Tidal Idagio/Airplay vs Tidal Connect

[ChrisByrd]

I’ve just taken up Idagio’s Black Friday offer of six months for around half price as I’ve always liked the service. I’m hoping that it will be integrated into WiiM Home before too long, but in the meantime I’m using AirPlay 2 and have been pleasantly surprised at how good it sounds. Comparing John Wilson’s recent recording of Rachmaninov Symphony 2 (CD quality) with Tidal Connect, I was interested to see that Idagio/AirPlay 2 is streaming at 900 kbps against Tidal Connect’s 491 kbps. I need to up the volume slightly with AirPlay but otherwise little difference.

Only problem is, I was hoping to upgrade my WiiM Pro to an Ultra, but will have to hold off until Idagio is integrated (hint, hint).

 

[huw]

I was interested to see that Idagio/AirPlay 2 is streaming at 900 kbps against Tidal Connect’s 491 kbps.

I wouldn't read much into the 900 kbps figure reported from the WiiM Home App. This just means you're using Airplay 1 (ALAC at 16-bit/44.1 kHz). It doesn't mean the stream to the device you're Airplay-ing from is that bitrate...

 

[WiiM Team]

Idagio is on our roadmap

 

[Burnside]

Given the Idagio app supports both airplay and chromecast, and only streams up to CD quality I don’t see what benefit having it in the WiiM home app would bring - use its native app and cast to your WiiM device.

 

[Burnside]

Idagio is on our roadmap

There’s a roadmap?

Can you please share?

 

[hgo58]

There’s a roadmap?

Can you please share?

@WiiM Support do share the roadmap of what they were thinking about a year ago.

 

[ChrisByrd]

Thanks for the replies, good to know Idagio is still on the roadmap. I guess the main advantage of having Idagio integrated into the WHA is taking the streaming load off the iPad. Maybe added reliability as well as I do get occasional glitches with AirPlay.

 

[Burnside]

Thanks for the replies, good to know Idagio is still on the roadmap. I guess the main advantage of having Idagio integrated into the WHA is taking the streaming load off the iPad. Maybe added reliability as well as I do get occasional glitches with AirPlay.

Fair point

 

[ghoti]

I’ve just taken up Idagio’s Black Friday offer of six months for around half price as I’ve always liked the service. I’m hoping that it will be integrated into WiiM Home before too long, but in the meantime I’m using AirPlay 2 and have been pleasantly surprised at how good it sounds. Comparing John Wilson’s recent recording of Rachmaninov Symphony 2 (CD quality) with Tidal Connect, I was interested to see that Idagio/AirPlay 2 is streaming at 900 kbps against Tidal Connect’s 491 kbps. I need to up the volume slightly with AirPlay but otherwise little difference.

Only problem is, I was hoping to upgrade my WiiM Pro to an Ultra, but will have to hold off until Idagio is integrated (hint, hint).

I acknowledge my ignorance . And apologize if this is not the right place to ask.
I have, like ChrisByrd, taken advantage of Idagio's offer. I cannot figure out how to stream from Idagio to my Wiim Amp Pro. I understand I cannot use Alexa. I have installed the Idagio on my Android phone, but cannot figure out how next to proceed.

I've tentatively concluded that the only way is to use Bluetooth from my Android phone (or desktop PC) to The Wiim Amp Pro. Not happy that I cannot take advantage of the WiFi streaming rate, but aside from that, I find that with the Android phone Bluetooth-paired to the Wiim, I don't seem to be able to use the Wiim remote. (I guess because I can only pair one Bluetooth device to the Wiim at a time?) Am I doing something wrong or is there a way around this?

I'd be grateful for any suggestions and thank you for reading.

 

[Burnside]

I acknowledge my ignorance . And apologize if this is not the right place to ask.
I have, like ChrisByrd, taken advantage of Idagio's offer. I cannot figure out how to stream from Idagio to my Wiim Amp Pro. I understand I cannot use Alexa. I have installed the Idagio on my Android phone, but cannot figure out how next to proceed.

I'd be grateful for any suggestions and thank you for reading.

When you start playing a track, near the bottom of the screen you should see a narrow Now Playing bar. If you click on that, it’ll open up a full screen Now Playing page. Underneath the large play icon at the bottom of the screen, you should see a small rectangular cast icon. If you select that (if you are a subscriber) it should present you with a list of compatible playback devices, one of which will hopefully be your WiiM Amp Pro. Select that and the app should then send your audio over Chromecast to your WiiM device.

