WiiM Ultra

Updated on 4/19/2024

Hi Team,

We're excited to give you a sneak peek at the WiiM Ultra, your future go-to digital hub for all things music! We're putting the final touches on this innovative product and are on track for a Q2 release. Stay tuned for more updates as we gear up for launch!

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Original message by Brantome:
As mentioned in a user reply from the WiiM/Linkplay CEO on the WiiM Fan Page on Facebook, WiiM are developing a new device called the WiiM Ultra which will have a screen, aluminium case and USB audio output. It should be available Q2 2024, so a good five to six months away.

Guess @Smartplug is due a prize (e.g. I'll lay off gently ribbing them about their constant 'when' questions) as I think they first suggested that name a while ago ;):ROFLMAO:

That's the entirety of the information I have, but WiiM do say they'll release more details in due course.
 
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cooky560 said:
I'm sure you have far better measuring audio than my 0.003% THD+N, that said if you can hear distortion at a level of 0.003% you have far better ears than me, and that's with a 0.15v input. At 2v, I'm sure I can get much better measurements.
Click to expand...
For fun and no profit I did as double blind as I could a test with my partner with my Pro plus putting 2V directly into the power amp vs going digital to the Topping DAC outputting 4V balanced into the amp. Amp at 20dB gain in both cases (I just adjusted the volume).

The verdict is she could barely hear any difference... If anything she seemed to ever so slightly prefer without the external DAC (so Pro Plus unbalanced to amp)🤣

It could also well boil down to personal preferences between different DAC manufacturers (AKM vs ESS) & roll off filter selection at this point.
 
bherren said:
For fun and no profit I did as double blind as I could a test with my partner with my Pro plus putting 2V directly into the power amp vs going digital to the Topping DAC outputting 4V balanced into the amp. Amp at 20dB gain in both cases (I just adjusted the volume).

The verdict is she could barely hear any difference... If anything she seemed to ever so slightly prefer without the external DAC (so Pro Plus unbalanced to amp)🤣

It could also well boil down to personal preferences between different DAC manufacturers (AKM vs ESS) & roll off filter selection at this point.
Click to expand...
The verdict is this: The Pro Plus has a fairly decent DAC, there is no point in bothering with a separate DAC. This is some kind of audiophilia))
 
bherren said:
For fun and no profit I did as double blind as I could a test with my partner with my Pro plus putting 2V directly into the power amp vs going digital to the Topping DAC outputting 4V balanced into the amp. Amp at 20dB gain in both cases (I just adjusted the volume).

The verdict is she could barely hear any difference... If anything she seemed to ever so slightly prefer without the external DAC (so Pro Plus unbalanced to amp)🤣

It could also well boil down to personal preferences between different DAC manufacturers (AKM vs ESS) & roll off filter selection at this point.
Click to expand...

For me, balanced interconnects is more about eliminating ground loop issues than audible sound differences.
 
Alexandr_2023 said:
The verdict is this: The Pro Plus has a fairly decent DAC, there is no point in bothering with a separate DAC. This is some kind of audiophilia))
Click to expand...
Yup. I got the DAC second hand before I received the WiiM and the new amp, and went blindly maximizing based on numbers, forgetting that my 50+ yrs old ears really don't care about what happens below -100dB and above 16kHz :)
 
Looking forward to learning when the release date will be. Should be interesting to see the first initial reviews and product specs.
 
In my opinion personal hearing should by no means be the bar. It should always be "best possible". If the limited age- or environmental-appropriate spectrum of human hearing were the target, one could have stopped with mp3 or OGG. That's why I find the steady repetition of "but I can't hear it anymore anyway" to be absolutely not effective in terms of hi-fi. Always try the best, the limits are constantly shifted. Of course, I know very well that my hearing is not as it may have been once. But I like the idea that as much information as possible is available. I wouldn't care if I can use them. How about a Stradivari would cut off the non-audible harmonics?
 
To me it looks like a digital streaming pre-amp. I don't care for a screen for too far to read and can only add noise. Won't be using volume control. Will not be digitizing my analog sources. A pass for me. I am looking for something like the Volumio Rivo. Not a cheap Eversolo DMP A6.
 
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Considering what Linkplay is good at, I think it's clear that WiiM products are smart audio, not pure audio.

The WiiM mini was a groundbreaking smart streamer for me. And the Pro has even more features, and the Pro Plus has even higher sound quality.

