I don't know if I made the right choice?

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Sylvain

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Joined
Jul 18, 2024
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30
Hello everyone.

I've just received the Ultra.
At first, I was excited when I found out about the WiiM. But as I've been reading the forum for the past week, I've become worried.

I was hoping to use the Ultra in my bedroom, on my bedside table, as a headphone amp. Sources used: TuneIn, amazon music and files on USB stick.

1 - Things that can't be changed : The sound quality of the headphone output is really very average.
My references are Marantz PM7000n, Aune X1 and X5, Fiio BTR5, Mojo2. My HD 800s and HD 280 pro headphones (for night use).
Listening is tiring and irritating right from the start with the 800s. Impossible to hold on for long.
Listening is better with the 280 pro. I find that the quality of the headphone output is equivalent to the quality of the headphones.
Anyway, I was planning to buy a dac (maybe Audiolab) soon just for the Ultra.

2 - Big disappointment with the USB input.
Impossible to select this source from the touch screen. You always have to use your phone to listen to your files.
IF AT LEAST, there was the possibility of saving a playlist in the presets reserved for streaming sources.

3 - I don't know if it's me, but the USB input doesn't seem to be up to scratch, and it's particularly frustrating.
I put 1927 flac files on a 512GB USB stick formatted in NTFS.
The WiiM Home application adds the files approximately 3,4 at a time. Imagine the number of scans I had to do in a row!
Then, after 1500 recognized files, none were added.

4 - I set up Alexa in French in WiiM Home and in the Alexa application on my Samsung S10+. But nothing works. Alexa is still in English.

5 - I don't know how to make playlists. Theoretically via WiiM Home, I have to add songs one by one!
Otherwise, reading the forum, I was going to use Foobar to record playlists on the USB key, but I don't see a Playlist folder anywhere in the WiiM_cache folder. I tested a 1-file playlist, to see if the Playlist folder appears, but no.

The playlist appears in "My Music", but not in the WiiM:Media Server section (for the USB input), I don't know if I'm precise enough.

I've read that some people find the WiiM Ultra really interesting compared to other streamers. Cold shower.
 
Sylvain said:
Hello everyone.

I've just received the Ultra.
At first, I was excited when I found out about the WiiM. But as I've been reading the forum for the past week, I've become worried.

I was hoping to use the Ultra in my bedroom, on my bedside table, as a headphone amp. Sources used: TuneIn, amazon music and files on USB stick.

1 - Things that can't be changed : The sound quality of the headphone output is really very average.
My references are Marantz PM7000n, Aune X1 and X5, Fiio BTR5, Mojo2. My HD 800s and HD 280 pro headphones (for night use).
Listening is tiring and irritating right from the start with the 800s. Impossible to hold on for long.
Listening is better with the 280 pro. I find that the quality of the headphone output is equivalent to the quality of the headphones.
Anyway, I was planning to buy a dac (maybe Audiolab) soon just for the Ultra.

2 - Big disappointment with the USB input.
Impossible to select this source from the touch screen. You always have to use your phone to listen to your files.
IF AT LEAST, there was the possibility of saving a playlist in the presets reserved for streaming sources.

3 - I don't know if it's me, but the USB input doesn't seem to be up to scratch, and it's particularly frustrating.
I put 1927 flac files on a 512GB USB stick formatted in NTFS.
The WiiM Home application adds the files approximately 3,4 at a time. Imagine the number of scans I had to do in a row!
Then, after 1500 recognized files, none were added.

4 - I set up Alexa in French in WiiM Home and in the Alexa application on my Samsung S10+. But nothing works. Alexa is still in English.

5 - I don't know how to make playlists. Theoretically via WiiM Home, I have to add songs one by one!
Otherwise, reading the forum, I was going to use Foobar to record playlists on the USB key, but I don't see a Playlist folder anywhere in the WiiM_cache folder. I tested a 1-file playlist, to see if the Playlist folder appears, but no.

The playlist appears in "My Music", but not in the WiiM:Media Server section (for the USB input), I don't know if I'm precise enough.

I've read that some people find the WiiM Ultra really interesting compared to other streamers. Cold shower.
Click to expand...
You can play with EQ for the headphones to see if that improves things.
 
The WiiM Ultra support team contacted me.

I don't think I'm the only one. Thank you for your responsiveness and support LinkPlay.

Concerning problem (4): French from France is not supported, so I had to set alexa to French/Canadian.

Also :
"2. USB Media Library:
- Direct Browsing: We are exploring the possibility of enabling direct browsing of music on the touchscreen of your device. We are committed to developing this feature and will keep you updated on our progress.
- USB Playlists: We plan to support preset USB playlists later this month. Your suggestion is under discussion, and we're working on an implementation plan. "

And :
" 5. Playlist Management: Acknowledging the current limitations in our app regarding USB tracks and playlists, we are prioritizing this for a swift resolution. Thank you for your patience as we work to enhance this feature. "

So my advice is to keep the WiiM and trust the team to improve what can be improved.
slartibartfast said:
You can play with EQ for the headphones to see if that improves things.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tip. I did it right from the start, accustomed to HD 800s.
But the sound quality is really not very good. But I expected that, you can't have everything for this price. And as I said, I'm counting on a Dac soon (after some savings) to upgrade from my Mojo2.
 