 

[ChrisByrd]

Like Burnside said you can use Chromecast on an Android device. This should give you CD quality (Idagio’s maximum) though I’m pretty sure you don’t get gapless playback. I own an iPad so use Airplay 2 which gives CD quality and gapless playback, and is mostly reliable. Hopefully though Idagio will soon be a supported serve in the WiiM Home app.

 

[Burnside]

Like Burnside said you can use Chromecast on an Android device. This should give you CD quality (Idagio’s maximum) though I’m pretty sure you don’t get gapless playback. I own an iPad so use Airplay 2 which gives CD quality and gapless playback, and is mostly reliable. Hopefully though Idagio will soon be a supported serve in the WiiM Home app.

Has anyone affirmed lossless CD playback using AirPlay 2? Apple Music famously and Tidal aren’t bit perfect lossless using AirPlay 2 in most circumstances.

 

[JAB]

Really not wanting to advertise even more, but I am absolutely happy with idagio and an Airplay1 capable device. Either feeding a WiiM device or something else.

 

[ghoti]

Like Burnside said you can use Chromecast on an Android device. This should give you CD quality (Idagio’s maximum) though I’m pretty sure you don’t get gapless playback. I own an iPad so use Airplay 2 which gives CD quality and gapless playback, and is mostly reliable. Hopefully though Idagio will soon be a supported serve in the WiiM Home app.

Thank you Burnside and ChrisByrd. I went the Chromecast route and am now able to stream via WiFi. (I was a bit reluctant -- I like to have as little as possible to do w/ Google). It works, BUT I have to request the pieces I want to hear by using the keyboard (and stylus instead of my fat fingers) on my Android phone screen. It would be nice to be able to use the Wiim voice remote (as I am able to do w/ 'Alexa'-capable apps).

After going w/ Chromecast (which I understand requires a complete Wiim reset to remove), I heard this from Idagio support:

If you have the URL for the music on Idagio.com, you can play it through Open Network Stream in the WiiM Home app.

Has anyone tried this? Wonder about the benefits/ disadvantages, as compared to Chromecast.

Thanks for reading and for info and suggestions.

 

[ChrisByrd]

I’ve not heard that about using ONS for Idagio - did they give you any details on how to do this?

 

[ghoti]

ChrisByrd, That's all they gave me. I started looking to find the URL for the Idagio stream I want -- so far, I haven't found it, but have not spent much time on that hunt so far. I will probably make further inquiry of Idagio support. I'll keep you posted, and ask that you do the same. (I'm not expecting to move too rapidly on this - pretty busy w/ other stuff. TU.

 

[DoctorFriedman]

Given the Idagio app supports both airplay and chromecast, and only streams up to CD quality I don’t see what benefit having it in the WiiM home app would bring - use its native app and cast to your WiiM device.

For me, an old f**k who still mostly listens to LPs and CDs and is of an age where I am disinclined to learn what Chromecast is, let alone how to use it, and has not owned an Apple product since I dropped my 160GB iPod and crashed the HD 15 years ago, the benefit would be simplicity - having to learn one thing rather than three more things that I have no inclination to learn.

(I know this is an old post. I am replying to it so the WiiM folks have this idea on their radar: Not all of their customers are tech-savvy kids who want to do technological backflips; some are people like me because the WiiM Ultra was the best-priced, easiest-to-set-up, easiest-to-integrate into an existing hifi system streaming box. And it has a knob and a display!)

 

[Burnside]

Glad to know at 72 I’m still considered a tech savvy kid

 

[Burnside]

- having to learn one thing rather than three more things that I have no inclination to learn.

The one thing you may have to learn in using any app outside the WiiM Home app is you can often just select the speaker icon on the app now playing page and select the WiiM device you want to play on. That’s often it - nothing more complicated than that. Indeed, I’ve just downloaded Idagio and set up a test account and that’s all I had to do to see my Chromecast and AirPlay enabled devices. Fair enough, I had to enable Chromecast and AirPlay during set up of my WiiM device, but that’s a one-off process that setup walks you thru. You don’t need to wait to enjoy Idagio playback on your WiiM device.

Even for services that are in the WiiM app, they are seldom as feature rich or well laid out as the original service app so I tend to use the latter rather than the WiiM home app.

 

[DoctorFriedman]

Glad to know at 72 I’m still considered a tech savvy kid

Savvier than me. I reached a point a few years ago when I decided that I just didn't want to learn any new tech if I could help it. I became a selective Luddite. So... If I don't need to know anything about Chromecast, I don't want to. That is not where my intellectual curiosity lies.