WiimAmp song gap in Google group

[mrbejker]

Hi everyone!
Very pleased with my new WiimAmp. Great value for money, and great for secondary/multiroom purpose.
However im having some delay issues when the unit is paired in a google group with other chromecast units.
All other chromecast units in the group starts songs in sync. Sadly the WiimAmp has an delay of approx. 2-3 seconds before its starts to play along with the others. This happens every single time a new track is started, no matter if its in a list or just skipping songs.
Pause/play doesnt trigger any delay issues however.
Im streaming via Spotify, and the group consists of a few chromecast audios and a Lemus 1800 with built in chromecast.
Any ideas how to fix this, and does this issue also exsist in the Wiim Pro streamers?
Would be great to replace all the old Chromecast audios, but this makes me hesitate a bit..

 

[harkpabst]

Is playback through the Wiim Amp delayed by 2-3 seconds or is the Wiim Amp silent for 2-3 seconds and then starts playing in sync with the other Chromecast devices? I assume it's the latter, but just asking for clarification.

 

[Mr Ee]

WiimAmp has an delay of approx. 2-3 seconds before its starts to play along with the others.

This implies to me that the amp is silent for a bit, then plays along, in sync.

However, if you were to replace your CCAs with other wiims then you'd no longer need to use chromecast to play Spotify.
You'd put the wiims into a group within the wiim app. However, sadly we are not able to create persistent groups like google home.

I rarely use Chromecast for music, but one thing that has worked well for me is to chromecast Spotify to a video chromecast (attached to a tv, obviously!), then tv optical out to wiim optical in, and that wiim is the master in a group with other wiims.
All play flawlessly, and the tv is a nice "what's playing" screen.

 

[mrbejker]

Its correct, the WiimAmp is silent for a bit, then plays along in sync with the others.( you can see on the phone that the track started for around 2-3 seconds ago)
Of course changing all external CCA was kind of the plan from the beginning. But i would still have this issue due to that other products containing chromecast still would be present in the group.
I dont have experience with lots of speakers with chromecast built in, but for example the Lemus works flawlessly in this regard. I had expected the Wiim to be similar due to that it also has chromecast integrated. Firmware issue?
When casting directly to the Wiim (no group), there is no delay when switching tracks

 

[Brantome]

Its correct, the WiimAmp is silent for a bit, then plays along in sync with the others.( you can see on the phone that the track started for around 2-3 seconds ago)
Of course changing all external CCA was kind of the plan from the beginning. But i would still have this issue due to that other products containing chromecast still would be present in the group.
I dont have experience with lots of speakers with chromecast built in, but for example the Lemus works flawlessly in this regard. I had expected the Wiim to be similar due to that it also has chromecast integrated. Firmware issue?
When casting directly to the Wiim (no group), there is no delay when switching tracks

Raise a ticket thru the WiiM app so they can have a look at your device logs

 

[harkpabst]

Its correct, the WiimAmp is silent for a bit, then plays along in sync with the others.( you can see on the phone that the track started for around 2-3 seconds ago)
Of course changing all external CCA was kind of the plan from the beginning. But i would still have this issue due to that other products containing chromecast still would be present in the group.
I dont have experience with lots of speakers with chromecast built in, but for example the Lemus works flawlessly in this regard. I had expected the Wiim to be similar due to that it also has chromecast integrated. Firmware issue?
When casting directly to the Wiim (no group), there is no delay when switching tracks

I'm really not much into multi-room playback, but I am into tinkering, so I did do some testing on my own. Devices involved: Chromecast Carbon (connected to TV), Lyngdorf TDAI-1120 (Chromecast built-in) and WiiM Amp (Chromecast built-in).

I set up groups in Google Home for CC + WiiM and Lyngdorf + WiiM. Actually, I also created a group for CC + Lyngdorf, but that didn't make much sense since the TV is connected to the Lyngdorf via coaxial, so even if both are playing at the same time, only one of them can be listened to. I used the Spotify app and Radio Paradise app on Android for this test.

