WiiM Ultra with ou without the AMP ? The sound of Amps ?

[RaymondFromThePyrénéés]

yes, that is what I thought also, but then someone told me that the sound
will not change whether the wiim ultra amp or other amps, but I hear you,
I will be less stuck this way, that is for sure.

The Wiim ultra pre amp, there are even deals
on used ones, and then go with a pair of Fosi or 3E.

I suppose that the WiiM Ultra Pré-Amp still is such a good deal
without the amps, and that all the other features comme with it.

Will the corrections on the WiiM work when go this way ?

How many speakers and subs does the the WiiM ultra PréAmp allow ?

 

[RaymondFromThePyrénéés]

This is from the test on this website :
I am going to recommend the WiiM Ultra.
There is such incredible amount of capability here that
when combined with excellent codec and reasonable cost, it is hard to pass on it.

Does the WiiM not have a codec ?

 

[RaymondFromThePyrénéés]

This might actually be the good way to go. Thank you so much gwing.

 

[somebodyelse]

Does the WiiM not have a codec ?

Which WiiM? And 'codec' is a tricky term that could refer to the ADC/DAC or to the encoder/decoder for compressed digital audio formats. The Ultra (not Amp Ultra) has an excellent DAC and a reasonable but not great ADC, phono stage and headphone output, plus digital outputs to drive an external DAC, amp or whatever. The Amp Ultra doesn't have so many inputs or outputs, so we don't get to see how good its DAC may be separate from the amp.

 

[RaymondFromThePyrénéés]

Which WiiM? And 'codec' is a tricky term that could refer to the ADC/DAC or to the encoder/decoder for compressed digital audio formats. The Ultra (not Amp Ultra) has an excellent DAC and a reasonable but not great ADC, phono stage and headphone output, plus digital outputs to drive an external DAC, amp or whatever. The Amp Ultra doesn't have so many inputs or outputs, so we don't get to see how good its DAC may be separate from the amp.

Thank you somebodyelse.

This is confusing.

If I get it right, what you say is that the wiim is
not really good for some uses like phono and headphone
and also a poor ADC (what does ADC means ? ) and a poor digital output ???

Is there today any competition for a DAC/Streamer elsewhere for such a price or at about 500€ that is not to difficult to use ?

I see that my journey has not yet come to an end

 

[Mort]

and a poor digital output ???

No that's not correct. Wiim digital output is literally perfect.

 

[RaymondFromThePyrénéés]

thank you Mort. Your signature would not work in France
Is there anything that could compete with WiiM Ultra without the AMP
for its price today, or even close ?

 

[somebodyelse]

and also a poor ADC (what does ADC means ? )

Analog to Digital Converter - for the phono and line inputs. It's not as good as we like to see, but probably not the weak link for analog sources like vinyl or cassette as they will likely be noisier and have higher distortion. Plus if you've got a test record you can use the per-input EQ to correct the vinyl frequency response. If you really need a better analog input you could add a MiniDSP PocketADC via digital input.

and a poor digital output ???

That's not what I meant. There's nothing wrong with the digital outputs.

 

[dominikz]

Thank you somebodyelse.

This is confusing.

If I get it right, what you say is that the wiim is
not really good for some uses like phono and headphone
and also a poor ADC (what does ADC means ? ) and a poor digital output ???

Is there today any competition for a DAC/Streamer elsewhere for such a price or at about 500€ that is not to difficult to use ?

I see that my journey has not yet come to an end

Please note that the people here are focused on technical details and so are trying to give you all of the information so you can make an informed decision.

However, both WiiM Ultra and WiiM Amp Ultra perform great, and both are equally capable of producing perfectly clean and great sounding audio. Don't worry about that.

The main difference between them is in the inputs/outputs, you should decide which is a better fit for your intended use based on that:
1) WiiM Amp Ultra has a built-in loudspeaker amplifier, but doesn't have a line output, S/PDIF output, phono pre-amp input or headphone output.
2) WiiM Ultra has the line output, S/PDIF output, phono pre-amp input and headphone output, but doesn't have a built-in loudspeaker amplifier.

