Ongoing Beta Beta Test: Qobuz Connect

[EddNog]

Since Qobuz Connect, the only "play" function I use within WHA any more is to select presets -- mostly the IP addresses of online hi-q radio sources, or Radio Paradise, BBC, etc.

Mildly off topic, but is there an way to set a specific Qobuz playlist as a preset in my WiiM or in Wiim Home App?

-Ed

 

[Balthazar B]

Mildly off topic, but is there an way to set a specific Qobuz playlist as a preset in my WiiM or in Wiim Home App?

-Ed

Yes, at least with Android. Try:

• In WHA, select your WiiM target device;
• In Browse, got to Qobuz;
• Select Qobuz Playlist;
• Open a playlist;
• From the 3-dot menu, select Add to Preset.

I don't know whether it works identically with all music services or content sources, or if the UI is the same in iOS, so YMMV.

 

[EddNog]

Yes, at least with Android. Try:

• In WHA, select your WiiM target device;
• In Browse, got to Qobuz;
• Select Qobuz Playlist;
• Open a playlist;
• From the 3-dot menu, select Add to Preset.

I don't know whether it works identically with all music services or content sources, or in iOS, so YMMV.

Thanks very much for the advice; alas, it does not offer this for me when I do that:


-Ed

 

[Balthazar B]

@EddNog, so that's a personal playlist you set up in Qobuz? Is that WHA iOS?

I can add a personal playlist as well as a Qobuz playlist. Here's the UI for the former in WHA Android:



...and the latter:



BTW, RIP, Marianne!

 

[EddNog]

@EddNog, so that's a personal playlist you set up in Qobuz? Is that WHA iOS?

I can add a personal playlist as well as a Qobuz playlist. Here's the UI for the former in WHA Android:

View attachment 16950

...and the latter:

View attachment 16951

BTW, RIP, Marianne!

A playlist I created in Qobuz. I tried leaving it private as well as making it public, and in neither case did it let me add to Presets. My screenshot is from WiiM Home App for iOS/iPhone.

-Ed

 

[Balthazar B]

If the iOS app doesn't support the same functionality as the Android app, I guess that's a feature request. I don't know why there'd be a difference, unless it's a consequence of some weird Apple privacy or security policy.

If you have any other streaming services exposed in WHA, might be worthwhile to test those, just in case it's a Qobuz API issue affecting only WHA iOS...

 

[Burnside]

Looks like you’ve perhaps gone into the three dot menu rather than simply selecting the circled “1” icon as per this screenshot from the Qobuz page in the iPad WiiM app



Edit: the Android app also has that icon as well as the three dot menu with the option shown again there - the iPad app only has the former.

 

[Balthazar B]

Edit: the Android app also has that icon as well as the three dot menu with the option shown again there - the iPad app only has the former.

So it does! For some reason, never noticed that before!! Cheers!

 

[EddNog]

Looks like you’ve perhaps gone into the three dot menu rather than simply selecting the circled “1” icon as per this screenshot from the Qobuz page in the iPad WiiM app

View attachment 16953

Edit: the Android app also has that icon as well as the three dot menu with the option shown again there - the iPad app only has the former.

Thanks so much—this was the solution!!!

-Ed

 

[CrystalGipsy]

Slightly of topic but can those testing Qobuz connect verify if you run the Qobuz app on another device such a pc or another phone/tablet does it show up as a device to stream and control it like Spotify can?

 

[azoriusmage]

Slightly of topic but can those testing Qobuz connect verify if you run the Qobuz app on another device such a pc or another phone/tablet does it show up as a device to stream and control it like Spotify can?

Yes it does

 

[CrystalGipsy]

Thats great news thanks for replying. Shame Tidal doesnt work this way.

 

[Balthazar B]

Just had a new QC beta installed on my Android phone (qconnect-beta04). Interestingly, the Play Store did not update it automatically; I had to search in the Play Store for Qobuz to find and install it. I’ll put it through its paces later today (with fingers crossed that some if not all of my top 3 issues are addressed).

ETA:

• Distorted playback of CD-quality content on WiiM grouped devices was not fixed.
• One change I've noticed with beta04 is that WiiM devices show up as "Qobuz Connect" renderers from the start, rather than as "Network device" renderers as under beta03, switching to Qobuz Connect labels after having been selected in the app.

 

[Balthazar B]

Issue: Distorted playback of CD-quality Qobuz content sent by Qconnect to WiiM grouped devices.