Results:
Group CC + WiiM: Both devices start playing at the same time, no problem.
Group Lyngdorf + WiiM: WiiM Amp takes about 2 seconds before playback starts in sync.

So yes, I can confirm your findings when the WiiM Amp is grouped with my other Chromecast built-in device (Chromecast built-in is audio only, just like the Chromecast Audio was), but not when grouped with the Chromecast Carbon.

I will give feedback to WiiM through the WiiM Home App when I find the time to do so.

 

[mrbejker]

I´ve sent a ticket through the app
Thank you for confirming my issue with your own test!
Been trying new groups adding/removing units, but seems like the only issue still is the WiimAmp
Hope they can fix this, because im really looking forward to buying more WiimAmps and Pro's for multiroom use
The eq options are great and quite unique for a compact streamer in this pricerange. I would probably make most use of them when creating seamless soundfields with multiple speakers in multiroom configurations

 

[harkpabst]

Hope they can fix this, because im really looking forward to buying more WiimAmps and Pro's for multiroom use

If you could go all WiiM there shouldn't be any issues, at least none that I've heard of. They have full control over their own multi-room protocol, but not over Chromecast groups.

Let's see if they can find a fix.

 

[mrbejker]

I don´t doubt that.
However beeing a Android user and already having atleast one bigger chromecast speaker that i don´t want to switch out makes it harder
Adding more active chromecast speakers and combining these with Wiim and left over stereocomponents is my goal for multiroom use

 

[tsanguine]

I have this same problem and would be interested in any solutions. I don't think going all WiiM is a great solution as the Chromecast Audio's are the ones working. I currently have 12 devices using the Chromecast standard with four of those being actual Chromecast Audios. I've used everything from Gramofon, Muzo Cobblestone, and multiple TV's and HEOS Denon devices using the same Chromecast standard without any issues. They have all been grouped together with no issues with sync or silence on track changes or starting up. Hope WiiM can fix it with a firmware update at some point.

 

[mrbejker]

Yeaterday i bought a Wiim Pro for my main stereo for testing in the same chromecast group. That one doesnt have this problem, which was a relief. Considering its the same streaming platform, i hope that they could release an update soon for the Wiim Amp to solve this very annoying issue.

 

[mrbejker]

This issue is getting more and more interesting. Connecting the Wiim Amp with ethernetcabel removes the issue when in a group with other type of chromecast devices. However, when adding a Wiim Pro to that same group, the problem comes back again

 

[WiiM Support]

This issue is getting more and more interesting. Connecting the Wiim Amp with ethernetcabel removes the issue when in a group with other type of chromecast devices. However, when adding a Wiim Pro to that same group, the problem comes back again

Hi mrbejker,

Thank you for highlighting this issue. We're addressing it right away and aim to resolve it promptly. Please stay tuned for updates!

 

[godzilladc]

Any update on this? I also have this exact problem. I've got a Pro and an Amp running speakers in the same room and it's fairly annoying.

 

[mrbejker]

The latest firmware 5.0.613149 seems to have solved the problem for me. I do run both the Amp and Pro with ethernetcable, i havnt yet tried if wireless makes any difference

 

[godzilladc]

The latest firmware 5.0.613149 seems to have solved the problem for me. I do run both the Amp and Pro with ethernetcable, i havnt yet tried if wireless makes any difference

Good to know! That firmware doesn't seem to be available to me just yet, but I'm glad to know this will be resolved for me soon (though I do use wifi, not ethernet).

 

[mrbejker]

I can now also confirm that its working with wireless connection:

 

[godzilladc]

My firmware updated today, without much of a change.

I'm using a Wiim Pro and a Wiim Amp in the same room as Chromecast devices, the amp plays about a second after the pro (though in sync) for every single track. It's fairly annoying.