If you're looking for ease of use, I'd personally go with the WiiM Amp Ultra paired with a nice set of speakers. I'd advise to order from somewhere with a good return policy, so you are able to test if the WiiM Amp Ultra has enough power for your speakers and listening distance.
Later I'd invest in a miniDSP UMIK-1 and a subwoofer.

Note that adding more gear is not a guarantee of better audio quality. Quite the contrary, adding more gear increases the chance of incorrect configuration (e.g. due to improper gain staging) which can actually cause audible distortion.

Good luck and enjoy!

 

[Pablo27]

I got the ultra streamer but only because I already had a couple audiophonics amps kicking around. If I didn’t have the audiophonics I wouldn’t have hesitated to get the wiim ultra amp. I’m enjoying using the ultra quite a versatile bit of kit.

 

[RaymondFromThePyrénéés]

Analog to Digital Converter - for the phono and line inputs. It's not as good as we like to see, but probably not the weak link for analog sources like vinyl or cassette as they will likely be noisier and have higher distortion. Plus if you've got a test record you can use the per-input EQ to correct the vinyl frequency response. If you really need a better analog input you could add a MiniDSP PocketADC via digital input.

That's not what I meant. There's nothing wrong with the digital outputs.

Thank you, I have no more vinyl records or cassettes so that does not matter. thank you for this feedback.

 

[RaymondFromThePyrénéés]

Please note that the people here are focused on technical details and so are trying to give you all of the information so you can make an informed decision.

However, both WiiM Ultra and WiiM Amp Ultra perform great, and both are equally capable of producing perfectly clean and great sounding audio. Don't worry about that.

The main difference between them is in the inputs/outputs, you should decide which is a better fit for your intended use based on that:
1) WiiM Amp Ultra has a built-in loudspeaker amplifier, but doesn't have a line output, S/PDIF output, phono pre-amp input or headphone output.
2) WiiM Ultra has the line output, S/PDIF output, phono pre-amp input and headphone output, but doesn't have a built-in loudspeaker amplifier.

If you're looking for ease of use, I'd personally go with the WiiM Amp Ultra paired with a nice set of speakers. I'd advise to order from somewhere with a good return policy, so you are able to test if the WiiM Amp Ultra has enough power for your speakers and listening distance.
Later I'd invest in a miniDSP UMIK-1 and a subwoofer.

Note that adding more gear is not a guarantee of better audio quality. Quite the contrary, adding more gear increases the chance of incorrect configuration (e.g. due to improper gain staging) which can actually cause audible distortion.

Good luck and enjoy!

thank you for taking the time to clairy these matters for me. The phono for vinyl and headphone I do not need, but what about the : line output, S/PDIF output, is that something I could use ? and then for what exactly ?

 

[RaymondFromThePyrénéés]

I got the ultra streamer but only because I already had a couple audiophonics amps kicking around. If I didn’t have the audiophonics I wouldn’t have hesitated to get the wiim ultra amp. I’m enjoying using the ultra quite a versatile bit of kit.

Thank you. If I understand it rightly, if I do not care about vinyl and headphones, then why not buy the wiim without amps and get two mono blocks like Fosi or 3E, so that I am more free to change and upgrade the amps. I suppose that the wiim ultra without amp has at least one output for a SUB as well.

 

[Yersinia Bestmate]

I'd go with the simplest solution - Wiim Amp Ultra. It has enough power, built-in streamer, built-in equalisation, built-in bass management in case you'd like to add a subwoofer, it is highly versatile, and the app which it is mainly controlled with is one of the best available and easy to use, and they also update and fix issues it frequently (in my case there has been zero problems, I have a basic Wiim Amp in one system and it has been very good so far).

And, in case you'd like to "broaden your horizons", so to speak, you can always sell the Wiim Amp Ultra and get a Wiim Ultra + separate power amp at some point. And, if selling is not an option, you could use the Wiim Amp Ultra as a streamer with a separate integrated amplifier for example, as I believe you can output audio via usb from it, although in that case you'd kind of waste the chip-based power amp which Wiim Amp Ultra has.

