WiiM Ultra

[UprightCitizen]

ARC has been introduced with HDMI 1.4. I'm sure there are still non-compliant cables lying around in many drawers. And not all cables are certified.


WiiM supplied cables are reported to work well, even if they are not officially certified.

I'm sure I have some older hdmi cables lying around in my "might be good to have one day" box, but at this time I only have the wiim, nintendo switch and my ps5 hooked up with HDMI in my living room, and all are connected with the cables that came packaged with each device. Seems like they are so cheap to make these days that it save cost to include them in the box vs having people ask support about what cable to use.

 

[harkpabst]

Seems like they are so cheap to make these days that it save cost to include them in the box vs having people ask support about what cable to use.

I don't think so.

 

[UprightCitizen]

I don't think so.

Maybe not, but I know it's not charity

 

[harkpabst]

Maybe not, but I know it's not charity

True, not charity. But it's a differentiation from the competition. How many other devices in this price range come complete with a power cable matching your country (and a built-in PSU), RCA cable, optical cable and HDMI cable?

And they all work as they should!

Atmos not being downmixed properly is not an issue of the supplied HDMI cable or the WiiM Ultra, as it cannot handle Atmos at all. If the input signal to the Ultra really was Dolby Atmos, then there'd be no sound.

Sticking to PCM - like yo do now - is certainly the safe bet.

 

[Owis]

Has anyone routed an Apple TV through the WiiM for Apple Music? Either a gen 2 or 3 with optical output or a 4K model through an HDMI audio extractor > to optical/ spdif … Does the WiiM provide the sample rate and bit depth ?

 

[Abdo]

Good evening, I need some guidance on how to convert the Wiin's RCA output into two RCA outputs. I need to connect two amplifiers. Any suggestions on how to do this?

 

[staticV3]

Good evening, I need some guidance on how to convert the Wiin's RCA output into two RCA outputs. I need to connect two amplifiers. Any suggestions on how to do this?

Simple:

"RCA Y splitter"

 

[Abdo]

Simple:
View attachment 457712
"RCA Y splitter"

Thank you, now this type of device does not have any loss of quality. Just so you understand, today I received a Douk Audio 5 Pro amplifier and I was impressed with its quality, because I turned off my MA6800 Mcintosh to test it, my ears say that it plays even better... but I don't want to draw conclusions yet, for that I need to take the output of the Winn Ultra and connect two amplifiers, I already have a switch for speakers, so I can do something like AB and compare better. Am I wrong or do you have another better suggestion?

 

[jjk1]

Has anyone routed an Apple TV through the WiiM for Apple Music? Either a gen 2 or 3 with optical output or a 4K model through an HDMI audio extractor > to optical/ spdif … Does the WiiM provide the sample rate and bit depth ?

Ive got an ATV3 (optical) , and a new atv with hdmi. Apple Music displays 24/48 on an external DAC with the Wiim in the middle for EQ with both versions. I’ve tried HDMI audio extractors for the ATV4k but and have better more usable volume control (from a iOS device) when i direct the ATV 4k output to the atv 3 via airplay (airplay1), or with airplay directly to the atv3 which I connect to the Wiim.
I don’t know the bit rate but it’s 24bit / 48khz
JJK

 

[staticV3]

Thank you, now this type of device does not have any loss of quality. Just so you understand, today I received a Douk Audio 5 Pro amplifier and I was impressed with its quality, because I turned off my MA6800 Mcintosh to test it, my ears say that it plays even better... but I don't want to draw conclusions yet, for that I need to take the output of the Winn Ultra and connect two amplifiers, I already have a switch for speakers, so I can do something like AB and compare better. Am I wrong or do you have another better suggestion?

Both Amps connected to the WiiM using RCA Y Splitters, precisely level-matched using a multimeter (Important!), then plugged into a speaker switch like this: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CPL1277Q
will allow you to do fair comparisons.

Without level-matching, you're almost guaranteed to always prefer the Amp that happens to play slightly louder. Your ears are not good enough for level-matching unfortunately.

Also, if you're aware which Amp is playing, then you're likely to prefer the Amp that you think you'll prefer.

Ask a friend or family to switch the cables around on the loudspeaker switch, so that you do not know which one is which.

Precise level matching and not knowing which Amp is playing are absolutely vital for a fair, unbiased listening comparison.