USB HD support- needs to have options for music database creation, and browse by folder. My guess is the Ultra doesn't have memory for large collections- so perhaps browse by folder is better option.

If I had a Ultra here to test, I've got 3TB HD full of music I could test it with that
 
@Sylvain
You may or may not have seen this / find it interesting:

Wiim Ultra with Headphones

I am very hard at hearing and have sold all my speakers and just started using headphones. Would the Wiim Ultra be good with the built in headphone amp for my use. I have owned the Wiim pro when I could hear with awesome results, gave it to a friend. My headphones that I have are 32 ohms...
forum.wiimhome.com forum.wiimhome.com

I have a pair of hd 280 pros lying around somewhere, I might give the ultra a try with them.
 
Hello everyone,

I got the latest update this morning: 5.2.625032

Concerning USB storage:
- Folders and subfolders are recognized without any apparent problem;
- Files are counted at once in the WiiM Home application (1998 flac and DSD).
- DSD files (64) now play at 24-bit 192 khz.

Persistent problem:
While the number of files is now correctly recognized by the WiiM Home application, the WiiM Ultra does not give the correct file count. (A comment has been sent to the LinkPlay team)

Concerning the USB input, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that navigation with the touch screen will be possible and available in one of the next updates.
And the possibility of making playlists accessible from the touch screen.

@Mr Ee:
I hadn't paid attention to your comment (sorry).
I appreciate your report. It seems to support my point of view.
Except that I'm a little more severe than you are about the ultra's headphone output.
I'm going to do some listening tests with the line output to test the quality of the DAC (Dac that I won't be using in the future).
I'll also test the optical and coax outputs to my Aune X1. I imagine that the Ultra will then be transparent (a configuration I intend to use with the purchase of a dedicated headphone Dac).

Best regards.
 

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slartibartfast said:
You can play with EQ for the headphones to see if that improves things.
Click to expand...
You were right.

I did a listening test with my Aune.
I was surprised by the bad result.

Indeed, by manipulating the equalizer, I got a much more acceptable sound from the Ultra's headphone output.
I was using a wrong usual settings.
 
Sylvain said:
The WiiM Ultra support team contacted me.

I don't think I'm the only one. Thank you for your responsiveness and support LinkPlay.

Concerning problem (4): French from France is not supported, so I had to set alexa to French/Canadian.

Also :
"2. USB Media Library:
- Direct Browsing: We are exploring the possibility of enabling direct browsing of music on the touchscreen of your device. We are committed to developing this feature and will keep you updated on our progress.
- USB Playlists: We plan to support preset USB playlists later this month. Your suggestion is under discussion, and we're working on an implementation plan. "

And :
" 5. Playlist Management: Acknowledging the current limitations in our app regarding USB tracks and playlists, we are prioritizing this for a swift resolution. Thank you for your patience as we work to enhance this feature. "

So my advice is to keep the WiiM and trust the team to improve what can be improved.


Thanks for the tip. I did it right from the start, accustomed to HD 800s.
But the sound quality is really not very good. But I expected that, you can't have everything for this price. And as I said, I'm counting on a Dac soon (after some savings) to upgrade from my Mojo2.
Click to expand...
One of the reasons I returned my Wiim Pro for the Ultra was the USB streaming and I just stupidly assumed you could play it from the touchscreen without phone. AARGGH!
 
Longfellow78 said:
One of the reasons I returned my Wiim Pro for the Ultra was the USB streaming and I just stupidly assumed you could play it from the touchscreen without phone. AARGGH!
Click to expand...

Even if you could, it would be horrid, small 3" screen, browsing folders? :-/

With my SB Touch, looking at screen, but using the IR remote there is acceleration so it's much better system scrolling through dozens of folders (as long it reads in fast enough/caches the directory)

Probably best for small libraries, or USB flash stick with a dozen albums on etc.

I'm sure they'll add the feature.
 
I wish, as a minimum, that you could add playlists via the WiiM Home application, which you could save like the 12 streaming presets you can already select on the Ultra.
 
AlanB said:
This site gives EQ settings for many headphones, which sound good to my ear at least.

github.com

AutoEq/results/oratory1990 at master · jaakkopasanen/AutoEq

Automatic headphone equalization from frequency responses - jaakkopasanen/AutoEq
github.com github.com
Click to expand...
Thanks a lot Alan B.

The link provided is fabulous. I have to save it for always.

I had some trouble setting the treble of my HD 800s.
Now the sound is far better.

And for the HD 280 pro, I had done something really approximate.

Best regards.
Sylvain
 
Longfellow78 said:
One of the reasons I returned my Wiim Pro for the Ultra was the USB streaming and I just stupidly assumed you could play it from the touchscreen without phone. AARGGH!
Click to expand...

With the latest firmware you can choose USB out on the screen...
 
When following the instructions for EQ I see this:

"You can use filters 1-5 or 1-10. Apply preamp of -5.7 dB or -5.7 dB, respectively."

Not really sure what this means or where I can do these settings. Can anyone explain?
 
Fralle said:
When following the instructions for EQ I see this:

"You can use filters 1-5 or 1-10. Apply preamp of -5.7 dB or -5.7 dB, respectively."

Not really sure what this means or where I can do these settings. Can anyone explain?
Click to expand...
Where did you find these instructions? A link is probably better than a contextless quote.
 
Not sure, but this rather sound like Musician's advice, not WiiM's advice?
 
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