 

[Yersinia Bestmate]

Thank you. If I understand it rightly, if I do not care about vinyl and headphones, then why not buy the wiim without amps and get two mono blocks like Fosi or 3E, so that I am more free to change and upgrade the amps. I suppose that the wiim ultra without amp has at least one output for a SUB as well.

Yes, Wiim Ultra has a dedicated subwoofer output which can be controlled with the Wiim app. So does Wiim Amp, Wiim Amp Pro and Wiim Amp Ultra. I've tested it (sub out + bass management, basic Wiim Amp) with a simple power amp driving two passive subwoofers and it works like a charm. Very easy to set the crossover frequency, phase, and even automatically time-align the subwoofer with main speakers.

Soundwise even the basic Wiim Amp is very good indeed, but in my case it lacks power, and in afterthought I should've bought the Amp Pro or Amp Ultra instead, even though the difference in output power is not that big.

 

[RaymondFromThePyrénéés]

thank you, but I kind of like to have two mono amps that I can jongle with, I do not now why I guess it is kind of sexy IfI can later add one sub to the ultra wiim without amp ?

 

[Pablo27]

Thank you. If I understand it rightly, if I do not care about vinyl and headphones, then why not buy the wiim without amps and get two mono blocks like Fosi or 3E, so that I am more free to change and upgrade the amps. I suppose that the wiim ultra without amp has at least one output for a SUB as well.

Absolutely although you are probably going to spend a little more with the mono’s. I wouldn’t expect to hear an audible difference between the set ups. I run 2x subs through my minidsp (if you don’t have a minidsp I would seriously recommend that’s your next upgrade, way before fancier amps etc)

 

[dominikz]

thank you for taking the time to clairy these matters for me. The phono for vinyl and headphone I do not need, but what about the : line output, S/PDIF output, is that something I could use ? and then for what exactly ?

Given that the WiiM Amp Ultra has a built-in amplifier, I see no need for additional line output nor S/PDIF output in any typical use scenario.

Thank you. If I understand it rightly, if I do not care about vinyl and headphones, then why not buy the wiim without amps and get two mono blocks like Fosi or 3E, so that I am more free to change and upgrade the amps. I suppose that the wiim ultra without amp has at least one output for a SUB as well.

Just note that if you don't require more power, there's really no real-world sonic benefit to buying separate amps. Though if you just like how it looks, I guess that might be enough of a reason.
And factor in that an all-in-one like the WiiM Amp Ultra would be easier to setup.

By the way, WiiM Amp Pro is also a very good choice. You can read my impressions of WiiM Amp Ultra vs Amp Pro here. Both are really nice streaming amps.

WiiM Ultra, WiiM Amp, WiiM Amp Pro and WiiM Amp Ultra all have dedicated subwoofer outputs with bass management.

 

[RaymondFromThePyrénéés]

Absolutely although you are probably going to spend a little more with the mono’s. I wouldn’t expect to hear an audible difference between the set ups. I run 2x subs through my minidsp (if you don’t have a minidsp I would seriously recommend that’s your next upgrade, way before fancier amps etc)

Thank you Pablo.

You would rather I buy the wiim ultra amp and a mini dsp rarher than 2 fosi mono amps.

I think I still prefer the wiim ultra and 2 fosi mono amps for flexibility.

But what i do not understand is what a mini dsp adds once i bought a wiim ultra with its DAC and so on.

What will the mini dsp add ?

I could buy a wiim ultra, 2 fosi mono amps and a mini dsp if this really ads something useful.

Yes i am a beginner in digital music

 

[dominikz]

Thank you Pablo.

You would rather I buy the wiim ultra amp and a mini dsp rarher than 2 fosi mono amps.

I think I still prefer the wiim ultra and 2 fosi mono amps for flexibility.

But what i do not understand is what a mini dsp adds once i bought a wiim ultra with its DAC and so on.

What will the mini dsp add ?

I could buy a wiim ultra, 2 fosi mono amps and a mini dsp if this really ads something useful.

Yes i am a beginner in digital music

In my opinion adding a miniDSP can be very useful if you have multiple subs (see this article for some examples). If you have just one sub (or none) then it is not needed because WiiM devices have basic DSP capability built-in.