest WiiM updates installed.

Problem seems to resolve itself after a while, but there doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to why and when it resolves.
 
Anyone else experiencing problems with volume "crashing" with Optical or HDMI input from television?

Watching my Samsung TV, sometimes the volume on the WiiM Amp suddenly drops -- I'd say it's like it suddenly loses 75% of the volume. It's like it semi-crashes. Nothing changes on the volume indicator; it remains where I had it set. But volume suddenly goes quiet. Not muted 100%, just significant loss of volume.

I'm getting this whether I try Optical or HDMI from my Samsung to the WiiM. It's not all the time. But it's often enough that it's becoming a real nuisance. Rebooting the WiiM doesn't fix it. Switching between HDMI and Optical and vice versa doesn't fix it. I have the latest WiiM updates installed.

Problem seems to resolve itself after a while, but there doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to why and when it resolves.
Try a different DAC with the TV or a different Optical source with the WiiM.

Depending on which combination keeps this fault, you'll know the culprit.
 
Anyone else experiencing problems with volume "crashing" with Optical or HDMI input from television?

Watching my Samsung TV, sometimes the volume on the WiiM Amp suddenly drops -- I'd say it's like it suddenly loses 75% of the volume. It's like it semi-crashes. Nothing changes on the volume indicator; it remains where I had it set. But volume suddenly goes quiet. Not muted 100%, just significant loss of volume.

I'm getting this whether I try Optical or HDMI from my Samsung to the WiiM. It's not all the time. But it's often enough that it's becoming a real nuisance. Rebooting the WiiM doesn't fix it. Switching between HDMI and Optical and vice versa doesn't fix it. I have the latest WiiM updates installed.

Problem seems to resolve itself after a while, but there doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to why and when it resolves.
Nope, never. Samsung TV as well, but that doesn't say nuch.
 
What connection do you use from your TV to the WiiM Amp?
HDMI ARC. Works a charm. Much better than with the previous Pioneer slim line AVR, which might or might not detect the TV. Maybe 70% yes, 30% no.

Once it works I never observed the issues you mentioned, neither with the Ultra nor with the AVR.

As @staticV3 said, try a different DAC if you have one available. Personally I would expect the TV to be the more likely reason if it happens with HDMI and optical. But if possible you should check it out this way.
 
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