How to get the best sound using 'Headphones Only' with the Wiim Ultra ? Which output to use?

[Sake]

Hi All,

Very confident with the Wiim Ultra. Brilliant piece of equipment!

Most of the the time i like to play the Ultra with speakers thrue my amp and speakers, using Ultra's line out.

But often prefer the headphones. Especially later at night, so far, i connected the Ultra's line out to a headphone amp ( Pro-Ject Head Box S2 ) which solely adaps line in.

Sounds good, but wondering if this is a 'good' enough configuration to get the best sound of the Ultra with my pair of headphones?

Is there room for improvement that justify an additional investment in dedicated gear?

I am a noob about using optical out or usb from the Ultra.. Should it be a worthy upgrade buying a dedicated headphone amp with probably a dac build in?

Or leave the line out as it is, because it sounds also absolutely fine to my amp with normal floorstanding speakers ? ..

( I just simply splittet Ultra's Line Out: One set rca to the power amp's input en another set rca to the headphone amp's input )

Thanks for your thoughts in advance,
Sake

 

[Mr Ee]

Welcome.

Is there room for improvement that justify an additional investment in dedicated gear?

Always
Investment is the word I use to justify my addiction too...

it sounds also absolutely fine

To me this says you are very happy with what you have now.
(You didn't mention what headphones you are using.)

My opinion:
You'll hear more of a difference with different headphones than you will by using digital output into another dac/hp amp.
That's not to say that a different hp amp or dac/hp amp combo won't make your current headphones sound 'better', but you may well be able to achieve a similat level of difference / "betterness" from things like applying EQ within the ultra for your headphones.

Rather than splitting the ultra rca, can't you use the s2's rca loop?
Possibly won't make any actual difference, just wondering!.

If possible, I'd suggest taking your S2 and headphones to a store and trying different amps / dac amps / headphones to really see where you find any improvements significant enough for you to part with your hard earned cash.

 

[Wiimer]

Hi All,

Very confident with the Wiim Ultra. Brilliant piece of equipment!

Most of the the time i like to play the Ultra with speakers thrue my amp and speakers, using Ultra's line out.

But often prefer the headphones. Especially later at night, so far, i connected the Ultra's line out to a headphone amp ( Pro-Ject Head Box S2 ) which solely adaps line in.

Sounds good, but wondering if this is a 'good' enough configuration to get the best sound of the Ultra with my pair of headphones?

Is there room for improvement that justify an additional investment in dedicated gear?

I am a noob about using optical out or usb from the Ultra.. Should it be a worthy upgrade buying a dedicated headphone amp with probably a dac build in?

Or leave the line out as it is, because it sounds also absolutely fine to my amp with normal floorstanding speakers ? ..

( I just simply splittet Ultra's Line Out: One set rca to the power amp's input en another set rca to the headphone amp's input )

Thanks for your thoughts in advance,
Sake
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Hi,

I agree with @Mr Ee suggestion.
Are you using WiiM EQ or RC? I think it is worth a try.

If the frequency measurement of your headphones is already published, setting the correction value to the PEQ of the WiiM may improve the sound quality with better balance.

However, since you can't apply separate EQ to speakers and headphones with the current connections, it would make sense to add a DAC for the speakers or a headphone amp with digital inputs to separate the two outputs. (If you like the EQ.)

 

[Mr Ee]

However, since you can't apply separate EQ to speakers and headphones with the current connections, it would make sense to add a DAC for the speakers or a headphone amp with digital inputs to separate the two outputs. (If you like the EQ.)

Smart Presets!

Just yesterday I was using my 'phones and wondering why it didn't sound quite right.
Yet again, I'd forgotten to turn off EQ (room correction).

 

[Wiimer]

Smart Presets!

Just yesterday I was using my 'phones and wondering why it didn't sound quite right.
Yet again, I'd forgotten to turn off EQ (room correction).

If I am branching the line output of the Ultra, I can't use the Smart Preset, can I?
Or am I misunderstanding the OP's question again?
If so, sorry .

 

[Sake]

Thanks you all for your effort replying so quickly! And all others!

@Mr Ee , last year i bought a set of relatively cheap headphones, the Philips X2HR, together with the Project Headbox S2, a total investment of approx $250,00 . Considered te be a mid-fy solution, just good enough to save my marriage.

No more War:
To have a little fun for my own, ( yes!! ) when my wife sleeps and give my picky neighbours no reason to listen with a stetoscope at my front door, late night.

EQ:
For line out to my power amp and floorstanding speakers, EQ has been set on a bit more bass and a bit less treble. Because line out is bridged with the headphone amp these EQ settings also affects the headphones, which sound good to as well.

Keeping preferred EQ Settings?
The Ultra using with USB out for Headphones?
If i use optical or USB ( or optical ) output from the Ultra to a dedicated headphone amp, with or without a build in dac... Will we loose the EQ settings? Use is as a transporter only? I am a real dumb person on that...

Does the EQ / RC settings only affect on rca line-out? In that case a dedicated head amp ( connected optical or USB) will be less versatile, i suppose?

Thanks so far for all.
Curious .... Kind regards , Sake

 

[Mr Ee]

If i use optical or USB ( or optical ) output from the Ultra to a dedicated headphone amp, with or without a build in dac... Will we loose the EQ settings? Use is as a transporter only?

If you use digital out of the wiim then you must have an external dac; could be a one-box dac/hp amp or a two box solution.
The EQ settings are applied to the signal before being sent out, so no, you will not lose the EQ.

Because line out is bridged with the headphone amp these EQ settings also affects the headphones, which sound good to as well.

As long as you like it, that's all that really matters!
You could save different EQ settings for speakers and headphones and switch between them.

 

[Sake]

If you use digital out of the wiim then you must have an external dac; could be a one-box dac/hp amp or a two box solution.
The EQ settings are applied to the signal before being sent out, so no, you will not lose the EQ.



As long as you like it, that's all that really matters!
You could save different EQ settings for speakers and headphones and switch between them.

Thanks so much! Now i understand the possibilities, Super i.e FiiO K7 , maybe this headphone/dac amp sounds as good as it looks, and is not that expensive at approx $200

 

[Mr Ee]

My question would be, would it be noticeably/significantly "better" than your current setup?
Again, I'd really encourage you to find a store to try some stuff if you can. It's saved me a few 'looks nice and reviews well' purchases when I've listened and found it's not as good as I already have or something I wasn't looking at is better (for me).
One example - I was going to buy a topping dx3 pro+ (for a wiim mini headphone setup) but waited to go to a store. When I listened to it I wasn't particularly impressed. I then tried a fiio k11 (original) and preferred it. Bonus was it was cheaper too!
Downside... while I was there I bought some new headphones too... so beware!

 

[Wiimer]

You could save different EQ settings for speakers and headphones and switch between them.

Ah, it finally made sense. I was thinking of "Per-Output EQ" for some reason .