Ultra adds some of the features of Amp to this and is the culmination of the WiiM Smart Streamer. I think it's going to be a great product that's smart, flexible, and packed with all the ideas it can at an affordable price. 🤗
 
Fender said:
In my opinion personal hearing should by no means be the bar. It should always be "best possible". If the limited age- or environmental-appropriate spectrum of human hearing were the target, one could have stopped with mp3 or OGG. That's why I find the steady repetition of "but I can't hear it anymore anyway" to be absolutely not effective in terms of hi-fi. Always try the best, the limits are constantly shifted. Of course, I know very well that my hearing is not as it may have been once. But I like the idea that as much information as possible is available. I wouldn't care if I can use them. How about a Stradivari would cut off the non-audible harmonics?
Click to expand...

I’m inbetween.

I think yes, always strive for the best. However, you can still do that and be honest about what you’re able to hear.
 
Wiimer said:
Considering what Linkplay is good at, I think it's clear that WiiM products are smart audio, not pure audio.

The WiiM mini was a groundbreaking smart streamer for me. And the Pro has even more features, and the Pro Plus has even higher sound quality.

Ultra adds some of the features of Amp to this and is the culmination of the WiiM Smart Streamer. I think it's going to be a great product that's smart, flexible, and packed with all the ideas it can at an affordable price. 🤗
Click to expand...

“Smart audio not good audio”?

I wouldn’t say that.
 
bherren said:
For fun and no profit I did as double blind as I could a test with my partner with my Pro plus putting 2V directly into the power amp vs going digital to the Topping DAC outputting 4V balanced into the amp. Amp at 20dB gain in both cases (I just adjusted the volume).

The verdict is she could barely hear any difference... If anything she seemed to ever so slightly prefer without the external DAC (so Pro Plus unbalanced to amp)🤣

It could also well boil down to personal preferences between different DAC manufacturers (AKM vs ESS) & roll off filter selection at this point.
Click to expand...
So basically as expected, increasing the voltage on the source is pointless, my WiiM Pro Plus outputs at 0.5v as my amps are expecting 0.2v, I doubt there's a difference here either.
 
Wiimer said:
Considering what Linkplay is good at, I think it's clear that WiiM products are smart audio, not pure audio.

The WiiM mini was a groundbreaking smart streamer for me. And the Pro has even more features, and the Pro Plus has even higher sound quality.

Ultra adds some of the features of Amp to this and is the culmination of the WiiM Smart Streamer. I think it's going to be a great product that's smart, flexible, and packed with all the ideas it can at an affordable price. 🤗
Click to expand...
the move well played by wiim was to fill a certain void left by the giant google and its very mainstream audio chromecast of 2014... and to surf the future amazon hd on the way and tidal mqa ( aie the chip dac ti they use is not a mqa version difficult..) etc (this created great hopes cheap hd etc)
wiim put a lot of effort into it and it was their "accomplishment" and led to the success of the mini etc
after....

;-)
 
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that's why I often say that there will be an opportunity for a mini mk2...
a better dac and a usb that can receive an ethernet stream via an adapter like on the chromecast...
remains a market that has been forgotten, or not too many players seriously..
"an elegant solution for less than 100 dollars"
,-)
 
Wiimer said:
I didn't say that either.
Click to expand...

Apologies. Did I misread that? Have you edited.

Nonetheless, “smart audio not pure audio”, I wouldn’t say that ,either.

Digital outputs from all WiiMs, right down to the Mini are bit perfect.

Analogue outs from the Pro Plus are transparent to the original, and presumably will be the same on the Ultra.

Even if you take a subjectivist view and ignore these facts, reviews are not awash with criticisms of deficient sound.

What is ‘not pure’ in this context? Genuinely interested to hear your answer.
 
canard said:
that's why I often say that there will be an opportunity for a mini mk2...
a better dac and a usb that can receive an ethernet stream via an adapter like on the chromecast...
remains a market that has not been forgotten, or not too many players seriously..
"an elegant solution for less than 100 dollars"
,-)
Click to expand...

I think the cheapest transparent DAC on the market is the SMSL at c.£80. The Mini is £90. Add them together, and you’d need a bigger case, then you’re heading towards Pro Plus territory.

I’m not disagreeing with you, but we could end up with a different WiiM for every day of the year, with just a tiny difference between each one.

And you know what would have to happen then? They’d have to change the company name to Topping. 🤣
 
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