 

[Abdo]

Both Amps connected to the WiiM using RCA Y Splitters, precisely level-matched using a multimeter (Important!), then plugged into a speaker switch like this: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CPL1277Q
will allow you to do fair comparisons.

Without level-matching, you're almost guaranteed to always prefer the Amp that happens to play slightly louder. Your ears are not good enough for level-matching unfortunately.

Also, if you're aware which Amp is playing, then you're likely to prefer the Amp that you think you'll prefer.

Ask a friend or family to switch the cables around on the loudspeaker switch, so that you do not know which one is which.

Precise level matching and not knowing which Amp is playing are absolutely vital for a fair, unbiased listening comparison.

Thank you for your help,
I took all these precautions. I am simply perplexed by what I am hearing, what these little Class D Amplifiers can do. In the image you can see an MA6800 and a Douk A5 Pro... I have the switch for speakers, I set it to the same volume, so as not to have any influence. I also took care to neutralize the bass and treble of the MA6800 and Douk. Leaving both centered. I started listening at night, a few days ago, I couldn't see any difference, I thought... well I need to listen in the morning, after all my ears at 64 years old... may not be in good condition... I did this for other days... amazing, I can't see any difference. Well, today a friend came over, I sat him down in front of me and I alternated... for about 30 minutes, several songs, he's young, 30 years old... his ears are definitely much better than mine... He kept listening and also said, I can't hear any difference... Look, I never imagined that this could happen, this leads me to believe even more what I've read in this forum, not the fact that it's more expensive that it will deliver better quality etc... The source I used was the Wiin Ultra, I also used Vinyl and CD... as you can see in the photo... we couldn't see any audible difference in both amplifiers. Well, I'll continue my tests, and also think 100x about spending money on expensive sound things. How can a small one of only 100 dollars... deliver the same quality as a renowned McIntosh... ????

 

[staticV3]

Thank you for your help,
I took all these precautions. I am simply perplexed by what I am hearing, what these little Class D Amplifiers can do. In the image you can see an MA6800 and a Douk A5 Pro... I have the switch for speakers, I set it to the same volume, so as not to have any influence. I also took care to neutralize the bass and treble of the MA6800 and Douk. Leaving both centered. I started listening at night, a few days ago, I couldn't see any difference, I thought... well I need to listen in the morning, after all my ears at 64 years old... may not be in good condition... I did this for other days... amazing, I can't see any difference. Well, today a friend came over, I sat him down in front of me and I alternated... for about 30 minutes, several songs, he's young, 30 years old... his ears are definitely much better than mine... He kept listening and also said, I can't hear any difference... Look, I never imagined that this could happen, this leads me to believe even more what I've read in this forum, not the fact that it's more expensive that it will deliver better quality etc... The source I used was the Wiin Ultra, I also used Vinyl and CD... as you can see in the photo... we couldn't see any audible difference in both amplifiers. Well, I'll continue my tests, and also think 100x about spending money on expensive sound things. How can a small one of only 100 dollars... deliver the same quality as a renowned McIntosh... ????View attachment 457997

Audio electronics (Streamers, DACs, Amps) truly are a solved problem, and so it's best to be frugal there, but splurge on loudspeakers, room treatment, and room correction instead.

That's where you'll see the biggest gains in sound quality.

 

[Abdo]

Audio electronics (Streamers, DACs, Amps) truly are a solved problem, and so it's best to be frugal there, but splurge on loudspeakers, room treatment, and room correction instead.

That's where you'll see the biggest gains in sound quality.

This question about the speakers that you raised, I have this pair of 804s today and I need a new pair for another location, what speaker would be equivalent to the one I have or even a little better. What would you recommend looking at? Thanks

 

[staticV3]

This question about the speakers that you raised, I have this pair of 804s today and I need a new pair for another location, what speaker would be equivalent to the one I have or even a little better. What would you recommend looking at? Thanks

Best place to start your search for new speakers: https://www.spinorama.org/

Sorting by Score will give you a rough ranking of response competence, from there you can delve into the individual measurements.

If you want recommendations, then it's vital that you include:
-your budget
-Used or New
-Bookshelves or Floorstanders
-Active (built-in Amps) or traditional Passive
-your country of residence

 

[Laserjock]

Ranking table of speaker's measurements

www.spinorama.org

Passive floorstanding ranking

 

[Ralph_Cramden]