2/6 - Experienced this issue using qconnect-beta04 on Android. Couple of interesting things:

• After confirming the distortion still occurs, I ungrouped the two devices (Ultra master and Pro slave). Distortion persisted on playback to Ultra.
• I force stopped the Qobuz app, then reconnected to Ultra via Qconnect, and distortion persisted on that WiiM. *However, if I switch the target to the local device, and then to the Ultra, no distortion.
• I rebooted the Ultra and did not do the target switch, and there was no distortion. Initial thought is that once corrupted, sending a new stream to that single WiiM device, the digital stream is being corrupted within the WiiM. BTW, in all cases, the WiiM is being used as a streamer sending the digital stream to a downstream DAC.
• I tried some variants, repeating the above tests, including:
  • Using the Pro as the master and Ultra as slave. No differences.
  • Using the Pro as the master and a WiiM device without beta firmware as slave. No differences.
  • Using the Pro's DAC and line feeding the downstream amp, grouped with a WiiM devices using its own DAC. No differences.
  • Setting the master and slave devices with a maximum output of 16/44. No differences.

While it's tempting to think this is a WiiM problem, it may be more complex than that and require things to be tweaked by both WiiM and Qobuz. I hope they're reproducing this issue and working on it together!

 

[huw]

After confirming the distortion still occurs, I ungrouped the two devices (Ultra master and Pro slave). Distortion persisted on playback to Ultra.

Is the output to the external DAC 16-bit/44.1 kHz or is the WiiM Ultra resampling it even when ungrouped?

 

[Balthazar B]

Is the output to the external DAC 16-bit/44.1 kHz or is the WiiM Ultra resampling it even when ungrouped?

The normal setting is 24/192 on both WiiMs, but I tried limiting their digital outputs to match the 16/44 feed to the master device. Same distortion occurred in both cases.

Ungrouped, every single WiiM device works perfectly when output set to 24/192 or 16/44 for that matter. So I don't know if something's not working properly when the setup process is occurring between Qobuz and WiiM on a new stream -- but only when WiiMs are grouped -- or if something's broken within the WiiM ecosystem due to a conflict between the Qconnect firmware and the grouping-related firmware both residing on the WiiM devices. Or something else. But the bug is 100% reproducible.

 

[huw]

I'm not sure fixing the output sampling rate is testing the same thing though?

My question is when the master device in a group receives a 16-bit/44.1 kHz stream does it resample that to 48 kHz before passing it to other devices in the group? I know that higher sample rates are downsampled to 48 kHz but is 44.1 kHz also resampled when playing to a group?

This thread https://forum.wiimhome.com/threads/linked-wiims-resample-to-48-16.2957/ suggests it is.

Because if it is resampled and in your test when you ungrouped the devices it was still resampled then that would point to the resampling being the issue. Should be easy to test for anyone with grouped WiiM devices with the output sent to a DAC that shows sampling rate (which is pretty much all DACs?)

 

[Balthazar B]

I'm not sure fixing the output sampling rate is testing the same thing though?

My question is when the master device in a group receives a 16-bit/44.1 kHz stream does it resample that to 48 kHz before passing it to other devices in the group? I know that higher sample rates are downsampled to 48 kHz but is 44.1 kHz also resampled when playing to a group?

This thread https://forum.wiimhome.com/threads/linked-wiims-resample-to-48-16.2957/ suggests it is.

Because if it is resampled and in your test when you ungrouped the devices it was still resampled then that would point to the resampling being the issue. Should be easy to test for anyone with grouped WiiM devices with the output sent to a DAC that shows sampling rate (which is pretty much all DACs?)No

Not all DACs. None of mine display sampling rate.

Interesting idea, but that using WiiM's own internal DAC isn't avoiding the issue is interesting.

Ditto the fact that Tidal Connect streaming exactly the same content doesn't trigger the issue at all.

Would be good to get a few more data points and measurements, so I hope people with a variety of DACs will report what they're seeing.

 

[Mr Ee]

is 44.1 kHz also resampled when playing to a group?

I have only ever seen my dacs show 44khz when playing a 44khz source to a wiim group.
(Note that this is not in reference to qobuz connect at all, this is a general statement.)
But I'm going to test it again now!

Edit: from both tidal connect and my nas, 44.1khz files show as 44.1 on both dacs when two wiims are grouped, and everything else shows as 48khz even if both tidal and the wiim app show a higher (source) rate.
Exactly as I expected, and remembered.

 

[Balthazar B]

One interesting factoid is that high-res content (up to 24/192) via Qconnect plays flawlessly on single or grouped WiiM devices, which is a little counterintuitive. Unfortunately, AFAIK details on the network transactions between the controller, the Qobuz cloud, and the renderer are not public information, or what happens within each ecosystem as a consequence of those communications. I suspect the answer to the group distortion issue lies therein.