WiiM Mini Review (Streamer)

[DudleyDuoflush]

I honestly think this will prove to a very important device. Maybe up there with the CCA. My brother has a decent old system based on an LP-12, arcam Delta CD and amp and Linn Kan speakers. I had no hesitation recommending this this device. Use as is for now then add a DAC later. Cheaper, simpler and more versatile than the alternatives (I use a wxc-50).

 

[PeteL]

Probably, but in this price bracket, generally that might not be a given.

Right, but on this price bracket, it's a given to not expect a high performance DAC. The whole product is cheaper than a good DAC... At some point you have to majke some compromise. Those who have a use for this DAC will find it sounds good for what they paid, great even depending what it's connected to. Those who are chasing the very last small word on performance will connect it to their DAC. Everyone happy. Those who expect a good streamer and and digital interface, a Bluetooth receiver AND state of the art DAC for 89$ Will never be happy no matter what a company propose I think.

 

[TheBatsEar]

People, vote now! Fine is not good enough!

 

[Prana Ferox]

I went ahead and picked one up to experiment with. I've got enough RPis and the bandwidth to mess with them but this might be an interesting thing to give to family members that don't.

The thing with Roon is that it's quite a bit of money in addition to any necessary hardware. I know Amir and others bought in when it was a lot cheaper (but still $$) but like others said I can't see people cross-shopping Roon with a $90 streamer to play Spotify.

 

[Timcognito]

Gets some of the proletariat non "audiophile" types into streaming at a low cost without a Pi-ject. Connecting its lack of Roon to such a low rating may have been too harsh for an entry level product. I'll guess that far less than half the people who post here have Roon. Just a guess. But I do have lifetime Roon and like it. Drank the Kool-aid awhile back and didn't die.

 

[VMAT4]

I have to say that if I didn't already have an RPi4 running Volumio OS, I'd be all over the WiiM!

 

[Ralph_Cramden]

Thanks. Looks like they bought the old stock of Amazon Alexa pucks lying around.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if they were the OEM for those old Amazon devices. https://www.linkplay.com/

 

[drmevo]

People, vote now! Fine is not good enough!
View attachment 200274

I voted Great. In my mind, “Not Terrible” and “Fine” are somewhat analogous, both meaning “just OK.”

 

[DesertHawk]

People, vote now! Fine is not good enough!
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I voted fine and I'm a big advocate for the device but the app could be better.

 

[imral3]

Me voting...

 

[RichT]

Toslink output 141 db for $89, bargain SOTA! Where can I get me one of these? Ha

 

[drmevo]

Toslink output 141 db for $89, bargain SOTA! Where can I get me one of these? Ha

The impressive thing to me is that by all accounts they are working on all these improvements and are so responsive in terms of support - but they aren’t going to make a dime off of customers after the initial sale, unlike Google, Apple, Amazon, etc., who all have ecosystems with subscriptions, ad revenue, and so forth where they will continue to profit long after the sale of their respective devices.

 

[Jmudrick]

I voted fine and I'm a big advocate for the device but the app could be better.

The app could be better. But they're working on it and it rarely needs to be used .

 

[TimW]

@amirm I really wanted to see Hans Beekhuyzen's measurements of this device confirmed or refuted. He showed a jagged +0.6 dB in high frequencies with a frequency response sweep using the analog output. If that is not possible to test then I wonder where he got it.

Also the auxiliary input of this device is converted to digital for volume control and multi-room streaming. It's a unique feature in this price class of product and would be interesting to see tested.

 

[VMAT4]

@amirm I really wanted to see Hans Beekhuyzen's measurements of this device confirmed or refuted. He showed a jagged +0.6 dB in high frequencies with a frequency response sweep using the analog output. If that is not possible to test then I wonder where he got it.

Also the auxiliary input of this device is converted to digital for volume control and multi-room streaming. It's a unique feature in this price class of product and would be interesting to see tested.

Why is there any interest in a jagged +0.6 dB anything?

 

[Ralph_Cramden]

@WiiM Support, can you give a rough estimate of when Roon support might be available, to make @amirm and the other Roon users here happy?

 

[RndJeff]

I was hoping for the internal DAC to match performance of the Apple USB-C dongle. It would have been good enough for me to avoid using an external DAC.

 

[Ralph_Cramden]

@amirm I really wanted to see Hans Beekhuyzen's measurements of this device confirmed or refuted. He showed a jagged +0.6 dB in high frequencies with a frequency response sweep using the analog output. If that is not possible to test then I wonder where he got it.

His "review" is completely out of date now (besides the fact that he's clearly incompetent) after several firmware updates by WiiM. It's now bit-perfect, and the volume control can be bypassed.

 

[drmevo]

Same situation here! Apple TV 3 - airplay to Dac for last years. Now wiim mini to Dac How it sounds to you vs Apple TV with airplay?

I don’t have it yet but I doubt I’ll notice much difference. I’ll post if I do, though.

 

[Beershaun]

This is great as a streaming endpoint at a great price. I can finally recommend something besides a raspberry pi for a bit perfect streaming endpoint at the right price! And they seem to be actively developing support for more services.